Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles, including a middle grade novel about a budding illustrator, a picture book about a cactus, and the story of a surprise party.

The Line Tender by Kate Allen. Dutton, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-7352-3160-3. Allen tackles the complexities of grief with subtly wry humor and insight in this richly layered middle grade debut about the power of science and love. The middle grade book earned a starred review from PW.

Nobody Hugs a Cactus by Carter Goodrich. Simon & Schuster, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-5344-0090-0. New Yorker cover artist and animated film character designer Goodrich (We Forgot Brock!) infuses humor and sweetness into the simplest of settings and the most unassuming of characters: Hank, a cactus.

Watch Out for Wolf! by Anica Mrose Rissi, illus. by Charles Santoso. Disney-Hyperion, $17.99; ISBN 978-148478556-0. A gently subversive plot twist ends this suspenseful picture book with cake and a surprise celebration.

Blooming Beneath the Sun by Christina Rossetti, illus. by Ashley Bryan. Atheneum/Dlouhy, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-5344-4092-0. Bryan illustrates late-19th-century poems by Rossetti with intricate cut-paper shapes that combine bold images with blazing color.

High Five by Adam Rubin, illus. by Daniel Salmieri. Dial, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-525-42889-3. In this interactive picture book by the Dragons Love Tacos team, a high-five champion called Sensei, who resembles Bigfoot and wears a multicolored belt, offers to apprentice readers.

Bruno, the Standing Cat by Nadine Robert, illus. by Jean Jullien. Random House, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-525-64714-0. One morning, Peter, wearing a sky-blue outfit and a wide-eyed expression, hears meowing out of a box labeled “Bruno” that he finds on his doorstep. When he opens it, a cat rises up expectantly on his hind legs, face-to-face with the child.

For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of April, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.