This season, Ruth Chan, Jules Feiffer, and other kid-lit stars from across generations enter the bustling middle grade category—where realistic coming-of-age dramas and fantastical escapes fill up the same tween backpacks.

Top 10

Amazing Grapes

Jules Feiffer. HarperCollins/Di Capua, Sept. 24 ($21.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-296382-6)

Pulitzer-winning cartoonist Feiffer’s first middle grade graphic novel follows a trio of siblings as they swirl about the Lost Dimension. Ages 8–12.

Dear Dad: Growing Up with a Parent in Prison—and How We Stayed Connected

Jay Jay Patton, Kiara Valdez, and Markia Jenai. Graphix, Sept. 17 ($14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-338-89320-5)

Patton’s debut—cocreated with her formerly imprisoned father, who is now a tech entrepreneur—touches on the experience of bonding with an incarcerated parent. Ages 9–12.

How It All Ends

Emma Hunsinger. Greenwillow, Aug. 6 ($15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-315814-6)

A gifted 13-year-old thrust into high school early stars in this “vibrant, comedic character sketch,” per PW’s starred review. Ages 8 and up.

Knots

Colleen Frakes. HarperAlley, Sept. 3 ($15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-324716-1)

Growing up with parents who work in the prison system leaves middle schooler Norah extra anxious about getting in trouble—especially when she’s asked to be a fill-in caregiver for her siblings. Ages 8–12.

Lion Dancers

Cai Tse. Simon & Schuster, Aug. 13 ($13.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-6659-2723-9)

Grief alienates friends in a Chinese community dance troupe in Tse’s “heartfelt graphic novel debut,” per PW’s review. Ages 8–12.

The Night Mother

Jeremy Lambert and Alexa Sharpe. Oni, Oct. 8 ($14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-63715-494-6)

Giving off vibes of a gothic version of Ponyo crossed with A Wrinkle in Time, this fantasy from a Buffy comics writer and a Lumberjanes artist takes place in a coastal town stuck in eternal eve. Ages 9–12.

Stand Up!

Tori Sharp. LB Ink, Oct. 1 ($12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-316-53893-0)

Between juggling audio production, crushes, and cranky teachers, two middle school friends find their voices by starting a podcast. Ages 8–12.

Taxi Ghost

Sophie Escabasse. Random House Graphic, Sept. 3 ($13.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-593-56597-1)

The creator of the Witches of Brooklyn series introduces a magical girl named Adèle, whose first menstrual cycle comes along with ghostly visions. Ages 8–12.

Uprooted: A Memoir About What Happens When Your Family Moves Back

Ruth Chan. Roaring Brook, Sept. 10 ($14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-85534-3)

Picture book artist Chan’s debut graphic memoir recounts in her wry, cartoony style how her family moved “back home” from Toronto to Hong Kong in her tweens. Ages 8–12.

Weirdo

Tony Weaver, and Jes and Cin Wibowo. First Second, Sept. 17 ($14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-77287-9)

Motivational speaker Weaver, creator of the UnCommons Webtoon series, debuts with the tale of a nerdy middle schooler who gets picked on for digging comics. Ages 10–14.

Pets as Protagonist

Bad Kitty, Dog Man, Katie the Catsitter—it’s a truism that kids’ comics bestsellers often put cats and dogs in leading roles. In these forthcoming titles, humankind’s furry and feathered friends talk out loud, stay silent companions, or thrive in a world without people.

The Case of the Missing Spot (Nancy Spector, Monster Detective #1)

Stephen W. Martin and Linh Pham. Algonquin, Sept. 10 ($12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64375-065-1)

Trash Truck writer Martin’s series launch follows upstart detective Nancy and her chatty dog, Jinx, as they hunt for the Invisible Man’s missing canine—who also happens to be invisible. Ages 7–11.

Detective Beans & the Case of the Missing Hat

Li Chen. Andrews McMeel, Oct. 15 ($12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5248-8258-7)

Cat Town detective Beans searches for his own missing fedora, with help from tabby Biscuits, in this series launch by the cartoonist behind the ExtraOrdinary webcomic. Ages 8–10.

Dog Trouble

Kristin Varner. First Second, Oct. 29 ($14.99 trade paperISBN 978-1-250-22591-7)

In the follow-up to Horse Trouble, Varner reveals that canines are trouble, too—but that doesn’t stop Ash, who is staying with his dad and stepmom, from bonding with a shelter dog. Ages 8–12.

The Great Turkey Walk: A Graphic Novel Adaptation of the Classic Story of a Boy, His Dog and a Thousand Turkeys

Kathleen Karr and Léonie Bischoff, trans. by Michelle Bailat-Jones. Helvetiq, Oct. 8 ($19.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-3-03-
964067-6)

Winner of the grand prize at Angoulême, this adaptation of Karr’s 1998 novel follows a farm boy and his dog on their journey from Missouri to Denver in the 1860s to buy turkeys. Ages 8–12.

Hearing Things

Ben Sears. Toon, Sept. 3 ($12.99, ISBN 978-1-6626-6543-1)

Tim, who does amateur audio recording, and his musician big sister are the new kids in town. With his loyal cat, Frankie, Tim braves the local haunted house to capture the perfect spooky sounds for his sister’s latest goth rock song. Ages 4–7.

Jurassic Bark (Sophie #1)

Brian Anderson. Marble, Oct. 15 ($14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-958325-14-8)

In Anderson’s series launch, a pup is the center of his family’s world—until a new (human) baby is born, and then, on top of that, some cats show up. Ages 8–12.

Mack Moon and the P.E.T.S.

Dan Jolley and Russ Cox. Andrews McMeel, Jan. 7 ($12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5248-7826-9)

Mack dreams of being an astronaut, so it’s lucky that his pets—a dog, cat, and fish—turn out to be secret agents from the Planetary, Enforcement, Tactics, and Stealth agency, who jump into action when a nefarious space ferret lands on Earth. Ages 7–10.

A Pair of Parrots

David A. Adler and Clarice Elliott. Holiday House, Sept. 24 ($14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8234-5154-8)

Geisel Award winner Adler scripts an entry in the I Like to Read Comics series about a parrot who won’t stay caged unless the right equation of mates is worked out by his owner. Ages 4–8.

Wildflower Emily: A Story About Young Emily Dickinson

Lydia Corry. Godwin, Oct. 15 ($14.99, ISBN 978-1-250-86820-6)

Corry depicts the revered poet as a young girl, communing with nature as she roams the fields of Amherst, Mass., alongside her dog, Carlo. Ages 7–10.

Early Reader Spotlight

This season’s comics from the readaloud, early reader, and elementary chapter book categories include such kid-pleasing fare as cows rocking out, a junior version of the Minotaur myth, and a buddy comedy about a quartet of twigs.

The Art of Friendship (Evelyn and Avery #1)

Elle Pierre. Clarion, Sept. 3 ($7.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-358-68156-4)

Evelyn gathers two friends, one of them a young skunk, to team up for the annual town art show—but creative differences arise. Ages 6–10.

Beware the Dragon and the Nozzlewock: A Graphic Novel Poetry Collection Full of Surprising Characters!

Vikram Madan. Wordsong, Nov. 12 ($18.99, ISBN 978-1-63592-817-4)

Madan combines rhyming verse and comics art for poems about wacky folks like a martial arts enthusiast named Stan the Slouching Man and super sniffer the Nozzlewock. Ages 4–8.

Chip Plays Grown-Up

Maddie Frost. HarperAlley, Oct. 29 ($5.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-330647-9)

A penguin chick named Chip longs for a grown-up bedtime, but his mama says staying up means he has to do all her grown-up chores, too—and now he’s not so sure a late night’s worth the labor. Ages 4–8.

Drawn Onward

Daniel Nayeri and Matt Rockefeller. HarperAlley, Oct. 8 ($19.99, ISBN 978-0-06-327716-8)

This picture book with comics stylings by Printz Award winner Nayeri and illustrator Rockefeller follows a young child on a fantasy adventure to ask his dead mother his lingering questions since he lost her. Ages 4–8.

Gabby Torres Gets a Billion Followers

Angela Dominguez. Roaring Brook, Jan. 14 ($12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-90136-1)

Dominguez spins off the Stella Díaz series with the cautionary tale of a precocious social activist who sets up a social media page for the Sea Musketeers club. Ages 6–9.

Jimmy’s Elbow

James Kochalka. Top Shelf, Aug. 13 ($14.99 trade paper,ISBN 978-1-60309-541-9)

Indie comics fave Kochalka delves into the oddities of having a body, starting with the stories an elbow might tell if it could talk. Ages 5-8.

The Moosicians

Jeff Crowther and Steve Behling. Andrews McMeel, Sept. 24 ($12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5248-8114-6)

A bunch of bulls and cows get together to make music, and hopefully win the upcoming battle of the bands, in this series opener. Ages 7–10.

Puffin and Penguin

Helaine Becker and Kevin Sylvester. Kids Can, Oct. 1 ($16.99, ISBN 978-
1-5253-0654-9)

Newbie Puffin gets theater bird Penguin assigned to him as a school buddy but feels left out with the class play coming up—until he gets a key role behind the scenes. Ages 6–9.

Twig Friends

Andrew McDonald and Ben Wood. Bright Light, Sept. 3 ($11.99, ISBN 978-1-76121-435-6)

In a new series from the team behind Real Pigeons, four little sticks—Red, Ziggy, Noodle, and Stump—get into mischief and fall for tricks. Kids can learn to draw the crew, too. Ages 4–8.

Wait a Minotaur

Jeffrey Ebbeler. Holiday House, Sept. 24 ($14.99, ISBN 978-0-8234-5633-8)

New kid Nick feels like he’s in a maze when he gets lost between the gym and his next class. Luckily, his fellow new student, Gus, happens to be a minotaur. Ages 4–8.

We Have a Dull-Emma! (Pencil & Eraser #1)

Jenny Alvarado. Putnam, Sept. 10 ($12.99, ISBN 978-0-593-69976-8)

An overly excitable pencil convinces an introverted eraser to come along on a treacherous trek across the classroom to get sharpened before the kids return from recess. Ages 5–8.

Middle Grade Comics & Graphic Novels Longlist

ABRAMS FANFARE

Great Minds of Science (Black Lives #1) by Tonya Bolden and David Wilkerson (Sept. 10, $15.99, ISBN 978-1-4197-5269-8) presents portraits of leading Black scientists, including physician Matilda Evans, civil engineer Archie Alexander, and mathematician Gladys West. Ages 8–12.

The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien by John Hendrix (Sept. 24, $24.99, ISBN 978-1-4197-4634-5). Hendrix’s dual biography follows friends Lewis and Tolkien from their childhoods through their service in two world wars and their breakout fame as fantasy writers and philosophers. Ages 10–14.

ALADDIN

The Blood of Kings (Imagine Nation #1) by Matt Myklusch (Jan. 7, $13.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-6659-2817-5) returns to the multiple universes of Myklusch’s Jack Blank Adventures series for a new arc, opening in a medieval village where a sword fighter and reluctant heir to the throne battles for vengeance. Ages 10 and up.

An Unlikely Pair (Molly and the
Bear #1) by Bob and Vicki Scott (Aug. 6, $14.99, ISBN 978-1-6659-4312-3) adapts the syndicated comics strip Bear with Me into a friendship tale about a little girl and an enormous goofy bear. Ages 8–12.

ANDREWS MCMEEL

The Disappearance of White Pine Beach (Otto Normal’s Monsterton #1) by Danielle McKechnie and Simón Estrada (Aug. 6, $22.99, ISBN 978-1-5248-8117-7). An ordinary human boy moves into a picturesque town that happens to be a refuge for monsters, where he makes friends with a ghost, vampires, and a slime shaped like a girl. Ages 8–12.

Into the Sock-Verse (Life Really Socks #1) by Shidan and Roshan Youssefian and Mahui Duque (Sept. 3, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5248-8594-6). Where do socks go when they don’t come out with the rest of the laundry? A skater sock finds out when he’s sucked into a fantasy land and meets other lost foot-warming friends. Ages 8–12.

The Makers Club by Reimena Yee, Tintin Pantoja, and Melanie Ujimori (Aug. 6, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5248-8975-3) follows friends who like to make their own art, fashion, and computer programming projects across a pair of tales bound into one volume. Ages 10–12.

Operation: Cover Up by Tate Godwin (Jan. 21, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5248-9021-6). Two new kids take the opportunity to swap identities when they enter fifth grade, with the smart kid teaching the goof-off to study and learning how to make people laugh. Then, they meet a girl who is hiding a secret of her own. Ages 7–11.

APPLES & HONEY

The Day I Became a Potato Pancake by Arie Kaplan and Beilin Xu (Oct. 15, $17.95, ISBN 978-1-68115-656-9).
A kid gets zapped with a ray gun that transforms him into a delicious fried potato pancake, just in time for Hanukkah—and unfortunately just as an alien who collects Hanukkah-themed objects lands on Earth. Ages 8–12.

CHRONICLE

This Is My Brain! A Book on Neurodiversity by Elise Gravel (Oct. 29, $17.99, ISBN 978-1-7972-2820-4) explains through comics vignettes all the ways the mind works—and why different people may think in very
different ways. Ages 8–12.

CLAVIS

The Pigpen Problem: How to Calculate Area and Perimeter by Bill Wise and Davilyn Lynch (Aug. 6, $19.95,
ISBN 978-1-60537-864-0). A former math teacher crunches numbers in this comic, where a sheep and some pigs try and puzzle out the equation to build a pen on their farm. Ages 7–12.

DARK HORSE

Heart of Cobblestone by Andrew Clemson and Jeremy Lawson (Oct. 15, $10.99, ISBN 978-1-5067-4308-0) launches a new arc in the ongoing series set in the world of Minecraft, about a farmer who builds upward to keep his crops just as straight and square as he likes them—and meets a community of like-minded, but cranky, seekers of peace and quiet. Ages 8 and up.

Small Town Spirits by Zack Keller and Gabriele Bagnoli (Oct. 29, $19.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5067-3778-2) follows up the writer-artist team’s Hotel REM with another tale set in a mystical world. This time, it’s an Irish town where folks celebrate All Hallow’s Eve with competitive games, and one entrant conjures a Celtic spirit for assistance. Ages 10 and up.

Time Traveler Tales by Karl Jacobs
et al. (Aug. 6, 19.99, ISBN 978-1-5067-3421-7). The YouTuber behind Tales from the SMP spins a comics story about Oliver, who gets punted across time by an unknown force, from the 1920s to the Wild West, and is followed from era to era by a mysterious stranger. Ages 10 and up.

DC

Summer Breakdown (Batman and Robin and Howard #2) by Jeffrey Brown (Sept. 3, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-77952-699-1) continues the adventures of a group of kids who hang out with Batman as they try to uncover the malevolent forces seeking to develop real estate on their soccer field. Ages 8-12.

DISNEY HYPERION

Dex Dingo: World’s Best Greatest Ever Inventor by Greg Foley (Sept. 17, $24.99, ISBN 978-1-368-09691-1). A kid deciding what he wants to be when he grows up tries out various professions—starting with inventor, which results in nanobots gone awry. Ages 8–12.

FARRAR, STRAUS AND GIROUX

Tegan and Sara: Crush by Tegan and Sara Quin, and Tillie Walden (Oct. 1, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-374-31304-3). The sequel to Junior High finds the future indie musician sisters now in eighth grade, where they’re caught up in a battle of the bands, Tegan’s falling-out with her former best friend, and Sara’s blooming romance. Ages 10–14.

FEIWEL AND FRIENDS

Swing by Audrey Meeker (Oct. 22, $22.99, ISBN 978-1-250-86403-1) pairs a guy who just wants to blend in with a girl whose indie fashion and attitude make her stick out, as the two are forced by their gym teacher to perform a swing dance at the talent show. Ages 9–12.

FIRST SECOND

Mia and Friends: Mia Hamm and the Soccer Sisterhood That Changed History by Karlin Gray and Micheline Hess (Aug. 27, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-82366-3) follows the young soccer player from her childhood love of the sport to making the U.S. women’s national soccer team at age 15 and a triumphant win at the 1999 Women’s World Cup. Ages 7–10.

Mixed-Up by Kami Garcia and Brittney Williams (Jan. 21, $14.99, ISBN 978-1-250-84088-2). When Stella starts fifth grade, she’s pumped that her BFFs are all in the same class—so they can gab about their favorite TV show. But when she can’t read a guidebook the other kids breeze through, her friends help her deal with dyslexia. Ages 8–12.

Monster Locker by Jorge Aguirre and Andrés Vera Martínez (Oct. 1, 22.99, ISBN 978-1-250-74974-1) launches a new series starring a sixth grader named Pablo whose locker hides a secret dimension overrun with supernatural beings. Ages 10–14.

The Prohibition Era: America’s War on Alcohol by Jason Viola and Roger Langridge (Oct. 22, $13.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-80145-6). This entry in the History Comics series drops in on the speakeasies, gang wars, and bootleg routes of 1920s America. Ages 9–13.

Tiffany’s Griffon by Maddi Gonzalez and Magnolia Porter Porter Siddell (Aug. 13, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-75782-1). When the characters of Marnie’s favorite fantasy series come alive to find a “chosen one” in her school, she hopes it’s her they’re seeking. But to her dismay, they want Tiffany, a popular girl she hates. Ages 10–14.

GRAPHIC UNIVERSE

The Case of the Forest Fingers (Mystery Science Detectives #1) by Chi-Hyeon Ahn and Gyung-Hyo Kang (Sept. 10, $16.99, ISBN 979-8-7656-2752-5). Kids in an after-school club employ science skills to solve mysteries, in this case investigating what the finger-like things growing in the nearby forest actually are—ghouls or fungi? Ages 9–12.

GRAPHIX

Anang and the Ribbon Skirt by Cameron Mukwa (Oct. 1, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-338-84325-5). This debut from an Indigenous cartoonist features a nonbinary, two-spirit 10-year-old member of the Anishinaabe named Anang, who makes a traditional ribbon skirt for a powwow ceremony with help from family and animal friends. Ages 9–12.

GREYSTONE

Super Ocean Weekend: The Ultimate Underwater Adventure by Gaëlle Alméras, trans. by David Warriner (Oct. 22, $14.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-77840-208-1). Published in partnership with the David Suzuki Institute, this entry in the Science Adventure Club series delves into ocean facts with a cast of marine biology–loving kids. Ages 7–12.

HARPERALLEY

Bitsy & Boozle Tell a Story! by Sara Goetter and Natalie Riess (Sept. 17, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-332661-3). An aspiring storyteller asks a wizard for advice on how to structure a comics narrative, and together they take readers along the hike up Story Mountain, with a glossary of literacy and cartooning terms included. Ages 6–10.

Blake Laser by Keith Marantz and Larissa Brown (Dec. 3, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-300966-0). When amateur inventor Blake Laser and her family jet into space for a vacation, they’re pulled into a looming catastrophe that threatens to put the big chill on planet Earth, and only they can prevent it. Ages 8–12.

Let’s Go, Coco! by Coco Fox (Aug. 13, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-325640-8). Sixth grader Coco tries to make new friends by joining the basketball team—and gets more than she bargained for, namely some unsportsmanlike name-calling and unexpected crushes. Ages 8–12.

Very: Bad at Math by Hope Larson (Jan. 21, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-331128-2) features a student named Verity “Very” Nelson who discovers that she’s got a lesser-known learning disability called dyscalculia, which causes her brain to transpose numbers. Ages 8–12.

HARVEST

Real Bad Guys: A Story About Good vs. Bad and the Way God Sees It by Jimmy Needham and Sebastian Martin (Sept. 3, $18.99, ISBN 978-0-7369-8886-5) outlines in comics portraits the tenets of Christianity that claim all people are sinners in need of redemption, and explains how labels can be deceiving or can change, such as when criminals repent. Ages 8–12.

HIGHWATER

Little by Little: You Can Change the World by Sonya Ballantyne and Rhael McGregor (Aug. 27, $18.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-77492-098-5) is an inspirational tale based on the life of Indigenous activist Michael Redhead Champagne. Michael is the youngest child at a youth conference, but when his community is slandered, he gathers the strength to speak truth to power. Ages 9–12.

HOLIDAY HOUSE

Mendel the Mess-Up by Terry LaBan (Oct. 1, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8234-5680-2) sets a disaster-prone kid comedy story in a Jewish village just as the Cossacks are invading, where antics interrupting goat herding and yeshiva turn to unexpected heroics. Ages 8–12.

HOLT

Chickenpox by Remy Lai (Jan. 14, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-250-86329-4). Abby is the big sister in a family of five kids, the responsible one who is now losing her mind when they’re all stuck inside together with the chickenpox—even though she knows it’s her fault (her friend passed on the bug). Ages 8–12.

Read at Your Own Risk by Remy Lai (Aug. 13, $13.99, ISBN 978-1-250-32335-4) is styled like a diary full of sketches that go awry when the girl who drew them gets haunted and malicious spirits take control of her pen, pushing the story in a horrifying direction. Ages 8–12.

IDW

Godzilla: Monster Island Summer Camp by Rosie Knight and Oliver Ono (Aug 20, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 979-8-88724-092-3). Zelda heads to art camp expecting to craft and create, but when she’s disappointed by the rough-and-tumble activities offered instead, she seeks a painterly refuge—and discovers a secret world of monsters hiding out in nature. Ages 9–12.

IRON CIRCUS

The Inscrutable Doctor Baer and the Case of the Two-Faced Statue by Jerzy Drozd (Oct. 8, $15 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-63899-143-4). Doctor Baer trades in mystical artifacts, doling them out to explorers but never leaving his collection behind to go on his own adventures, until a sorcerer steals a prized treasure and he steps out with a tortoise and a pig to retrieve it. Ages 8–12.

KANE MILLER

A Tricky Kind of Magic by Nigel Baines (Dec. 1, $11.99 trade paper,
ISBN 978-1-68464-907-5). Cooper is grieving his late father, a magician. Then a bunny starts up a conversation and tempts him into a portal leading to a world that he hopes is full of enough magic to bring his dad back. Ages 10–12.

ORCA

Lost at Windy River: A True Story of Survival by Trina Rathgeber and Alina Pete (Oct. 15, $19.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-4598-3226-8). Set in a snowstorm in Northern Canada in 1944, this story follows a 13-year-old Indigenous girl as she survives alone in the cold and wind for over a week using what her culture taught her about living off the land. Ages 9–12.

PAPERCUTZ

Heebie Jeebies by Matthew Erman and Shelby Criswell (Sept. 17, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5458-1188-7). Nerd buddies Blue and Herschel join up with the cranky janitor at their middle school to find a treasure supposedly buried under the building. Ages 7–12.

PENGUIN WORKSHOP

Who Was Raised to Be the Queen of France? Marie Antoinette by Bones Leopard and Robin Richardson (Dec. 3, $7.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-593-38555-5). The latest entry in the Who HQ graphic novel series of historical biographies focuses on the teen years of the French queen who was later destined for the guillotine. Ages 8–12.

QUILL TREE

The Firelight Apprentice by Bree Paulsen (Oct. 29, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-06-326658-2). Two sisters live in a magical world that’s been ravaged by war, and danger still lurks. When the youngest’s emerging powers win her the chance to join up with a band of touring magicians, her older sibling fears malevolent forces. Ages 10 and up.

Noodle & Bao by Shaina Lu (Oct. 15, $15.99, ISBN 978-0-06-328340-4). In a rapidly changing Chinatown neighborhood called Town 99, residents and local businesses are being pushed out as developers buy up storefronts and raise rents. Enter Momo, who is determined to save her friend’s family noodle shop. Ages 8–12.

RANDOM HOUSE GRAPHIC

Turning Twelve by Kathryn Ormsbee and Molly Brooks (Nov. 5, $13.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-593-65007-3). In the sequel to Growing Pangs, Katie turns 12 and enters seventh grade, tries out wearing a bra and shaving her legs, and develops a crush on a friend who happens to also be a girl. Ages 8–12.

SOARING KITE

Mr. Smarty Pants: Aww Nuts! by Charity Reid and Astronym (Sept. 10, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-958372-49-4). Whiz kid Benjamin Carver III is the scion of his family’s peanut factory and the descendant of generations of Black inventors. He’s trying to build a tool to solve his nut allergy, an invention which the jealous Deon (aka Dark Midnight) wants to steal. Ages 9–14.

VIKING

Shock City by Aaron Alexovich (Sept. 10, $13.99, ISBN 978-0-593-52812-9). Milo ventures up to the Shock City castle door to prove his bravery, and unexpectedly gains a new friend when it’s Sunny who greets him—but her positive attitude can’t change that her grandfather Darkness Von Shock has left the town singed. Ages 9–12.

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