Sarah Jones, a bookseller at Cincinnati’s Blue Manatee Children’s Books and Decafé, and a children’s book author and illustrator in her own right (Orange, Triangle, Fox), talks about what she is recommending to children and the adults in their lives as the school year gets underway.

There are four picture books that we’re especially excited about now. In Shh! We Have a Plan, Chris Haughton does it again, with bright and bold illustrations and anticipation at every page turn. In true Haughton style, the pages jump with personality and silliness that you can’t resist. It’s one of our staff picks right now, and I recommend it to everyone I can. We’ve only had the book in for a week and I’ve already read it twice at our story times. I’m an artist too, and this speaks to my artistic side as well.

Sparky! by Jenny Offill and Chris Appelhans is a new picture book that is simply adorable. It tells the story of a girl and her pet sloth, and has sweet and mellow watercolor illustrations that are perfect for kids ages four to six. It’s a fun tale that shows a unique friendship and is sure to delight. It’s definitely a new favorite to handsell.

Our own publishing arm, Blue Manatee Press, has recently published Your Red Shoes, a picture book by John Hutton, illustrated by Leah Busch. It’s a touching, sentimental tale of childhood and growing up. It follows a child’s first pair of shoes from the first step to outdoor adventures, and it makes a perfect gift for any of life’s special moments.

And another new picture book favorite is Otis and the Scarecrow, an addition to Loren Long’s Otis the Tractor series. It arrives just in time for fall, since Long’s beautiful illustrations of autumn foliage are to be enjoyed while wrapped in a blanket. It’s a great way to bring the themes of friendship, acceptance, and bravery into story times, and a perfect choice for this season. We love Loren Long – he happens to be a local author – and we handsell his books all the time.

For middle-grade readers, we’re excited about Jon Scieszka’s Frank Einstein and the Antimatter Motor, illustrated by Brian Biggs. It’s the first book in a new series by Scieszka – which is very exciting in itself. The novel tells the story of a boy genius and his robotic inventions, and the writing is smart, funny, and offbeat. It’s jam-packed with scientific facts and lots of laughs, and is sure to be a favorite with bright and curious kids.

Another middle-grade novel we love is Emperor Pickletine Rides the Bus, the very silly, much anticipated final book in Tom Angleberger’s Origami Yoda series. It has it all: school drama, new characters, and a twist ending. With plenty of humor, cartoon illustrations, and funny takes on classic Star Wars characters, it’s another great choice for boys, and for even the most reluctant of readers. Angleberger completes his series in style.