Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles, including a wordless picture book from out of this world, a playful fairy-tale retelling, a YA memoir in verse, and a speculative middle grade novel about bullying.
The Book from Far Away by Bruce Handy, illus. by Julie Benbassat. Minerva, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-66265-133-5. This intriguing wordless story portrays an encounter between two youths: one of Earth, and a fantastical being from the cosmos. It all begins when the human child, wandering in the woods with a beloved book, spies a spaceship landing in a nearby clearing.
Cinderella and a Mouse Called Fred by Deborah Hopkinson, illus. by Paul O. Zelinsky. Random House/Schwartz, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-48003-8. Hopkinson and Zelinsky conjure up a Cinderella tale that’s a fizzy blend of traditional storytelling and contemporary perspectives. Ella is an expert gardener aiming to win a blue ribbon for finest pumpkin; when a grumpy fairy godmother sticks her in a floofy dress and uncomfortable footwear, her response is an exasperated “Seriously? Glass high heels?”
Disappearing Act: A True Story by Jiordan Castle. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $20.99; ISBN 978-0-374-38977-2. In this verse memoir, 13-year-old Jiordan Castle’s father is arrested for involvement in “a conspiracy to defraud the United States” the summer before her freshman year of high school. Castle highlights the pain felt and challenges faced by her and her family after the FBI raids her home searching for her father.
Dust by Dusti Bowling. Little, Brown, $16.99; ISBN 978-0-316-41423-4. An asthmatic 12-year-old with the power to read emotions through touch stands up against bullying and a friend’s abusive homelife in this lightly speculative offering.
Forgive Me Not by Jennifer Baker. Penguin/Paulsen, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-593-40684-7. Debut author Baker empathetically examines the harsh treatment of Black youth in the justice system, and its impact on the detainee’s family. Affecting depictions of a brother and sister’s addiction and reform process contribute to the novel’s overarching interrogation of blame, guilt, and self-forgiveness.
Ghost Book by Remy Lai. Holt, $22.99; ISBN 978-1-250-81041-0; $14.99 paper ISBN 978-1-250-81043-4. Lai navigates profound questions of fate and friendship via Chinese mythology in this playful graphic novel ghost story. Twelve-year-old July Chen goes largely unnoticed by kids at school and even her own father, but thanks to her ability to see ghosts, she meets tween William Xiao, her first friend, whose soul is trapped between life and death. The middle grade graphic novel received a starred review from PW.
The Last Girls Standing by Jennifer Dugan. Putnam, $18.99; ISBN 978-059353-207-2. Following a summer camp massacre, teenagers Sloan and Cherry, the event’s sole survivors, have become inseparable. When one of the masked murderers is taken into custody, Sloan uncovers disturbing facts about the circumstances surrounding the events at camp.
Make a Move, Sunny Park! by Jessica Kim. Kokila, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-525-55500-1. Korean American seventh grader Sunny Park loves to dance, especially to music from her favorite K-pop group, Supreme Beat. Despite Sunny’s stage fright, she agrees to audition for the school dance team with her best friend, but things don’t go as planned when only Sunny makes the cut.
Messenger: The Legend of Muhammad Ali by Marc Bernardin, illus. by Ron Salas. First Second, $25.99; ISBN 978-1-59643-971-9; $17.99 paper ISBN 978-1-250-88163-2. Bernardin and Salas chronicle the early life and later achievements of Black boxer Ali in this moving graphic novel biography.
No One Leaves the Castle by Christopher Healy. Walden Pond, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-234194-5. When the priceless Emerald Axe of Angbar is stolen, the Angbar family hires bounty hunter the Lilac to track down the purported thief. What the Angbars don’t realize, however, is that the Lilac is a 14-year-old girl whose bard companion has greatly overexaggerated her reputation.
Rosie Runs by Marika Maijala, trans. from the Finnish by Mia Spangenberg. Elsewhere, $19.95; ISBN 978-1-953861-60-3. Like the other racing dogs, sleek Rosie chases a mechanical hare around the track every day. The spectators enjoy the show, but it’s hard on Rosie and her companions. The day after she wins a race, Rosie starts off running again, but when she gets to the finish line, she doesn’t stop. The picture book received a starred review from PW.
The Story of Gumluck the Wizard by Adam Rex. Chronicle, $14.99; ISBN 978-1-7972-1323-1. Rex wraps big themes—friendship, honesty, justice, self-awareness—into an absurdly silly and heartfelt series launch chronicling a wee wizard’s quest to become a helpful hero. The illustrated chapter book received a starred review from PW.
This Boy: The Early Lives of John Lennon & Paul McCartney by Ilene Cooper. Viking, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-4514-7585-5. Documenting the subjects’ first meeting and leading up to their meteoric rise to fame, Cooper highlights the stark personality differences that cultivated the “creative alchemy” between Lennon and McCartney in this origin story that emphasizes their ordinary childhood experiences.
Tiger Daughter by Rebecca Lim. Delacorte, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-593-64897-1. Because of 13-year-old Wen Li Zhou’s struggles with math, her father deems her a “useless, insolent child,” and his verbal abuse also extends to her mother. When Wen’s best friend Henry Xiao’s mother dies by suicide, Henry won’t leave his house, and Wen’s parents want her to stay away from him. But to help Henry, Wen must tap into her own strength and learn to stand up for herself. The middle grade book received a starred review from PW.
Tilly in Technicolor by Mazey Eddings. Wednesday, $24; ISBN 978-1-250-84706-5; $14 paper ISBN 978-1-250-32812-0. Eighteen-year-old Tilly Twomley feels as if no one takes her seriously because of her ADHD. She accompanies her older sister Mona to London as an intern for Mona’s environmentally friendly nail polish startup, and on the flight over, Tilly meets Mona’s other intern, autistic 18-year-old Oliver. While the two teens struggle to reconcile their clashing personalities, they begin to offer each other support in navigating both their neurodivergence and their uncertain futures.
Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen. Heartdrum, $24.99; ISBN 978-0-06-298359-6; $15.99 paper ISBN 978-0-06-298358-9. Since her Jewish mother left her Muscogee father, middle schooler Mia has been raised by her mother and new stepfather. She attends a Los Angeles Jewish day school and is preparing for her bat mitzvah. When she runs away to Tulsa, Okla., to visit her father, she meets her extended family and learns about many Muscogee Nation traditions and customs at a powwow.
West of the Sea by Stephanie Willing. Viking, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-46557-8. Willing’s debut incorporates profound family dynamics, ghostly dinosaurs, a shape-shifting cryptid, and Celtic mythology. Eleven-year-old Haven West’s mother has been acting strangely, then vanishes; accompanied by her teenage sister and puzzle-solving tween neighbor, the trio steal a food truck and set off across Texas to search for her. The middle grade book received a starred review from PW.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of August, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
