Don’t Get Eaten (Monster Hunters #1)

Via lighthearted illustrations and a sprightly setting, Stuart (My Shadow Is Blue) launches an action-packed series that puts a thoughtful spin on good versus evil. Nine-year-old Saphire Sparks, who reads as white, comes from a long line of monster hunters, all members of the Society for Hunting Monsters, an organization firmly convinced that such creatures are evil. In contrast to society legend Gwendolyn Grapeshot, who vanished under mysterious circumstances, Saphire’s own family has never caught a monster. Determined to change that, Saphire enlists help from her nonbinary best friend, Jasper, who happens to be afraid of almost everything. When Saphire and Jasper spot a monster lurking in the library, they follow it into a hidden world beneath the building called the Museum of Wonders, where a community of monsters live and work in secret. Mistaken for new hires by a no-nonsense gremlin, the pair are quickly swept into museum life, and what begins as Saphire’s chance to prove herself as a true hunter evolves into something more as she starts to question everything she’s been taught about the beings. Charming narration recounts Saphire’s journey, along which she learns that tales are often informed by the storyteller’s own experiences and that there’s always more to discover about the world and oneself. Publishing simultaneously: Beware of Sleeping Pixies. Ages 7–10. (July)