Kelsey Murphy at Viking has acquired An Auction of Souls by Amber Chen (Of Jade and Dragons), a YA fantasy duology that follows a girl who runs a legendary magical auction house, whose life is upended after a stranger shows up wanting to sell a soul. She must embark on a dangerous journey with two Hell guardians to save her grandmother and unravel the mystery of the soul—before hell is literally set loose on earth. Publication is slated for fall 2026; Laura Crockett at Triada US negotiated the two-book deal for world English rights.
Luisa Beguiristaín at Roaring Brook has bought, at auction, Alyssa Sheinmel's How the Goode Girls Died, a YA suspense novel about a girl who's thrust into the mystery of her neighbors' deaths and blackmailed by the forces behind her school's anonymous gossip app into investigating even as she deals with the loss of her own mother. Publication is planned for fall 2026; Stuti Telidevara and Peter Knapp at Park, Fine & Brower Literary Management did the two-book deal for North American rights.
David A. Robertson at Tundra/Swift Water Books has acquired Here for a Good Time by Kim Spencer, Gitxaala Nation member and winner of three CCB Awards, along with a second, untitled book. The YA novel follows Morgan, who attends alternate school with her best friend, Skye, and covers first relationships, grief, loss and teenage pregnancy. It is a joyful and revelatory portrait of Indigenous girlhood. Publication is set for Swift Water's inaugural list in spring 2026; Amy Tompkins at Transatlantic Agency sold English rights in North America.
Kat Brzozowski at Feiwel and Friends has bought The Oceans Between Us by Shannon C.F. Rogers, author of the APALA Award-winning I'd Rather Burn Than Bloom, about a Filipina American teen, caught between the country she knows and the family she's lost, who uncovers a family secret that threatens everything she thought was true. Publication is scheduled for 2026; Serene Hakim at Ayesha Pande Literary sold world rights.
Katherine Easter at Blink has acquired Schneider Family Book Award-winner Shannon Stocker's next YA novel, The Roach King of Raleigh. When introverted Quill Jenkins becomes desperate to get out of a broken-down rental house owned by his nemesis's father, he starts a roach-breeding business in his attic, which leads to unexpected friendships and dredges up a broken past he wishes would stay buried forever. Publication is slated for winter 2026; Allison Remcheck at Stimola Literary Studio brokered the deal for world English rights.
Mark Siegel and Connie Hsu at First Second have bought world rights to Divided by Steve Sheinkin (l.) and Toby Cypress, a YA nonfiction graphic novel set in 1850s Washington, D.C., in a polarized nation on its way to the Civil War. Connie Hsu will edit; publication is planned for 2026. Susan Cohen at Writers House represented Sheinkin, and Cypress was unagented.
Sarah Alpert while at Algonquin Young Readers acquired Anna Fiteni's debut YA novel The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire, about a girl who must strike a dangerous bargain with a prince of fairy in order to find her missing sister, and a second book. Ruqayyah Daud at Little, Brown will edit; publication is scheduled for fall 2025. Lydia Silver at Darley Anderson Children's Book Agency sold North American rights.
Jennifer Ung at Quill Tree has bought the middle grade novel Scarlet Morning and an untitled sequel by ND Stevenson, author of the award-winning graphic novel Nimona, a funny and moving, heavily illustrated novel that follows two orphans who set sail with an eccentric crew of pirates to save a blighted world ruined beyond repair. Publication is set for fall 2025 and fall 2026; Charlie Olsen at InkWell Management sold world English rights.
Stephanie Pitts at Putnam has acquired two books by New Yorker cartoonist Sofia Warren. Film Nerds, a middle grade graphic novel debut, follows two best friends who share a passion for DIY filmmaking until the move to middle school sparks growing differences between them—featuring interstitials of the serialized sci-fi adventure they are filming, which unfolds in parallel. The first book is slated for fall 2026, followed by a sequel in fall 2027; Paul Lucas at Janklow & Nesbit Associates sold world rights.
Tom Russell at Bright Matter Books has bought Charles Hofer (l.) and Leslie Boyer's Once Bitten, a narrative nonfiction title about two young physicians from different corners of the world who collaborated and raced against time to create the world's first snake antivenom. Publication is planned for fall 2026; Nicole Eisenbraun at Ginger Clark Literary sold world English rights.
Rob Valois at Penguin Workshop has acquired world rights to the middle grade graphic novel 1313 Shadowbrook Ln and an untitled second book by comic writers and filmmakers Rebekah McKendry (top l.) and David Ian McKendry (top r.), illustrated by Maddi Gonzalez (bottom l.) and Spencer Amundson (bottom r.). Pitched as Goosebumps meets Only Murders in the Building, the book follows a quirky group of kids who live in a pre-war apartment building and have formed a Monster Society to investigate a series of supernatural entities haunting their home. Publication is tentatively set for fall 2026; Bridget Smith and Valentina Sainato at JABberwocky Literary Agency represented the authors, and Jennifer Azantian at Azantian Literary Agency represented the illustrators.
Sara Miller at DC Comics has commissioned Aquamanatee, an early reader graphic novel by Ben Clanton (l.) (Narwhal and Jelly), illustrated by Cassandra Federman (Story Spinners). The graphic novel follows Marlow, an awkward and blundering manatee who gains powers and becomes an unlikely hero, teaming up with Aquaman in aquatic adventures. Publication is scheduled for fall 2025; Marietta B. Zacker at Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency represented the author, and Jennifer March Soloway at Andrea Brown Literary Agency represented the illustrator; DC holds world rights.
Emily Daluga at Chronicle has bought world rights, in an exclusive submission, to Time Traveling Dinosaurs by James Serafino (Good Night Thoughts; Penelope Weathervane's Grumpy Day), an epoch-spanning early reader graphic novel series. A trio of dinosaurs find themselves lost in time and mysteriously tiny—friendships will be forged, patience will be tested, and evil/villainous/nefarious cats will be defeated. The first book is slated for spring 2028; Jemiscoe Chambers-Black at Andrea Brown Literary Agency did the two-book deal.
Jenna Lettice at Random House Graphic has acquired Miles & Jones and three sequels by Sam Smith, illustrated by César Lador, a chapter book graphic novel series in the spirit of Indiana Jones and the Avengers, about two kid heroes who battle an ultra-villain and her string of curses in their local park. Publication is planned for summer 2026; Emma Dorph at Hachette New Zealand sold North American rights.
Heidi Kilgras at Random House has bought world rights to My Pet Rat Can Do That by Anna Membrino (l.), illustrated by Stephanie Laberis, a leveled reader about a girl and her amazing, lovable, and highly intelligent pet rat. Publication is scheduled for spring 2026; the author represented herself, and Anne Moore Armstrong at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.
Taylor Norman at Neal Porter Books has acquired world rights to Yet Still Radiant by Stefanie Foster Brown (l.), illustrated by Caldecott, Sibert, and Coretta Scott King-honored artist Cozbi A. Cabrera, a picture book about Charles Ethan Porter, a largely unknown 19th-century still-life painter who was rejected from the white-dominated arts industry, pursued his passion nevertheless, and was eventually rediscovered and exhibited globally. Publication is set for spring 2028; Wendi Gu at HG Literary represented the author, and Victoria Sanders at Victoria Sanders & Associates represented the illustrator.
Alyson Day at HarperCollins has bought, in an exclusive submission, world rights to A Room with a View by Joanna Ho (l.) (Eyes That Kiss in the Corners), illustrated by Thaís Mesquita, about a boy reluctant to go on outdoor adventures with his mother because it means driving a bazillion miles and sleeping someplace with bears and bugs and bats, but despite his misgivings, he realizes there are more memories to treasure than he initially believes. Publication is slated for spring 2026; Caryn Wiseman represented the author and Jemiscoe Chambers-Black represented the illustrator, both at Andrea Brown Literary Agency, in the deal for world rights.
Andrea Tompa at Candlewick Press has bought world rights to Bear's Magic Show, a picture book written and illustrated by Geisel Award-winning illustrator Mike Wohnoutka (See the Cat). When Bear puts on a magic show, none of his illusions work out the way he planned. Can he pull a final trick out of his sleeve to make the show a success? Publication is set for fall 2026; the author represented himself.
Andrea Welch at S&S/Beach Lane has acquired Caroline McPherson's You Are So Loud, a tale about nurturing differences and embracing individuality while showing that, with a little understanding, friends with the most opposite of personalities can always find ways to appreciate and learn from one another. Publication is scheduled for spring 2027; Kelly Dyksterhouse at the Tobias Agency sold world rights.
Martha Mihalick at Greenwillow has bought North American rights to Come Catch a Dream, a picture book by Brittany J. Thurman (l.), illustrated by Islenia Mil. In this story told in verse, a child's desire to ice skate is fueled by the dream to spin, along with Momma's words, "Nothing is impossible." Publication is slated for fall 2025; Marietta B. Zacker at Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency represented the author, and Aliza R. Hoover at the CAT Agency represented the illustrator.
Nicole Fox at Rise x Penguin Workshop has acquired All the Ways We Learn by Chloe Ito Ward (l.) (Made for More), illustrated by Yaroslava Apollonova, a picture book celebration of the range of ways our brains can learn by two neurodivergent creators, featuring accommodations that can improve learning for all. Publication is planned for summer 2026; Heather Cashman at Storm Literary represented the author, and Jemiscoe Chambers-Black at Andrea Brown Literary Agency represented the illustrator.
Alexandra McKenzie at Charlesbridge has bought world rights to the picture book Sounds of Trash by Tina Athaide (l.), and Kristen Nobles has acquired world rights for illustration by Neha Rawat. The story follows a trio of friends who find out that the annual community block party will be held at a location without electricity, and set out to make their own instruments to ensure they still have music. Publication is set for summer 2026 as part of Steamworks; Andrea Cascardi at Transatlantic Literary represented the author, and Lori Steel at SteelWorks Literary represented the illustrator.
Adonia Ripple and Kira Bouchard at Yosemite Conservancy have acquired world rights to Forest en Familia/El bosque en familia by Cynthia Harmony (l.), illustrated by Renata Galindo, a story about a Mexican American family's day out in a national park. Publication in a dual-language edition is scheduled for spring 2026; James McGowan at BookEnds represented the author, and Kendra Marcus at Bookstop Literary Agency represented the illustrator.
Jaime Gelman at Little Bee Books has bought world rights to You're the Top Dog and Grape-ful for You by Paige Turner, illustrated by Alyssa Nassner, two board books sharing love and food puns. Publication is slated for summer 2026 and fall 2026; the author and illustrator were unagented.
