Here are the new books for children and young readers we’re looking forward to the most this month:
Be Strong
Pat Zietlow Miller, 2021
When her gym class must face the school rock-climbing wall, Tanisha is discouraged. Her muscles are weak, and she knows she’ll never reach the top like Cayla.
But maybe strength is about more than just muscles. With help from her family, Tanisha learns that by showing up, speaking up, and not giving up, she can be strong, too. And that people are the strongest when they work together and trust each other.
Award-winning author Pat Zietlow Miller has reunited with illustrator Jen Hill for Be Strong, another unforgettable story sure to inspire kids and adults alike.
Cat Problems
Jory John, 2021
What could a pampered house cat possibly have to complain about? This latest collaboration from picture book superstars–and cat devotees–Lane Smith and Jory John brings with it a hilarious set of feline problems!
Just like most cats, this cat lives an extremely comfortable life. But he has his problems too!
The sun spot he’s trying to bathe in won’t stop moving. He keeps getting served dry food instead of wet. And don’t even get him started on the vacuum–it’s an absolute menace!–and the nosy neighbor squirrel that just can’t seem to mind its own business. Will this cat ever find the silver lining?
The Last Cuentista
Donna Barba Higuera, 2021
There lived a girl named Petra Peña, who wanted nothing more than to be a storyteller, like her abuelita.
But Petra’s world is ending. Earth has been destroyed by a comet, and only a few hundred scientists and their children – among them Petra and her family – have been chosen to journey to a new planet. They are the ones who must carry on the human race.Hundreds of years later, Petra wakes to this new planet – and the discovery that she is the only person who remembers Earth. A sinister Collective has taken over the ship during its journey, bent on erasing the sins of humanity’s past. They have systematically purged the memories of all aboard – or purged them altogether.
Petra alone now carries the stories of our past, and with them, any hope for our future. Can she make them live again?
Vampenguin
Lucy Ruth Cummins, 2021
On a Saturday morning, baby Dracula visits the zoo with his family, where baby Penguin lives with hers. But these intrepid young adventurers are not content with staying in their proper places.
Instead, baby Dracula slips into the Penguin House to spend the day eating, swimming, and hanging around, while baby Penguin waddles into the stroller to explore the rest of the zoo. Dracula’s family doesn’t even notice the switch–will they bring the right baby home?
Observant and adventurous young readers will love this tale of the shenanigans that happen when parents’ backs are turned.
Twinkle Twinkle Little Kid
Drew Daywalt, 2021
Everyone knows that kids wish upon stars, but did you know that stars wish upon kids, too?
When Clyde makes a wish on a star before bedtime, he doesn’t expect the star to actually show up in his bedroom. Then Star reveals she made a wish, too! But both their wishes are secret.
From the author of the blockbuster hit The Day the Crayons Quit and the Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Molly Idle comes a hilarious and heartfelt story about finding friendship in the most unexpected places.
Brayden Speaks Up
Brayden Harrington, 2021
When Brayden talks, his words get caught in his mouth. He has bumpy speech–and that’s okay! Sometimes, though, he doesn’t feel anyone really understands what it feels like to be a person who stutters.
Then Brayden meets Joe Biden, who knows exactly how he feels and inspires him to be more confident. But when Mr. Biden asks Brayden to give a big speech in front of the whole nation, will Brayden be brave enough to speak up and speak out?
Brayden Speaks Up is the incredible true story of one extraordinary boy’s perseverance and the importance of celebrating yourself just as you are. For after all, your biggest challenge just might be your greatest gift.
Tomatoes for Neela
Padma Lakshmi, 2021
Neela loves cooking with her amma and writing down the recipes in her notebook. It makes her feel closer to her paati who lives far away in India. On Saturdays, Neela and Amma go to the green market and today they are buying tomatoes to make Paati’s famous sauce. But first, Neela needs to learn about all the different kinds of tomatoes they can pick from. And as Neela and Amma cook together, they find a way for Paati to share in both the love and the flavors of the day.
Bestselling author and host of Bravo’s Top Chef and Hulu’s Taste the Nation Padma Lakshmi takes young readers on an intergenerational journey full of delicious flavors and fun food facts that celebrates a family’s treasured recipes. And Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal brings this circle of women to life with vivid detail and warmth. Tomatoes for Neela lovingly affirms how we can connect to other cultures, as well as to our own, through food.