Here we round up new and forthcoming children’s titles, including a YA graphic novel about lovers finding each other in dreamscapes, a graphic novel series opener about friends helping each other out with money troubles, a YA summer romance, and more.
As I Dream of You by Jennifer Lee, illus. by LeUyen Pham. First Second, $27.99 hardcover; ISBN 978-1-250-86203-7; $19.99 paper ISBN 978-1-250-86204-4. Lines from and musings about the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice ground this breathtaking graphic novel romance about loss and moving forward. The book received a starred review from PW.
The Brainstormerz: Money Talks by Kwame Alexander and Cassidy Dyce, illus. by Rashad Doucet. Little, Brown Ink, $24.99 hardcover; ISBN 978-0-316-54098-8; $14.99 paper ISBN 978-0-316-54108-4. Three besties work together to help each other succeed in this energetic graphic novel series opener from Alexander and debut author Dyce.
Change of Plans by Sarah Dessen. Simon & Schuster, $21.99; ISBN 979-8-3471-0877-0. Dessen serves up a warm summer romance that’s a fortifying interpretation of self-transformation. Check out our story about Dessen’s return to YA and 30 years in the industry. The book received a starred review from PW.
Coco and Stephen, Together Forever: How a Kitten and Bunny Became Best Friends by Beth Stern with Margaret McNamara, illus. by Joanie Stone. Random House Studio, $19.99; ISBN 979-8-217-12354-4. In this picture book inspired by a true story, cowritten by pet adoption advocate Stern, both kitten Coco and bunny Stephen have been abandoned and decide to be friends that stick together.
Cowgirl Dreaming by R.J. Owens, illus. by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow. Abrams, $18.99; ISBN 978-1-949-48057-3. A child narrates her experience riding in her first Black Cowboy Parade across a step-by-step picture book.
Drop Dead Famous by Jennifer Pearson. S&S/Barley, $22.99 hardcover; ISBN 979-8-3471-0851-0; $13.99 paper ISBN 979-8-3471-0850-3. The murder of an international pop star sends the victim’s teenage sister on a quest to find the perpetrator in debut author Pearson’s tense and intricately plotted thriller. The YA book received a starred review from PW.
First Crush by Cassandra Calin. Scholastic/Graphix, $14.99 paper; ISBN 978-1-338-76248-8. In the second installment of the New Girl series, Lia’s crush on Julian grows bigger, while someone else grows unnoticed feelings for her. See our 2024 interview with Calin on the series launch.
Girls Like Us by Jennifer Dugan. Putnam; $12.99; ISBN 979-8-217-11255-5. In the sequel to Some Girls Do, Ruby and Morgan struggle to keep their relationship afloat as new opportunities get in the way of their spring break plans.
Hear Ye Mortals by Yamile Saied Méndez. Levine Querido, $19.99; ISBN 978-1-64614-637-6. In this raw and heartbreaking historical novel set in the same world as Furia, Méndez intertwines political history with speculative storytelling, drawing on firsthand accounts of life under Argentina’s 1976 military coup.
Holloway by Elana K. Arnold. Clarion, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-299088-4. Opening in August 2021, this complex time-travel novel by Arnold plumbs an autistic teenager’s endeavors to reconstruct her identity following her zealous anti-vaxxer mother’s death from Covid.
I Love You Like a River by Nancy Tillman. Macmillan/Feiwel and Friends, $19.99; ISBN 978-1-250-40980-5. Nature-inspired similes convey a speaker’s immense adoration in Tillman’s latest poetic ode, whose sincere lines describe love as being like “the forest trees/ that keep the secrets of the breeze” and “the early morning mist/ that makes sure mountaintops are kissed.”
If You Went to the Bottom of the Ocean by Brooke McIntyre, illus. by Gordy Wright. Chronicle, $19.99; ISBN 978-1-79722-651-4. A zone-by-zone tour of the ocean’s depths proves awe-inspiring in McIntyre and Wright’s immersive tale of a submersible expedition. The picture book received a starred review from PW.
Listen to the Girls by Chrystal D. Giles. Random House, $17.99; ISBN 978-0-5936-5171-1. In this potent, socially attuned novel from Giles, dreams of a carefree summer vacation seem out of reach when a Black middle schooler discovers that her teacher has a history of sexual harassment complaints. The middle grade book received a starred review from PW.
On the Road to Happy by Goldy Moldavsky. Quill Tree, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-06-337225-2. Gigi struggles to make connections during her summer at day camp, but while plotting her escape back home, she begins to appreciate her surroundings.
Open: Every Seed Has Its Moment by Robert Agis, illus. by Sarah Jacoby. Candlewick, $19.99; ISBN 978-1-5362-3491-6. A soil-cozied sprouting seed, one among many underground, receives tender support as it matures in a radiant botanically themed work from Agis, making his picture book debut, and Jacoby. The picture book received a starred review from PW. See our roundup of picture books in celebration of Earth Month.
Pooch on the Loose (The After-School Kindness Crew #1) by Goldie Hawn and Lin Oliver, illus. by Breanna Chambers. Penguin Workshop; $7.99; ISBN 978-0-593-88945-9; $17.99; ISBN 978-0-593-88944-2. Classmates Tony, Mia, and River decide to start the After-School Kindness Crew in hopes of bringing joy to their classmates. But their plans for a Surprise Us Day end up going wrong. Read more about the series launch from actor Hawn and author Oliver.
Rolls and Rivalry by Kristy Boyce. Delacorte Romance, $13.99 paper; ISBN 978-0-593-89922-9. Teen Hazel copes with the return of her former best friend and crush Max, and the return of old feelings, when he joins her D&D table.
Shards of Silence by Brian Lee Young. Heartdrum, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-322908-2. Young, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, draws on personal experience to craft a gripping story about an Indigenous teenager’s grappling with exciting and frightening new experiences upon leaving his childhood home. The YA book received a starred review from PW.
The Shark Prince by Malia Maunakea. Penguin Workshop, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-593-89072-1. Maunakea combines an adolescent coming-of-age narrative with rip-roaring adventure steeped in Hawaiian folklore.
Styx and Stones by Gary D. Schmidt and Ron Koertge. Clarion, $18.99; ISBN 978-0-06-338097-4. Previous collaborators Schmidt and Koertge present an introspective story of unlikely connection across an action-adventure plot with Percy Jackson appeal.
That Which Feeds Us by Keala Kendall. Random House, $20.99; ISBN 979-8-217-11796-3. A teen uncovers a private island’s bloodstained past while looking for her sister in a gruesome gothic thriller.
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before: The Graphic Novel by Jenny Han, illus. by Akimaro. S&S, $15.99 paper; ISBN 978-1-665-98310-5. In this graphic novel adaptation of the blockbuster rom-com, readers follow the fall-out after teen Lara Jean Covey’s letters for every boy she’s had a crush on get accidentally sent out. Check out our story on how the adaptation came to be.
Willi Ninja: Vogue Legend by Joy Michael Ellison, illus. by Nabi H. Ali. Candlewick, $19.99; ISBN 978-1-5362-3008-6. In a stunning, celebratory biography of dancer and choreographer Willi Ninja, known as the Grandfather of Vogue, Ellison and Ali follow him from his beginnings as a Queens child whose “wonderful imagination electrified his body.” The picture book received a starred review from PW.
Wombat Waiting by Katherine Applegate, illus. by Jen Bricking. Storytide, $19.99; ISBN 978-0-06-322117-8. In this wholesome verse novel by Applegate, based on a true story, a small stray dog scrapes out a living in a local park when Santa Ana winds ignite a devastating wildfire that sets the canine on a collision course with a similarly affected human family.
Young World by Soman Chainani. Random House, $21.99; ISBN 978-0-593-90518-0. A 17-year-old’s attempt to impress his crush kicks off a series of events that culminate in his inauguration as president of the United States in this exhilarating YA debut from The School for Good and Evil author Chainani. The YA book received a starred review from PW.
For more children’s and YA titles on sale throughout the month of May check out PW’s full On-Sale Calendar.
