Bijan Always Wins

“Bijan always won. That was his favorite thing.” When he draws a bird and shows it to classmate Miki, he says, “Look at this bird! I win!” Miki responds, “You can’t win at drawing birds, Bijan.” When he later announces that he’s won at playing dinosaurs, his friends ask, “How do you win at dinosaurs?” Bijan says, “I always win!” Digital artwork by Tran, making her picture book debut, gives Bijan and his peers clear, penetrating eyes, while textured lines, a palette of muted tertiary shades, and quirky lettering offer the world around Bijan a distinctive, low-tech look. In a fantasy sequence, Bijan roars like a dragon (“I win!”), then dives beneath the waves, where suddenly no one can hear him boast. When kids start to avoid Bijan, and he realizes that he’d like to pivot, the turnaround happens with gratifying rapidity (“You can’t win at sharing pencils,” he notes modestly). This dynamic socio-emotional story by Khorram (Seven Special Somethings) examines responses to interpersonal challenges, as well as ways to both draw boundaries and welcome back someone who’s trying to make changes. Characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Molly O’Neill, Root Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Kelly Sonnack, Andrea Brown Literary. (July)