Happy Belly, Happy Smile
Rachel Isadora.Harcourt, $16 (32p) ISBN 978-0-15-206546-1
In Caldecott Honor author Isadora’s (Ben’s Trumpet) celebration of a treasured ritual, Louie narrates his weekly visit to his grandfather’s Chinese restaurant. The spare, straightforward prose is bolstered by collage and oil art featuring an imaginative array of textures (including snippets from takeout menus), patterns, colors and shapes. Especially strong visuals include a tank filled with tropical fish, a large paper dragon suspended from the ceiling and festive Chinese lanterns. The bustle of the kitchen, where staffers shape egg rolls and peel shrimp, while the chef chops vegetables is conveyed with similar energy. After contentedly sharing a meal with his grandfather (Louie eagerly devours steamed dumplings and shrimp chow mein, but passes on a whole fish and wide-eyed crabs), the boy moves on to dessert. Eagle-eyed kids will notice that one image is at odds with the text: Grandpa reads the fortune from Louie’s cookie, which allegedly says “Happy food, happy belly, happy smile,” yet the fortune seen in Grandpa’s hand reads otherwise. Nonetheless, despite a lack of narrative momentum, this is a happy story starring one undeniably happy child. Ages 3—7. (Sept.)

Come Back Soon
Daniel Schallau.Houghton Mifflin, $16 (48p) ISBN 978-0-618-69494-5
Upon arrival in Icetown for the dedication of the ambitious Hotel Penguin—a building he himself designed—Elephant accidentally falls and crushes the building, which is built out of snow, shaped like a giant penguin and boasts a grand lobby and sweeping staircases. Rebuilding is speedily accomplished, though, and the penguin citizenry’s enthusiasm for Elephant is undimmed. Icetown has a distinctly Japanese atmosphere; the restaurant Elephant visits serves ramen noodles and has vertical signs like a Tokyo noodle shop (“Make that twenty-seven more bowls, please,” Elephant says). Populated by hundreds of penguins above and dozens of whales below, who avail themselves of services like toys, massages and employment advice, Schallau’s (The Traveler: A Magical Journey) Icetown contains a multitude of inventive pleasures. The general level of civility recalls the world of Babar, but the elaborate yet always readable spreads are distinctly Schallau’s own. Though the narrative is quite scattershot in nature, the complete, freestanding visual universe Schallau creates compels close inspection. Ages 3—7. (Sept.)

Let’s Sing Together!
Peter Yarrow, illus. by Terry Widener.Sterling, $16.95 (48p) ISBN 978-1-4027-5963-5
Folk musician Yarrow (of Peter, Paul and Mary fame) offers an appealing addition to his Peter Yarrow Songbook series (Favorite Folk Songs; Sleepytime Songs). The lyrics of 12 folk songs, rooted in several cultural traditions, are illustrated in Widener’s simple yet resonant folk art style, which creatively mingles conventional, earth-toned scenarios (a cowboy on horseback gazes on grazing buffalo in the painting accompanying “Home on the Range”) with images featuring vivid, fanciful flourishes (John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt sports yellow trousers and a red blazer and waves a feathered purple top hat). The songs likewise vary from the melancholy of “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” to the tenacity of “We Shall Not Be Moved” to the playfulness of “Hey, Lolly, Lolly.” The author provides guitar chords, historical notes and personal anecdotes for each song. On the included CD, Yarrow sings each song, accompanied by his daughter Bethany and a quartet of children. An energetic and uplifting package. Ages 5—up. (Aug.)

Birdie’s Book
Jan Bozarth.Random, $7.99 paper (224p) ISBN 978-0-375-85181-0
Bozarth gently melds magic, family history and self-determination in this multilayered debut, first in the Fairy Godmother Academy series. Sarah Cramer Bright (nicknamed “Birdie” for her redbird-colored hair) has been uprooted from California to New York, but it’s not all bad news: she now has the opportunity to reconnect with her enigmatic Granny Mo. Birdie takes the reader along as her companion and confidante, sharing her love and knowledge of plants as she ventures into her grandmother’s extensive and mysterious gardens. While resting near a waterfall, Birdie dreams herself into the fairy land of Aventurine, “a land for only the strongest dreamers.... Dreamers with destinies.” But Aventurine is more than a dream—if Birdie and her guide, Kerka, can complete their quest to find the missing piece of the Singing Stone, Birdie can become a Fairy-Godmother-in-Training and have magic in her world “that can make a difference, not just to people, but also to the world itself.” Bozarth crafts an alluring world that encourages lingering and further visits. Although conceived as part of an online experience, this novel is strong enough to stand by itself. Ages 8—12. (Aug.)

The Extra-Ordinary Princess
Carolyn Q. Ebbitt.Bloomsbury, $16.99 (320p) ISBN 978-1-59990-340-8
Twelve-year-old Amelia is the youngest of four princesses (the latest in a long line of White Queens, possessing gifts that are “a powerful blend of magic and something more”), growing up in the land of Gossling. Merrill, the eldest, is wise, and twins Lily and Rose are “great beauties,” but Amelia is known only for her “non-princess ways” and unruly red hair (“If princesses were supposed to be so special, then there was something wrong with me,” she says). When a plague sweeps their homeland and the king and queen perish, the girls’ evil great-uncle attempts to seize the throne before Merrill turns 18. He casts spells on all of the sisters except Amelia, who must believe in her magical and human abilities in order to fulfill prophecies, break the spells and lead the citizens of Gossling against Count Raven and the Dark Ones. Ebbitt’s debut sits halfway between fairy tale and fable. The characters’ histories are enjoyably complex and the first-person narratives, told mostly from Amelia’s POV, but occasionally alternating between other characters, inch the story toward the extra-ordinary. Ages 8—12. (Aug.)

Nelly the Monster Sitter: Grerks, Squurms and Water Greeps
Kes Gray, illus. by Stephen Hanson.Razorbill, $7.99 paper (272p) ISBN 978-1-59514-259-7
Petronella (Nelly) Morton has an unusual life—by choice. Her interests lie in “gunky, slimy, spiky stuff that other people can find scary or hair raising.” In other words: monsters. With the support of her parents (and to the horror of her twin sister, Asti), Nelly spends her free time baby-sitting monsters such as Glug (a prized pet “gog” that runs away), Slop (a Squurm who always wins at any game) and Plip, Plop and Seaview (the mischievous Water Greep brothers). Keeping high-energy monsters safe and entertained is not always easy, and Nelly encounters her fair share of trouble, as well as fun, in these three episodes. Gray’s (Eat Your Peas) evocative vocabulary will likely best be enjoyed by younger readers with an appreciation for the absurd (“ ‘Our son’s name is Slop gloogle,’ glugged the Squurm. ‘Slopgloogle or just Slop?’ asked Nelly”). But beyond the goofball antics, these amusing and lighthearted stories promote the belief that following one’s passion and resisting the norm is the best way to be happy and challenged. Ages 9—11. (Aug.)

Gone from These Woods
Donny Bailey Seagraves.Delacorte, $15.99 (192p) ISBN 978-0-385-73629-9
Daniel Sartain is a keenly sensitive and mature 11-year-old living in rural Georgia. His youthful and fun-loving Uncle Clay decides Daniel is old enough to learn to hunt rabbits, as well as shake off his vegetarian tendencies. On their hunting trip, though, Daniel accidentally shoots Clay and is traumatized (“I tried to wipe my brain clean. Like my brain was a computer that had nothing but errors”). Daniel is beset with guilt over his role in his uncle’s death, and his drunken father’s violent behavior doesn’t help. As a result of the emotional turmoil, and despite the efforts of his guidance counselor, Daniel contemplates running away, as well as suicide. In this slow-paced but wrenching story about the grueling process of grief and the pain produced from a life ended too early, the dynamics of the Sartain family are well-developed and genuine as a result of Daniel’s authentic first-person narration. Statistics about children and gun violence are included in an appendix. Seagraves’s debut should leave readers weighing death, guilt and forgiveness. Ages 9—12. (Aug.)

The Nine Pound Hammer
John Claude Bemis.Random, $16.99 (368p) ISBN 978-0-375-85564-1
Bemis, in his debut novel, first in the Clockwork Dark series, attempts to spin classic American tall tales into an epic historical adventure, but undercuts the solid setting and action sequences with some poor character choices and predictable twists. Ray, an orphan being taken south for adoption, jumps the train, thinking his sister will have a better chance of finding a family without him. His adventures in the wilderness bring him to a medicine show traveling on a train called the Ballyhoo. The assorted members of the show have unusual powers, and as Ray talks to them, he learns about the heroic Ramblers and their fight against the mysterious Gog. Encounters with pirates, a siren and a fearsome mechanical beast called the Hoarhound all enliven the book, and the climactic battle is engrossing and well-choreographed, but there’s little new in the story itself. Every twist—from the inevitable betrayal to the revelation of the Gog’s identity to the heroic sacrifice—is telegraphed, and along with some awkward racial stereotypes, the action sequences are not enough to sustain the story. Ages 9—12. (Aug.)

Clover Twig and the Magical Cottage
Kaye Umansky, illus. by Johanna Wright.Roaring Brook, $16.99 (304p) ISBN 978-1-59643-507-0
Ten-year-old Clover Twig takes a live-in job keeping house for Mrs. Eckles, a disorganized witch in a cluttered, filthy cottage. The job suits level-headed Clover, who doesn’t blink at living with a witch and thrives on tidying up. But she is unaware of a plot being hatched by Mrs. Eckles’ evil sister, Mesmeranza, which threatens Clover, the clumsy neighbor boy and Mrs. Eckles’ beloved (albeit smelly and spoiled) cat. Wright’s childlike line drawings create a quirky atmosphere, providing a lively counterpoint to the matter-of-fact voice. There are some whimsically entertaining moments (at one point, Mesmeranza requests her grandmother’s Poncho of Imperceptibility: “Anybody else would have stuck with a basic Cloak of Invisibility, but apparently ponchos were in at the time”), but the characters are not fully developed and the plot is weak on suspense and surprise. Umansky’s (Solomon Snow and the Silver Spoon) rendering of speech patterns quickly becomes tiresome: Mrs. Eckles drops her consonants (“I’ve ’ad enough o’ the forest at night for the time bein,’ ”) and Mesmeranza’s assistant, Miss Fly, is perpetually congested. The deus ex machina that ultimately defeats Mesmeranza seems like a cop-out solution. Ages 9—up. (Aug.)

Road to Revolution!
Stan Mack and Susan Champlin.Bloomsbury, $9.99 paper (128p) ISBN 978-1-59990-371-2
Launching the planned Cartoon Chronicles of America, this spirited graphic novel opens with a prologue recapping the events leading up to the American Revolution and spotlighting key individuals involved (it refers to Samuel Adams, John Hancock and Dr. Joseph Warren as “talented troublemakers”). The story of the months preceding the war and its preliminary battles unfolds at a fast clip in comic book—style panels featuring veteran cartoonist Mack’s plenty of slapstick action. The book stars Nick, a rambunctious orphan who makes his living stabling horses and picking pockets; and Penny, whose father is a tavern owner and best friend is Paul Revere’s daughter. The banter between the young heroes is lively, and the crucial roles they end up playing will help readers get into the story—there’s a lot of fictionalization at work. The broader characterizations of the Tories and British military are far from nuanced; a (much needed) epilogue sorts out fact from fiction. Still, reluctant readers will find this account entertaining. Ages 10—14. (Aug.)

Meridian
Amber Kizer. Delacorte, $16.99 (320p) ISBN 978-0-385-73668-8
Kizer’s (One Butt Cheek at a Time) sophomore outing, an urban fantasy, has intriguing premise: on her 16th birthday Meridian Sozu learns that she is a Fenestra, a human of angelic descent who acts as a “window” for souls passing to the afterlife. She is vulnerable to the malicious Nocti, who steal life energy and send souls to hell. Sent to her great-aunt Merry’s house in Revelation, Colo., Meridian begin to learn how to survive and fulfill her purpose from Merry and her eventual love interest, Tens. But time is short, and the sinister Reverend Perimo is orchestrating an effort to drive Fenestra “witchcraft” out of Revelation. Kizer’s ear for teenage dialogue doesn’t fail, and despite numerous deus ex machina plot weaknesses, the fast pace keeps the story compelling. Less appealing are the murky metaphysics, the attribution of tragedies like Nazi atrocities to Nocti interference and the fact that souls’ fates are subject to the whims and proximity of Nocti or Fenestra, rather than human choices or behavior. Ages 12—up. (Aug.)

Sleepless
Thomas Fahy.Simon & Schuster, $15.99 (224p)ISBN 978-1-4169-5901-4
The high school students in Dr. Beecher’s “secret society” (a group that traveled to New Orleans to build homes after Hurricane Katrina) have been sleepwalking and experiencing violent nightmares. When their fellow students begin turning up dead and one member of the group is witnessed murdering another student in her sleep, the teens trace the possible origins of the disturbances to the unusual events that took place in New Orleans, which they all swore to keep secret. The present-tense narrative alternates between Jake, a pot-smoking mechanic, and his love interest, Emma, as the group bands together (taking turns sleeping) in an effort to avoid another murder. A few chilling images pepper the story—one sleepwalker repeatedly fills the kitchen sink with water and screams into it; another sets himself on fire—but most of the scares are on the tame side, with the murders largely described through dream interludes. Fahy’s (The Unspoken) intriguing premise doesn’t fully materialize, resulting in a story that feels skeletal. Ages 12—up. (Aug.)