Around a stove, hedgehog grandchildren gather, reading cozily amid the smell of hot blueberry pie. “Grandpa, can you tell us the story about the Terrible Rush Era again?” one asks. Grandpa gladly acquiesces, recalling a time when “everything and everyone had to be higher, faster, further, bigger, prettier, more!” Tolman (Little Fox) fills a photographic image of a meadow with illustrated creatures: rhinoceroses moving pell-mell on their hind feet, a tapir and peacock running in the fray, a flock of red birds flying above. A lone hedgehog in an orange safety vest plods the other way: “Quill loved to feel the wind between his prickles. And warm sunbeams on his black nose.” Every day, the hedgehog cleans up the running animals’ trash, rendered as barely-there transparent shapes. At last, overwhelmed, he collapses and sleeps all winter. When he wakes, the fellow creatures have recognized his work and shared the burden—and they offer another surprise, too. It’s a story about the environment, but also about community, seeing that help is needed, and pitching in. The animal characters’ engaging expressiveness, their shy smiles and affectionate gestures, buoy this winsome story and give it warmth. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Luciënne van der Leije, Querido. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

At seven years old, a child goes for the first time to collect satintail grass with their grandfather, Yeye, in this picture book debut from Nobel laureate Mo Yan, adapted from a short story of the same name. A low mist hangs over the quiet journey as the pair make the long trek to a familiar meadow, which “Yeye cuts down every summer.” Muted tones show sunrise, while a “nonsense” tune that Yeye sings, “happy, yet sad,” sets the journey’s mood. An innocent day of cutting grass, chasing grasshoppers, and napping under an awning takes a turn when heavy clouds loom: “Black clouds mean wind,” Yeye says knowingly. The stoic figure keeps his cool as a tornado touches down in the distance (“Just wind,” he says). But tears form in his eyes after the gale scatters their crop and sends his grandchild briefly skyward, a moment shown in a breathtaking sideways spread that renders the grass in a whirling figure eight. Resigned, the youth and Yeye turn back. In sparse, pensive prose, the narrator muses on themes of endurance and acceptance in uncontrollable circumstances. Movement-filled acrylic on cardboard illustrations from Zhu (What I Like Most), meanwhile, steadily convey the Chinese-cued characters’ experiences in the changing landscape. Ages 4–8. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

In this read for Sophie’s Squash fans, Enola’s grandmother, Mimi, radiates affirmation—whenever her granddaughter visits, “She let Enola stay up late. She made the best snacks,” and she builds a sofa fort for Enola to sleep in. Grandma Mimi doesn’t even blink when Enola becomes enamored of her first-ever hot dog and decides to make the “perfectly friend-shaped” comestible a chum. Acrylic ink and watercolor compositions, rendered in beachy colors and crisp lines, show impressively tattooed Grandma Mimi merrily obliging her granddaughter in the swimming pool, on the golf course, and even at bingo, where Hot Dog wins twice. But as the day draws to a close, Grandma’s pet dog, Hoagie, finally devours Hot Dog in one gulp. “HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN!” wails a red-faced and tearful Enola, refusing to forgive either her grandmother or the hound. Though the ending feels a bit drawn out, Kordesh (Sam with Ants in His Pants), making her solo debut, pushes a goofy premise far enough to establish an unconditional affection between generations and species, as well as allow Enola to credibly find her way back to relationships that clearly mean the world to her. Enola and Mimi are portrayed with pale skin. Ages 4–8. Agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

This dreamy wordless fantasy by Kate Greenaway Medalist Blackwood opens with a series of vignettes that show a pale-skinned child climbing out of bed, donning a school uniform, then setting off for a starkly rendered city school, braving sidewalk crowds and sitting alone among throngs of children at recess. After school, the child takes two bowls out to a cramped patch of trees next door to their home, where they greet a friend: a stand of interwoven trees that make up the figure of an elephant. A spread shows the trees through the seasons, the child beneath, suggesting the bond’s constancy. When a “SOLD” sign goes up in front of the grove’s lot and big white X’s mark the trees, all meant to be felled, decisive action is called for, and a middle-of-the-night outing catalyzes a miraculous landscape shift. Blackwood’s pencil and oil spreads lend softness and a sense of liveliness to the work; the child’s small, often-solitary figure and the elephant’s patient frame seem warm and tangible throughout this quiet tale of triumph over destruction. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 4–8. (Aug.)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

Sixteen-year-old Alyssa “Lisa” DeAndreis, who was kidnapped by her divorced father at age seven, is reunited with her mother, stepfather, and stepbrother in this spine-tingling novel by Thompson (Amy Chelsea Stacie Dee). Having been raised by her father according to the tenets of the Citizens of the Word, a Pacific Northwest cult focused on alternative Christian principles, Lisa believes that women are subservient to men, and meant to cook, clean, and marry by 18. Though Lisa’s controlled life meant no contact with the outside world, and though she experienced moments of happiness via interactions with her adopted brother and a secret friend, she struggles adjusting to “normal” life in Oregon free from her father’s influence. Lisa is further burdened by memories of physical abuse and her father’s alcohol dependency, at the same time contending with a difficult and deadly choice imposed by her father and their shared beliefs. Lisa’s interactions with her mother add moving catharsis to a narrative that covers heavy themes via perceptive prose. Despite occasionally befuddling jumps between past and present scenes, Thompson deftly highlights the injustices of the American legal system regarding child abuse and parental rights all while presenting an engrossing cult thriller. Most characters read as white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jennifer Azantian, Azantian Literary. (May)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

This beguiling series opener—which takes place in the world of Wolff’s Crave series—centers new characters embarking on a harrowing adventure. Seventeen-year-old Clementine Calder has lived her entire life on the small Gulf Coast island that houses paranormal Calder Academy, the “school for misfits” that her family runs. She increasingly chafes at the draconian rules set by her mother—the strict headmistress—that discourage students’ use of their magical abilities. But when a Category 5 hurricane bears down on the academy, Clementine’s manticore powers start manifesting, as well as an unprecedented ability to see ghosts, and she begins receiving mysterious flickers of the past and future. With no one to turn to, Clementine is forced to rely on dark and brooding dream daimon Jude Abernathy-Lee, also 17, and her former best friend and crush. Sparks fly as Clementine and Jude uncover dark secrets about their world and find hidden strength within themselves and each other. Existing fans will delight at returning characters, while propulsive chapters punctuated by ever-increasing stakes and liberally peppered with pop culture references offer an easy entry point for series newcomers. Coupled with Clementine’s snarky first-person narration, this lengthy tale about coming-of-age under an authoritarian system checks all the boxes for romantasy veterans. Clementine reads as white; Jude cues as Korean and white. Ages 14–up. Agents: Emily Sylvan Kim, Prospect Agency. (May)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

Sixth grader Countess Jewel Delaney, an inquisitive aspiring journalist living in the small fictional college town of Galahad, Ohio, secures a summer opportunity to be a community citizen reporter at the Galahad Guardian, where her grandmother serves as editor. While reporting on the grand opening of a skate park, a howling shriek from the Galahad Grove woods prompts CJ to investigate with hopes of breaking a big story. After gathering clues from the scene, CJ notices that animals have vanished all over town. When her best friend Parker shows her some “weird pix” depicting ritualistic-looking items such as bones and miniature altars set up in the Grove, CJ sets out to uncover what’s really happening in the woods. With a handful of clues, a trail of missing animals, and photographs of unidentified “cult” paintings, CJ determines to prove that she has the passion and wits to be taken seriously as a journalist. Via an endearing and quirky cast embarking on an adventurous, unearthly mystery, debut author Williams presents a new world of thrills and mystique for young readers. CJ and Parker are Black. Ages 8–12. (May)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

South Indian Muslim American tween Samira (a.k.a. Sammy) navigates a tumultuous summer in this heartwarming novel by Hamza (Ahmed Aziz’s Epic Year). Sammy’s parents and her college-bound sister are headed to India, leaving Sammy and her autistic younger brother Imran in Minnesota with her Umma. Just before the family departs, their house is TP-ed, and Imran is convinced that it’s a hate crime: “Because we’re brown. Because we’re Muslim.” Meanwhile, Sammy is reeling from a falling-out with her former friend Kiera, who ditched her for another squad. To allay Umma and Imran’s fears that they are being targeted, Samira teams up with newcomer Alice to uncover the culprit behind the act of vandalism. But when Samira suspects Kiera, and Kiera tries to steal Alice away, Samira is forced to confront her anxieties surrounding their relationship if she hopes to save her summer—and her new friendship. As Sammy contends with intense feelings of love and loss, her loving community—which includes enthusiastic Imran and steadfast Umma, as well as numerous neighbors and teachers—offers continual support. It’s an emotionally resonant read that proffers empathetic messaging about prejudice, falling out, and building oneself back up again. Ages 8–12. (May)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

Khan (The Extraordinary Life of Malala Yousafzai) offers a WWII story about a Muslim community in Paris, in which tween Safiyyah and her family reside in an apartment in the city’s Grand Mosque, where her father is a director. Safiyyah’s childhood in the serene mosque has been idyllic, enhanced by magical times poring over old maps in the library. The book opens with the May 1940 German invasion of France, and traces the changes in Parisian life—Safiyyah’s in particular—that ensue, including her best friend’s family fleeing the city and her 16-year-old cousin joining the military. When Safiyyah is inexplicably barred from the weekly get-togethers her honorary uncles—other beloved mosque directors—attend in her father’s office, she grows suspicious about her father’s activities. Mounting devastation enacted by the Germans creates drama and tension as sympathetic, occasionally rebellious Safiyyah grows more courageous amid increasingly dangerous circumstances. Sensitively told via lyrical language and lush sensory details that evoke the deep pleasures of warm Muslim family traditions, Khan’s novel unveils the important role Muslims and the Grand Mosque played in saving Jews during WWII. A historical note concludes. Ages 8–12. (May)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink

Intergenerational grief permeates this enigmatic mystery by Reese (Every Bird a Prince) which centers a family’s attempt to repair fractured relationships. Following the death of their paternal grandfather, nonbinary 12-year-old Perigee Eklund hopes to fix the acrimonious relationship between their father and paternal grandmother by orchestrating a trip to visit her at the Eklunds’ Puzzle House, built by their grandparents. Despite simmering tensions and a powerful snowstorm, the logic-minded tween thrills in exploring the house’s myriad puzzles with fellow houseguest Lily Ishioka, an adventurous youth whose mother is working to rescue lost hikers. The house itself—which narrates in alternating chapters—is already reeling from the death of its cocreator, and becomes more desperate when Grandma Eklund announces the imminent sale of the property. After finding a forgotten riddle left by their grandfather, Perigee decides to delve deeper into the house’s mysteries, solving puzzles and using clues to get at the meaning behind the riddle’s cryptic message. Intrepid Perigee is a capable protagonist whose welcoming aura immediately endears them to the reader and Lily both. The anthropomorphic antics of the Puzzle House itself—Perigee often incurs the house’s rage, which manifests as physically violent tantrums—add tension and humor to this emotionally cathartic and puzzle-laden story of trauma and healing. The Eklunds read as white. Ages 9–12. (May)

Reviewed on 04/26/2024 | Details & Permalink