HarperCollins Dances to the Tune of Yo Gabba Gabba
HarperCollins Children’s Books has signed on as the trade publishing licensee for Yo Gabba Gabba!, a music- and dance-filled live-action and puppet TV series featuring five friendly monsters. Its first iteration launched in 2007, and it is now back as an Apple TV+ series, Yo Gabba GabbaLand!, which debuted in 2024. Season 2 premiered this January.
“Yo Gabba Gabba is one of the rare properties that’s a classic and also reinvented itself for a new generation,” said Tomas Palacios, executive editor at HarperCollins Children’s Books. “The vibe is just pure joy—and a perfect match for our new HarperPop imprint, with its focus on pop culture and trend-driven publishing.”
HarperCollins’s Yo Gabba Gabba! program is launching with four books for ages 4–8 in 2026 and 2027, including a reader, an interactive doodle book, a board book, and a sticker-activity book with a huge amount of stickers: more than 900.
The initial titles are based on episodes of the new series. “Right now, we’re aiming to give readers what they love and are familiar with, but this is the kind of property that can grow in all sorts of unexpected ways,” Palacios said. “We’re excited to see what kind of storytelling the future holds.”
Yo Gabba GabbaLand! features many musicians as guest stars, and the soundtrack is available on the major streaming platforms. Last year, the stage show Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE! toured 24 U.S. cities, with stops at Coachella and San Diego Comic-Con.
“Even though my kids are older now, I still have Yo Gabba Gabba in my music queue,” Palacios said. “It’s the show you never outgrow.”
HarperCollins is one of several licensees recently signed by property owner GabbaCaDabra; Wild Brain, a part owner of GabbaCaDabra and co-producer of the TV series; and licensing representative Golden Sombrero Licensing. Jazwares is the master toy licensee; Jay Franco is selling blankets and bath towels; Super Impulse is marketing mini toys; Spirit Jersey, Ripple Junction, Overlord, Goodie Two Sleeves, Concept One, and Centric Brands are signed for apparel and accessories; H.E.R. and King Ice are releasing jewelry; Small Fries is producing a card game; and Bare Tree Media offers mobile stickers, themes, and smartwatch faces.
Sesame Street and Mayo Clinic Press Help Kids Manage Their Feelings
Mayo Clinic Press Kids has partnered with Sesame Workshop for a series called Everyday Feelings, starring the Sesame Street characters.
“This seemed like a really authentic and natural partnership for us,” editorial director Jenny Krueger told PW. “Sesame Street is such a trusted source of social-emotional learning content, and Mayo Clinic Children’s is a trusted provider of pediatric care.”
Three books are planned for this year, beginning with Get the Wiggles Out: Playful Ways to Embrace Every Feeling by Anna Anderhagen, with guidance from Mayo Clinic pediatric psychologist Dr. Emily McTate. The picture book features fun, practical ways for young children to recognize and manage their feelings—coping strategies recommended by McTate in her practice—so they can get back to doing what they love. Each spread features different Sesame Street characters.
The second title, to be released in June, is What Does My Body Say?, a story about Abby Cadabby preparing for her first day of fairy school. She has a tight tummy, and after learning her body is sending her a signal, she discovers how to use her body to manage and express the emotions she’s feeling. The third book in the series, set for October, is Elmo Isn’t Sleepy. After skipping his nap, Elmo finds it hard to keep his eyes open, but he insists he’s not tired. As the story progresses, he begins to understand that our bodies need rest.
“Every feeling is safe to feel, but when feelings start to get in the way, there are ways to use your body to manage that,” Krueger said. “One of the core insights is that kids express emotions physically before they can name them. So we’re meeting kids where they are.”
The stories are written by an early childhood educator, leaning heavily on Sesame Workshop’s social-emotional curriculum, with Dr. Tate weighing in with clinical expertise. Each title has a letter from the doctor at the front and resources for caregivers, educators, and clinicians at the back.
The popularity and relatability of the Sesame Street characters is a key part of the mix. “When I worked with librarians, I always heard from them how kids recognize these characters from across the room and make a beeline to the books,” Krueger said. She added that characters like Abby and Elmo are very energetic and enthusiastic and are in the pre-K age group, so a lot of readers and parents can identify with how they behave and how their emotions affect them.
Mayo Clinic Press Kids has worked with the Smithsonian and, through the Smithsonian, with NASA on titles in the past, but Sesame Street represents its first character licensing deal.
Highlights Acquires Rights for Crazy Aaron’s as First Inbound License
Highlights for Children acquired the rights to publish books tied to the Crazy Aaron’s brand, a leader in the hot toy-industry category of slimes and other compounds. This marks the first time Highlights has secured rights to an outside license for one of its publishing programs. The deal was brokered by Surge Brands, Crazy Aaron’s global licensing agent.
Patty Sullivan, who heads up licensing and retail for Highlights, has known Crazy Aaron’s founder Aaron Muderick for years, and they have long been talking about how the companies might be able to work together. Two years ago, they ran into each other at Licensing Expo in Las Vegas and, with Highlights’ expansion into more book-plus formats, the time seemed right.
Under the new license, Highlights will produce book-and-activity sets containing Crazy Aaron’s slime, with a focus on creative and search-and-find activities involving both Highlights Hidden Pictures puzzles and Crazy Aaron’s Hide Inside! scented slime with mix-ins. The first two co-branded titles, coming out in September, are Sweet Surprises Puzzles & Slime and A Very Slimy Christmas, both retailing for $18.99. A dinosaur title will follow.
Highlights’ growing list, across its in-house produced and licensed titles, now includes a variety of book-plus products, from paperback puzzle books with pens attached to higher-end titles such as the new Crazy Aaron’s books and crafting titles like Neon Crafts. Last year, the company signed a deal with Plus Plus for STEM-themed book-plus titles packaged with uniquely shaped building blocks, and this year added another new licensee in the activity book space, Tree Town Toys. The latter will be integrating the Highlights brand into its Yes & Know line of invisible ink trivia game books, which come packaged with a reveal pen.
“Our book-plus line was buzzing for us at Toy Fair,” Sullivan told PW. “We have everything from book-plus at its simplest, to now book-plus at its giftiest.”
Sanrio Signs New Hello Kitty Publishing Deals
Readerlink’s Printers Row Publishing Group has acquired the rights to Hello Kitty and Friends from licensor Sanrio for craft, activity, and interactive books for kids and adults under the Thunder Bay Press and Studio Fun International imprints.
“We were chasing Sanrio for a long time,” Peter Norton, Thunder Bay’s VP and publisher, told PW, noting the good fit between Sanrio and the company’s range of craft and activity titles. “The style of art is perfect and timeless. Hello Kitty has stood the test of time, and the popularity has even grown. It appeals to everyone from kids through adulthood, and it’s the perfect complement to everything else we have at Thunder Bay Press.”
Thunder Bay is planning four titles in 2026. On March 10 will come the 192-page Hello Kitty & Friends Word Search, Quips, Quotes, and Coloring Book and the smaller trim size, 120-page Hello Kitty & Friends Word Search and Coloring Book. Following on June 2 will be the $16.99 Hello Kitty & Friends Sticker Book with a platinum-relief cover that looks almost 3D, Norton said. “We’ve published a bunch of large collectible sticker books for $30 that have done really well,” he added. “This format is still giftable, but at the lower price point it’s a year-round purchase.”
Finally, in September, Hello Kitty will join Thunder Bay’s popular crochet kit line with Hello Kitty and Friends Crochet, with instructions and yarn for Hello Kitty and another of the Sanrio characters, as well as instructions for 10 more of Kitty’s friends. Two more Thunder Bay titles are in the queue for 2027, including a paint-with-water title in April and a cross-stitch kit in the fall. More titles are under consideration.
At Studio Fun, meanwhile, plans include four holiday-themed 8x8 hardcover storybooks, each with 24 pages, more than 50 stickers, and holographic foil on the cover. “They jump out at you and just scream Hello Kitty,” Debra Zakarin, VP and publisher for the Studio Fun and Silver Dolphin imprints, told PW. Following the Halloween title, there will be a Christmas title this fall, and Valentine’s Day and Easter titles for spring 2027.
“We’re leaning into friendship, kindness, and creativity, which are really the pillars of Hello Kitty,” Zakarin said. “These are cute collections of original, contemporary stories.” Noting that the visuals appeal to kids, tweens, and adults alike, she added, “There’s a collectibility factor too, which is why we went full out on the covers.”
All the titles across both imprints will feature Hello Kitty but will also include her full range of friends, from Little Twin Stars and Cinnamoroll to My Melody and Pochacco. “This is more than just a character,” Zakarin said. “I consider it a multi-generational lifestyle brand, and the whole brand is so beloved.”
Under another new deal, Hello Kitty is also moving into comic books, with IDW. Its program begins in July with Hello Kitty: Hello World!, a comic book series in which Hello Kitty and her friends go on a world tour to solve a riddle, meeting new characters in each issue along the way. More comics, including some crossovers, are planned for 2027.
“It has been mind-blowing witnessing the response to the Hello Kitty comic announcement,” said associate editor Bixie Mathieu. She noted that world-class talent has reached out to work on the project, fans have been posting about it, and retailers clapped at the news at the Comics Pro Retail Organization’s annual meeting in February. “Hello Kitty and her friends have captured the hearts of millions with their timeless, joyous, and simply adorable stories—a legacy that guides us in these upcoming comics.”
Papercutz Explores the Star Wars Universe
Mad Cave has acquired a license from Disney’s Lucasfilm division to publish original Star Wars graphic novels under its Papercutz imprint. This is the publisher’s first foray into the Star Wars universe. “We have been in a licensed partnership with Disney for a few years, and the Star Wars deal was a natural progression from that,” Mike Marts, EVP and editor-in-chief at Mad Cave, told PW.
The all-ages line has a sweet spot of middle-grade readers. “I think one of the things that’s really great about what we’re doing right now, and the opportunity and the experience that Papercutz gets to bring to this, is that we are so focused on this younger audience,” editor Charles Beacham said. “At the outset, Star Wars was always for kids. It’s always been a family franchise. We’re really getting to highlight some of those places in between, where as the franchise has grown, maybe kids have gotten forgotten a little bit. We’re getting to bring more of that back into focus.”
For longtime Star Wars fans, Beacham said, “It’s a great way to share with the next generation and to get them excited about these characters, but then also to let the kids find their own love for the new characters we’ll be introducing.”
The first titles, Star Wars: Smugglers and Scoundrels: The Race for Jabba’s Bounty and Star Wars: Tales from the Outer Rim: The Legends of Beggar’s Cannon, come out in fall 2026. The first features the famous Han and Chewy, but also less-familiar smugglers and bounty hunters, while the second is about a young Luke Skywalker and his friends on Tattoine, also featuring some lesser-known but still fan-favorite characters.
Papercutz has the freedom to set its graphic novels in all eras and settings within the vast Star Wars universe. “I think that parents who are picking up books for their kids and the kids who are our target audience are going to be excited to see the different eras and the different genres that we’re able to play with,” Beacham said. “We’re really trying to run the gamut here and to explore all the different places Star Wars has to offer.” Some of the titles will be interconnected, but each will work as a standalone story.
Multiple titles are in development going forward. Original graphic novels will be the focus of the program, with occasional floppy comic series possible if the opportunity presents itself, such as to tie-in with a tentpole film or TV show, Marts said. “We’ll be taking full advantage of the Star Wars calendar,” he added, mentioning theatrical releases like the upcoming Starfighter starring Ryan Gosling and new Disney+ TV series. Next year, for example, is the 50th anniversary of Star Wars: The New Hope. “We will certainly be tying into that in several major ways.”
In Brief
Mattel Press announced a publishing program for its 1980s classic toy-and-TV property Masters of the Universe, timed to the release of a feature film tied to the property, coming from Amazon MGM Studios and Mattel in June 2026. Titles, some in partnership with noted authors, will include a junior novel, storybook, early reader, YA novel, art book, retro coloring book, picture book, and middle-grade novel. In addition, licensees Dark Horse Comics and TokyoPop will release a four-issue comic book series and a manga graphic novel, respectively.... Separately, Mattel is bringing American Girl to adult readers for the first time, as American Girl Publishing is set to release Samantha: The Next Chapter by Fiona Davis this October. The project, timed to the brand’s 40th anniversary, centers on the historical character Samantha Parkington, who debuted in 1986, as an adult. Mattel also announced it was entering the YA segment for the first time with Barbie: Dreamscape by Alex Aster; it recently revealed the cover of that July 28 release.... Author Holly Black is working with Running Press for a line of products tied to her Faerie realm of Elfhame. Holly Black’s Faerie Tarot Deck and Guidebook, Holly Black’s Faerie Coloring Postcards, and Holly Black’s Isles of Elfhame 1,000-Piece Puzzle, set for release in August, will be illustrated by Mélanie Bourgeois.... Cottage Door Press has signed a deal with Disney to bring Disney and Pixar characters to the publisher’s Luna StoryTime Projector content library. Eight stories featuring Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Mulan, Tangled, The Little Mermaid, and The Princess and the Frog will launch in July 2026, followed by the September 2026 through January 2027 rollout of more stories tied to Moana, Frozen, Mickey Mouse, Toy Story, Cars, and The Lion King.... IDW is celebrating the 60th anniversary of Star Trek with two new ongoing series for comic book shops. Star Trek #1, debuting in September, features Captain Seven of Nine and brings the series into a hidden region of space outside the galaxy for the first time. Star Trek: Zero Point #1, releasing in October, features Captain Raffi Musiker, whose mission is to prevent the disasters of the future, guided by an A.I. There will also be two one-shots: Star Trek: Celebrations 2026, featuring stories focused on the franchise’s LGBTQ+ characters, and Star Trek: 60th Anniversary Special.... IDW is also publishing The Art of Liquid Death, showcasing the artwork behind the non-alcoholic beverage brand.... Dav Pilkey’s Monster Island and its agent The Joester Loria Group licensed Cryptozoic to create Dog Man Playpaks containing five activity cards, stickers, standees, and mini-games. The packs in Series 1, releasing in spring 2026, will showcase artwork from Dog Man and Dog Man Unleashed, the first two books in the series.... The Very Hungry Caterpillar is featured in a seven-piece collection of infant and toddler t-shirts, bodysuits, pajamas, and other apparel at retailer Uniqlo, in a deal with The World of Eric Carle and The Joester Loria Group, along with Japanese agent Cosmo Merchandising.... Merrymakers’ recent license acquisitions for plush toys include the You’re My Little series with Silver Dolphin Press, starting with Cuddle Bug; We Are Definitely Human; Sun and Moon, characters from a nonfiction Henry Holt series that does well in the educational market; The Worst series, focusing on Gilbert the goblin; Pizza and Taco, who take the form of plush puppets; and Buffalo Fluffalo.
