Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles including a picture book about a bear in pursuit of a book of his own, a middle grade novel following a tween monster hunter, a graphic novel addressing mental health, a series starter about siblings trying to save the world, and more.
A Book for Bear by Ellen Ramsey, illus. by MacKenzie Haley (Flamingo, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-52724-5). A bear with a love for reading sneaks into a school to find a book that can belong to him.
Brick Dust and Bones by M.R. Fournet. Macmillan/Feiwel and Friends, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-250-87602-7. Twelve-year-old orphan cemetery caretaker Marius Grey leads a double life as a monster hunter and stalks paranormal beasts in the Louisiana bayous.
Buzzing by Samuel Sattin, illus. by Rye Hickman. Little, Brown, $24.99; ISBN 978-0-316-62843-3; $12.99 paper ISBN 978-0-316-62841-9. Isaac navigates the effects of his recently diagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder, characterized as an ever-present swarm of bullying cartoon bees, as he makes new friends in a Swamps & Sorcery RPG group.
The Chaos Monster by Sayantani DasGupta, illus. by Sandara Tang. Scholastic Press, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-338-76673-8. Kinjal and his sister Kia unleash a chaos monster that forces them to travel to the realm of the Sky Kingdom in pursuit. There they must uncover the reason behind the kingdom’s missing bees, or harm will come to the kingdom and Earth.
Clementine and Danny Save the World (and Each Other) by Livia Blackburne. Quill Tree, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-322989-1. Classmates Clementine Chan and Danny Mok are anonymous online enemies, but when a large corporation buys the plaza that houses Danny’s family’s shop, the pair work together to save it.
Frontera by Julio Anta, illus. by Jacoby Salcedo. HarperAlley, $26.99; ISBN 978-0-063-05495-0. Mexican teenager Mateo must rely on a new ghost friend to help guide him across the Sonoran Desert to enter the U.S. The graphic novel received a starred review from PW.
Greenlight: A Children’s Picture Book About an Essential Neighborhood Traffic Light by Breanna Carzoo. HarperCollins, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-305406-6. When traffic signal Greenlight begins to feel unappreciated as the cars race by her, she takes a break that allows her to see her true worth. The picture book received a starred review from PW.
The Horrible Bag of Terrible Things #1 by Rob Renzetti. Penguin Workshop, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-593-51952-3. Combative siblings Nit and Apogee must come together to survive a kidnapping that brings them to a world filled with dangerous monsters.
I Am Not Alone by Francisco X. Stork. Scholastic Press, $19.99; ISBN 978-1-33873-626-7. After undocumented teenager Alberto is wrongly accused of killing a patient at one of his many jobs, he turns to affluent new friend Grace for help gaining justice.
The International House of Dereliction by Jacqueline Davies. Clarion, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-06-325807-5. Ten-year-old Alice resolves to help the restless spirits haunting the house next door move on to the afterlife. The middle grade book received a starred review from PW.
Invisible Things by Andy J. Pizza and Sophie Miller. Chronicle, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-79721-520-4. Beginning with the senses and making their way into feelings, Pizza and Miller aim to help readers “SEE THE INVISIBLE” in a picture book that doubles as a body-scan meditation.
The King Is Dead by Benjamin Dean (Little, Brown, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-316-51914-4). Closeted 17-year-old James becomes the U.K.’s first Black monarch and faces havoc when his secret relationship is outed to the public and he questions the loyalties of his royal staff.
The Legend of Greyhallow by Summer Rachel Short. Simon & Schuster, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-6659-1887-9. Siblings Ainsley Galloway and Tobin have recently moved to the shooting location of famous fantasy movie Greyhallow. When they find a magical projector that whisks them into the realm of Greyhallow, they accidentally unleash the series’ antagonist into the real world and must work together to send him back.
Mixed Up by Gordon Korman. Scholastic Press, $17.99; ISBN 978-1-338-82672-2. Tweens Theo and Reef, who have never met, mysteriously begin swapping memories; after a chance encounter they resolve to figure out what’s happening to them and how to reverse it.
My Head Has a Bellyache by Chris Harris, illus. by Andrea Tsurumi (Little, Brown, $19.99, ISBN 978-0-316-59259-8). In this follow-up to the poetry book I’m Just No Good at Rhyming, Harris and Tsurumi deliver a new cast of characters who play up contradictory conundrums and humorous situations.
The Very Unfortunate Wish of Melony Yoshimura by Waka T. Brown. Quill Tree, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-0632-3076-7. In this interpretation of the Japanese folktale “The Melon Princess and the Amanjaku,” on Melony Yoshimura’s 12th birthday, she makes a wish and encounters Amanjaku, the demon spirit that caused her parents to immigrate to the States. Melony soon discovers that her relationship with Amanjaku is spiraling into dangerous territory.
What a Desi Girl Wants by Sabina Khan. Scholastic Press, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-338-74933-5. Queer teen Mehar travels from Kansas to India to attend the wedding of her estranged father, and is thrust into a world of opulence, family drama, and budding romance.
When Rubin Plays by Gracey Zhang. Orchard, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-338-64826-3. Rubin learns to play the violin and finds that practicing in the forest allows him to play with abandon. The picture book received a starred review from PW.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of July, check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
