Celebrating the ALA Youth Media Awards - 2026

Check out these 2026 ALA Youth Media Award winners!

Covers of 2026 youth media award winners

At the beginning of the year, the American Library Association recognizes and honors books, audiobooks, and other materials for their contribution to both children and teens. Committees of librarians and other subject matter experts work together to choose materials that best reflect the innovation and creativity of the previous publishing year. These materials are then given some of the most prestigious awards in literature including the Newbery, Caldecott, Printz, and more. Below you'll find a description of each award:

The Alex Award: The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18.
Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature: This award promotes Asian/Pacific American culture and heritage and is award based on literary and artistic merit.
Coretta Scott King Awards: The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values
The Coretta Scott King - Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement: This award is named in memory of beloved children’s author Virginia Hamilton. The annual award is presented in even years to an African American author, illustrator or author/illustrator for a body of his or her published books for children and/or young adults, and who has made a significant and lasting literary contribution
Children's Literature Legacy Award: This award is administered by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, the Children’s Literature Legacy Award honors an author or illustrator whose books, published in the United States, have made, over a period of years, a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children through books that demonstrate integrity and respect for all children’s lives and experiences.
Excellence in Early Learning Digital Media Award: This award is given to a digital media producer that has created distinguished digital media for an early learning audience.
John Newbery Medal: This award is given annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
Margaret A. Edwards Award: This award honors an author, as well as a specific body of his or her work, for significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature.
Michael L. Printz Award: This award is given to a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature.
Mildred L. Batchelder Award: This award is given to an American publisher for a children's book considered to be the most outstanding of those books originally published in a foreign language in a foreign country, and subsequently translated into English and published in the United States.
Odyssey Award: This award is given to the producer of the best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States.
Pura Belprè Awards: The award is named after Pura Belpré, the first Latina librarian at the New York Public Library. The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.
Randolph Caldecott Medal: This award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal: This award is give annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished informational book published in the United States in English during the preceding year.
Schneider Family Book Award: This award honors an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences.
Stonewall Book Awards: These awards are given annually to English language works of exceptional merit for children or teens relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender experience.
Sydney Taylor Book Award: This award is presented annually to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience.
Theodor Seuss Geisel Award: This award is given annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year.
William C. Morris Award: This award, first given in 2009, honors a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens and celebrating impressive new voices in young adult literature.
YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults: This award honors the best nonfiction book published for young adults (ages 12-18) during a Nov. 1 – Oct. 31 publishing year.

Be sure to check out the following slideshow of all of the 2025 award winning titles that Richland Library has available for you and your families! If you're interested in learning more about the awards as well as the winners be sure to check out the American Library Association website which can be found here.

Cover of All the Blues in the Sky — **Winner of the Newbery Medal**
Sage's thirteenth birthday was supposed to be about movies and treats, staying up late with her best friend and watching the sunrise together. Instead, it was the day her best friend died. Without the person she had to hold her secrets and dream with, Sage is lost. In a counseling group with other girls who have lost someone close to them, she learns that not all losses are the same, and healing isn't predictable. There is sadness, loneliness, anxiety, guilt, pain, love. And even as Sage grieves, new, good things enter her life -- and she just may find a way to know that she can feel it all.

Cover The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli — **Winner of the Newbery Honor**
In ancient Chang’An, Han Yu sells steamed buns in a bustling market full of whispers about his ability to summon tigers. In New York’s Depression-era Chinatown, Luli gazes out from the roof of her parents’ restaurant, dreaming of dim sum and Chinese art. Familiar rhythms rule the contained-but-contented lives of Han Yu and Luli. But when plague strikes Chang’An and financial crisis threatens Luli’s family, Han Yu and Luli must each venture out into the larger world—and into danger-filled adventure—to save what they love most.

Cover of A Sea of Lemon Trees — **Winner of the Newbery Honor & the Pura Belpré Author Honor**
Twelve-year-old Roberto Alvarez is the first one in his family born on United States soil. He's el futuro, their dream for a life away from the fire of the Mexican revolution.

Moved by anti-immigrant and anti-Mexican propaganda, the Lemon Grove School Board and Chamber of Commerce create a separate “Americanization” school for the Mexican children attending the Lemon Grove Grammar School. But the new Olive Street School is an old barn retrofitted for the children forced to attend a segregated school.

Amidst threats of deportation, the Comité de Vecinos risk everything to stand their ground, and with the support of the Mexican Consulate, chose Roberto as the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against the school board.

A novel in verse set against the backdrop of the Great Depression and Mexican Repatriation, based on the true story of the United States' first successful school desegregation case, two decades before Brown v. Board of Education ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional.

Cover of The Teacher of Nomad Land — **Winner of the Newbery Honor**
1941. The German armies are storming across Europe. Iran is a neutral country occupied by British forces on one side, Soviet forces on another. Soldiers fill the teahouses of Isfahan. Nazi spies roam the alleyways.

Babak and his little sister have just lost their father. Now orphans, fearing they will be separated, the two devise a plan. Babak will take up his father's old job as a teacher to the nomads. With a chalkboard strapped to Babak's back, and a satchel full of textbooks, the siblings set off to find the nomad tribes as they make their yearly trek across the mountains.

On the treacherous journey they meet a Jewish boy, hiding from a Nazi spy. And suddenly, they are all in a race for survival.

Against the backdrop of World War II comes an epic adventure in the faraway places. Through the cacophony of soldiers, tanks, and planes, can young hearts of different creeds and nations learn to find a common language?

Cover of the Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest — **Winner of the Newbery Honor**
Clare is the undead fox of Deadwood Forest. Here, leaves grow in a perpetual state of fall: not quite dead, but not quite alive—just like Clare. Long ago, he was struck by a car, and, hovering between life and death, he was given the choice to either cross into the Afterlife or become an Usher of wandering souls. Clare chose the latter: a solitary life of guiding souls to their final resting place.

Clare’s quiet and predictable days are met with upheaval when a badger soul named Gingersnipes knocks on his door. Despite Clare’s efforts to usher her into the Afterlife, the badger is unable to leave Deadwood. This is unprecedented. Baffling. A disturbing mystery which threatens the delicate balance between the living and the dead.

Desperate for help, Clare and Gingersnipes set out on a treacherous journey to find Hesterfowl—the visionary grouse who recently foretold of turmoil in Deadwood. But upon their arrival, Hesterfowl divulges a shocking revelation that leaves Clare devastated, outraged, and determined to do anything to change his fate.

Cover of the book Fireworks — **Winner of the Caldecott Medal**
POP! As a hot day sizzles into evening, everyone on stoops and sidewalks looks skyward on this special summer night—the Fourth of July! Words and art blossom into flowers of fire across the sky, making this a perfect read for firework enthusiasts in cities and suburbs everywhere. POP! POP!

Cover of Every Monday Mabel — **Winner of the Caldecott Honor**
Every Monday, Mabel wakes up early and peeks out her window to make sure she didn’t miss the one thing she’s been looking forward to the whole week. She drags her chair down the hallway, past her big sister and Mom and Dad, out the door, and *waits*.

What is Mabel waiting for every Monday? According to Mabel, it’s the best thing in the world. But no one else in her family seems to understand…until they see what’s honking down the street!

Cover of Our Lake — **Winner of the Caldecott Honor**
On a sweltering hot day, a little boy mirrors his brother as he takes off his shirt, stretches, and walks toward the edge of the tall rock, ready to dive into the cool lake waters glistening below. Only this time, Father is not here. And the water looks so far away. How can he take the plunge?

With a gorgeous, deft touch in her exquisitely soft illustrations and words, Angie Kang conveys vulnerability, longing, and connection as these two boys hear Father’s laugh and see his memory all around them, uniting them in a bittersweet moment.

Cover of Stalactite & Stalagmite — **Winner of the Caldecott Honor**
DRIP. DRIP. DRIP.

Time flies for two charming little cave nubs, Stalactite and Stalagmite. Over millions of years, creatures and things pass in and out of their cave, everything from a trilobite, an ichthyostega, and a triceratops, to a ground sloth and a bat.

When you are an ageless rock formation, it’s nice to have a friend who’s always there. But what will happen when the two nubs grow enough to finally touch?

Cover of Sundust — **Winner of the Caldecott Honor**
The desert is home to unique fauna and flora that have adapted to thrive under the intense sun, making it an endless landscape for two curious siblings to roam free. Old discarded tires, gnarled nopal trees that beg to be climbed, enormous rocks that demonstrate how to sit still and listen. Rain brings a welcome reprieve from the heat, followed by the mud slowly drying out on their skin, cracking like clay, until it's hard to tell where the kids end and the desert begins.

Cover of Will's Race for Home — **Winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award**
It’s 1889, barely twenty-five years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and a young Black family is tired of working on land they don’t get to own.

So when Will and his father hear about an upcoming land rush, they set out on a journey from Texas to Oklahoma, racing thousands of others to the place where land is free—if they can get to it fast enough. But the journey isn’t easy—the terrain is rough, the bandits are brutal, and every interaction carries a heavy undercurrent of danger.

And then there’s the stranger they encounter and a mysterious soldier named Caesar, whose Union emblem brings more attention—and more trouble—than any of them need.

All three are propelled by the promise of something long denied to freedom, land ownership, and a place to call home—but is a strong will enough to get them there?

The cover of The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze — **Winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award**
In the small town of Great Mountain, Mississippi, all eyes are on Henson Blayze, a thirteen-year-old football phenom who many have wondered if he was super-human. The predominately white townsfolk have been waiting for Henson to play high-school ball, and now they’re overjoyed to finally possess an elite Black athlete of their own.

Until a horrifying incident forces Henson to speak out about injustice.
Until he says that he might not play football anymore.
Until he quickly learns he isn’t as loved by the people as he thought.

In that moment, Henson’s town is divided into two chaotic sides when all he wants is justice. Even his best friends and his father can’t see eye to eye. When he is told to play ball again *or else*, Henson must decide whether he was born to entertain people who may not even see him as human, or if he’s destined for a different kind of greatness.

Cover of The Library in the Woods — **Winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award & the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award**
After a storm devastates the farm his parents have been renting, Junior moves with his family to Roxboro, North Carolina. The year is 1959, and the nine-year-old boy has to navigate the realities of the segregated South while adjusting to life in town. Instead of sharecropping, his father works at the lumber mill, and his mother takes in laundry from the white people in town. Junior meets new friends who have a TV—and their own books! These new friends offer to take Junior to the library, and he’s surprised to discover that in a clearing in the forest, there’s a log cabin with a sign over the The Negro Library.

The library in the woods feels magical, giving Junior a sense of possibility and community. The books he checks out also help him uncover a secret he never knew about his father.

Cover of Andre: Andre Leon Talley - A Fabulously Fashionable Fairy Tale — **Winner of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award**
Growing up in the Jim Crow South wasn't easy for young André. He escaped into the glimmering worlds he discovered inside magazines like *Ebony* and *Vogue*. He fell in love with all things French, and honed his taste for elegance and style in spite of those who judged and bullied him. Standing tall against all odds, André spun his hardships into a fashion fairytale of his own making.

Cover of City Summer, Country Summer — **Winner of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award**
Three Black boys spend one special summer exploring the Mississippi woods and woulds and coulds of sharing the kind of freeing friendship that is love.

Watched over and given space to discover by Grandmama and Mama Lara, New York, Country, and little C find camaraderie in their contrasts and all the unspoken things between them while playing games of marco polo in the thick garden and sledding on cardboard by the underpass.

Cover of Under the Neon Lights — **Winner of the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award**
Sixteen-year-old Jaelyn Coleman lives for Saturdays at WestSide Roll, the iconic neighborhood roller rink. On these magical nights, Jae can lose herself in the music of DJ Sunny, the smell of nachos from the concession, and the crowd of some of her favorite people—old heads, dance crews, and other regulars like herself. Here, Jae and other Black teens can fully be themselves.

One Saturday, as Jae skates away her worries, she crashes into the cutest boy she’s ever seen. Trey’s dimples, rich brown skin, and warm smile make it impossible for her to be mad at him though. Best of all, he can’t stop finding excuses to be around her. A nice change for once, in contrast with her best friend’s cold distance of late or her estranged father creeping back into her life.

Just as Jae thinks her summer might change for the better, devastating news hits: Westside Roll is shutting down. The gentrification rapidly taking over her predominantly Black Indianapolis neighborhood, filling it with luxury apartments and fancy boutiques, has come for her safe-haven. And this is just one trouble Jae can’t skate away from.

Cover of Legendary Fry Bread — **Winner of the Printz Award & the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Young Adult Book**
The road to Sandy June's Legendary Frybread Drive-In slips through every rez and alongside every urban Native hangout. The menu offers a rotating feast, including traditional eats and tasty snacks. But Sandy June's serves up more than it hosts live music, movie nights, unexpected family reunions, love long lost, and love found again.

That big green-and-gold neon sign beckons to teens of every tribal Nation, often when they need it most.

**Featuring stories and poems** Kaua Mahoe Adams, Marcella Bell, Angeline Boulley, K. A. Cobell, A. J. Eversole, Jen Ferguson, Eric Gansworth, Byron Graves, Kate Hart, Christine Hartman Derr, Karina Iceberg, Cheryl Isaacs, Darcie Little Badger, David A. Robertson, Andrea L. Rogers, Cynthia Leitich Smith, and Brian Young.

Cover of Copefield — **Winner of the Printz Honor**
Crawford “Craw” Cope has anger issues. Or so they say.

When Craw is sentenced to community service for hitting his father in the head with a baseball bat, he accepts his punishment without objection, knowing he’s actually lucky. If he weren’t the son of a famous former baseball player, he’d probably have gotten it a lot worse. So, Craw keeps his mouth shut and takes what life gives him. Like always.

But when he arrives at community service, which frustratingly turns out to be repairing a dilapidated ball field to be named after his father, he meets Hannah Flores, a punk rock enthusiast trapped in the Ozarks with zero filter. As Craw navigates his own explosive home life, he learns more about hers. And as their friendship blossoms into something more, he begins to understand the importance of speaking his truth, even when doing so might destroy the only life he’s ever known.

Cover of The House No One Sees — **Winner of the Printz Honor**
Penelope Ross has always felt like a passenger in her mother’s fairytale - until the night of her 17th birthday, when she is forced to enter her own.

After a text from her estranged mother rips her away from a night with friends, Penny is forced into a kaleidoscope of memories locked inside the dark labyrinth of her childhood home. As Penny wanders between present and past—prose and verse—she must confront her mother's opioid addiction to mend her fractured past. But the house is tricky. The house is impossible. It wants her to dig up the dead to escape. And as Penny walks through herself to find herself, she is not sure she has the courage to free the light she trapped inside.

Cover of Sisters in the Wind — **Winner of the Printz Honor & the American Indian Youth Literature Young Adult Honor**
Ever since Lucy Smith’s father died five years ago, “home” has been more of an idea than a place. She knows being on the run is better than anything waiting for her as a “ward of the state.” But when the sharp-eyed and kind Mr. Jameson with an interest in her case comes looking for her, Lucy wonders if hiding from her past will ever truly keep her safe.

Five years in the foster system has taught her to be cautious and smart. But she wants to believe Mr. Jameson and his “friend-not-friend,” a tall and fierce-looking woman who say they want to look after her.

They also tell Lucy the truth her father hid from her: She is Ojibwe; she has – had – a sister, and more siblings; a grandmother who’d look after her and a home where she would be loved.

But Lucy is being followed. The past has destroyed any chance of normal she has had, and now the secrets she’s hiding will swallow her whole and take away the future she always dreamed of.

Cover of Song of a Blackbird — **Winner of the Printz Honor**
Fictionalized but based on true events, *Song of a Blackbird* has two intertwined timelines: one is a modern-day family drama, the other a thrilling tale of a WWII-era bank heist carried out by Dutch resistance fighters.

In the present day, teenage Annick is desperate to find a bone marrow donor that could save the life of her grandmother, Johanna. She turns to her family history and discovers a photograph taken by Emma Bergsma.

Decades earlier, Emma is a young art student about to be drawn into what will become the biggest bank heist in European history: swapping 50 Million Guilders' worth of forged bank notes for real ones―right under the noses of the Nazis! Emma’s life―and the lives of thousands, including a young woman named Johanna―hangs in the balance.

Cover of Wanda Hears the Stars — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award for Younger Children (ages 0 to 8)**
Growing up in Puerto Rico, Wanda Díaz Merced wanted to learn everything she could about the stars. But in college she started losing her sight. How could she study what she couldn't see?

Wanda found a way. She learned to hear the stars using sonification, which converts data into sounds. Listening to those chimes and drumbeats, she made new discoveries about the universe.

Cover of Bat and the Business of Ferrets — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award Honor for Younger Children (ages 0 to 8)**
Bixby Alexander Tam (nicknamed “Bat”) is about to start fourth grade—and unfortunately for him, everything is changing: there's a new teacher, a new classroom, new seats … and new rules. Mr. Grayson, Bat’s third grade teacher, had a lovable class rabbit named Babycakes, who Bat could visit anytime he needed a break. But Mr. Peña does not have a class rabbit. In fact, Mr. Peña doesn't believe in class pets at all. And for Bat, that’s one change too many.

Bat and his best friend, Israel, know they need to convince Mr. Peña to change his mind about class pets—and when a business of friendly ferrets arrives at Bat's mom's veterinary clinic, they think they've found the perfect pet to do so. But when they discover that their classmate Lucca also doesn't like the idea of an animal in the classroom, Bat starts to worry that things will never be the way they were again.

Cover of I hear the Snow, I Smell the Sea — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award Honor for Younger Children (ages 0 to 8)**
Neveah is blind, but that doesn't mean she can't enjoy each of the four wondrous seasons of the year.

She knows it's winter when her boots go *scruuunch* in the snow and cold flakes land softly on her tongue.

She knows spring has come by the smell of hyacinths, the *bzzzz* of a bee in her ear.

Summer is a trip to the beach, where she can hear the crash of ocean waves and the *keowww* of seagulls overhead.

And when Neveah's rake goes *scritch scratch* over fallen leaves and the air turns brisk, she knows it's autumn. Soon the cycle of seasons will begin anew.

Cover of Where Oly Storms Grow — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award for Middle Grade (ages 9 to 13)**
It’s been four years since rain fell on the Oklahoma Panhandle, and the closeness between the twelve-year-old Stanton twins has dried up as much as the land. Howe Stanton has been practicing running away and longs for the family to quit this land of dust and broken dreams. Despite the scoliosis that causes Joanna Stanton near-constant pain, she isn’t ready to give up like her brother. But when Daddy leaves the family behind to find work in California, saving the farm from ruin falls on Howe’s unwilling and Joanna’s uneven shoulders.

To pay the family's debts, Joanna takes a job at the local hospital and discovers purpose helping others. Howe finds unexpected joy in caring for his father’s horse and by escaping in a borrowed book.

But then a tragedy in town reveals the dust’s deadly dangers. With the worst storm of the Dust Bowl bearing down on their home, Howe and Joanna must put aside their differences and work together, or everyone and everything they love will be lost to the dust.

Cover of Octopus Moon — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award Honor for Middle Grade (ages 9 to 13)**
Pearl loves watching the majestic loggerhead turtles and octopuses glide through the water at the aquarium. Pearl finds it especially easy to identify with the octopuses, who have millions of touch receptors all over their bodies. They feel everything. Sometimes, Pearl wishes she was more like a turtle, with a hard outer shell—it hurts too much to feel everything.

And the changes at the start of fifth grade don’t feel good to Pearl at all. New teachers, lockers, and being in different classes than her friends is unsettling. Pearl tries her best to pretend she’s fine, but she starts to struggle with things that used to come easy, like schoolwork, laughing and skateboarding with her best friend, Rosie, running and even sleeping.

After a disastrous parent-teacher conference, her parents decide to bring Pearl to Dr. Jill, who diagnoses her with depression. At first Pearl is resistant to Dr. Jill’s help; she doesn’t like feeling different, but she also doesn’t want to continue feeling so bad all the time. When Dr. Jill asks Pearl to try one Impossible Thing each day, like running, skateboarding, or walking her dog Tuck, she decides to try. For each impossible thing she attempts, Pearl puts a bead on a string. Bead by bead, and with the support of family and friends, Pearl finds her way back to herself. She discovers just like the moon is always there in the sky, even if it isn’t full, she’ll always be herself even when she doesn’t feel whole.

Cover of The Strongest Heart — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award Honor for Middle Grade (ages 9 to 13)**
Mo is used to his father’s fits of rage. When Abbu's moods shake the house, Mo is safe inside his head, with his cherished The best way to respond is not to engage. Apparently, his mama knows that too—which is why she took a job on the other side of the world, leaving Mo alone with Abbu.

With Mama gone, the two move to Texas to live with Mo’s aunt and cousin, Rayyan. The two boys could not be more different. Rayyan is achievement-driven and factual; Mo is a “bad kid." Still, there is a lot to like about living in Texas. Sundays at the mosque are better than he’d expected. And Rayyan and his aunt become a real family to Mo.

But even in a warm home and school where he begins to see a future for himself, Mo knows that the monster within his father can break out and destroy their fragile peace at any moment…

Cover of Whale Eyes: A Memoir About Seeing and Being Seen — **Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award for Young Adults (ages 14 to 18)**
Told through an experimental mix of intimate anecdotes and interactive visuals, this book immerses readers in James’s point of view, allowing them to see the world through his disabling eye conditions.

Readers will get lost as they chase words. They’ll stare into this book while taking a vision test. They’ll hold it upside down as they practice “pretend-reading”…and they’ll follow an unlikely trail toward discovering the power of words.

Cover of the Golden Boy's Guide to Bipolar — **Winner of the Family Schneider Book Award Honor for Young Adults (ages 14 to 18)**
Seventeen-year-old Cesar Flores is *finally* ready to win back his ex-boyfriend. Since breaking up with Jamal in a last-ditch effort to stay in the closet, he’s come out to Mami, his sister, Yami, and their friends, taken his meds faithfully, and gotten his therapist’s blessing to reunite with Jamal.

Everything would be perfect if it weren’t for The Thoughts—the ones that won’t let all his Catholic guilt and internalizations stay buried where he wants them. The louder they become, the more Cesar is once again convinced that he doesn't deserve someone like Jamal—or *anyone* really.

Cesar can hide a fair amount of shame behind jokes and his “gifted” reputation, but when a manic episode makes his inner turmoil impossible to hide, he’s faced with a stark choice—burn every bridge he has left or, worse—ask for help. But is the mortifying vulnerability of being loved by the people he’s hurt the most a risk he’s willing to take?

Cover of The Poetry of Car Mechanics — **Winner of the Family Schneider Book Award Honor for Young Adults (ages 14 to 18)**
15-year-old Dylan has always felt like an outsider in his small town. Isolated when he was younger as the result of his unpredictable, now absent mother and feeling like a disappointment to his grandfather who has stepped in to raise him, Dylan finds relief in the woods behind his grandfather's auto shop. Amidst the cool quiet of the trees, Dylan thrives on bird watching and writing poetry. But one afternoon after spotting an injured hawk, Dylan finds himself pushing out of his comfort zone to track down help for the bird—and ends up rescuing a part of himself in the process.

Cover of Croco — **Winner of the Mildred L. Batchelder Award**
This charming picture book for early readers teaches us about resilience and the importance of helping others, no matter the obstacles in our way. Croco, the protagonist, tries to follow the advice of his friends to escape his predicament, only to realize the solution was within him all along. The story builds tension as Croco remains trapped, culminating in a satisfying ending that restores harmony and marks his growth. A simple story about an everyday problem, this book draws readers in with its steadily building suspense.

The Cover of The Adventures of Cipollino — **Winner of the Mildred L. Batchelder Honor**
Cipollino is young, brave, clever, and determined—exactly the kind of valiant hero that’s bound to triumph in fairy tales. Except, did we mention that he’s also a little onion? You read that In this fantastic book of high political drama—a classic of Italian children’s literature—all of the characters are fruits, vegetables, and animals.

Here, Cipollino sets out to free his wrongfully imprisoned father. In the process, he faces off against scoundrels of all kinds. What hangs in the balance is nothing more or less than the freedom of an entire kingdom from the senseless rules imposed by the tyrannical Prince Lemon, and the equal dignity of each blueberry, string bean, and spider.

Cover of From Memen to Mori — **Winner of the Mildred L. Batchelder Honor**
Meet Memen, the calm and collected older sister, and Mori, the curious younger brother. When Mori asks big questions like, “What is the meaning of life?,” how does big sis Memen respond? Through humorous and tender moments, the two siblings teach that sometimes, the answer to life is less complex than we think.

Cover of Picking Tea with Baba — **Winner of the Mildred L. Batchelder Honor**
A young boy and his brother travel with their parents up the mountainside to their tea garden for a day of work.

They delight in the animals they see, compete to see who can pick the most tea leaves, take a lunch break, and weather an unexpected rainstorm. At the end of the day, they trek back down the mountain to sell the leaves before going home.

Cover of Pilgrim Codex — **Winner of the Mildred L. Batchelder Honor**
We, the Vargas Ramírez family, come from a faraway place north of Tenochtitlan called Iztapalapa, Land of Clay Upon Water. A land surrounded by cars and dry grass; a place where the pieces of our small world were scattered. For some time we lived there, but then one day my father heard a beautiful birdsong that rose up and appeared to say tihui, tihui, tihui: let’s go, let’s go, let’s go. And so we gathered up our friends who made up that small world and decided to head north, for the other side, and a better life.

Cover of Popo the Xolo — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Illustration Award**
Nana is surrounded by family and takes joy in her many grandchildren. She's also tired and feels pain. Soon she begins her transition from life into death, accompanied by her beloved Xolo dog, Popo.

Together they go on Nana’s journey, and by the end of the story, Nana's family celebrates the many years of love they shared with her. And a grandchild will now care for Popo.

Cover of A-Ztec: A Bilingual Alphabet Book — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Illustration Honor**
An ABC picture book portraying different elements of Mesoamerican culture and featuring English, Spanish, and Nahuatl.

Cover of The Invisible Parade — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Illustration Honor**
There's a party tonight, but Cala doesn't want to go. While her family prepares for the celebration, Cala grieves her grandfather and tries to pretend she's not afraid.

But when she is separated from her family at the cemetery, Cala encounters four mysterious riders who will show her she is actually quite brave after all.

Cover of the Pecan Sheller — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Author Award**
But with her beloved father dead, two younger siblings to care for, and with a stepmother struggling to make ends meet, Petra has to drop out of school to shell pecans at a factory. Hoping it's only temporary, she tries not to despair over the grueling work conditions. But after the unhealthy environment leads to tragedy and workers' already low wages are cut, Petra knows things need to change. She and her coworkers go on strike for higher wages and safer conditions, risking everything they have for the hope of a better future.

Cover of A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Author Honor**
Gonzalo Alberto García has never considered himself the hero of his own story. He’s an observer, quietly snapshotting landscapes and drawing the creatures he imagines emerging from them. Forced to spend the summer with his estranged grandfather, Alberto William García—the very famous reclusive author—Gonzalo didn’t expect to learn that heroes and monsters are not only the stuff of fantasy.

But that’s precisely what happens when Gonzalo’s CEO mother, Veronica, sends Alberto on tour to promote the final book in his fantasy series for children and Gonzalo must tag along, even though he feels no connection to his grandfather or the books. Together, they embark on a cross-country road trip from Mendocino to Miami in a classic 1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass S Convertible named Mathilde. Over the course of ten epic days on the highway, they will slay demons, real and imagined; confront old stories to write new ones; and learn what it truly means to show up for your family.

Cover of The Island of Forgotten Gods — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Author Honor**
Nico wants to be a famous film director. He's pretty sure if he can make the right movie, and soon, his life will completely change. The catch? His parents are sending him to Puerto Rico for the summer to stay with his iconic, but old-school, Abuela Luciana, and his awesome, but unpredictable cousins. Still, the show must go on.

Until Nico and his cousins awaken a monster. A monster that looks an awful lot like the infamous Chupacabra. And it turns out this isn't a chance encounter. The creature begins stalking them all over Puerto Rico, turning up on every dark corner, sandy beach, and moonlit night. To make matters worse, a shadowy cult enters the chase, intent on capturing them before the Chupacabra can.

Soon they are thrown into an adventure that brings them face-to-face with the ancient Taino people, even more ancient Taino gods, and the mysterious Chupacabra, who is somehow linked to everything. Nico keeps his camera rolling, hoping the epic documentary will catapult him to stardom. But in the end, it's the island's fate that hangs in the balance, as they face down the very gods that created Puerto Rico.

Cover of On the Wings of la Noche — **Winner of Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Award**
Death waits for Estrella (Noche) Villanueva. In her human form, she is a lonely science girl grieving the tragic accidental drowning of her girlfriend, Dante Fuentes. At night, she is a Lechuza who visits her dead girlfriend at the lake, desperate for more time with her. The longer Dante’s soul roams the earth, the more likely it is that she will fade into the unknown, lost forever, but Noche cannot let go . . .

That’s when a new kid comes to town, Jax, another science nerd like Noche. They connect in a way she can’t ignore, seemingly pulled together by an invisible thread. For the first time, Noche begins to imagine a life without Dante. As Noche’s heart begins to beat for two people, her guilt flares. Then, she finds herself at risk of losing both Jax and Dante, and Noche is forced to question her purpose as a lechuza and everything she has ever believed in.

Cover of Rosa By Any Other Name — **Winner of Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Honor**
Rosa Capistrano has been attending posh North Phoenix High School to boost her chances of a college education and a career in journalism, thanks to the groundbreaking Brown v. Board of Education verdict for desegregation. But though she’s legally allowed to be there, it’s still unsafe for Mexican Americans. That’s why she’s secretly passing as Rosie, a white girl. All she has to do to secure her future is make sure her Mexican home life and her white school experience never intersect.

However, Rosa’s two worlds collide when her best friend Ramon and classmate Julianne meet and find themselves entangled in a star-crossed romance. Rosa is terrified about what their relationship could mean for her and them . . . and her worst fears are soon realized in an unspeakable tragedy. Rosa is thrown into the center of a town-wide scandal and her true identity is put in the spotlight. With the help of Marco, Ramon’s brooding and volatile brother whose passion ignites hers, Rosa must choose what is more important to her—protecting her fragile future, or risking everything to help her friends find justice.

Cover of Silenced Voices : Reclaiming Memories from the Guatemalan Genocide — **Winner of Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Honor & the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award Honor**
**Langley Park, Maryland, 2013.**

Brothers Jose and Charlie know very little about the life their mother lived before she came to Maryland. In fact, Clara avoids even telling people she’s from Guatemala. So when Jose grows curious about the ongoing genocide trial of former military leader Efrain Rios Montt, at first the questions he asks Clara are shut down—he and Charlie were born *here*, after all, and there’s no reason to worry about places they haven’t been. But as the trial progresses, Clara begins to slowly open up to her sons about a time in her life that she’s left buried for years.

**Dos Erres, Guatemala, 1982.**

Sisters Clara and Elena hear about the civil war every day, but the violence somehow seems far away from their small village of Dos Erres, a Q’eqchi Maya community tucked away in the mountains of Guatemala. They spend their days thinking of other things—Clara, of gifts to bring her neighbors and how to perfect her mother’s recipes, and Elena, of rock music and her friend Ana, whose family had to flee to the US the year before. But the day the Kaibiles come to Dos Erres and destroy everything in their path, the sisters are separated as they flee through the mountains, leaving them to wonder…Have their paths diverged forever?

Cover of The Story of My Anger — **Winner of the Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Honor**
Yulieta Lopez is angry. Angry at her racist drama teacher who refuses to cast Black students in lead roles. Angry at the school board threatening her favorite teacher for teaching works of literature that they deem “controversial.” Angry that she has to keep quiet until she can head to college and leave Texas forever.

Yuli is accustomed to playing various roles: the diligent daughter, the honorable hija, the good girl who serves everyone else before serving herself. But as the fire of Yuli's rage spreads and lights her up, she can no longer be silent. Determined to find a way to fight back, Yuli and her friends start a guerilla theatre club which stirs things up and gets people talking, and finally, Yuli steps into the role she was always meant to play.

Cover of Alberto Salas Plays Paka Paka Con La Papa — **Winner of the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award**
High up in the Andes mountains of Peru, agricultural scientist Alberto Salas is on a quest. A quest... for potatoes.

Up and down the Andes mountains he goes, playing an epic game of paka paka con la papa, potato hide and seek. These potatoes are they have the power to feed, and save, the world.

Alberto doesn't have a second to waste. The climate is changing and Alberto must find each and every one to save them before they go extinct.

The game is on!

Alberto races and peers and prods. Drives and trods and climbs. Will he find the potato he seeks? Will he win the game of paka paka con la papa?

Cover of At Last She Stood: How Joey Guerrero Spied, Survived, and Fought for Freedom — **Winner of the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award Honor**
Joey Guerrero, a native of the Philippines, was diagnosed with leprosy (Hansen’s disease) as World War II unfolded in Europe and Asia. Soon after the Japanese occupied the Philippines, Joey—believing she would die soon—joined the guerrilla movement to complete covert missions in support of the Allies. Because of her condition, she was rarely searched by Japanese soldiers, which allowed her to courier secret messages, including an invaluable minefield map that she taped to her back. She was eventually awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom and admitted to the National Leprosarium in Carville, Louisiana, where she lived for nine years. When she was cured and released, she found it difficult to find work because of racial discrimination and her health history and was forced to pawn her Presidential Medal to make ends meet. Eventually, she shed her previous identity. When she died in 1996, her obituary identified her as a secretary from Manila. But Joey Guerrero was much more than that—she was a hero who changed the course of history.

Cover of Go Tell It: How James Baldwin Became a Writer — **Winner of the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award Honor**
Before James Baldwin was a celebrated novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and activist, he was a boy who fell in love with stories. Words opened up new worlds for young Jimmy, who read and wrote at every opportunity. He ultimately realized his dreams of becoming an author and giving voice to his community, and in doing so he showed the world the fullness of Black American life.

Cover of The History of We — **Winner of the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award Honor**
Fossil records show that the first humans were born in Africa. Meaning, every person on Earth can trace their ancestry back to that continent. *The History of We* celebrates our shared ancestors' ingenuity and achievements and imagines what these firsts would have looked and felt like.

What was it like for the first person to paint, to make music, to dance, to discover medicine, to travel to unknown lands? It required courage, curiosity, and skill.

*The History of We* takes what we know about modern human civilization and, through magnificent paintings, creates a tale about our shared beginnings in a way that centers Black people in humankind's origin story.

Cover of A World Without Summer: A Volcano Erupts, A Creature Awakens, and the Sun Goes Out — **Winner of the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award Honor & YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist**
When Mount Tambora, a volcano on the edge of the Indonesian archipelago, erupted in April 1815, it was the largest explosion in recorded history. The land around Indonesia was a hellscape of fire and smoke. In the months and years that followed, the fallout—a cloud of impossibly fine ash— spread through the atmosphere. It killed harvests on the other side of the world. It turned farmers into beggars and their children into orphans. It turned sunsets into molten nightmares.

That same year, eighteen-year-old Mary Shelley fled England with poet Percy Shelley. While sheltering from the worst summer in Switzerland’s history, she watched the explosive thunderstorms over Lake Geneva and caught the spark of an idea. Almost overnight, *Frankenstein* was written.

Cover of Halfway to Somewhere — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children's Literature Award**
Ave thought moving to Kansas would be boring and flat after enjoying the mountains and trails in Mexico, but at least they would have their family with them. Unfortunately, while Ave, their mom, and their younger brother are relocating to the US, Ave's father and older sister will be staying in Mexico...permanently. Their parents are getting a divorce.

As if learning a whole new language wasn't hard enough, and now a Middle-Schooler has to figure out a new family dynamic...and what this means for them as they start middle school with no friends.

Cover of Call Me Gray — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children's Literature Honor**
While creating their annual ice rink together one winter, a child starts a conversation with their father about something important. “Do you ever feel mixed up about who you are?” But the father misunderstands. So, the child tries again later. “Do you ever feel different than the way you look?” The father still doesn’t get it but, this time, asks to hear more. “I look like a boy, but sometimes I feel more like a girl.” At last, it’s been said. And, at last, the child, who asks to be called Gray, begins to feel like themselves.

Cover of the Ink Witch — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children's Literature Honor**
Becca Slugg is bored. It’s the tail-end of summer and it feels like she’s done nothing but run errands for her family’s Cape Disappointment Beach Inn, argue with her frustratingly overprotective mother, and have one-sided conversations with the giant spider living by the dumpsters out back.

But Becca’s wish for *anything* to happen backfires when her mom receives an unwelcome visit from her sinister and estranged sister Malatrice. While hiding, Becca overhears the two of them quarrel and discovers that she’s the niece of one of the most powerful witches in the country – and the daughter of a powerless one. When her mom refuses to help Malatrice take control of the family throne, Becca is left with a mindless puppet for a mother and a whole lot of questions – like, *can I cast spells with the ink in my veins, too*?

With the help of Natalya, her mother’s tarantula familiar, and Oddvar, a friendly troll living in the motel’s ice machine, a distraught but determined Becca sets out to uncover her own magical abilities and find the ingredients of a potion that will cure her mother. Besides, how hard can it be to find mermaid eggs, troll teeth, and the most precious possession of a Witch Queen?

Cover of Ollie in Between — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children's Literature Honor**
Puberty, AKA the ultimate biological predator, is driving a wedge between soon-to-be 13 year old Ollie Thompson and their lifelong friends.

Too much of a girl for their neighborhood hockey team, but not girly enough for their boy-crazed BFF, Ollie doesn’t know where they fit. And their usual ability to camouflage? Woefully disrupted.

When a school project asks them to write an essay on what it means to be a woman (if anyone’s got an answer, that’d be great), and one of their new friends is the target of bullying, Ollie is caught between the safety of fleeing from their own differences or confronting the risks of fighting to take their own path forward.

Cover of Woods and Words — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children's Literature Honor**
Young Mary Oliver spent all the time she could outdoors noticing natural wonders like alluring birdsong, velvety leaves, and glittering beams of sunlight. *There were treasures all around if you paid attention.* Eventually, she began writing about those treasures, filling up stacks of notebooks and capturing the world around her. *There were always poems if you paid attention.*

As Mary grew up and gained acclaim for her poetry, some critics said her poems were too simple, too ordinary. But Mary believed poems were for everyone. So she wrapped herself in woods and in woods, and kept on searching for what else and where else a poem might be…

Cover of One of the Boys — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Young Adult Literature Award**
Grace Woodhouse has left a lot behind. She used to have a great friend group, an amazing girlfriend, and a right foot set to earn her a Division I football scholarship—before she came out as trans. As senior year begins, Grace is struggling to find her place in early transition, new social circles, and a life without football. But when her skills as the best kicker in the state prove to be vital, her old teammates beg her to come out of retirement, dragging her back into a sport—into a way of life—she thought had turned its back on her forever. When a chance meeting cracks the door to college football back open, she has to decide how much of herself she's willing to give up for the game she loves.

Cover of Devils Like Us — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Young Adult Literature Honor**
Our Flag Means Death meets The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue in this YA historical fantasy about three queer teens and their found family of queer pirates facing down a secret magical society.

Remy wants to rescue her father.
Cas wants to finally be himself.
Finn wants to get the girl.

Nineteenth-century Massachusetts high society isn't kind to anyone who doesn't conform to its norms. For years, Remy, Cas, and Finn have done their best to blend in. But when they find themselves targeted by an evil magical society, they'll have to find the strength to stand out.

When a prophetic vision sets the three of them on a collision course, they embark on a journey that will take them aboard a ship of queer smugglers, into the path of a demon, and inside a sinister stronghold of dark magic. Together, they'll confront hidden secrets and face deadly odds-and, hopefully, find out who they truly are.

Cover of He's So Possessed With Me — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Young Adult Literature Honor**
Ren says he’s in love, but Colin knows better.

Sure, he can't remember much about how it all began. But he remembers dancing at a club he and Ren were too young to dance in. He remembers the boys who harassed them on their way home. He remembers a ghost emerging from the trees, and a white hand reaching for Ren through a thick fog. What Colin can’t remember is what happened next. Only two things are clear to Ren is different now, and the new guy vying for his heart is not who he claims to be.

With the help of two unlikely allies and a cranky old medium, Colin must learn to conquer his self-doubt and save his best friend from a love that could cost him his life.

Cover of Hick — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Young Adult Literature Honor**
Lorena Hickok came from nothing. She was on her own from the age of 14, cooking and scrubbing for one family after another as she struggled to finish school. But the girl who secretly longed for affection discovered she had a talent with words.

That talent allowed Hick to carve out a place for herself in the male-dominated newsrooms of the Midwest where she earned bylines on everything from football to opera to politics. By age 35 she’d become one of the Associated Press’s top reporters.

At the moment her career was taking off, Hick was assigned to cover Eleanor Roosevelt during FDR’s presidential campaign. By the close of 1932, Hick was head over heels in love with the wife of the president-elect. And her life would never be the same.

Cover of Sometimes the Girl — **Winner of the Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Young Adult Literature Honor**
She's still shaken from her brother's recent suicide attempt; still pining over her ex, Maya; and still struggling to write again after a long dry spell. To earn enough money for a rebalancing trip with Maya, Holi gets a short-term job: organizing the attic of acclaimed author Elsie McAllister. It's an unglamorous gig with a difficult boss. Elsie―whose fame rests on a single novel published decades ago―is in her nineties, in failing health, and fiercely protective of her privacy. But as Holi sorts through the attic's surprising contents, she realizes there's much more to Elsie than the novel that made her a legend.

Unearthing Elsie's secrets will change how Holi sees art, life, and the way they intertwine, as she grapples with choices that will redefine her own path.

Cover of Stop That Mop — **Winner of the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award**
Meet a mop. The mop does not want to mop the slop. See the mop run away. Can anyone stop this mop?

Cover of Earl and Worm The Big Mess — **Winner of the Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor**
Earl and Worm couldn't be more different--but they also are also the best of friends. So when Earl's mess gets out of hand, Worm is sure she can help. And when a lucky penny turns rotten, rain-soaked Earl helps Worm see the sunny side. Through it all, the pair's funny hijinks turn tender . . . and the big mess ends up where they least expect it!

Cover of I Like Hoops — **Winner of the Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor**
A close game of basketball, played by a diverse group of first and second graders, is full of suspense, joy–and good sportsmanship too!

Cover of The Tunneler Tunnels in the Tunnel — **Winner of the Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor**
The tunneler tunnels in the tunnel. But why? And where is he going? Find out in this fun story with a surprise ending!

Cover of All the Noise at Once — **Winner of the William C. Morris Award**
All Aiden ever wanted to do was play football just like his star quarterback brother, Brandon. Unfortunately, due to Aiden’s autism, summer football tryouts did not go well when Aiden finds himself at the bottom of a pile-up resulting in an over-stimulation meltdown. But when the school year starts, a spot on the team opens urgently needing to be filled. Aiden finally gets his chance to play the game he loves most.

However, not every team member is happy about Aiden’s position on the team, wary of how his autism will present itself on game day. Tensions rise. A fight breaks out. Cops are called.

When Brandon tries to interfere on behalf of his brother, he is arrested by the very same cops who, just hours earlier, were chanting his name from the bleachers. When trumped up charges appear for felony assault on an officer, everything Brandon has worked for starts to slip away and the brothers’ relationship is tested. With Brandon’s trial inching closer, Aiden is desperate to find a way to clear his brother’s name while also trying to answer the one looming question plaguing his brain: what does it mean to be Black and autistic?

Cover of First Love Language — **William C. Morris Finalist**
Taiwanese American Catie Carlson has never fit in with her white family. As much as she loves her stepmom and stepsister, she yearns to understand more about her culture and find her biological mother.

So Catie is shocked when an opportunity comes knocking on her Her summer spa coworker, Toby, says he’ll teach her Mandarin. In exchange, she needs to teach him how to date so he can finally work up the courage to ask out his crush. The only problem is that Catie doesn’t actually have *any* dating experience. But she can fake it.

With her late father’s copy of *The Five Love Languages* and all his annotated notes, Catie becomes the perfect dating coach. Or so she thinks. As she gets dangerously close to Toby *and* to finding out what really happened to her biological mom, she realizes that learning the language of love might be tougher than she thought.

Cover of Love Misha — **William C. Morris Finalist**
Can this road trip get any worse?
Yes, Mom (Audrey) wanted to spend time with Misha. And yes, she’s never around and they don’t even live together, so this is a rare opportunity. But Audrey still thinks of Misha as her daughter, despite Misha being non-binary and trying to talk to her openly about it. Misha even tries to write how they feel in a letter, but that isn’t going well either.

Then a wrong turn down a forest road leads the mother-child duo straight into the Realm of Spirits! Suddenly in peril and without a clue how to return to their world, Misha and Audrey will have to work together to find their way back home. But can they find a way back to each other?

Cover of Red Flags and Butterflies — **William C. Morris Finalist**
Straight A student, swim team star, talented painter ― tenth-grader Lexie has worked hard to become the perfect applicant for Sunridge High’s prestigious fine art program. She’s even got a shot at a swimming scholarship. Everyone she loves is supportive of her application.

Everyone, that is, except her dad.

Lexie’s dad doesn’t see the point of some overpriced art school. He wants Lexie and her brother, Jonah, at home to help launch his new renovation business. The work will cut into Lexie’s already overloaded schedule, but the idea of refusing her dad makes her stomach churn with anxiety. So she agrees to help, just for a little while. If she supports his plan, then he’ll have to support hers, right? It’s only fair.

But Lexie and her dad have different definitions of fair. Soon, Lexie must make an impossible choice between being who her dad wants her to be, and being true to herself.

Cover of You and Me on Repeat — **William C. Morris Finalist**
Chris O’Brien has a genius plan: If he can share the perfect first kiss with his crush, Andy, then of course he’ll break free from the time loop that has him repeating graduation day over and over…and over.

Alicia Ochoa thinks Chris’s plan is doomed. Valedictorian and a total nerd, she knows it’ll take more than a kiss to escape the loop they’re trapped in together. Besides, Chris may be a hopeless romantic, but Alicia doesn’t think he has a real shot with Andy.

Once close friends, Alicia and Chris have history—lots of it. As they got older, the pair fell out after Chris ditched her for the “cool kids” and left her in the dust. But when you’re looping side by side, you never know if friendship might rekindle or what new feelings could spark along the way.

Cover of Death in the Jungle — **Winner of the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults**
How did Jim Jones, the leader of Peoples Temple, convince more than 900 of his followers to commit "revolutionary suicide" by drinking cyanide-laced punch?

Using riveting first-person accounts, award-winning author Candace Fleming reveals the makings of a cult leader...from Jones’s humble origins as a child of the Depression… to his founding of a group whose idealistic promises of equality and justice attracted thousands of followers… to his relocation of Temple headquarters from California to an unsettled territory in Guyana, South America, which he dubbed "Jonestown”… to his transformation of Peoples Temple into a nefarious experiment in mind-control.

And Fleming relates Jones’s final act, persuading his followers to swallow fatal doses of cyanide—to “drink the kool-aid,” as it became known—as a test of their ultimate devotion.

Here is a sweeping story that traces, step by step, the ways in which one man slowly indoctrinated, then murdered, 900 innocent, well- meaning people. And how a few members, Jones' own son included, stood up to him... but not before it was too late.

Cover of American Spirits — **YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist**
*Rap. Rap. Rap.* The eerie sound was first heard in March of 1848 at the home of the Fox family in Hydesville, New York. The family’s two daughters, Kate and Maggie, soon discovered that they could communicate with the spirit that was making these uncanny noises; he told them he had been a traveling peddler who had been murdered. This strange incident, and the ones that followed, generated a media frenzy beyond anything the Fox sisters could have imagined. Kate and Maggie, managed (or perhaps manipulated) by their elder sister Leah, became famous spirit mediums, giving public exhibitions, and advising other celebrities of their day.

But were the Fox sisters legitimate? In the years that followed their rise, the Civil War killed roughly 1 in 4 soldiers, increasing the demand for contacting the dead. However, media campaigns against the sisters gathered steam as well...

Cover of White House Secrets — **YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist**
Did you know President Woodrow Wilson suffered a paralyzing stroke that his wife and doctors concealed for months? Or that Mrs. Wilson took total charge of his presidential duties? Neither did the American public. Did you know President John F. Kennedy suffered from Addison’s disease and was heavily medicated for years? Neither did most people. Too often when a president is sick or dying, he and the people around him have hidden his condition from the public, wanting to project an image of strength and power.

Cover of White Lies: How the South Lost the Civil War, Then Rewrote the History — **YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist**
After the Civil War, the Confederates may have laid down their arms, but they were far from accepting defeat. By warping the narrative around what really happened during and after the Civil War, they created an alternate history now known as the Lost Cause. These lies still manifest today through criticism of Critical Race Theory, book banning, unequal funding for education, and more.

Cover of Chooch Helped — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Picture Book**
Sissy’s younger brother, Chooch, isn’t a baby anymore. They just celebrated his second birthday after all. But no matter what Chooch does—even if he’s messing something up, which is basically all the time!—their parents just say he’s “helping."" Sissy feels that Chooch can get away with anything!

When Elisi paints a mural, Chooch helps. When Edutsi makes grape dumplings, Chooch helps. When oginalii gigs for crawdads, Chooch helps. When Sissy tries to make a clay pot, Chooch helps …

“Hlesdi!” Sissy yells. Quit it! Chooch bursts into tears. What follows is a tender family moment that will resonate with anyone who has welcomed a new little one to the fold.

Cover of Braided Roots — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor**
As a young girl’s father lovingly yet painstakingly braids her hair, he weaves a story about the strength and resilience of their ancestors, Freedmen who walked the Trail of Tears from Mississippi to Oklahoma.

Cover of Fierce Aunties — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor**
Who do you go to for advice and support? Or when you want an adventure and a little extra courage? Or when you need to find that warrior spirit inside you? Fierce aunties!

Aunties come in different shapes, sizes, and ages. They all have different laughs, skills, and stories. They might be your parents’ sisters, your older cousins, or even family friends. But there’s something they all have in They’re fierce, they love you, and they’ll help make everything better.

Cover of For a Girl Becoming — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor**
Swirling images laden with both myth and personal meaning illustrate this unique, poetic tale of the joys and lessons of a girl’s journey through birth, youth, and finally adulthood. Within these colorful pages, family and community come together in celebration of her arrival, offering praise, love, and advice to help carry her forward through the many milestones to come, and reminding her always of how deeply she is cherished. It is a reminder, too, of our abiding connections to the natural world, and the cyclical nature of life as a whole.

Cover of Raven's Ribbons — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor**
Raven loves round dances. The drums sing to the people, and the people dance to their songs. Raven especially loves dancing with his grandma, sidestepping to the rhythm of the drums. His favourite part of all is watching the ribbon skirts swirl like rainbows.

“Nohkum, do you think a boy could wear a ribbon skirt?” Raven asks his grandmother one day. She tells him she has lived for a long time, but she has never seen it. That evening, she sews late into the night, and Raven awakes to a rainbow skirt of his own. “I’ve lived for a long time,” his grandma says, “and I’m lucky to see beautiful things that I’ve never seen before.” At the next dance, Raven wears the swirl of unique ribbons with pride.

Cover of We Weave — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor**
We Weave is an intergenerational tale about a Navajo boy and his grandmother using their creativity to purchase a computer when schools transition to digital learning. It is a story rooted in resilience that uniquely weaves together the traditional and digital worlds.

Cover of Buffalo Dreamer — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Middle Grade Book**
Summer and her family always spend relaxed summers in Alberta, Canada, on the reservation where her mom’s family lives. But this year is turning out to be an eye-opening one. First, Summer has begun to have vivid dreams in which she's running away from one of the many real-life residential schools that tore Native children from their families and tried to erase their Native identities. Not long after that, she learns that unmarked children’s graves have been discovered at the school her grandpa attended as a child.

Now more folks are speaking up about their harrowing experiences at these places, including her grandfather. Summer cherishes her heritage and is heartbroken about all her grandfather was forced to give up and miss out on. When the town holds a rally, she’s proud to take part to acknowledge the painful past and speak of her hopes for the future, and anxious to find someone who can fill her in on the source of her unsettling dreams.

Cover of The Super Scary Sleepover — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Middle Grade Honor**
Spunky Ojibwe first-grader Jo Jo Makoons knows a lot about bravery and boldness. Her cat, Mimi, is very brave when she tries new foods, and Teacher is very bold when he wears his ugly ties to school.

When Jo Jo is invited to her very first friend sleepover, it’s her turn to be courageous! Only she’s not quite sure how. Especially when scary puppets and dolls hide around every corner…

Cover of Lost at Windy River — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Middle Grade Honor**
In 1944, thirteen-year-old Ilse Schweder got lost in a snowstorm while checking her family's trapline in northern Canada. This is the harrowing story of how a young Indigenous girl defies the odds and endures nine days alone in the unforgiving barrens. Ilse faces many challenges, including freezing temperatures, wild animals, snow blindness and frostbite. With no food or supplies, she relies on Traditional Indigenous Knowledge passed down from her family. Ilse uses her connection to the land and animals, wilderness skills and resilience to find her way home.

Cover of Outfoxed — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Middle Grade Honor**
Twelve-year-old Skye has just rescued a baby fox she’s named Kitkat, with the help of her Park Ranger cousin Braeden. Skye would usually release the fox back into the wild as soon as it’s healed, but this baby fox was injured by a trap. No one hurts a baby animal and gets away with it as long as Skye’s around, and now she’s on a mission to find the poacher!

When Skye takes Kitkat to the vet, she meets a quiet girl named Ivy. To Skye’s surprise, Ivy decides to join in on the investigation and a friendship starts to form between the girls. But will these new friends uncover the true identity of the poacher and safely release Kitkat back into the wild?

Cover of Red Bird Danced — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Middle Grade Honor**
Ariel and Tomah have lived in the city’s intertribal housing complex all their lives. But for both of them, this Dagwaagin (Autumn) season is different than any before.

From his bench outside the front door of his building, Tomah watches his community move around him. He is better at making people laugh than he is at schoolwork, but often it feels like his neighbor Ariel is the only one who really sees him, even in her sadness.

Ariel has always danced ballet because of her Auntie Bineshiinh and loves the way dance makes her feet hover above the ground like a bird. But ever since Auntie went missing, Ariel’s dancing doesn’t feel like flying.

As the seasons change and the cold of winter gives way to spring’s promise, Ariel and Tomah begin to change too as they learn to share the rhythms and stories they carry within themselves.

Cover of the Ribbon Skirt — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Middle Grade Honor**
Ten-year-old Anang wants to make a ribbon skirt, a piece of clothing typically worn by women in the Anishinaabe tradition, for an upcoming powwow. Anang is two-spirit and nonbinary and doesn't know what others will think of them wearing a ribbon skirt, but they're determined to follow their heart's desire. Anang sets off to gather the materials needed to make the skirt and turns to those around them -- their family, their human and turtle friends, the crows, and even the lake itself -- for help. And maybe they'll even find a new confidence within themself along the way.

Cover of The Summer of the Bone Horses — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Middle Grade Honor**
This charming chapter book follows a present-day Lakota child connecting with extended family, embracing new experiences, and growing up along the way.

When Eddie’s parents drive from the Black Hills to the Dakota plains to drop him off with Grandpa and Grandma High Elk, Eddie aches all over at the thought of being away from Mom and Dad for the first time.

But quickly, Eddie’s stay on the Rosebud Reservation becomes a summer that he’ll never forget as he spends his days riding horses, fishing, helping Grandma in her garden, and playing with the toy bone horses that his grandfather gave him. When his grandfather is hurt and needs medical attention, Eddie steps up and helps him get the care he needs.

Cover of Sheine Lende — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Young Adult Honor**
Shane works with her mother and their ghost dogs, tracking down missing persons even when their families can't afford to pay. Their own family was displaced from their traditional home years ago following a devastating flood - and the loss of Shane's father and her grandparents. They don't think they'll ever get their home back.

Then Shane's mother and a local boy go missing, after a strange interaction with a fairy ring. Shane, her brother, her friends, and her lone, surviving grandparent - who isn't to be trusted - set off on the road to find them. But they may not be anywhere in this world - or this place in time.

Nevertheless, Shane is going to find them.

Cover of The Unfinished — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Young Adult Honor**
The black water has been waiting. Watching. Hungry for the souls it needs to survive.

When small-town athlete Avery’s morning run leads her to a strange pond in the middle of the forest, she awakens a horror the townspeople of Crook’s Falls have long forgotten.

Avery can smell the water, see it flooding everywhere; she thinks she’s losing her mind. And as the black water haunts Avery—taking a new form each time—people in town begin to go missing.

Though Avery had heard whispers of monsters from her Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) relatives, she’s never really connected to her Indigenous culture or understood the stories. But the Elders she has distanced herself from now may have the answers she needs.

When Key, her best friend and longtime crush, is the next to disappear, Avery is faced with a choice: listen to the Kanyen’kehá:ka and save the town but lose her friend forever…or listen to her heart and risk everything to get Key back.

Cover of Where Wolves Don't Die — **Winner of the American Indian Youth Literature Young Adult Honor**
Ezra Cloud hates living in Northeast Minneapolis. His father is a professor of their language, Ojibwe, at a local college, so they have to be there. But Ezra hates the dirty, polluted snow around them. He hates being away from the rez at Nigigoonsiminikaaning First Nation. And he hates the local bully in his neighborhood, Matt Schroeder, who terrorizes Ezra and his friend Nora George.

Ezra gets into a terrible fight with Matt at school defending Nora, and that same night, Matt's house burns down. Instantly, Ezra becomes a prime suspect. Knowing he won't get a fair deal, and knowing his innocence, Ezra's family sends him away to run traplines with his grandfather in a remote part of Canada, while the investigation is ongoing. But the Schroeders are looking for him. . .

Cover of Kaho'olawe The True Story of an Island and Her People — **Winner of The Asian/Pacific American Award for Pasifika Picture Book**
Discover the story of an island sacred to Native Hawaiians. Beginning with her birth in a volcanic eruption, Kaho‘olawe thrives surrounded by animals on land and in the sea. When Polynesian voyagers arrive and begin to raise their families there, the island is happy. As the years pass, invasive goats devastate the ecosystem, and during World War II and the decades that follow, the US military claims the island for target practice. Kaho‘olawe is hurt. Yet activists never give up on the island, and they finally succeed in reclaiming her.

Cover of Filo's Butterflies — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Pasifika Picture Book**
Filo is going to dance at his aunties’ Samoan wedding! He’s been rehearsing the steps for his first *siva fa’ataupati* for weeks, but now there are butterflies dancing in his belly.

As the day goes on, the butterflies grow bigger and bolder. Will they stop him from performing the *siva* and having a good time?

Cover of White Sunday — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Pasifika Picture Book**
Every year in October, Sina and her family celebrate White Sunday. It’s a day when the children are celebrated at church and they get to read, sing, perform and dance in front of the community. There’s also a feast after, and the kids eat first! Maybe this year Uncle Fred will bring his green bananas in coconut cream and Sina will receive plenty of ulas for her performance.

Cover of Many Things at Once — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Asian American Picture Book**
Based on the author's own family history, here is a moving story about a young girl from two different backgrounds. The girl’s mother tells her stories about her mother, a Jewish seamstress in Brooklyn, New York. She lived in a tiny two-bedroom apartment and sewed wedding dresses shimmering in satin and lace.

Her father tells stories of his mother, the girl’s other grandmother, who liked to cook bubbling dal on a coal stove in Pakistan. They tell stories about how both sides came to America, and how, eventually, her parents met on a warm summer evening in Poughkeepsie.

The girl sometimes feels as if she's the “only one like me.” One day, when she spots a butterfly in her yard, she realizes it’s okay to be different—no two butterflies are alike, after all. It’s okay to feel alone sometimes, but also happy and proud. It’s okay to feel-- and be-- many things at once.

Cover of Every Peach is a Story — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Asian American Picture Book**
One spring day, little Midori asks Jiichan, her grandfather, if the peaches on her family’s farm are ripe yet. To her surprise, he asks,“Does it taste like a story? That’s when you know it is ripe.”

As Jiichan teaches her about her Japanese American heritage and her family’s deep connection to this land, Midori begins to realize the patience, hard work, and endurance that allowed their roots to grow. Poetic and powerful, *Every Peach Is a Story* is a journey of discovery through all of life’s seasons.

The Cover of A Vaisakhi to Remember — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Asian American Picture Book**
When a Sikh family moves from their village in India to a city in North America, their young daughter yearns for her grandmother's hugs, her goat Ramu, and the lush fields that surrounded her home. She worries they won't be able to properly celebrate Vaisakhi, the most important Sikh holiday, in an unfamiliar new home. But through visiting gurdwara, preparing traditional foods, hearing ancestral music, and playing with children of all backgrounds, the young girl discovers that while life changes, the sense of community, heritage, and hope that Vaisakhi represents to her can thrive anywhere when people come together.

Cover of Hungry Bones — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Children's Literature**
A chilling middle grade novel about a girl haunted by a hungry ghost. The last thing Jade remembers from Life is dying. That was over 100 years ago. Ever since then she’s been trapped in the house on Charlotte Street watching people move in and out―some generous and willing to share their supper, others ignoring her, leaving her hungry, angry, and alone. To most people she is only a shadow, a ghost story, a superstition. Then one day the Teng family moves in with their daughter Molly ― the quiet girl with the “ghost seeing eyes.” For the first time since Life, someone can see Jade and communicate with her. After over a century alone, Jade finally has someone who can help her uncover the secret of her past, and maybe even find a way out of the house―before her hunger destroys them both.

Cover of The Queen Bees of Tybee County — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Children's Literature**
After making the buzzer-beating shot at the Georgia basketball state championships, Derrick Chan becomes the star of Bayard Middle School, and Derrick’s single dad could not be prouder. But there are parts of Derrick that no one knows about, like the toenail polish he wears under his basketball sneakers, his secret lip-sync performances in the bathroom mirror, and the feelings he’s developing for his best friend and teammate, JJ.

As the school year comes to a close, Derrick’s dad takes an out-of-town job and ships Derrick off to spend the summer with his estranged, eccentric grandmother, Claudia. Soon, Claudia introduces Derrick to the world of small-town southern beauty pageants, and Derrick suddenly feels he’s found where he belongs. But when the opportunity arises to compete in the town pageant, Derrick is forced to decide just how much of himself he’s ready to show the world.

Can he learn to love and accept the most unique parts of himself? And what will happen if others—like his father and JJ—can’t do the same?

Cover of Fresh Start — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Children's Literature**
Ollie Herisson's dad is a diplomat, which means her family moves around a lot. She has already lived in Singapore, Korea, France, and the United States. When Ollie starts at a new school, she doesn't worry about making a good impression because she knows that when her family inevitably moves again, she'll get a fresh start somewhere else. A complete reset. It doesn't matter if her classmates think she's weird for pretending that she lives in the world of an imagined anime, or if she makes an enemy out of the most popular girl in her class, or if she just does something hugely embarrassing! And it definitely doesn't matter that all her mom wants is for Ollie to be more of a proper Thai daughter.

But after moving from Germany to Virginia and having a mortifying first day at her new school, Ollie is shocked to learn that her parents are going to buy a house so that Ollie and her sister, Cat, can finish grade school in one place. Can Ollie figure out how to both be herself and make real friends when she can't run away from her life?

Cover of The Red Car to Hollywood — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Young Adult Literature**
**Los Angeles, 1924**

Sixteen-year-old Ruby Chan considers herself a modern, independent American girl. But when her secret relationship with a white boy implodes―and then is revealed to her very traditional Chinese parents―she’s in a tough spot. Horrified that Ruby’s reputation is at risk, her parents hire a matchmaker to find her a Chinese husband. Ruby is determined to foil their plans. But how?

Meanwhile, Ruby meets the nineteen-year-old film star Anna May Wong, one of her neighbors in LA’s Chinatown. The girls quickly strike up a friendship. Anna May defies Chinese convention by working as an actress on the silver screen, and she scoffs at white people’s assumptions about her. If she can forge her own path, surely Ruby can too.

Not everything is as it seems, though. Danger and betrayal lurk amidst the new possibilities. To build the life she wants, Ruby will have to contend with how others see her―and decide if she’s ready to truly see herself.

Cover of Tall Water — **Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Honor Title for Young Adult Literature**
Ever since she turned sixteen, Nimmi has wanted to see her mother. Though she has a loving but overprotective father and a budding relationship, she yearns to travel to Sri Lanka to confront the mother who refused to leave the island during a war, not even for Nimmi’s sake. Her father is going back for the first time as a reporter on assignment, but he refuses to take her, deeming Sri Lanka too dangerous.

But then Nimmi's mother appears to her in a dream, asking her to come find her, and Nimmi knows she must go. Her father is livid when he sees her at baggage claim, but by then it’s too late, and he reluctantly agrees to help Nimmi make contact with her mother. In Sri Lanka, Nimmi tags along with her father and his guide, past checkpoints and armed soldiers and increasing hints of the war that rages there.

However, the day after Christmas, disaster strikes and a tsunami ravages the island. Stranded amid the devastation and destruction, can Nimmi reunite with her mother? Through her journey, Nimmi might just learn that the person she most needed to find was herself.

Cover of Shabbat Shalom — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Gold Medal - Picture Book**
This modern and whimsical Jewish-themed board book series is the first of its kind to incorporate both Jewish traditions and Jewish culture, offering a truly representative depiction of Judaism. *My First Shabbat Shalom* introduces the Jewish day of rest, validating the varied experiences of Jewish readers, and informing and entertaining Jews and non-Jews alike!

The Cover of The Book of Candles — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Silver Medal - Picture Book**
Thus begins the first night of Hanukkah in one child’s home. But what does the light from the candle mean? What are the words everyone is singing? What will each of these eight nights hold? Family and friends, takeout dinners and flat tires, traditions new and old—it’s all part of this year’s timeless, timely holiday celebration.

Cover of The Keeper of Stories — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Silver Medal - Picture Book**
A library is a keeper of stories. A keeper of memories. A keeper of hope. But what happens when that keeper is threatened?

When a fire broke out at New York’s Jewish Theological Seminary library in 1966, firefighters raced to the rescue. But by the end of the day, thousands of books had been turned to ashes and the ones that remained were on the brink of ruin. The community was devastated. Would the priceless stories in those waterlogged pages be lost forever? Or could helping hands from every background and corner of the neighborhood come together to become keepers of stories, too?

Cover of My Body Can — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Silver Medal - Picture Book**
Inclusive of a variety of body types and abilities, the body-positive message affirms that everyone is beautiful, powerful, and can do amazing things. Jewish holiday celebrations including Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah, Tu b'shvat, Purim, Passover, and Shavuot are featured.

Cover of Neshama — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Gold Medal - Middle Grade**
Anna sees ghosts. The spirits of her ancestors call to her from the shadows, and no matter where she is, Anna always answers. Kids in her middle school tease her. Teachers and parents are worried by her strange behavior. The only one who seems to understand is Anna’s beloved grandmother, Bubbe, who has always treasured Anna’s shayna neshama, her beautiful soul. Spending Shabbos with Bubbe is the only thing that gives Anna the sense of love and belonging that she needs.

But when a ghost named Ruthie appears at Bubbe’s house by the sea, Anna begins to uncover long-hidden secrets that reveal the mystery of her family’s troubled past. As Anna and Ruthie get closer, Anna must decide for herself whether being connected to a restless ghost is worth the risk. When it becomes clear that Bubbe’s life is in danger, Anna must face the horrible She alone has the ability to save her family and heal the wounds that follow them from one generation to the next.

Cover of Beinoni — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Silver Medal - Middle Grade**
In a Beinoni time there should be no war, no terrible illness, no crime. Even if that also means there won’t be any great discoveries, any cures, anything extraordinary. Ezra believes that’s worth fighting for.

In fact, he’s been training most of his life to fight a battle to determine whether Beinoni time continues, or gives way to a more violent, less certain future. He is the Nivchar, the chosen one, with the sign of the scales on his skin. When he comes of age at his bar mitzvah, so too will the gurya, a fiery beast of uncertain form, emerging from a cave to conquer, destroy, and herald a time of conflict.

But Ezra begins to sense that something is very wrong. His friends, his neighbors, the whole world is losing the careful, even balance he’s come to expect in a Beinoni time. It was always uncertain whether he’d be able to best his terrifying, magical foe. But now, is it even possible?

Cover of DJ Rosenblum Becomes The Goat — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Gold Medal - Young Adult**
It’s the beginning of the school year—and Briar’s newest resident, D.J. Rosenblum, is not here for it. Ever since her cousin Rachel died, D.J.’s family has been a mess: Her aunt and uncle are catatonic. Her mom is even more scatterbrained than usual. She had to postpone her bat mitzvah a whole year. Worst of all, she and her mom had to move—leaving her best friend, Eva, behind.

Briar does have one redeeming factor, though: Here, in Rachel’s hometown, D.J. can finally get to the bottom of her cousin’s death. With the help of a chatty journalist and a queen-bee hacker, D.J. can fill in the last days of Rachel’s life. And if she can just figure out her Torah portion—with help from her cute tutor, Jonah—maybe, just maybe, she’ll be able to solve a bigger mystery.

The cover of The Rebel Girls of Rome — **Winner of the Sydney Taylor Silver Medal - Young Adult**
NOW:

Grieving the loss of her mother, college student Lilah is hoping to reconnect with her ever-distant grandfather who refuses to talk about his past. When a fellow student in Italy brings a long-lost family heirloom to her attention, Lilah travels to Rome with her grandfather in the hopes of unlocking his history as a survivor of the Holocaust once and for all.

But as they get closer to the truth—and the possibility of healing through new connections—she begins to realize that some secrets may be too painful to unbury . . .

THEN:

It’s 1943, and nineteen-year-old Bruna and her family are doing their best to survive in Rome’s Jewish quarter under Nazi occupation. When the dreaded knock comes early one morning, and Bruna realizes her youngest brother, Raffa, is missing, her desperate search to find him separates her from the rest of her family irrevocably.

Overcome with guilt at escaping her family’s fate in the camps, Bruna joins the partisan efforts against the Nazis and Italian Fascists. When her missions bring her back to her childhood crush, Elsa, she must decide what it really means to live and love—and if fully embracing herself might be her greatest act of resistance of all. But just as she starts to find light in the darkness, an attack that ends in unspeakable tragedy leaves Bruna questioning her fortitude to survive more than ever before.

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Woods & Words

The Story of Poet Mary Oliver

Ackerman, Sara Holly, author.

Published in 2025

"A picture book biography of beloved poet Mary Oliver"-- Provided by publisher.

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A Sea of Lemon Trees

The Corrido of Roberto Alvarez

Águila, María Dolores, author.

Published in 2025

Based on a true story, twelve-year-old Roberto Alvarez becomes the lead plaintiff in a 1931 lawsuit challenging school segregation in Lemon Grove, California, and stands up for justice with the support of his Mexican American community.

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Rosa by Any Other Name

Alcaraz, Hailey, author.

Published in 2025

Rosa Capistrano has been attending posh North Phoenix High School to boost her chances of a college education and a career in journalism, thanks to the groundbreaking Brown volume Board of Education verdict for desegregation. But though she's legally allowed to be there, it's still unsafe for Mexican Americans. That's why she's secretly passing as Rosie, a white girl. All she has to do to secure her future is make sure her Mexican home life and her white school experience never intersect. However, Rosa's two worlds collide when her best friend Ramon and classmate Julianne meet and find themselves entangled in a star-crossed romance. Rosa is terrified about what their relationship could mean for her and them . . . and her worst fears are soon realized in an unspeakable tragedy. Rosa is thrown into the center of a town-wide scandal and her true identity is put in the spotlight. With the help of Marco, Ramon's brooding and volatile brother whose passion ignites hers, Rosa must choose what is more important to her--protecting her fragile future, or risking everything to help her friends find justice. Rosa by Any Other Name is a harrowingly beautiful coming-of-age tale that shines a light on an important and often overlooked facet of US history.

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Bat and the Business of Ferrets

Arnold, Elana K., author.

Published in 2025

Bixby Alexander Tam (nicknamed "Bat") is starting fourth grade, and he and his best friend, Israel, want to convince the teacher to have a class pet, in a story featuring an unforgettable boy on the autism spectrum.

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Every Monday Mabel

Awan, Jashar, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Every Monday Mabel takes her breakfast outside and waits for her favorite part of the week: the garbage truck.

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Red Flags and Butterflies

Azzam, Sheryl, author.

Published in 2025

"Straight A student, swim team star, talented painter — tenth-grader Lexie has worked hard to become the perfect applicant for Sunridge High’s prestigious fine art program. She's even got a shot at a swimming scholarship. Everyone she loves is supportive of her application. Everyone, that is, except her dad. Lexie’s dad doesn’t see the point of some overpriced art school. He wants Lexie and her brother, Jonah, at home to help launch his new renovation business. The work will cut into Lexie’s already overloaded schedule, but the idea of refusing her dad makes her stomach churn with anxiety. So she agrees to help, just for a little while. If she supports his plan, then he’ll have to support hers, right? It's only fair. But Lexie and her dad have different definitions of fair. Soon, Lexie must make an impossible choice between being who her dad wants her to be, and being true to herself."-- Provided by publisher.

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The Invisible Parade

Bardugo, Leigh, author.

Published in 2025

"A young girl examines fear and death and discovers bravery against the backdrop of Día de Muertos"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze

Barnes, Derrick, author.

Published in 2025

Thirteen-year-old Henson Blayze strives to be seen as more than just a football player in his predominantly white small town of Great Mountain, Mississippi, but when a horrific incident compels him to speak out, he must choose between playing football andseeking justice.

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White Lies

How the South Lost the Civil War, then Rewrote the History

Bausum, Ann, author.

Published in 2025

Warning: this is not your average U.S. history book. When the Civil War ended, the Confederates may have laid down their arms, but they were far from accepting defeat. Instead, they distorted the facts about what had happened, creating an alternate version of history. This false narrative is known as the Lost Cause. Some lies of the Lost Cause: Slavery was a compassionate institution. The Civil War wasn't fought over slavery; it was all about states' rights. The Ku Klux Klan nobly protected White people during Reconstruction. These lies still influence textbooks, popular culture, public policy, and more -- often in hidden and surprising ways. This book will address twenty lies of the Lost Cause and set the record straight. Dive in to learn the true history of the Civil War and its complex, far-reaching aftermath. Are you ready to begin?

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Stalactite and Stalagmite

A Big Tale from a Little Cave

Beckmeyer, Drew, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Two little mineral piles, Stalactite and Stalagmite, foster a friendship over millions of years as they grow closer together, figuratively and literally.

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Sisters in the Wind

Boulley, Angeline, author.

Published in 2025

Lucy Smith is on the edge of eighteen and on the run. The lam is a much better place to be than the Michigan foster system; after seven years, she's a big believer in "better the devil you don't." When sharp and kind-eyed Mr. Jameson tracks her down, with an interest in her case and her safety, she can't help but wonder if things might be different now. But old and hidden enemies continue to threaten any hope of a normal life, and soon she's under investigation with the feds. Lucy isn't sure who she can trust, even Mr. Jameson's "friend-not-friend", a tall and fierce looking woman who says Lucy has a sister and more siblings and a grandmother who'd look after her and a home where she could be loved. Lucy, aware of her Ojibwe heritage but little else, learns that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) should have been followed so her mother's relatives could have had an opportunity to take Lucy in after her father's death. But years of hell in foster care have taught her to be smart, cautious. She knows she can clear her name from the explosions that have followed her everywhere, but saving the people she cares for is a risk that might cost Lucy her life. From the internationally-acclaimed and bestselling author Angeline Boulley comes an explosive story about seeking vindication from a past that won't let you go.

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Fireworks

Burgess, Matthew, author.

Published in 2025

"POP! As a hot day sizzles into evening, everyone on stoops and sidewalks looks skyward on this special summer night--the Fourth of July! Words and art blossom into flowers of fire across the sky, making this a perfect read for firework enthusiasts in cities and suburbs everywhere"-- Provided by publisher.

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Ollie in Between

Callans, Jess, author.

Published in 2025

"A nonbinary middle-schooler must choose between pretending to be the girl everyone expects them to be and forging their own path forward"-- Provided by publisher.

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A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation

Cartaya, Pablo, author.

Published in 2025

Thirteen-year-old Cuban American Gonzalo joins his estranged grandfather on road trip to promote his grandfather's fantasy book series.

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The Ink Witch

Cherrywell, Steph, author.

Published in 2025

"A trans girl discovers that her boring mother comes from a powerful and dangerous family of witches"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Queen Bees of Tybee County

Chu, Kyle Casey, author.

Published in 2025

Chinese American Derrick explores his queer identity by competing in a small-town beauty pageant where he shares his new love of drag with his family and friends.

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Where Only Storms Grow

Colman, Alyssa, author.

Published in 2025

"It's been four years since rain fell on the Oklahoma panhandle, and the closeness between the Stanton twins has dried up as much as the land. Howe has been practicing running away and longs for the family to quit this land of dust and broken dreams. Despite the scoliosis that causes Jonna near-constant pain, she isn't ready to give up like her brother. But when Daddy leaves the family behind to find work in California, saving the farm from ruin falls on Howe's unwilling and Joanna's uneven shoulders. To pay the family's debts, Joanna takes a job at the local hospital and discovers purpose in helping others. Meanwhile, Howe finds unexpected joy in caring for his father's horse and escapes in a borrowed book. But then a tragedy in town reveals the dust's deadly dangers. With the worst storm of the Dust Bowl bearing down on their home, Howe and Joanna must put aside their differences and work together, or everyone and everything they love will be lost to the dust" -- Jacket flap.

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All the Noise at Once

Davis, DeAndra, author.

Published in 2025

"A Black, autistic teen tries to figure out what happened the night his older brother was unjustly arrested"-- Provided by publisher.

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A World Without Summer

A Volcano Erupts, a Creature Awakens, and the Sun Goes out

Day, Nicholas, 1991- author.

Published in 2025

"A narrative nonfiction account that explores how Mount Tambora's eruption in 1815 affected the global climate and inspired Mary Shelley's work"-- Provided by publisher.

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Buffalo Dreamer

Duncan, Violet, author.

Published in 2024

When twelve-year-old Summer visits her family on a reservation in Alberta, Canada, she begins experiencing vivid dreams of running away from a residential school like the one her grandfather attended as a child and learns about unmarked children's graves, prompting her to seek answers about her community's painful past.

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Alberto Salas Plays Paka Paka Con La Papa

Join the Quest with Peru's Famed Scientist and Potato Expert

Fajardo, Sara Andrea, author.

Published in 2025

"What can a potato do? To Peruvian scientist Alberto Salas, they have the power to change the world. Go on the hunt with Alberto for for wild potatoes before they go extinct in this playful picture book biography, gorgeously illustrated by Caldecott-honoree Juana Martinez-Neal."--Provided by publisher.

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The Strongest Heart

Faruqi, Saadia, author.

Published in 2025

Mo got used to tuning out his father's rage, and after mama leaves, Mo and Abbu move to Texas to live with family, but as Mo starts to see a future, he knows the monster within his father can come anytime.

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Stop That Mop!

Fenske, Jonathan, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Tired of mopping slop, this Mop wants to run away, and challenges anyone who wants to stop it.

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Death in the Jungle

Murder, Betrayal, and the Lost Dream of Jonestown

Fleming, Candace, author.

Published in 2025

A chronicle of one of American history's most notorious cults, a book including first-person accounts follows Jim Jones from humble origins to "Jonestown" in Guyana, South America, and traces his transformation of Peoples Temple into a nefarious experiment in mind control.

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I Like Hoops

Ford, Juwanda G., author.

Published in 2025

"A close game of basketball, played by a diverse group of first and second graders, is full of suspense, joy-and good sportsmanship too!"-- Provided by publisher.

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Filo's Butterflies

Fuata, Litea

Published in 2025

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White Sunday

A Celebration for Samoan Kids

Fuata, Litea

Published in 2024

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Fresh Start

Galligan, Gale, author, artist.

Published in 2025

"Ollie Herisson's dad is a diplomat, which means her family moves around a lot. She has already lived in Singapore, Korea, France, and the United States. When Ollie starts at a new school, she doesn't worry about making a good impression because she knows that when her family inevitably moves again, she'll get a fresh start somewhere else. A complete reset. It doesn't matter if her classmates think she's weird for pretending that she lives in the world of an imagined anime, or if she makes an enemy out of the most popular girl in her class, or if she does something hugely embarrassing! And it definitely doesn't matter that all her mom wants is for Ollie to be more of a proper Thai daughter. But after moving from Germany to Virginia and having a mortifying first day at her new school, Ollie is shocked to learn that her parents are going to buy a house so that Ollie and her sister, Cat, can finish grade school in one place. Can Ollie figure out how to both be herself and make real friends when she can't run away from her life?"-- Provided by publisher

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My Body Can

Gehl, Laura

Published in 2025

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The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli

Glaser, Karina Yan.

Published in 2025

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Fierce Aunties!

Goodluck, Laurel, author.

Published in 2025

Celebrates aunts, related by birth or not, who surround children with unyielding love and support. Includes author's note.

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Wanda Hears the Stars

A Blind Astronomer Listens to the Universe

Hansen, Amy, author.

Published in 2025

"Growing up in Puerto Rico, Wanda Díaz Merced wanted to study the stars. But when she lost her sight, she had to find a new way to work. Through the use of sonification, which turns data into sound, she was able to make a path for herself and other scientists with disabilities"-- Provided by publisher.

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For a Girl Becoming

Harjo, Joy, author.

Published in 2025

A baby girl is welcomed to the breathing world by generations of her family and set on the magnificent journey of becoming. As she grows, she is reminded of her connections to the natural world; to her family, her ancestors, her neighbors; to the source of all magic and sorrow -- and of her responsibility to uphold and honor those connections. With US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo's transcendent verse and Pura Belpre Award winner Adriana Garcia's monumental illustrations, For a Girl Becoming acts as a blessing and a harbinger for a young girl's life -- and reminds those of us who still stand at the door of becoming that it is our relationships with nature and with each other that carry us through it.

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Go Tell It

How James Baldwin Became a Writer

Harris, Quartez, author.

Published in 2025

"A boy who loves stories grows into a teenager who escapes into his writing and then a young man who plays his typewriter like a piano to show the fullness of Black life, in this lyrical picture book biography of James Baldwin, the celebrated novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and activist"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest

Hartman, Aubrey, author.

Published in 2025

"An undead fox serving as the Usher of souls has his life upended when a mysterious badger soul appears"-- Provided by publisher.

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Many Things at Once

Hiranandani, Veera, author.

Published in 2025

A young girl with a Jewish mother and a South Asian father learns more about her family's history and embraces her multifaceted identity.

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Hungry Bones

Hung, Louise, author.

Published in 2024

"Molly Teng sees things no one else can. By touching the belongings of people who have died, she gets brief glimpses into the lives they lived. Sometimes the "zaps" are funny or random, but often they leave her feeling sad, drained, and lonely. The last thing Jade remembers from life is dying. That was over one hundred years ago. Ever since then she's been trapped in the same house watching people move in and out. She's a 'hungry ghost' reliant on the livings' food scraps to survive. To most people she is only a shadow, a ghost story, a superstition. Molly is not most people. When she moves into Jade's house, nothing will ever be the same--for either of them. After over a century alone, Jade might finally have someone who can help her uncover the secrets of her past, and maybe even find a way out of the house--before her hunger destroys them both."--Amazon

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Kahoʻolawe

The True Story of an Island and Her People

Hurley, Kamalani, 1955- author.

Published in 2025

"Discover the story of the smallest Hawaiian island, a place sacred to Native Hawaiians, from its formation long ago to its present-day restoration as a protected site. A remarkable narrative accompanied by stunning illustrations"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Unfinished

Isaacs, Cheryl, author.

Published in 2024

"When small-town athlete Avery’s morning run leads her to a strange pond in the middle of the forest, she awakens a horror the townspeople of Crook’s Falls have long forgotten. The black water has been waiting. Watching. Hungry for the souls it needs to survive. Avery can smell the water, see it flooding everywhere; she thinks she's losing her mind. And as the black water haunts Avery—taking a new form each time—people in town begin to go missing. Though Avery had heard whispers of monsters from her Kanien’kéha:ka (Mohawk) relatives, she has never really connected to her Indigenous culture or understood the stories. But the Elders she has distanced herself from now may have the answers she needs. When Key, her best friend and longtime crush, is the next to disappear, Avery is faced with a choice: listen to the Kanien’kéha:ka and save the town but lose her friend forever…or listen to her heart and risk everything to get Key back."-- Amazon.com.

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White House Secrets

Medical Lies and Cover-ups

Jarrow, Gail

Published in 2025

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Our Lake

Kang, Angie, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Two grieving brothers visit the lake their father took them to for the first time.

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At Last She Stood

How Joey Guerrero Spied, Survived, and Fought for Freedom

Kelly, Erin Entrada, author.

Published in 2025

"A biography of the legendary and inspiring Josefina "Joey" Guerrero: World War II spy, Filipina guerrilla fighter, war hero, Medal of Freedom recipient, leprosy survivor, teacher, and peacemaker"-- Provided by publisher.

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The House No One Sees

King, Adina, author.

Published in 2025

When seventeen-year-old Penelope enters her childhood home, the house floods her with painful memories of her mother's opioid addiction that she must confront to mend her fractured past.

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Call Me Gray

Larsen, Andrew, author.

Published in 2025

A child shares feelings about their identity with their dad in this powerful story about change, acceptance and, above all, love. One winter, while creating their annual ice rink together, a child starts a conversation with their dad about something important. "Do you ever feel mixed up about who you are?" the child asks. But the father misunderstands the question. So, the child tries again later. "Do you ever feel different than the way you look?" Again, the father doesn't get it. But this time he asks to hear more. And the child explains. "I look like a boy, but sometimes I feel more like a girl." At last, it's been said. The child shares that their name feels like an itchy sweater and they want to change it to "Gray." It's a big change, but one they can grow into together. And when Gray's dad finally uses their chosen name, it feels warm and right, just like hot chocolate after the first skate of the season.

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City Summer, Country Summer

Laymon, Kiese, author.

Published in 2025

Three African American boys, including one visiting from New York, form a meaningful connection during a summer trip to rural Mississippi.

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Silenced Voices

Reclaiming Memories from the Guatemalan Genocide

Leon, Pablo.

Published in 2025

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Sheine Lende

A Prequel to Elatsoe

Little Badger, Darcie, 1987- author.

Published in 2024

"Shane works with her mother and their ghost dogs, tracking down missing persons even when their families can't afford to pay. Their own family was displaced from their traditional home years ago following a devastating flood and the loss of Shane's father and her grandparents. They don't think they'll ever get their home back. Then Shane's mother and a local boy go missing, after a strange interaction with a fairy ring. Shane, her brother, her friends, and her lone, surviving grandparent, who isn't to be trusted, set off on the road to find them. But they may not be anywhere in this world, or this place in time. Nevertheless, Shane is going to find them."--Provided by publisher.

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He's So Possessed with Me

Liu, Corey, author.

Published in 2025

Ren says he's in love, but Colin knows better. Sure, he can't remember much about how it all began. But he remembers dancing at a club he and Ren were too young to dance in. He remembers the boys who harassed them on their way home. He remembers a ghost emerging from the trees, and a white hand reaching for Ren through a thick fog. What Colin can't remember is what happened next. Only two things are clear to him: Ren is different now, and the new guy vying for his heart is not who he claims to be. With the help of two unlikely allies and a cranky old medium, Colin must learn to conquer his self-doubt and save his best friend from a love that could cost him his life. Equal parts campy and bewitching, Corey Liu’s debut YA novel explores predation, isolation, and what happens when a childhood dream of fairytale romance turns into a deadly nightmare.

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The Red Car to Hollywood

Liu, Jennie, 1971- author.

Published in 2025

"In LA's Chinatown in 1924, sixteen-year-old Ruby Chan rebels against her parents' conventional plans for her future when a friendship with nineteen-year-old Anna May Wong, a rising Hollywood film star, opens up new possibilities"-- Provided by publisher.

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Croco

López, Azul, 1991- author.

Published in 2025

"In a vibrant tropical jungle, Croco the Crocodile has fallen into a hole and can't climb out. Different animals come along to try to help him, but in the end, he must find his own way out. This charming picture book for early readers teaches us about resilience and the importance of helping others, no matter the obstacles in our way. Croco, the protagonist, tries to follow the advice of his friends to escape his predicament, only to realize the solution was within him all along. The story builds tension as Croco remains trapped, culminating in a satisfying ending that restores harmony and marks his growth. A simple story about an everyday problem, this book draws readers in with its steadily building suspense. Set in a lush tropical jungle full of vibrantly colored animals, the book's illustrations create striking visual contrasts across different scenes. Croco, positioned at the bottom of the page, tries various strategies to climb out of the hole, while the animals above him attempt to assist him. The carefully composed artwork features expressive brushstrokes and meticulously arranged characters, establishing a dynamic visual rhythm between the two planes--the world above, where the animals try to help, and the world below, where the bright red protagonist struggles to escape his accidental trap. Young readers will root for Croco as he navigates his challenges, making this a heartwarming tale of perseverance and friendship"-- Provided by publisher.

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Popo the Xolo

Lopez, Paloma Angelina, author.

Published in 2025

Nana transitions from life to death through the nine levels of Mictlān, accompanied by her beloved xoloitzcuintle, Popo.

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Beinoni

Lowe, Mari.

Published in 2025

In a Beinoni time there should be no war, no terrible illness, no crime. Even if that also means there won't be any great discoveries, any cures, anything extraordinary. Ezra believes that's worth fighting for. In fact, he's been training most of his life to fight a battle to determine whether Beinoni time continues, or gives way to a more violent, less certain future. He is the Nivchar, the chosen one, with the sign of the scales on his skin. When he comes of age at his bar mitzvah, so too will the gurya, a fiery beast of uncertain form, emerging from a cave to conquer, destroy, and herald a time of conflict. But Ezra begins to sense that something is very wrong. His friends, his neighbors, the whole world is losing the careful, even balance he's come to expect in a Beinoni time. It was always uncertain whether he'd be able to best his terrifying, magical foe. But now, is it even possible?

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Pilgrim Codex

Mansour Manzur, Vivian, author.

Published in 2025

A picture book about one immigrant family's journey north through the eyes of a child, illustrated in the vein of an ancient codex and drawing upon Mesoamerican mythology.

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Sometimes the Girl

Mason-Black, Jennifer

Published in 2025

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Every Peach is a Story

Masumoto, David Mas, author.

Published in 2025

"One spring day, little Midori asks Jiichan, her grandfather, if the peaches on her family's farm are ripe yet. To her surprise, he asks," Does it taste like a story? That's when you know it is ripe." As Jiichan teaches her about her Japanese American heritage and her family's deep connection to this land, Midori begins to realize the patience, hard work, and endurance that allowed their roots to grow.Poetic and powerful, Every Peach Is a Story is a journey of discovery through all of life's seasons."-- Provided by publisher.

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Outfoxed

McMullen-Ciotti, Elise

Published in 2025

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The Story of My Anger

Méndez, Jasminne, author.

Published in 2025

"Yulieta Lopez is accustomed to playing various roles: the diligent daughter, the honorable hija, the good girl who swallows the flames in her throat before they burn anyone. But the fire inside Yuli is spreading, and she can no longer be silent. Because Yuli is angry. Angry at the school board threatening to ban books that made Yuli feel seen. Angry that she has to keep quiet until she can head to college and leave Texas forever. And angry at her racist drama teacher who refuses to cast Black students in lead roles. Determined to fight back, Yuli and her friends start a guerrilla theater club, which stirs things up and gets people talking, and finally, Yuli steps into the role she was always meant to play. This powerful novel in verse is a timely story of resistance, a raw reflection of righteous anger in an unjust world, and a reminder that sometimes, the only way to be heard is to speak up and take center stage."--Jacket flap.

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Hick

The Trailblazing Journalist Who Captured Eleanor Roosevelt's Heart

Miller, Sarah, 1979- author.

Published in 2025

"Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, this riveting YA traces Lorena Hickok--or Hick's-- rise from devastating childhood to renowned journalist, and follows the most significant friendship and romantic relationship of her life with first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt"-- Provided by publisher.

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I Hear the Snow, I Smell the Sea

Milusich, Janice, author.

Published in 2025

Neveah, a young blind girl, experiences the beauty of each season through touch, taste, smell, and sound, discovering the wonder of the world around her year-round.

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The Ribbon Skirt

Mukwa, Cameron, author.

Published in 2024

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The Teacher of Nomad Land

A World War II Story

Nayeri, Daniel, author.

Published in 2025

"1941. The German armies are storming across Europe. Iran is a neutral country occupied by British forces on one side. Soviet forces on another. Soldiers fill the teahouses of Isfahan. Nazi spies roam the alleyways. Babak and his little sister have just lost their father. Now orphans, fearing they will be separated, the two devise a plan. Babak will take up his father's old job as a teacher to the nomads. With a chalkboard strapped to Babak's back, and a satchel full of textbooks, the siblings set off to find the nomad tribes as they make their yearly trek across the mountains. On the treacherous journey, they meet a Jewish boy, hiding from a Nazi spy. And suddenly they are all in a race for survival. Against the backdrop of World War II comes an epic adventure in faraway places. Through the cacophony of soldiers, tanks, and planes, can young hearts of different creeds and nations learn to find a common language?"-- Front jacket flap.

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Sundust

Peña, Zeke, 1983- author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

"A look at the author's hometown of El Paso, where the sun reigns over the vast desert and shapes all that it touches"-- Provided by publisher.

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Halfway to Somewhere

Pimienta, Jose, author, artist.

Published in 2025

Ave must adjust to a new country, a new school, and a new family dynamic when their mom and younger brother move to Kansas while their father and older sister stay in Mexico during the parents' divorce.

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The Island of Forgotten Gods

Piñeiro, Victor, author.

Published in 2025

Twelve-year-old Nico and his cousins' seemly boring summer in Puerto Rico takes a horrific turn when they encounter the legendary chupacabra, a cult, and the gods who created the island.

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Neshama

Pixley, Marcella, author.

Published in 2025

"Anna sees ghosts. The spirits of her ancestors call to her from the shadows, and no matter where she is, Anna always answers. Kids in her middle school tease her. Teachers and parents are worried by her strange behavior. The only one who seems to understand is Anna's beloved grandmother, Bubbe, who has always treasured Anna's shayna neshama, her beautiful soul. Spending Shabbos with Bubbe is the only thing that gives Anna the sense of love and belonging that she needs. But when a ghost named Ruthie appears at Bubbe's house by the sea, Anna begins to uncover long-hidden secrets that reveal the mystery of her family's troubled past. As Anna and Ruthie get closer, Anna must decide for herself whether being connected to a restless ghost is worth the risk. When it becomes clear that Bubbe's life is in danger, Anna must face the horrible truth: She alone has the ability to save her family and heal the wounds that follow them from one generation to the next"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Big Mess and Other Stories

Pizzoli, Greg, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Earl, a messy bird, and Worm, a quiet and tidy bookworm, overcome their differences by helping each other through their problems and adventures.

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The Keeper of Stories

Pritchard, Caroline Kusin, author.

Published in 2025

When a fire break out at the Jewish Theological Seminary library, helping hands from across the community rally together to save the books and preserve the stories within the pages. Includes factual backmatter on the Jewish Theological Seminary fire of 1966.

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Octopus Moon

Pyron, Bobbie, author.

Published in 2024

Recently diagnosed with depression, fifth-grader Pearl struggles with self-care and self-love amidst a sea of changes.

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The Super-scary Sleepover

Quigley, Dawn

Published in 2025

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Red Bird Danced

Quigley, Dawn, author.

Published in 2024

"Dawn Quigley (Ojibwe) tells the story of urban Native kids who find strength in connection with those who came before and in the hope that lets them take flight"--Provided by publisher.

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The Library in the Woods

Ramsey, Calvin Alexander, author.

Published in 2025

When Junior moves from the countryside to Roxboro, North Carolina, in 1959, his whole life changes. Instead of sharecropping, his father works at the lumber mill, and his mother takes in laundry from the white people in town. Junior meets new friends who have a TV- and their own books! These friends bring him to a place he's never heard of: the Negro Library. For him, it feels miraculous, and he checks out a book for himself and one for each of his parents. Author and playwright Calvin Alexander Ramsey and award-winning illustrator R. Gregory Christie celebrate family, libraries, and the resourcefulness of the Black community.

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Lost at Windy River

A True Story of Survival

Rathgeber, Trina, author.

Published in 2024

"This graphic novel for middle-grade readers tells the true story of how a young Indigenous girl survives nine days lost in a snowstorm in Northern Canada."-- Provided by publisher.

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The Tunneler Tunnels in the Tunnel

Rex, Michael, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

A penguin in a hardhat digs in a tunnel, popping up in different places, visiting a gardener, a farmer, a banker and others until he and everybody along the way reach a surprise ending.

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The Golden Boy's Guide to Bipolar

Reyes, Sonora. author.

Published in 2025

Seventeen-year-old Cesar Flores is finally ready to win back his ex-boyfriend. Since breaking up with Jamal in a last-ditch effort to stay in the closet, he's come out to Mami, his sister, Yami, and their friends, taken his meds faithfully, and gotten his therapist's blessing to reunite with Jamal. Everything would be perfect if it weren't for The Thoughts--the ones that won't let all his Catholic guilt and internalizations stay buried where he wants them. The louder they become, the more Cesar is once again convinced that he doesn't deserve someone like Jamal--or anyone really. Cesar can hide a fair amount of shame behind jokes and his "gifted" reputation, but when a manic episode makes his inner turmoil impossible to hide, he's faced with a stark choice: burn every bridge he has left or, worse--ask for help. But is the mortifying vulnerability of being loved by the people he's hurt the most a risk he's willing to take?

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Will's Race for Home

A Western

Rhodes, Jewell Parker, author.

Published in 2025

During the land rush of 1889, African American Will and his father journey from Texas to Oklahoma, racing thousands of others to stake their claim.

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Whale Eyes

A Memoir About Seeing and Being Seen

Robinson, James (Filmmaker), author.

Published in 2025

"From Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker James Robinson comes a breathtaking illustrated memoir for middle-grade readers (and adults, too)-inspired by the viral, Emmy-nominated short film Whale Eyes. Told through an experimental mix of intimate anecdotes and interactive visuals, this book immerses readers in James's point of view, allowing them to see the world through his disabling eye conditions. Readers will get lost as they chase words. They'll stare into this book while taking a vision test. They'll hold it upside down as they practice "pretend-reading"...and they'll follow an unlikely trail toward discovering the power of words. With poignant illustrations by Eisner Award-nominated artist Brian Rea, James's story equips readers of all ages with the tools to confront their discomfort with disability and turn confused, blank stares into powerful connections"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Adventures of Cipollino

Rodari, Gianni, author.

Published in 2025

"Cipollino is young, brave, clever, and determined—exactly the kind of valiant hero that’s bound to triumph in fairy tales. In this colorful, episodic adventure story, in which nearly everyone is animal, vegetable, or fruit, Cipollino leaves home and sets off into the world to free his wrongfully imprisoned father. In the process, he faces off against scoundrels of all kinds with wit and humor, while winning both allies and friends. What hangs in the balance is the freedom of an entire kingdom from the ridiculous rules of the all-powerful Prince Lemon and the dignity of each blueberry, string bean, and spider!

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Chooch Helped

Rogers, Andrea L., author.

Published in 2024

A Cherokee girl introduces her younger brother to their family's traditions, begrudgingly! In this picture book Sissy's younger brother, Chooch, isn't a baby anymore. They just celebrated his second birthday, after all. But no matter what Chooch does, even if he's messing something up! Which is basically all the time! Their parents say he's just "helping." Sissy feels that Chooch can get away with anything! When Elisi paints a mural, Chooch helps. When Edutsi makes grape dumplings, Chooch helps. When Oginalii gigs for crawdads, Chooch helps. When Sissy tries to make a clay pot, Chooch helps, but "Hlesdi!" Sissy yells. Quit it! And Chooch bursts into tears. What follows is a tender family moment that will resonate with anyone who has welcomed a new little one to the fold. 'Chooch Helped' is a universal story of an older sibling learning to make space for a new child, told with grace and featuring stunning illustrations, and showing one Cherokee family practicing their cultural traditions. -- Adapted publisher's description.

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American Spirits

The Famous Fox Sisters and the Mysterious Fad That Haunted a Nation

Rosenstock, Barb, author.

Published in 2025

In March 1848, strange "rap" sounds were heard at the Fox family's home in Hydesville, New York. The family's daughters, Kate and Maggie, discovered they could communicate with the spirit responsible, who claimed to be a murdered traveling peddler. This event sparked a media frenzy, and the sisters, guided by their older sister Leah, became famous spirit mediums, holding public exhibitions and advising celebrities. However, questions about their legitimacy arose, especially as the demand for spiritual communication grew during the Civil War, while media campaigns against the sisters also gained momentum.

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The Pecan Sheller

Ruiz-Flores, Lupe, author.

Published in 2025

In 1930s San Antonio, after her father's death, thirteen-year-old Petra must quit school to work at a pecan shelling factory where dangerous conditions and low wages push her to take a vital stand for change.

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You and Me on Repeat

Shyne, Mary, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Chris O'Brien has a genius plan: If he can share the perfect first kiss with his crush, Andy, then of course he'll break free from the time loop that has him repeating graduation day over and over...and over. Alicia Ochoa thinks Chris's plan is doomed. Valedictorian and a total nerd, she knows it'll take more than a kiss to escape the loop they're trapped in together. Besides, Chris may be a hopeless romantic, but Alicia doesn't think he has a real shot with Andy. Once close friends, Alicia and Chris have history--lots of it. As they got older, the pair fell out after Chris ditched her for the "cool kids" and left her in the dust. But when you're looping side by side, you never know if friendship might rekindle or what new feelings could spark along the way.

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Cope Field

Simpson, T. L.

Published in 2025

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Tall Water

Sindu, SJ, author.

Published in 2025

"Ever since she turned sixteen, Nimmi has wanted to see her mother. Though she has a loving but overprotective father and a budding relationship, she yearns to travel to Sri Lanka to confront the mother who refused to leave the island during a war, not even for Nimmi's sake. Her father is going back for the first time as a reporter on assignment, but he refuses to take her, deeming Sri Lanka too dangerous. But then Nimmi's mother appears to her in a dream, asking her to come find her, and Nimmi knows she must go. Her father is livid when he sees her at baggage claim, but by then it's too late, and he reluctantly agrees to help Nimmi make contact with her mother. In Sri Lanka, Nimmi tags along with her father and his guide, past checkpoints and armed soldiers and increasing hints of the war that rages there. However, the day after Christmas, disaster strikes and a tsunami ravages the island. Stranded amid the devastation and destruction, can Nimmi reunite with her mother? Through her journey, Nimmi might just learn that the person she most needed to find was herself"-- Provided by publisher.

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A Vaisakhi to Remember

Singh, Simran Jeet, author.

Published in 2025

After moving to a new country, a young Sikh girl finds comfort and familiarity as she celebrates Vaisakhi with a special outfit, a trip to the gurdwara, delicious food, and new friends. Includes a recipe for lassi.

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Legendary Frybread Drive-In

Intertribal Stories

Smith, Cynthia Leitich/ Hart, Kate/ Gansworth, Eric/ Bell, Marcella/ Badger, Darcie Little.

Published in 2025

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The History of We

Smith, Nikkolas, 1985- author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

"A picture book about the origin and advancement of humans"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Summer of the Bone Horses

Sneve, Virginia Driving Hawk, author.

Published in 2025

Homesick at the thought of staying with his grandparents for the summer, Lakota Eddie quickly adjusts to life on the reservation, embracing new experiences and bonding with his family.

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The Book of Candles

Eight Poems for Hanukkah

Snyder, Laurel, author.

Published in 2025

In a dark, dark room, one thin candle wakes, bursts to life. Thus begins the first night of Hanukkah in one child's home. But what does the light from the candle mean? What are the words everyone is singing? What will each of these eight nights hold? Family and friends, takeout dinners and flat tires, traditions new and old -- it's all part of this year's timeless, timely holiday celebration.

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Raven's Ribbons

Spillett, Tasha, 1988- author.

Published in 2025

"A boy shares his dream of wearing a traditional ribbon skirt to the community's round dance with his grandmother"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Poetry of Car Mechanics

Stemple, Heidi E. Y., author.

Published in 2025

"Dylan seeks solace through birdwatching and poetry in the woods behind his grandfather's auto shop--but when he rescues an injured hawk, he must learn to confront the broken parts in himself, too"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Rebel Girls of Rome

Taylor, Jordyn, author.

Published in 2025

"Now: Grieving the loss of her mother, college student Lilah is hoping to reconnect with a grandfather who refuses to talk about his past. Then she receives a mysterious letter from a fellow student, Tommaso, claiming he's found a lost family heirloom, and her world is upended. Soon Lilah finds herself in Rome, trying to unlock her grandfather's history as a Holocaust survivor once and for all. But as she and Tommaso get closer to the truth--and their relationship begins to deepen into something sweeter--Lilah realizes that some secrets may be too painful to unbury… Then: It's 1943, and nineteen-year-old Bruna and her family are doing their best to survive in Rome's Jewish quarter under Nazi occupation. Until the dreaded knock comes early one morning, and Bruna is irrevocably separated from the rest of her family. Overcome with guilt at escaping her family's fate in the camps, she joins the underground rebellion. When her missions bring her back to her childhood crush, Elsa, Bruna must decide how much she's willing to risk--when fully embracing herself is her greatest act of resistance"-- Provided by publisher.

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Devils Like Us

Thompson, L. T., author.

Published in 2025

"... Historical fantasy about three queer teens and their found family of queer pirates facing down a secret magical society."--Provided by publisher.

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On the Wings of La Noche

Torres, Vanessa L., author.

Published in 2025

Seventeen-year-old Noche, who serves as an avian guide to the afterlife, suffers inner turmoil between falling for a new boy in town and letting go of her late girlfriend's soul.

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Where Wolves Don't Die

Treuer, Anton, author.

Published in 2024

"Ezra Cloud hates living in Northeast Minneapolis. His father is a professor of their language, Ojibwe, at a local college, so they have to be there. But Ezra hates the dirty, polluted snow around them. He hates being away from the rez at Nigigoonsiminikaaning First Nation. And he hates the local bully in his neighborhood, Matt Schroeder, who terrorizes Ezra and his friend Nora George. Ezra gets into a terrible fight with Matt at school defending Nora, and that same night, Matt's house burns down. Instantly, Ezra becomes a prime suspect. Knowing he won't get a fair deal, and knowing his innocence, Ezra's family sends him away to run traplines with his grandfather in a remote part of Canada, while the investigation is ongoing. But the Schroeders are looking for him..."--Amazon.

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Shabbat Shalom

Let's Rest and Reset

Ultman, Suzy, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

"This modern and whimsical Jewish-themed board book series is the first of its kind to incorporate both Jewish traditions and Jewish culture, offering a truly representative depiction of Judaism. Shabbat Shalom: Let's Rest and Reset introduces the Jewish day of rest, validating the varied experiences of Jewish readers, and informing and entertaining Jews and non-Jews alike! Author and artist Suzy Ultman melds her own Jewish upbringing with her current trendsetting aesthetic to create a much-needed series of gorgeous, appealing, and perfectly simple books that will stand out on any table or shelf amidst the sea of blue and gold painterly Jewish-themed books that precede these"-- Provided by publisher.

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First Love Language

Valentine, Stefany, author.

Published in 2025

Seventeen-year-old Taiwanese American Catie makes a deal to teach a coworker how to date in exchange for Mandarin lessons, all while exploring her cultural roots, uncovering family secrets, and confronting her own emotions.

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A-Ztec

A Bilingual Alphabet Book

Valtierra, Emmanuel, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

Chocolatl and Axolotl Guacamole and Quetzacoatl. Open up this treasury Aztec words-- from A to Z! From singular artist Emmanuel Valtierra comes a spectacular introduction to twenty-six words, concepts, and gods central to Aztec and Mexican culture, presented in both English and Spanish.

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Song of a Blackbird

Van Lieshout, Maria, author, illustrator.

Published in 2025

"In 1943 Amsterdam, Emma Bergsma's world changes when she witnesses Jewish families being forcibly deported to concentration camps. That pivotal moment lights a fire within her, and she decides to jointhe Dutch Resistance. Before long, Emma is drawn into a clandestineworld of printing presses and counterfeiters, with thousands of lives on the line. In 2011 Amsterdam, teenage Annick's world has changed as well. A search for a bone marrow donor for her beloved oma leads to a shocking revelation: her grandmother was secretly adopted as a child. The only clues to finding their lost family are a series ofart prints hanging on the wall--each signed by a mysterious "Emma B.""-- From publisher description.

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Under the Neon Lights

Vinson, Arriel, author.

Published in 2025

"Sixteen-year-old Jaelyn Coleman falls in love for the first time at her local, beloved roller-skating rink, just as news hits it is shutting down amidst her neighborhood quickly gentrifying"-- Provided by publisher.

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All the Blues in the Sky

Watson, Renée, author.

Published in 2025

When thirteen-year-old Sage's best friend dies, Sage struggles with grief and feels that she is at fault, but when she joins a grief group, she slowly learns to heal.

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André

André Leon Talley--a Fabulously Fashionable Fairy Tale

Weatherford, Carole Boston, 1956- author.

Published in 2025

This picture-book biography presents the life of André Leon Talley, tracing his early years in North Carolina through his rise in the international fashion industry. It describes formative influences, including his interest in magazines and fashion, and outlines challenges he faced growing up in the segregated South. The book highlights his career achievements and legacy, accompanied by illustrations that depict significant moments in his personal and professional development.

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Braided Roots

Westbrook, Pasha

Published in 2025

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D.J. Rosenblum Becomes the G.O.A.T.*

Some Angst Anxiety Assembly Required

White, Abby, author.

Published in 2025

"It's the beginning of the school year--and Briar's newest resident, D.J. Rosenblum, is not here for it. Ever since her cousin Rachel died, D.J.'s family has been a mess: Her aunt and uncle are catatonic. Her mom is even more scatterbrained than usual. She had to postpone her bat mitzvah a whole year. Worst of all, she and her mom had to move--leaving her best friend, Eva, behind. Briar does have one redeeming factor, though: Here, in Rachel's hometown, D.J. can finally get to the bottom of her cousin's death. With the help of a chatty journalist and a queen-bee hacker, D.J. can fill in the last days of Rachel's life. And if she can just figure out her Torah portion--with help from her cute tutor, Jonah--maybe, just maybe, she'll be able to solve a bigger mystery."-- Publisher's description, page [2] of jacket.

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Picking Tea with Baba

Xu, Bin (Children's author), author.

Published in 2025

"A family travels together up the hillside to their tea garden to work for the day"-- Provided by publisher.

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From Memen to Mori

Yoshitake, Shinsuke

Published in 2025

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One of the Boys

Zeller, Victoria, author.

Published in 2025

"Grace Woodhouse has left a lot behind. She used to have a great friend group, an amazing girlfriend, and a right foot set to earn her a Division I football scholarship-before she came out as trans. As senior year begins, Grace is struggling to find her place in early transition, new social circles, and a life without football. But when her skills as the best kicker in the state prove to be vital, her old teammates beg her to come out of retirement, dragging her back into a sport-into a way of life-she thought had turned its back on her forever. When a chance meeting cracks the door to college football back open, she has to decide how much of herself she's willing to give up for the game she loves"-- Provided by publisher.

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Author

Ashley S.

Collection Strategist - Youth

Ashley S.

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