Despite detailed, documentary-style illustrations by Tavares (Hoops) and eloquent prose by Robbins (The Fastest Drummer), this work offers a spotty account of how landscape-related knowledge came to be represented visually and at scale. Beginning in prehistory, the creators imagine a family recording the valley landscape they see from an enclosed rock ledge: “Mother drew dots on a cave wall. Father etched grooves into a mammoth tusk.” The survey next jumps to ancient Greeks’ speculations about Earth’s shape (positing it as rectangular, disklike, cylindrical, or spherical), then notes how “Native Americans created maps with rocks,” Egyptians painted on papyrus, Chinese mapmakers utilized wood, and Polynesians used shells and sticks. When covering how, “much later, European explorers traveled by land and sea to chart our planet... and proved that it was round,” the text elides matters of colonialism, instead focusing on refinements of accuracy and detail. Spreads return several times to the original valley landscape, which slowly becomes covered with buildings while surveyors stand in the foreground. Though several instruments are named (a compass, a Gunter’s chain, a theodolite), their workings are not explained; back matter instead examines instruments used by contemporary surveyors and cartographers. Human figures are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Marietta Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Quiet gouache spreads with an appropriately folk-art feel give a sense of meditative calm to this picture book biography of two-time Caldecott Medalist Barbara Cooney (1917–2000). Burke Kunkel (Make Way) describes how Cooney’s love of art bloomed early, fostered by a mother who was herself an artist, and that her childhood summers consisted of leaving “the city for the sea.... Summer is Maine.” After she attends art school, publishers demand that Cooney work only in black-and-white scratchboard art—until the beauty of a rooster in her family’s farmyard inspires her to produce a story, “in five simple colors,” that turns out to be a success. Travel fills the next years, captured by Stadtlander (What Music!) in dramatic landscapes that include France, Greece, and Mexico. As Cooney ages, her focus turns to a final project: a new library for the Maine town where she lives. “Books close, then open again.// We do not always know the next story,” concludes musing text as an adult and a child share a book at bedtime, which Cooney fans will recognize as Miss Rumphius. The contemplative portrait captures an artist who reveled in Earth’s brilliance and who kept her promise, per an afterword, “to make the world more beautiful.” Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. An author’s note and selected bibliography conclude. Ages 3–7. Author’s agent: Liza Fleissig, Liza Royce Agency. Illustrator’s agent: Anne Moore Armstrong, Bright Agency. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Beneath the surface of Rockhurst’s suburban facade lies a hidden gem—the Society of Creatures Real and Magical, or SCRAM. Driven by their curiosity about the town’s cryptid legends, best friends Jenny, who has brown skin and a curly ponytail; Emiko, who has tan skin and large glasses; and Brian, a green-hued humanoid creature with pointy ears and a cowboy hat; set off in search of a troll. With enthusiasm that could charm any monster, the trio plunge into the realms of mythological lore to uncover the secrets of mystical beings. While perusing the local library for not-so-esoteric knowledge, they learn that trolls are nocturnal creatures with a taste for frog juice. Armed with this newfound expertise, the team embarks on their quest, determined to succeed where others have failed. Each panel of this whimsical graphic novel by Lucey (Jonesy) is packed with playful shenanigans and cartoony facial expressions, making each page turn an unexpected delight. Warm and accessible, this paranormal caper is a winner for readers eager for an escapade that showcases the joys of learning and discovery and the magic of earnest friendship. Ages 8–12. (July)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Scroggs (We Found a Monster) calls on animal lovers and musical theater aficionados in this inviting graphic novel series launch about a tween who can control animals. Finch Eaglehawk is more than just an exuberant thespian with a penchant for Bowie-esque escapades. He is also secretly a PetWizard, one with the ability to control, as he says, the “etcetera” creatures of the animal kingdom (think creepy-crawlies, not adorable puppies). Yearning to hone his powers, Finch, along with his best friend Aberdeen and mysterious new student Erica, set out on a rip-roaring quest to translate an ancient PetMaster manual, which is written in hamsterglyphics. Along the way, Finch embarks on his most nerve-wracking endeavor of all: impressing his crush, the leading man of the school musical. The illustration’s Day-Glo aesthetics and exaggerated character designs combine to deliver an atypical superhero yarn. Bizarre yet relatable characters, off-putting yet cute critters, and familiar messages about identity, fitting in, and being oneself ferried via uplifting storytelling make for a goofy adventure. Erica has brown skin and black hair; Finch and Aberdeen read as white. Ages 8–12. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Wei has always dreamed of following in his father’s footsteps and becoming a champion lion dancer. With his dance partner and best friend Hung, the pair were primed to be the future of lion dance. But when Wei’s dad dies in a car accident, Wei quits lion dancing and distances himself from Hung. Two years later, Wei is unhappy—he’s stuck warming the bench for the Bird’s Beak Middle School basketball team, keeps to himself, and feels uninspired. But when, on a whim, he joins a junior lion dance team for practice, his passion for the sport reignites, and he immediately impresses the group with his talent and dedication. The only problem is that Hung is also on the team, and he wants nothing to do with Wei. Across vibrantly saturated, digitally rendered panels, emotions run high in the rivals’ battle to be the top lion dancer in this heartfelt graphic novel debut, which highlights the rise and fall of former friends as they learn the meaning of teamwork and forgiveness. Facts about lion dancing appear at the beginning of each chapter. An author’s note concludes. Wei and Hung are of Chinese descent. Ages 8–12. Agent: Britt Siess, Britt Siess Creative Management. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Young actors expose a deadly scandal in this twisty, tantalizing thriller from Dean (The King Is Dead) that pits “a billion-dollar company against four teenagers.” Abel Miller, who is “mixed race,” seizes the chance to costar in the reboot of the hit teen dramedy Sunset High; mysterious disappearances and death blight the original production’s “cursed” history. But he doesn’t accept the role simply to launch his career—a celebrity reporter approaches Abel to go undercover to investigate the off-set drama, to which Abel agrees for personal reasons: his older brother died in a “tragic accident” while working as a production assistant for the studio three years ago, and Abel suspects foul play. While befriending costars to untangle the truth (and his own romantic feelings for the leading man), Abel learns that Sunset High’s makers and players all harbor dangerous secrets that will prove deadly for one teen star. Multiple narrators deglamorize Hollywood’s every angle with searing social commentary on stalkers, abusive guardians, alcohol dependency, racism, sexism, and homophobia, while soapy drama and plentiful pop culture references keep this mystery compulsively readable. Characters are intersectionally diverse. Ages 14–up. Agent: Chloe Seager, Madeleine Milburn Literary. (July)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

In this sharply rendered rom-com by Woody (They Hate Each Other), queer high school seniors and former childhood friends vie for the same person’s affection. Impulsive Emma is at risk of expulsion due to her penchant for using physical violence to solve problems. She and her mother also haven’t been getting along ever since Emma’s father left. Meanwhile, mild-mannered Caleb endures taunting related to his bartender mother’s employment at a strip club. When cute, empathetic Juliet transfers to their school, Emma and Caleb are forced to reconnect upon discovering that they each have feelings for Juliet. They strike a bet: “Whoever Juliet kisses first, on the lips, can ask her out. And she has to initiate it.” Chapters alternating between Emma and Caleb’s POVs provide insight into their fraught past and present-day, which overflows with amusing teenage antics and awkwardness as they sort out issues of friendship, love, and identity. While the plot trajectory feels predictable, the complexity and subtextual layers with which Woody imbues Emma and Caleb’s relationship keeps a steady and engaging pace throughout. The cover depicts Juliet as Black and Emma and Caleb as white. Ages 14–up. (July)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Two teens attempt to move on from the aftermath of sexual violence in this suspenseful novel by Richards (Four Found Dead). While attending a college party in Columbus, Ohio, 19-year-old Aster leaves without her 18-year-old cousin Katie. The next morning, Aster learns that Katie has been raped. Eleven months later, the two meet up in Utah to embark on a four-and-a-half-day hike through the desert. Neither girl has been the same since the party, and both hope that the trek will help repair their fractured relationship. Soon after they begin, Aster injures herself on a cactus. Further misfortunes follow, including a rain-and-hail deluge, a confrontation with scorpions and a rattlesnake, and Aster falling ill. Still, the teens trek on until a pair of hikers with disturbing auras appear, prompting Aster and Katie to flee. Just when it seems things couldn’t get worse for the cousins, they do, yet Aster and Katie prove to be a capable and admirable team. These intrepid heroines inspire hope that this foreboding thriller—boasting unrelenting suspense and unremitting pressures—will end in survival. Most characters are white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Suzie Townsend, New Leaf Literary. (July)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Chinese American Felix Ma struggles to find his footing after moving from Flushing to suburban Long Island in this spirited novel by Yang (I’m Not Here to Make Friends). After quitting piano and ping-pong, Felix searches for an essay topic that will impress his college admissions coach while also proving his parents “didn’t raise no quitter.” Inspired by his love of movies, Felix starts a classic film club and finds a fellow cinephile in Gaspard Pierre-Duluc, who reads as Black. They become fast friends and decide to film The Ping-Pong Queen of Chinatown, a movie inspired by high school senior Cassie Chow, who lives in Chinatown and with whom Felix has “a history of chance encounters”—including at the Rubenstein Center piano competition and the Citywide Table Tennis Championship. What starts as a ploy to stand out and befriend Cassie turns into a more complicated venture that depicts the sometimes-fraught relationship between the teens and their immigrant parents. Candid prose deftly articulates Felix’s inherent privilege as well as the ways in which Felix and Cassie’s class differences impact their friendship, home lives, and futures. Ages 13–up. Agent: Patrice Caldwell, New Leaf Literary. (July)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink

Quain (Ghosted) focuses on the youngest Dashwood sibling in this freewheeling Sense and Sensibility reimagining. Having watched her older sisters Elinor and Marianne live through contemporary versions of the trials and tribulations Austen’s readers will be familiar with, 18-year- old Margaret has vowed to avoid love entirely, modeling herself after sensible Elinor rather than newly single Marianne. But when Marianne invites herself on the cruise that Margaret, Elinor, and Elinor’s husband are vacationing on, that staunch avoidance starts to change. Wanting to boost impulsive Marianne’s spirits, Margaret enlists charming crew member Gabe to help her find dates for her sister. As the duo set Marianne up for a romantic tropical experience, a series of antics results in Margaret and Gabe fake-dating each other. Disaster ensues amid their schemes, but in the process, Margaret begins questioning who she is when not comparing herself to her sisters and whether love is so bad after all. Lengthy character study surrounding Margaret’s examinations of her sisters’ lives sometimes slows down what is otherwise a smart remix of classic Austenian themes and values depicting one teen girl’s endeavor to develop a more assured sense of self. The Dashwoods read as white; Gabe is Brazilian American. Ages 13–up. Agent: Moe Ferrara, BookEnds Literary. (July)

Reviewed on 05/03/2024 | Details & Permalink