Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles, including a picture book about a witch’s cooking show gone wrong, teens exploring the danger in the woods in a YA graphic novel, a picture book featuring a grandmother and granddaughter’s woodsy adventure, a YA novel in verse following conflicting emotions following a hurricane, and many more.
A Spoonful of Frogs by Casey Lyall, illus. by Vera Brosgol. Greenwillow, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-06-289029-0. A witch hosting a cooking show tutorial on making frog soup has trouble when the frogs escape their tank.
Blackwater by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham. Holt, $25.99; ISBN 978-1-2507-7705-8. Track star Tony and shy Eli begin a tentative friendship that buds into something more as they investigate the mysterious happenings in the Blackwater woods.
Berry Song by Michaela Goade. Little, Brown, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-31-649417-5. A Tlingit grandmother and her granddaughter celebrate the beauty and sustenance of the earth as they pick forest berries together. The picture book earned a starred review from PW.
Don’t Call Me a Hurricane by Ellen Hagan. Bloomsbury, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-5476-0916-1. After rebuilding from a hurricane years ago, Eliza and her friends are determined to protect their barrier island from outside development, but their fight is complicated by Eliza’s growing feelings for a wealthy summer visitor, and she battles between her love of the ocean and its destructive capabilities.
Lumberjackula by Mat Heagerty, illus. by Sam Owen. Simon & Schuster, $21.99; ISBN 978-1-5344-8257-9. Lumberjackula frets over being perceived as one or the other because of his half-vampire half-lumberjack heritage, and must learn to embrace the intersections of his identity. The graphic novel earned a starred review from PW.
Heat Wave by TJ Klune. Tor Teen, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-250-20373-1. In the third installment to the Extraordinaries series, a new hero’s arrival to their city upends Nick, Seth, Gibby, and Jazz’s course of action, and Nick struggles with a new understanding of defining himself as a hero.
Youngblood by Sasha Laurens. Razorbill, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-5933-5320-2. The exclusive vampire academy Harcote has accepted youngblood Kat Finn into its walls, but getting into the school’s inner circle is harder than expected considering her roommate is her former best friend Taylor. But once the two discover a secret conspiracy on campus, they must work together to put an end to it. The YA book earned a starred review from PW.
Twin Cities by Jose Pimienta. Random House Graphic, $20.99; ISBN 978-0-593-18062-4. Mexican twins Teresa and Fer have always been together and when Teresa, needing to widen her horizons and learn who she is without her brother, decides to go to a different middle school across the border, the twins’ vastly different school experiences change their relationship. The graphic novel earned a starred review from PW.
A Reluctant Witch's Guide to Magic by Shivaun Plozza. Clarion, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-358-54127-1. On her 12th birthday, Willa Birdwhistle discovers her magic and the two covens of Ordinary Folk of the Island of Dreary lay claim to her. Willa must decide on which coven she will join by her next birthday or face the explosive consequences.
Mum, Me, and the Mulberry Tree by Tanya Rosie, illus. by Chuck Groenink. Candlewick, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-5362-2035-3. A child reminisces about an annual mother-child outing to harvest a tree’s bounty.
You, Me, and Our Heartstrings by Melissa See. Scholastic Press, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-338-79029-0. Julliard hopeful violinist Daisy who has cerebral palsy is paired with her crush Noah for a concert duet and when their performance and subsequent kiss goes viral, the pair are launched into the limelight in ways they hadn’t anticipated.
Crumbs by Danie Stirling. Etch, $24.99; ISBN 978-0-358-46781-6. Ray’s magic gives her the ability to reveal hidden truths about others, making finding a romantic partner difficult. After she takes a magic-infused Romance pastry and meets the charming musician Laurie, the two work together to share and overcome their insecurities with one another.
Semi-Famous by Josh Sundquist. Little, Brown, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-316-62979-9. Comedian and Paralympian Josh Sundaquist explores the definitions and complications of fame in this semi-scientific investigation.
Storybooth. HarperTeen, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-305793-7. Storybooth, a YouTube channel that transforms users’ stories through animation, brings its visual storytelling skills to print with these twists on classics.
Goth Girl, Queen of the Universe by Lindsay S. Zrull. Flux, $14.99 paper (352p) ISBN 978-1-63583-078-1. Despite her prickly disposition, makeup and sewing expert Jess gets wrangled into assisting a cosplay team for a convention and with the support of her new friends considers reuniting with her biological mother. The YA book earned a starred review from PW.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of July, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
