Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles, including a new take on a familiar tale, an illustrated poetry collection, the true story of interned Japanese children and their beloved librarian, and a picture book about a fishing trip that brings father and son closer together.
The Chinese Emperor’s New Clothes by Ying Chang Compestine, illus. by David Roberts. Abrams, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-4197-2542-5. Compestine (Secrets of the Terra-Cotta Soldier) offers her retelling as a corrective to Hans Christian Andersen’s account. “The truth is that the story took place here in China, and without any tricky tailors,” she writes, promising to reveal the “real story.” The book earned a starred review from PW.
I Am Loved by Nikki Giovanni, illus. by Ashley Bryan. Atheneum/Dlouhy, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-5344-0492-2. In 11 poems, a mix of new and previously published work, Giovanni celebrates open-ended and affirming love.
Write to Me: Letters from Japanese American Children to the Librarian They Left Behind by Cynthia Grady, illus. by Amiko Hirao. Charlesbridge, $16.99; ISBN 978-1-58089-688-7. Grady (I Lay My Stitches Down: Poems of American Slavery) recounts, in partial epistolary format, the true story of San Diego children’s librarian Clara Breed, who corresponded with her young Japanese-American patrons while they were interned during WWII.
Hooked by Tommy Greenwald, illus. by David McPhail. Roaring Brook, $16.99; ISBN 978-1-59643-996-2. In this picture book, a boy who wants a companion on fishing expeditions strengthens a bond with his distant father.
While You Are Sleeping by Mariana Ruiz Johnson. Chronicle, $16.99; ISBN 978-1-4521-6599-8. Painted in brilliant folk-art hues, Argentinian illustrator Johnson’s wordless story starts with a view through a window, which widens to reveal more buildings and a city night alive with activity. The book earned a starred review from PW.
Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. Hyperion, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-4847-5805-2. In this fast-paced SF adventure from the coauthors of the Starbound trilogy, a scholar and a scavenger reluctantly join forces to unravel the secrets of an alien temple.
One Fun Day with Lewis Carroll: A Celebration of Wordplay and a Girl Named Alice by Kathleen Krull, illus. by Júlia Sardà. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-544-34823-3. Krull’s playful picture book biography of Lewis Carroll highlights the many words that Carroll himself coined.
The Gingerbread Man and the Leprechaun Loose at School by Laura Murray, illus. by Mike Lowery. Putnam, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-101-99694-2. In his fifth outing, Murray’s Gingerbread Man—now fully integrated into the school where he was originally on the loose—goes from being chased to doing the chasing after a rascally leprechaun shows up on the scene on a “mess-making spree.”
Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman. Simon & Schuster, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-4424-7245-7. Shusterman raises the stakes in this sequel to 2016’s Scythe, set on a “post-mortal” future Earth in which easily revived humans are only “deadish” when killed, not permanently dead, except for the few “gleaned” by scythes, who kill to keep population growth under control. The book earned a starred review from PW.
Voices from the Underground Railroad by Kay Winters, illus. by Larry Day. Dial, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-8037-4092-1. In this companion to Colonial Voices and Voices from the Oregon Trail, Jeb and Mattie, two enslaved siblings in 1861 Maryland, take the Underground Railroad north.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of January, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
