Hitting shelves next week are a picture book about mischievous brothers, a middle grade account centering on a Sioux chief, and the latest installment in a bestselling YA fantasy series.
Harry Miller’s Run by David Almond, illus. by Salvatore Rubbino. Candlewick, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-7636-8975-9. In an illustrated short story, 11-year-old Liam has entered the Junior Great North Run with his friend Jacksie, but his Saturday morning practice is preempted by his mother, who takes him to visit their elderly neighbor, who in turn tells Liam about an epic run he undertook himself at Liam’s age. The book earned a starred review from PW.
Crazy Messy Beautiful by Carrie Arcos. Philomel, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-399-17553-4. 16-year-old Neruda Diaz is fixated by love: he’s named after Chilean love poet Pablo Neruda, his parents are still in love, and he thinks that beautiful Autumn Cho might be the one for him. Then mystery turns tragic: Neruda’s parents’ marriage is less stable than he thought, and – like her predecessors – Autumn isn’t interested.
King’s Cage by Victoria Aveyard. HarperTeen, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-231069-9. In the third volume of Aveyard’s Red Queen series, the protagonist Mare is imprisoned and soldiers prepare for war.
Laundry Day by Jessixa Bagley. Roaring Brook/Porter, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-62672-317-7. This picture book follows brother badgers Tic and Tac, whose boredom inspires chaotic play with a clothesline. The book earned a starred review from PW.
Samson: The Piranha Who Went to Dinner by Tadgh Bentley. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-06-233537-1. In this picture book, Toothy Samson is a fish out of water: his fellow piranhas are perfectly happy to eat “the same boring food day after day,” but Samson, an adventurous soul, dreams of gourmet delights like “luscious lily linguine and crispy kelp cakes.”
The Heart of Everything That Is: Young Readers Edition by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin, adapted by Kate Waters. S&S/McElderry, $16.99; ISBN 978-1-4814-6460-4. In this young readers’ edition of a work of historical nonfiction, the story of Oglala Sioux chief Red Cloud and his army stands alone as the only American Indians to ever defeat the United States in a war (1866–1868). It’s a history inconveniently at odds with the accepted American narrative.
The Castle in the Mist by Amy Ephron. Philomel, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-399-54698-3. Ephron draws on elements common to classic children’s stories – secret gardens, powerful wishes – in her first book for young readers.
Tony by Ed Galing, illus. by Erin E. Stead. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99; ISBN 978-1-62672-308-5. Until the advent of delivery trucks, milk and eggs were brought to many American homes by horse and wagon. This picture book is the late poet Galing’s homage to a delivery horse that meant the world to him. The book earned a starred review from PW.
At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson. Simon Pulse, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-4814-4966-3. In this YA novel from the author of We Are the Ants, Tommy feels as though he’s disappearing, when he realizes it is the memory of him that is fading from those he loves.
Princessland by Emily Jenkins, illus. by Yoko Tanaka. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-374-36115-0. Jenkins’s picture book stars a girl named Romy who is so bored she doesn’t know what to do with herself. The family feline, the Lady Cat, wanders away from the house, and the cat asks the accompanying Romy to tell her all about Princessland, where she’d prefer to be.
The Unwanteds Quests #1: Dragon Captives by Lisa McMann. Aladdin, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-4814-5681-4. This first novel of a new series is set in the world of McMann’s bestselling middle grade fantasy Unwanteds series, in which twins demonstrate magical abilities.
The Mesmerist by Ronald L. Smith. Clarion, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-544-44528-4. This middle grade novel from the author of Hoodoo opens in 1864 England, where 13-year-old Jess and her mother have been running supernatural scams ever since her father’s mysterious death some years earlier.
The Little House Book of Wisdom by Laura Ingalls Wilder. HarperCollins, $12.99; ISBN 978-0-06-247078-2. This small book features illustrations, scenes, and quotes, from the enduring series.
Dormouse Dreams by Karma Wilson, illus. by Renata Liwska. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99; ISBN 978-1-4231-7874-3. One dormouse sleeps the winter away, wishing for a visit from his dormouse friend: she has already set off on a journey to see him, and readers have the fun of anticipating the joy he’ll feel when he awakens.
The Secret Project by Jonah Winter, illus. by Jeanette Winter. S&S/Beach Lane, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-4814-6913-5. Secrets seldom come grimmer than in this unsettling picture book, which describes the Los Alamos nuclear lab and the creation of the atomic bomb. The book earned a starred review from PW.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of February, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
