Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles including a picture book biography highlighting Indigenous activists, a YA fantasy about a girl fighting for her place among a group of immortal warriors, a YA anthology about collectors and their precious relics and more.
Autumn Peltier, Water Warrior by Carole Lindstrom, illus. by Bridget George. Roaring Brook, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-250-79527-4. This picture book biography highlights the activism of Indigenous Water Warriors Autumn Peltier and Josephine Mandamin, who fight for water protection rights.
Champion of Fate by Kendare Blake. Quill Tree, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-297720-5. Sixteen-year-old Reed hopes to join the ranks of the immortal female warriors of the Citadel. For her first Hero’s Trial she is tasked with helping a prince defeat a murderous king. Should he fail, Reed will be relieved of her duties and banished.
The Collectors: An Anthology edited by A.S. King. Dutton, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-5936-2028-1. Ten writers, including Anna-Marie McLemore, Jason Reynolds, Randy Ribay, and more collaborate on a short story anthology embracing the strangeness of collections and collectors.
Dogtown by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko, illus. by Wallace West. Macmillan/Feiwel and Friends, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-250-81160-8. Newbery Medalist Applegate and Newbery Honoree Choldenko craft a tale about Chance, a permanent resident of Dogtown, where dogs and robots alike await adoption. Chance befriends robot dog Metal Head and together the pair plan an escape from Dogtown.
Enlighten Me by Minh Lê, illus. by Chan Chau. Little, Brown Ink, $24.99; ISBN 978-0-7595-5547-1; $12.99 paper ISBN 978-0-7595-5548-8. Vietnamese American tween Bình is taken to a silent meditation retreat where he is forced to abandon his beloved Gameboy. While learning the history of Jakarta, Bình reimagines Jakarta’s past as a video game to help him connect. The graphic novel received a starred review from PW.
The Fairfleet Affair by K.H. Saxton. Union Square Kids, $16.99 ISBN 978-1-4549-5012-7. Asha Singh and her best friend Alex Foster get their first job for their A&A Detective Agency when a prominent citizen disappears and cryptic messages on his whereabouts appear. As the tweens decode the messages, the missing persons case devolves into something even more dangerous.
Good Books for Bad Children: The Genius of Ursula Nordstrom by Beth Kephart, illus. by Chloe Bristol. Random House/Schwartz, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-37957-8. This picture book biography traces the life of late editor and publisher Nordstrom from her childhood to her career creating iconic books for young readers.
Go-Go Guys by Rowboat Watkins. Chronicle, $15.99; ISBN 978-1-79720-571-7. A trio of kids can’t fall asleep due to their “Go-Go brains,” and try counting sheep to help them rest. When the sheep attack their home, the children hop on a spaceship and go on an adventure to find their way back. The picture book received a starred review from PW.
Harlem at Four by Michael Datcher, illus. by Frank Morrison. Random House Studio, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-42933-4. This picture book in two parts follows Harlem, a girl exploring a museum with her father, and highlights the history of Harlem, the New York City neighborhood that began to flourish in the 20th century.
Hannah Sharpe, Cartoon Detective by Janet Tashjian, illus. by Jake Tashjian. Little, Brown/Ottaviano, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-316-31980-5. Autistic 11-year-old Hannah loves creating art, like her pickle cowgirl series, and paying close attention to her surroundings. When packages in her neighborhood start disappearing, Hannah puts her observational skills to use to solve the mystery.
I Don’t Want to Read This Book Aloud by Max Greenfield, illus. by Mike Lowery Putnam. $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-61658-1. Actor Greenfield’s sequel to I Don't Want to Read This Book highlights the anxieties of young readers who don’t enjoy reading stories aloud.
If Animals Went to Work by Ann Whitford Paul, illus. by David Walker. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-374-39057-0. The latest installment of the If Animals Kissed Good Night series spotlights a group of varying animals who consider what occupations they would take up if they were required to have jobs.
I’m From by Gary R. Gray Jr., illus. by Oge Mora. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-308996-9. While moving through a busy day at school, a child offers reflections on his identity. The picture book received a starred review from PW.
I’m Going to Build a Snowman by Jashar Awan. Simon & Schuster, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-66593-817-4. A child awakens to the excitement of a snow day and heads outside to make a snowman. When he imagines a perfectly crafted snowman, he reckons with the reality of the flawed but lovingly made snowman he’s created.
Kid Noir: Kitty Feral and the Case of the Marshmallow Monkey by Eddie Muller and Jessica Schmidt, illus. by Forrest Burdett. Running Press Kids, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-7624-8168-2. When detective Kitty Feral learns of a missing candy order, the investigation leads to interviews with a rogue’s gallery of anthropomorphized informants and thieves, in this hardboiled picture book debut by TCM host Muller.
Match Point! by Maddie Gallegos. First Second, $22.99; ISBN 978-1-250-78415-5; $14.99 paper ISBN 978-1-250-78414-8. Despite her father’s passion for racquetball, tween Rosie doesn’t care for the sport. When she befriends racquetball enthusiast Blair, Rosie schemes to pair the two up so her father can train Blair for an upcoming youth tournament instead of her. The graphic novel received a starred review from PW.
The Odds by Lindsay Puckett. Scholastic Press, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-3388-0381-5. In a world divided between magically gifted Oddities and ordinary Never Odds, 10-year-old Begonia Hollowmoor fears being taken away from the loving elderly Odds at Swamp Root Manor and placed in an orphanage for Never Odds if she cannot find her powers. But when Swamp Root Manor falls under threat, Begonia teams up with another Oddity hopeful to save the place from a haunting force.
The Only Girl in Town by Ally Condie. Dutton, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-593-32717-3. High school senior July Fielding wakes up one morning to find that everyone in her town has disappeared, and races to figure out what happened to them.
Scroll by Hui Li. Little, Brown/Ottaviano, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-3163-4073-1. Lulu and her dog Dumpling have learned lessons from Lulu’s grandfather about the history of calligraphy, and Lulu begins drawing on an expanse of scroll. When it unexpectedly comes to life and Lulu enters an alternate world within the scroll, she must paint new symbols to protect herself and Dumpling.
The Society for Soulless Girls by Laura Steven. Delacorte, $12.99 paper; ISBN 978-0-593-70391-5. Northumberland, England’s Carvell Academy of Arts has finally reopened after four unsolved student murders in the North Tower forced the college’s closure a decade ago. Freshman Lottie Fitzwilliam, a relentlessly positive field hockey player, is determined to research one of the deaths, but when she discovers she’s been sleepwalking to the North Tower, she worries that there’s something paranormal afoot.
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid. HarperTee, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-321150-6. Female architecture student Effy Sayre is given the opportunity to design a house in honor of her favorite author, but struggles when she learns that her academic rival Preston will be assisting her. When Preston suggests that Effy’s beloved author may be a fraud, their investigation uncovers strange happenings around the new house. The YA book received a starred review from PW.
The Widely Unknown Myth of Apple & Dorothy by Corey Ann Haydu. HarperCollins/Tegen, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-297693-2. The residents of Our Hill, all descendants of Greek gods, partake in the tradition of climbing a ladder to bite a golden apple. Dorothy, an outsider because of her mother’s refusal to partake in the tradition, struggles when the gods issue an ultimatum: everyone in Our Hill must choose between returning to Olympus as gods forever or remaining on Earth as humans.
Which Way to Anywhere by Cressida Cowell. Little, Brown, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-316-53639-4. Twelve-year-old twins K2 and Izzabird O’Hero know they come from a long line of magical explorers, and the mundane lineage of their new stepsiblings—12-year-old Theo and eight-year-old Mabel—leads to friction between the sibling groups. When a sinister professor comes looking for someone with a special magical capability, the siblings must all work together to escape.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of September, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
