Penguin Young Readers has partnered with the Ford Motor Company to publish children’s books, starting this year with a picture book and three board books.
“It’s one of the premier American automobile companies, with such a strong brand and legacy,” Daniel Moreton, VP and publisher for brands and licenses at Penguin Workshop, told PW. Of particular interest to the Penguin team was Ford’s objective, outlined in its mission statement, of making life better through principles such as accessibility and affordability. “That stood out to us. It felt like their goals aligned well with Penguin’s own goals,” Moreton said.
The brand also lends itself to a wealth of creativity. “When we were brainstorming ideas, we came up with a laundry list of formats and content,” he said. “There’s so much you can do with it. The options and opportunities for storytelling seemed endless.”
The first picture book, The Good Night Truck, written by Charlie Moon, illustrated by Jen Taylor, and translated by Isabel C. Mendoza, will release on August 27 with simultaneous English and Spanish editions. The story centers on a slow drive through a small town in a family truck, with the baby lulled to sleep as the day comes to an end. It features the Ford F-150, one of three brands, along with the Bronco and the Mustang, that will be pillars of the publishing program.
November will bring Ford: Road Trip!, a shaped board book with wheels, also centering on the F-150, written by Gabriella DeGennaro and illustrated by Yi-Hsuan Wu; and two concept board books, Ford: Colors and Ford: Numbers, by DeGennaro, illustrated by Emilie Lapeyre.
More books are planned for 2025, including two more concept board books, Shapes and Letters, in April. Other future titles will include a First 100 Words book, as well as offerings for a slightly older audience, including a search-and-find title, a sticker activity book, and nonfiction readers. The Ford program will reside in the Penguin Young Readers Licenses imprint, which falls under the Penguin Workshop umbrella at Penguin Young Readers.
Children’s books represent a new product category for the Ford licensing program, which drives an estimated $1 billion in retail sales of licensed products each year, according to a recent article in the Detroit Free Press. The program encompasses everything from aftermarket auto parts to collectibles to lifestyle products like Mustang cologne.
