Recommended Reads Books (List)

A genius way to ease kids into the new adventure that is kindergarten."
--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

This clever picture book will prepare young explorers to boldly go where they have never gone before: Planet Kindergarten. Suit up for a daring adventure as our hero navigates the unknown reaches and alien inhabitants of this strange new world. Hilarious and confidence-boosting, this exciting story will have new kindergarteners ready for liftoff!

Peppa Pig is back! Get ready to join in on two new adventures starring the beloved, award-winning U.K. sensation.

Peppa is having a busy day at school — learning numbers and letters, painting, making music, and playing outside. Peppa can’t wait for Special Talent time, but her excitement turns to worry when all three of her special talents are chosen by others! Luckily, Peppa can revert to her true specialty: jumping in muddy puddles!

Dexter is ready for kindergarten. Sort of. Well, actually, he's maybe kind of a little bit scared, perhaps even terrified, one might say. Because what if he gets lost? Or, what if the teacher is mean? Or, he misses his mom or dad? Or, worst of all, he loses his most important ally, Rufus?

With the same warmth, exuberance, and sly wit that have made her a favorite of booksellers and children, Katie Davis tackles a problem every kid--and parent--has to face sooner or later: first-day fears. And she shows that it's okay to be scared, but that, as Dexter's older sister Jessie says, "Kindergarten rocks!"

A New York Times bestseller!

A confident little boy takes pride in his first day of kindergarten, by the Newbery Honor-winning author of Crown.

The morning sun blares through your window like a million brass trumpets.It sits and shines behind your head--like a crown. Mommy says that today, you are going to be the King of Kindergarten!

Starting kindergarten is a big milestone--and the hero of this story is ready to make his mark! He's dressed himself, eaten a pile of pancakes, and can't wait to be part of a whole new kingdom of kids. The day will be jam-packed, but he's up to the challenge, taking new experiences in stride with his infectious enthusiasm! And afterward, he can't wait to tell his proud parents all about his achievements--and then wake up to start another day.
Newbery Honor-winning author Derrick Barnes's empowering story will give new kindergarteners a reassuring confidence boost, and Vanessa Brantley-Newton's illustrations exude joy.

Mark didn't ask to move to New Hampshire. Or to go to a hick school like Hardy Elementary. And he certainly didn't request Mr. Maxwell as his teacher. Mr. Maxwell doesn't like rich kids, or slackers, or know-it-alls. And he's decided that Mark is all of those things. Now the whole school is headed out for a week of camping -- Hardy's famous Week in the Woods. At first it sounds dumb, but then Mark begins to open up to life in the country, and he decides it might be okay to learn something new. It might even be fun. But things go all wrong for Mark. The Week in the Woods is not what anyone planned. Especially not Mr. Maxwell. With his uncanny knack to reach right to the heart of kids, Andrew Clements asks -- and answers -- questions about first impressions, fairness, loyalty, and courage -- and exactly what it takes to spend a Week in the Woods.

Martin Bridge returns with more daily slice-of-life adventures. This time, Martin's first overnight camping trip with the Junior Badgers is going to be a weekend with the works! There are badges to earn, gooey campfire treats to eat, hiking trails to explore ? and Alex's pranks to avoid. But when Martin finds himself on the receiving end of his friend's horror-movie slime, it's payback time! Join Martin Bridge as he blazes ahead with a flashy campfire performance, an inspired prank of his own, some lightning-fast bicycle repairs and a surefire way to make his father's old lawn mower go like blazes.

An introduction to camping describes the equipment, skills, history, and safety measures associated with the activity.

Here's the second book in the beloved and hilarious Alvin Ho chapter book series, which has been compared to Diary of a Wimpy Kid and is perfect for both beginning and reluctant readers.

Alvin, an Asian American second grader who's afraid of everything, is back, and his worst fear has come true: he has to go camping. What will he do exposed in the wilderness with bears and darkness and . . . pit toilets? Luckily, he's got his night-vision goggles and water purifying tablets and super-duper heavy-duty flashlight to keep him safe. And he's got his dad, too.

From Lenore Look and New York Times bestselling illustrator LeUyen Pham comes a drop-dead-funny and touching series with a truly unforgettable character.

“Shares with Diary of a Wimpy Kid the humor that stems from trying to manipulate the world.” —Newsday

“Alvin's a winner.” —New York Post

This book describes camping, from planning and getting ready for the challenges of your camping trip to leaving a clean campsite after experiencing this outdoor adventure.

Kitty’s life is really hard. Like really, REALLY hard. All she asks for is twenty-two hours a day to sleep and food to be delivered morning and night. But does she get it? No. And when Puppy and Baby get a little rambunctious during her naptime, Kitty gets bonked on the head and starts to believe she’s . . . a dog.

This new dynamic freaks out Puppy, so he’s sent away to Uncle Murray’s Camp for Stressed-Out Dogs to relax with other canine campers.

But guess who sneaks along?

Still believing she’s a dog, Kitty fits right in. That is until she and Uncle Murray encounter a bear, and then the feline claws come out.

Nick Bruel's Bad Kitty Camp Daze is perfect for any kid with or without camping experience.

There is so much to do on a camping trip! Perfect for 1st grade students, this book teaches these 8 words from Fry's First 100 words list: one, day, first, it, then, we, long, and was. The short sentences and clear images support the text to help with memorization. The rebus pictures and simple text build grade 1 reading comprehension in a format that is appealing to children. Beginning readers will learn the essential sight words and gain confidence as they learn to read independently.

Imagination meets reality in this poetic and tender ode to childhood, illustrated by Caldecott Honor winner, John Rocco.

Every year, a boy and his family go camping at Mountain Pond.

Usually, they see things like an eagle fishing for his dinner, a salamander with red spots on its back, and chipmunks that come to steal food while the family sits by the campfire.

But this year is different. This year, the boy is going into first grade, and his mother is encouraging him to do things on his own, just like his older brother. And the most different thing of all . . . this year, a tiger comes to the woods.

With lyrical prose and dazzling art, Pulitzer Prize finalist Susan Choi and Caldecott-honor winning artist John Rocco have created a moving and joyful ode to growing up.

Wherever adventure takes you, take this book! Survival Handbook: An Essential Companion to the Great Outdoors includes crucial tips on exactly what you need to know to survive even the most unexpected circumstances. Also included are useful items to help you survive in the wild: reflective stickers, a foldable cup, a reflective sheet, and even a removable string binding!

This illustrated guide shows you how to make a shelter, build a fire, locate clean water, forage for food, avoid deadly animals, protect yourself from bad weather, and find your way back home safely afterward. 

Whether you're lost, hungry, burned, or buried, knowing essential emergency survival skills could literally mean the difference between life and death. Don't go into the wild without this book!

Desmond Cole goes camping and tells some scary campfire stories in the eighth book of the Desmond Cole Ghost Patrol series!

Camping with Desmond Cole is a lot of fun, until he starts telling ghost stories around the campfire. Most kids tell creepy stories that are totally fake, but Desmond tells totally true stories that will give you goosebumps. So, settle in while Desmond, Andres, and their ghost-friend, Zax, take turns trying to tell the scariest story of all.

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Desmond Cole Ghost Patrol chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

In The Deep End, book 15 of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series from #1 international bestselling author Jeff Kinney, Greg Heffley and his family hit the road for a cross-country camping trip, ​ready for the adventure of a lifetime.

But things take an unexpected turn, and they find themselves stranded at an RV park that's not exactly a summertime paradise. When the skies open up and the water starts to rise, the Heffleys wonder if they can save their vacation--or if they're already in too deep.

And don't miss Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Friendly Adventure, an all-new fantasy from Greg's best friend--the follow-up to the instant #1 bestseller Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid: Rowley Jefferson's Journal.

Grumpy Unicorn returns in his first graphic novel! He's out in the world and ready to straight up not have a good time in this hilarious collection of comic stories.

Grumpy Unicorn is bored. Really bored. And what's a Unicorn to do when the town he lives in has nothing fun to do? Hit the road in search of adventure, of course!In this laugh-out-loud original story, everyone's favorite magical grouch sets off to find something or someone that doesn't totally annoy him. And sort of succeeds. With new characters like Sassy the Sasquatch, Jack the Jackelope, and some out-of-this-world friends, this hilarious journey is a must-have for fans of Grumpy Unicorn: Why Me?

Whether in the rugged backcountry or a suburban backyard, kids can experience the sense of personal independence and self-confidence that come from outdoor proficiency, while also developing a deeper connection to and understanding of the natural world. With this skills-based book, kids learn essential safety and survival tips and bushcraft that they need to have a safe wilderness experience. Led by outdoor leader Frank Grindrod of Earthwork Programs, every turn of the page takes kids on another stage of the journey. They learn how to pack for the outdoors, navigate using a map and a compass, choose and set up a campsite, handle and use a knife properly, build a fire, tie different types of knots, make a lean-to out of sticks and leaves, and cook over an open fire. This guide teaches more than just outdoor know-how; it fosters appreciation for the natural world and pride in knowing how to use its resources as a tool for survival and adventure.

In this funny and paw-some story, lifelong rivals Molly and Oscar are forced to team up and brave the great outdoors and help their families before it's too late.

Wilderness adventurers and expert trackers Molly the katt and Oscar the dogg go camping with their families: parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, and uncles. One big reunion! It would be fun if there weren't so many rules to follow at the campsite. ATTENTION KATTS AND DOGGS: No crossing the border, or you'll be asked to leave the Eastern Wilderness Reserve. If you're still alive.



Molly and Oscar must outsmart the rule-makers when they discover that their katt and dogg cousins have run away together--for reasons only Molly and Oscar will understand. Now the clever pair must find and warn their cousins before all four of them are in need of a serious rescue mission.

An introductory camping guide that belongs in the backpack of every adventurer and budding environmentalist.

Have you ever hung a bear bag? Predicted the weather by examining pinecones and dandelions? Counted a cricket’s chirps to calculate the temperature?

Whether you’re an expert camper or just a beginner, this informative book—with its innovative approach and design—is chock-full of camping ideas that will add spice to your next journey through the woods. Find out how to pick and set up a comfortable campsite. Learn to recognize constellations among the many stars in the summer sky. Uncover new games and campfire recipes that will make the camping experience even more exciting. And that’s just for starters. From what to pack to what to look for once you’re there, this hands-on primer is the perfect tool for a safe and fun outdoor adventure—so pop it in your backpack and hit the trail!

An introductory camping guide that belongs in the backpack of every adventurer and budding environmentalist.

Have you ever hung a bear bag? Predicted the weather by examining pinecones and dandelions? Counted a cricket’s chirps to calculate the temperature?

Whether you’re an expert camper or just a beginner, this informative book—with its innovative approach and design—is chock-full of camping ideas that will add spice to your next journey through the woods. Find out how to pick and set up a comfortable campsite. Learn to recognize constellations among the many stars in the summer sky. Uncover new games and campfire recipes that will make the camping experience even more exciting. And that’s just for starters. From what to pack to what to look for once you’re there, this hands-on primer is the perfect tool for a safe and fun outdoor adventure—so pop it in your backpack and hit the trail!

Collecting the first four issues of Natalie Riess's delectable series, SPACE BATTLE LUNCHTIME! Earth baker Peony gets the deal of a lifetime when she agrees to be a contestant on the Universe's hottest reality TV show, Space Battle Lunchtime! But that was before she knew that it shoots on location... on a spaceship... and her alien competitors don't play nice! Does Peony really have what it takes to be the best cook in the Galaxy? Tune in and find out!

From Raina Telgemeier, the #1 New York Times bestselling, multiple Eisner Award-winning author of Smile, Sisters, and Guts!

Callie loves theater. And while she would totally try out for her middle school's production of Moon over Mississippi, she can't really sing. Instead she's the set designer for the drama department's stage crew, and this year she's determined to create a set worthy of Broadway on a middle-school budget. But how can she, when she doesn't know much about carpentry, ticket sales are down, and the crew members are having trouble working together? Not to mention the onstage AND offstage drama that occurs once the actors are chosen. And when two cute brothers enter the picture, things get even crazier!

Raina Telgemeier once again brings us a funny and charming exploration of friendship, crushes, and all-around drama!

Five best friends spending the summer at Lumberjane scout camp...defeating yetis, three-eyed wolves, and giant falcons...what’s not to love?!

Friendship to the max! Jo, April, Mal, Molly and Ripley are five best pals determined to have an awesome summer together...and they’re not gonna let any insane quest or an array of supernatural critters get in their way! Not only is it the second title launching in our new BOOM! Box imprint but LUMBERJANES is one of those punk rock, love-everything-about-it stories that appeals to fans of basically all excellent things. It’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Gravity Falls and features five butt-kicking, rad teenage girls wailing on monsters and solving a mystery with the whole world at stake. And with the talent of acclaimed cartoonist ND Stevenson, talented newcomer Grace Ellis writing, and Gus Allen on art, this is going to be a spectacular series that you won’t want to miss. Collects Lumberjanes #1-#4.

In A Psalm for the Wild-Built, Hugo Award-winner Becky Chambers's delightful new Monk and Robot series gives us hope for the future.

It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again; centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend.

One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do people need?" is answered.

But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how.

They're going to need to ask it a lot.

Becky Chambers's new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter?

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST * STONEWALL BOOK AWARD WINNER * ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE'S 100 BEST YA BOOKS OF ALL TIME

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by The New York Times * Time * Buzzfeed * NPR * New York Public Library * Publishers Weekly * School Library Journal

A genre-defying novel from the award-winning author NPR describes as "like [Madeline] L'Engle...glorious." A singular book that explores themes of identity and justice. Pet is here to hunt a monster. Are you brave enough to look?

There are no monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. Jam and her best friend, Redemption, have grown up with this lesson all their life. But when Jam meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, who emerges from one of her mother's paintings and a drop of Jam's blood, she must reconsider what she's been told. Pet has come to hunt a monster, and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption's house. Jam must fight not only to protect her best friend, but also to uncover the truth, and the answer to the question--How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?

A riveting and timely young adult debut novel that asks difficult questions about what choices you can make when the society around you is in denial.

"[A] beautiful, genre-expanding debut" -The New York Times

"The word hype was invented to describe books like this." -Refinery29

2020 ALA Alex Award Winner
2020 Stonewall — Israel Fishman Non-fiction Award Honor Book

In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, Gender Queer is here. Maia’s intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma and fundamental violation of pap smears.

Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity—what it means and how to think about it—for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere.

"It’s also a great resource for those who identify as nonbinary or asexual as well as for those who know someone who identifies that way and wish to better understand." — SLJ (starred review)

This groundbreaking illustrated YA nonfiction title from two-time National Book Award finalist and New York Times bestselling author Eliot Schrefer is a well-researched and teen-friendly exploration of the gamut of queer behaviors observed in animals.

A quiet revolution has been underway in recent years, with study after study revealing substantial same-sex sexual behavior in animals. Join celebrated author Eliot Schrefer on an exploration of queer behavior in the animal world--from albatrosses to bonobos to clownfish to doodlebugs.

In sharp and witty prose--aided by humorous comics from artist Jules Zuckerberg--Schrefer uses science, history, anthropology, and sociology to illustrate the diversity of sexual behavior in the animal world. Interviews with researchers in the field offer additional insights for readers and aspiring scientists.

Queer behavior in animals is as diverse and complex--and as natural--as it is in our own species. It doesn't set us apart from animals--it bonds us even closer to our animal selves.

From a Printz and Morris Award-winning author comes a quirky story of coming-of-age, coming out, friendship, love...and agoraphobia.
Sixteen-year-old Solomon has agoraphobia. He hasn't left his house in 3 years. Ambitious Lisa is desperate to get into a top-tier psychology program. And so when Lisa learns about Solomon, she decides to befriend him, cure him, and then write about it for her college application. To earn Solomon's trust, she introduces him to her boyfriend Clark, and starts to reveal her own secrets. But what started as an experiment leads to a real friendship, with all three growing close. But when the truth comes out, what erupts could destroy them all. Funny and heartwarming, Highly Illogical Behavior is a fascinating exploration of what makes us tick, and how the connections between us may be the most important things of all.

"At a time when young adult literature is actively picking away at the stigma of mental illness, Whaley carves off a healthy chunk with style, sensitivity and humor. . . . ELECTRIFYING."--The New York Times Book Review

"Tender and funny."--People Magazine, Summer's Best Books of 2016

Nakamura loves a boy in his class--now he just has to keep himself together!

Nakamura is a shy boy who falls in love at first sight with another boy--his dreamy high school classmate Hirose. But there's a problem: they haven’t met yet. And Nakamura is a total klutz who might bungle things before they even begin! In this endearing Boy’s Love comedy about the trials of high school, follow Nakamura’s hilarious attempts to cling to happiness.

Striking a perfect balance between heartfelt emotions and spot-on humor, this debut features a pop-culture enthusiast protagonist with an unforgettable voice sure to resonate with readers.

Alice had her whole summer planned. Nonstop all-you-can-eat buffets while marathoning her favorite TV shows (best friends totally included) with the smallest dash of adulting—working at the library to pay her share of the rent. The only thing missing from her perfect plan? Her girlfriend (who ended things when Alice confessed she's asexual). Alice is done with dating—no thank you, do not pass go, stick a fork in her, done.

But then Alice meets Takumi and she can’t stop thinking about him or the rom com-grade romance feels she did not ask for (uncertainty, butterflies, and swoons, oh my!).

When her blissful summer takes an unexpected turn and Takumi becomes her knight with a shiny library-employee badge (close enough), Alice has to decide if she’s willing to risk their friendship for a love that might not be reciprocated—or understood.

Claire Kann’s debut novel Let’s Talk About Love, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads, gracefully explores the struggle with emerging adulthood and the complicated line between friendship and what it might mean to be something more.

Praise for Let’s Talk About Love from the Swoon Reads community:

“A sweet and beautiful journey about self-discovery and identity!” —Macy Filia, reader on SwoonReads.com

“There aren't many novels that have asexual characters and it's something people need more of.” —Alice, reader on SwoonReads.com

“I want this on my shelf where I can admire it every day.” —Kiara, reader on SwoonReads.com

An all-new Step into Reading reader based on Warner Bros. newest animated film, SCOOB --in theaters May 15, 2020

SCOOB is the untold origin story of Scooby-Doo in the biggest comedy adventure of the summer This all-new feature film comes to theaters May 15, 2020. Boys and girls ages 4 to 6 will love this Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader, which includes over 30 stickers.

Step 2 Readers use basic vocabulary and short sentences to tell simple stories. Step 2 is for children who recognize familiar words and can sound out new words with help.

This Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader with stickers is based on Disney and Pixar's Luca--in theaters June 18th, 2021!

Set in a beautiful seaside town on the Italian Riviera, Disney and Pixar's original feature film Luca is a coming-of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: they are sea monsters from another world just below the water's surface. Directed by Academy Award(R) nominee Enrico Casarosa (La Luna) and produced by Andrea Warren (Lava, Cars 3), Luca opens in theaters June 18, 2021. Girls and boys ages 4 to 6 will love this Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader featuring two sheets of bonus stickers. Step 3 readers feature engaging characters in easy-to-follow plots about popular topics. For children who are ready to read on their own.

"A poignant, necessary entry into the children's literary canon, Root Magic brings to life the history and culture of Gullah people while highlighting the timeless plight of Black Americans. Add in a fun, magical adventure and you get everything I want in a book!"--Justina Ireland, New York Times bestselling author of Dread Nation

Debut author Eden Royce arrives with a wondrous story of love, bravery, friendship, and family, filled to the brim with magic great and small.

It's 1963, and things are changing for Jezebel Turner. Her beloved grandmother has just passed away. The local police deputy won't stop harassing her family. With school integration arriving in South Carolina, Jez and her twin brother, Jay, are about to begin the school year with a bunch of new kids. But the biggest change comes when Jez and Jay turn eleven-- and their uncle, Doc, tells them he's going to train them in rootwork.

Jez and Jay have always been fascinated by the African American folk magic that has been the legacy of their family for generations--especially the curious potions and powders Doc and Gran would make for the people on their island. But Jez soon finds out that her family's true power goes far beyond small charms and elixirs...and not a moment too soon. Because when evil both natural and supernatural comes to show itself in town, it's going to take every bit of the magic she has inside her to see her through.

Walter Dean Myers Honor Award for Outstanding Children's Literature!

Newbery Honor and Coretta Scott King Author Award winner Renée Watson continues her charming young middle grade series starring Ryan Hart, a girl who is pure spirit and sunshine.

Ryan Hart loves her family and friends. She's looking forward to summer vacation, spending time with loved ones, and her first trip to sleepaway camp! But when an unexpected camper shows up, Ryan finds it's hard to share your best friend and harder to be a friend to someone who isn't a good friend to you. She's also waiting for her new sister to be born -- and hoping the baby doesn't ruin everything. The Hart family is experiencing a lot of changes, and Ryan needs to grow her patience in many ways, find ways to share the love, meet new challenges, and grow into the leader her mom and dad named her to be. This summer and the start of fifth grade just might give Ryan the chance to show how she grows and glows!

Acclaim for Ways to Make Sunshine:
A New York Times Best Children's Book of the Year | A Parents Magazine Best Book of the Year | A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year | A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year | A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year | A WORLD Magazine Best Book of the Year | An Amazon Best Book of the Year

Winner of the 2022 Mildred L. Batchelder Award

A July/August 2021 Kids' Indie Next Pick

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

From renowned Japanese children's author Sachiko Kashiwaba, Temple Alley Summer is a fantastical and mysterious adventure filled with the living dead, a magical pearl, and a suspiciously nosy black cat named Kiriko featuring beautiful illustrations from Miho Satake.

Kazu knows something odd is going on when he sees a girl in a white kimono sneak out of his house in the middle of the night--was he dreaming? Did he see a ghost? Things get even stranger when he shows up to school the next day to see the very same figure sitting in his classroom. No one else thinks it's weird, and, even though Kazu doesn't remember ever seeing her before, they all seem convinced that the ghost-girl Akari has been their friend for years!

When Kazu's summer project to learn about Kimyo Temple draws the meddling attention of his mysterious neighbor Ms. Minakami and his secretive new classmate Akari, Kazu soon learns that not everything is as it seems in his hometown. Kazu discovers that Kimyo Temple is linked to a long forgotten legend about bringing the dead to life, which could explain Akari's sudden appearance--is she a zombie or a ghost? Kazu and Akari join forces to find and protect the source of the temple's power. An unfinished story in a magazine from Akari's youth might just hold the key to keeping Akari in the world of the living, and it's up to them to find the story's ending and solve the mystery as the adults around them conspire to stop them from finding the truth.

A hilarious and moving coming-of-age tale that explores the intersection between self and community and the complexity of Black identity as a boy wonders: if he's not who he's always thought he was, who exactly can he be?

An exceptional novel with broad appeal. – Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)

Emmett and his older brother Luke have always been Batman and Robin, though they're quick to bicker about who's who. Spending the summer at a historic Black summer camp seems like a wonderful adventure for the two to share, but since Luke is there as a junior counselor, he seems to spend all of his time being everyone else's big brother, and ignoring Emmett.

As Luke seems to be moving on to new adventures, Emmett struggles in unexpected ways, especially in swim class and the It Takes A Village entrepreneurship class. Without his brother to turn to for support, Emmett works to build a new crew of superfriends, who'll help him plan something spectacular for the end-of-camp awards night and celebration. Along the way, Emmett learns that no matter what, there can be many ways to define family.

It Doesn't Take a Genius is inspired by the feature film Boy Genius, starring Miles Brown, Rita Wilson, and Nora Dunn.

A healing story of loss and love, this beautiful picture book reminds us that the people who mean the most to us are always with us.

Charlie loves to dance her way through life with her grandma. They may not always be together, but each time they part Grandma says, If you miss me, look at the moon. Then winter brings unexpected change, and not even dancing feels the same. What will Charlie do? Will Grandma come to see her dance again? In the biggest show of the year, Charlie finds her answer. This tender exploration of loss from debut author-illustrator Jocelyn Li Langrand illuminates the boundless power of love to help and heal.

One hilarious Harlem family is on a mission to find the perfect way to celebrate their Papa's fortieth birthday while discovering more about their mysterious grandparents in this heartfelt romp and latest installment to the New York Times best-selling series, perfect for fans of the Penderwicks.

It's summer on 141st Street, and the Vanderbeekers are looking forward to Papa's surprise fortieth birthday party.

But then Papa must leave town to help his best friend and the Vanderbeeker children are surprised to find their maternal grandparents on their doorstep. Grandma is very critical of everything they do. Meanwhile, they find themselves learning more about their papa's father than ever before, and wishing they could have known him a bit better. Can they learn more about the grandfather they lost and come to appreciate the grandparents they still have while making sure their papa has the best birthday ever?

This Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader is based on Disney/Pixar Lightyear--in theaters summer 2022!

Disney/Pixar Lightyear is a sci-fi action-adventure and the definitive origin story of Buzz Lightyear (voice of Chris Evans)--the hero who inspired the toy. The film reveals how a young test pilot became the Space Ranger that we all know him to be today. Lightyear is directed by Angus MacLane, produced by Galyn Susman, and opens in theaters in Summer 2022. Girls and boys ages 4 to 6 will love this Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader based on the animated feature film.

Step 2 readers use basic vocabulary and short sentences to tell simple stories. For children who recognize familiar words and can sound out new words with help.

Join Thumper and his sisters for their greatest adventures ever!


Build a secret clubhouse, have a day out with Papa, make some new friends and more in this brand new collection. Each story is the ideal length to be read aloud in five minutes, perfect for bedtime, story time or anytime!




Complete your collection with best-selling, fan favorites!

• 5-Minute Disney Princess Stories
• Disney Bedtime Favorites Storybook Collection
• Disney Princess Storybook Collection
• 5-Minute Snuggle Stories
• 5-Minute Disney Pixar Stories
• 5-Minute Star Wars Stories
• And much more!

For fans of Small Spacesand the Goosebumps series by R.L Stine comes a chilling ghost story about a girl living in the decrepit and creepy mansion, who discovers something in the woods is after her.

All Ginny Anderson wants from her summer is to sleep in, attend a mystery writing workshop, and spend time with her best friend. But when Ginny's father--a respected restoration expert in Chicago--surprises the family with a month-long trip to Michigan, everything changes. They aren't staying in a hotel like most families would. No, they're staying in a mansion. A twenty-six room, century-old building surrounded by dense forest. Woodmoor Manor.

But unfortunately, the mansion has more problems than a little peeling wallpaper. Locals claim the surrounding woods are inhabited by mutated creatures with glowing eyes. And some say campers routinely disappear in the woods, never to be seen again.

As terrifying as it sounds, Ginny can't shake the feeling that there's something darker . . . another story she hasn't been told. When the creaky floors and shadowy corners of the mansion seem to take on a life of their own, Ginny uncovers the wildest mystery of all: There's more than one legend roaming Saugatuck, Michigan, and they definitely aren't after campers.

It's after her.

"This is a teeth-chattering, eyes bulging, shuddering-and-shaking, chills-at-the-back-of-your-neck ghost story. I loved it!"--R.L. Stine, author of the Goosebumps series on Scritch Scratch

Pick up What Lives in the Woodsif you are looking for:

• A book for middle school students, 5th grade to 9th grade
• A story with a strong female protagonist that explores bravery, friendship, and family
• Mystery books for kids 9-12
• Chilling ghost stories and ghost books for kids (perfect for Halloween!)

A contemporary collection of original short stories by Anica Mrose Rissi that is sure to elicit chills, laughs, and screams, even from the most devoted fans of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark!

A game of hide-and-seek goes on far too long...

A look-alike doll makes itself right at home...

A school talent-show act leaves the audience aghast...

And a summer at camp takes a turn for the braaaains...

This collection of all-new spooky stories is sure to keep readers up past their bedtimes, looking over their shoulders to see what goes bump in the night.

So if you're feeling brave, turn the page.

*"S s delivers an encomium to summer, to the power of learning, and to that beloved, creamy-cold treat." --Kirkus, starred review



Savor summer anytime with this breezy, sweet and irresistible picture book from Hans Christian Anderson Award winner and three-time Caldecott Honoree Peter S s



Dear Grandpa,

Summer is going well. I am very busy. But don't worry, I am not forgetting about school I read every day. I practice my math facts. And I am even studying world history



Peter S s's delicious tongue-in-cheek vision of summer dishes up the whole scoop on everyone's favorite frozen treat, and proves that ice cream is every bit as enriching for the mind as it is for the taste buds. Readers everywhere will be begging for seconds and thirds

A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year

“A marvelous debut…Sometimes it takes the right nudge to fall in love with books.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“This quirky tale filled with subtle humor makes a fun read-aloud, especially for cat lovers, literacy lovers, or anyone looking for a great story.” —School Library Journal (starred review)

It’s not easy to teach a cat to read, but one boy tries to anyway in this sweet and silly picture book debut that captures the challenges and rewards of learning to read.

Nick loves to read books—and he loves to play with his cats, Verne and Stevenson. So naturally Nick decides it’s a great idea to teach his cats to read. But Verne and Stevenson don’t appreciate when Nick wakes them up with a flashcard that says NAP. Nick finally piques Verne’s interest with words like MOUSE and FISH. But not Stevenson’s. While Nick and Verne go to the library, Stevenson hides under the porch. Will Nick ever find a way to share his love of reading with his feline friends?

"Shark Summer is bursting with vibrant, expressive art....The characters are distinct and relatable...It's a lovely read!"--Molly Knox Ostertag, author of the Witch Boy series

"Eloquently chronicled in Marcks's cinematic panels, friendships are formed and repaired, parental relationships articulated, and inner conflicts expressed and resolved. A winning production." --Kirkus

When a Hollywood film crew arrives on Martha's Vineyard with a mechanical shark and a youth film contest boasting a huge cash prize, disgraced pitcher Gayle "Blue Streak" Briar sees a chance to turn a bad season into the best summer ever.

After recruiting aspiring cinematographer Elijah Jones and moody director Maddie Grey, Gayle and her crew set out to uncover the truth of the island's own phantom shark and win the prize money. But these unlikely friends are about to discover what happens when you turn your camera toward the bad things lurking below the surface.

A little girl and her colossal friend teach a monster-size lesson about prejudging others in a charming offering from Chris Van Dusen.

Hattie McFadden is a born explorer. Every morning she grabs her life jacket and paddles out in her canoe to discover something new on the lake, singing a little song on her way. When her singing draws up from the depths a huge mysterious beast, everyone in town is terrified -- except Hattie, who looks into the creature's friendly, curious eyes and knows that this is no monster. So Hattie sneaks out at night to see the giant -- whom she names Hudson -- and the two become friends. But how can she make the frightened, hostile townspeople see that Hudson isn't scary or dangerous at all? Chris Van Dusen brings his colorful, perspective-bending artwork to this satisfying new story about acceptance, friendship, and sticking up for those who are different.

Kirkus Best Middle-Grade Family Stories of 2021
School Library Journal Best Middle Grade Books 2021
The Best Children's Books of the Year 2022, Bank Street College

STARRED REVIEW! With compassion, wry humor, and pinpoint accuracy, Parks weaves the multiple challenges facing adolescent girls into a compelling, seamless narrative. Timely, insightful, and highly recommended.--Kirkus Reviews starred review

STARRED REVIEW! A first purchase for middle grade collections as well as book clubs for this age range.--School Library Journal starred review

A heartfelt coming-of-age story set in the time of academic pressure, divorce, and the #MeToo movement.

Twelve-year-old Lilla Baxter-Willoughby doesn't lie. She's just a little bit...selective. So when Vivi dares Lilla to start telling the truth as part of their Summer of Brave, Lilla hesitates. Because if she says out loud what she really wants, her whole life might crash down around her. And she doesn't need that. Except maybe she does.

Love shines through in the sticky notes shared between a mother and daughter in this picture book about making time for family in the midst of our busy lives.

Between work and school, homework and housework, a mother and daughter don't always get to spend as much time together as they'd like. Add to that a little girl's fears about leaving home for the first time, and the need to stay close through handwritten notes becomes even more important. As the camp departure date gets closer, Mom does her best to soothe her daughter's nerves. A visit from her grandmother helps to calm her fears and convince her that she'll have a good time, even away from her mother and beloved cat. Camp ends up being a wonderful adventure - but nothing is sweeter than a back-at-home reunion.

Qin Leng's watercolor illustrations are the perfect complement to Emil Sher's simple text. This nuanced story about a parent and child's unconventional way of connecting is full of humor and affection. Young readers will enjoy spotting Lester the cat as he paws his way into the story.

The Garcia family is off to the beach. They enjoy jumping in the waves, building sandcastles, and most of all, finding treasures. They even manage to bring a bit of their fun home to Tío Alex and Spooky. Calico Kid is an imprint of Magic Wagon, a division of ABDO.

Four starred reviews! In an evocative picture book brimming with the scents, tastes, and traditions that define a young girl's summer with her grandmother, debut author Michelle Sterling and illustrator Aaron Asis come together to celebrate the gentle bonds of familial love that span oceans and generations.

For one young girl, summer is the season of no school, of days spent at the pool, and of picking golden limes off the trees. But summer doesn't start until her lola--her grandmother from the Philippines--comes for her annual visit.

Summer is special. For her lola fills the house with the aroma of mango jam, funny stories of baking mishaps, and her quiet sweet singing in Tagalog. And in turn, her granddaughter brings Lola to the beach, to view fireworks at the park, and to catch fish at their lake.

When Lola visits, the whole family gathers to cook and eat and share in their happiness of another season spent together. Yet as summer transitions to fall, her lola must return home--but not without a surprise for her granddaughter to preserve their special summer a bit longer.

* BookPage Best Books of the Year * The New York Public Library's Best Books of the Year * Kirkus Best Books of the Year * An ALSC Notable Children's Book of the Year * A CCBC Choices Pick of the Year * Banks Street Best Children's Books of the Year *

Two funny, unlikely friends--a thoughtful sloth and an impatient fox--make their big debut in this hilarious new picture book celebrating friendship and the wonderful ways in which we're all different.

Best friends Jasper and Ollie decide to go to the pool. On your mark, get set . . . WAIT! As Jasper races ahead--crashing into the mailman, speeding past the ice cream truck--Ollie takes his sweet time, pausing to admire a butterfly, smell a daisy, and help the mailman pick up his letters!

With a clever design that shows Jasper's hectic rush compared with Ollie's casual stroll, this hilarious story allows young readers to easily recognize the differences between the two pals. It's a smartly paced, hugely funny celebration of what makes each person special. Kids AND grown-ups will giggle as they decide if they're more of a "Jasper" or an "Ollie." It's also a great story to share the concept of "taking time to smell the roses"--a perfect lesson in our overly scheduled world.

And look for book two from this exciting new author-illustrator, coming in summer 2020: Jasper & Ollie Build a Fort.

Critics love Jasper & Ollie!:

"A hilarious and lively romp that sneaks in a message about the importance of patience and will have its readers hoping for some follow-up adventures of the 'odd couple' friends."--School Library Journal

"Forget the tortoise and the hare, this tale of friendship between an unhurried sloth and a wild fox is a funnier version of those famous opposites, and one that will have kids wondering whether they're more like the deliberate Ollie or the frenetic Jasper."--ReadBrightly.com

Children's Book Council "Hot Off the Press" selection

The second book from critically acclaimed author Leslie C. Youngblood, about family, identity, and learning to stand up for what's right -- now in paperback! Georgie has no idea what to expect when she, Mama, and Peaches are plopped down in the middle of small town USA--aka Bogalusa, Louisiana--where Mama grew up and Great Aunt Vie needs constant care. Georgie wants to help out at the once famous family diner that served celebrities like the Jackson 5 and the Supremes, but everyone is too busy to show her the ropes and Mama is treating her like a baby, not letting her leave her sight. When she finally gets permission to leave on her own, Georgie makes friends with Markie--a foster kid who'd been under Aunt Elvie's care--who has a limb difference and a huge attitude. Then Markie asks Georgie to help her find her mom, and suddenly summer has a real purpose. But as Georgie and Markie's histories begin to entwine, Georgie becomes more desperate to find the truth. But words spoken cannot be taken back and once Georgie knows the truth, she may even find a way to right past wrongs and help Aunt Vie and Markie out after all.

Fiona wants to fix people's problems--but what if she's the one who needs help? Kelly Jones, author of Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer, delivers a funny, take-charge heroine kids will love.

Fiona may have problems, but she's no damsel in distress. She'd rather be the one wielding the wand in the story: she wants to be the fairy godperson. So when her mom sends her off to stay with relatives in a place called Cold Hope for the summer, Fiona decides it's time to start training for the role.

And wow, do these people need help! Aunt Becky's bakery is failing, Great-uncle Timothy draws but never speaks, and Great-Aunt Alta is the gloomiest, doomiest woman she's ever met.

But helping people in the real world isn't as easy as it sounds in fairy tales. Change is messy. What if she's actually making things worse?

Still, with practice (and some deep breaths), Fiona will discover that sometimes messy is okay. Sometimes things do get worse before they get better. And sometimes trying to help fix other people's problems can help you work on your own...

"Always amigos "

My Singing Nana is a compassionate tribute to families dealing with Alzheimer's Disease. This story celebrates the ideals of family, heritage, and happy memories, showing kids that no matter how their loved one might change they always have ways to maintain their special connection.
 

Join Thumper and his sisters for their greatest adventures ever!


Build a secret clubhouse, have a day out with Papa, make some new friends and more in this brand new collection. Each story is the ideal length to be read aloud in five minutes, perfect for bedtime, story time or anytime!




Complete your collection with best-selling, fan favorites!

• 5-Minute Disney Princess Stories
• Disney Bedtime Favorites Storybook Collection
• Disney Princess Storybook Collection
• 5-Minute Snuggle Stories
• 5-Minute Disney Pixar Stories
• 5-Minute Star Wars Stories
• And much more!

"A vibrant and sophisticated ode to nature." --Kirkus (starred review)

From Caldecott Medalist and Newbery Honor author Kevin Henkes and acclaimed painter Laura Dronzek, the bestselling and award-winning creators of Winter Is Here, When Spring Comes, and In the Middle of Fall, this book about summer celebrates the sights, sounds, and smells of the season.

Bees buzz, birds sing, and children roll in the grass and feel the heat of the summer sun. With striking verbal imagery, repetition, and alliteration, Kevin Henkes introduces basic concepts of language and the summer season. Laura Dronzek's glowing paintings beautifully illustrate the wonders of summer.

In the Middle of Fall, Winter Is Here, When Spring Comes, and Summer Song make for a beautiful quartet of seasonal-theme picture books to share at home or in the classroom. Ideal for introducing the season, for story time, and for bedtime reading.

Rising star Kat Fajardo's debut middle-grade graphic novel about a girl who would rather do anything other than celebrate her quinceañera! A funny and heartfelt coming-of-age story about navigating the expectations of family and cultural tradition.

Sue just wants to spend the summer reading and making comics at sleepaway camp with her friends, but instead she gets stuck going to Honduras to visit relatives with her parents and two sisters. They live way out in the country, which means no texting, no cable, and no Internet! The trip takes a turn for the worse when Sue's mother announces that they'll be having a surprise quinceañera for Sue, which is the last thing she wants. She can't imagine wearing a big, floofy, colorful dress! What is Sue going to do? And how will she survive all this quality time with her rambunctious family?

Miss Quinces/Srta. Quinces is the first graphic novel published by Scholastic/Graphix to be simultaneously released in English and Spanish editions!

This Step 3 Step into Reading leveled reader with stickers is based on Disney and Pixar's Luca--in theaters June 18th, 2021! Set in a beautiful seaside town on the Italian Riviera, Disney and Pixar's original feature film Luca is a coming-of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: they are sea monsters from another world just below the water's surface. Directed by Academy Award(R) nominee Enrico Casarosa (La Luna) and produced by Andrea Warren (Lava, Cars 3), Luca opens in theaters June 18, 2021. Girls and boys ages 5 to 7 will love this Step 3 Step into Reading leveled reader featuring two sheets of bonus stickers. Step 3 readers feature engaging characters in easy-to-follow plots about popular topics. For children who are ready to read on their own.

From New York Times bestselling author Gideon Sterer is an imaginative, colorful tale of making (and selling!) lemonade from life's lemons is not too sour and not too sweet.

One scorching hot summer day, a spunky young girl decides to sell lemonade . . . only to find there are too many other young entrepreneurs on her street with the same idea. So she sets off with her lemonade stand and ends up at the river's edge, where she discovers a most unexpected, quirky, and very thirsty clientele.

Four starred reviews! In an evocative picture book brimming with the scents, tastes, and traditions that define a young girl's summer with her grandmother, debut author Michelle Sterling and illustrator Aaron Asis come together to celebrate the gentle bonds of familial love that span oceans and generations.

For one young girl, summer is the season of no school, of days spent at the pool, and of picking golden limes off the trees. But summer doesn't start until her lola--her grandmother from the Philippines--comes for her annual visit.

Summer is special. For her lola fills the house with the aroma of mango jam, funny stories of baking mishaps, and her quiet sweet singing in Tagalog. And in turn, her granddaughter brings Lola to the beach, to view fireworks at the park, and to catch fish at their lake.

When Lola visits, the whole family gathers to cook and eat and share in their happiness of another season spent together. Yet as summer transitions to fall, her lola must return home--but not without a surprise for her granddaughter to preserve their special summer a bit longer.

* BookPage Best Books of the Year * The New York Public Library's Best Books of the Year * Kirkus Best Books of the Year * An ALSC Notable Children's Book of the Year * A CCBC Choices Pick of the Year * Banks Street Best Children's Books of the Year *

A healing story of loss and love, this beautiful picture book reminds us that the people who mean the most to us are always with us.

Charlie loves to dance her way through life with her grandma. They may not always be together, but each time they part Grandma says, If you miss me, look at the moon. Then winter brings unexpected change, and not even dancing feels the same. What will Charlie do? Will Grandma come to see her dance again? In the biggest show of the year, Charlie finds her answer. This tender exploration of loss from debut author-illustrator Jocelyn Li Langrand illuminates the boundless power of love to help and heal.

This Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader is based on Disney/Pixar Lightyear--in theaters summer 2022!

Disney/Pixar Lightyear is a sci-fi action-adventure and the definitive origin story of Buzz Lightyear (voice of Chris Evans)--the hero who inspired the toy. The film reveals how a young test pilot became the Space Ranger that we all know him to be today. Lightyear is directed by Angus MacLane, produced by Galyn Susman, and opens in theaters in Summer 2022. Girls and boys ages 4 to 6 will love this Step 2 Step into Reading leveled reader based on the animated feature film.

Step 2 readers use basic vocabulary and short sentences to tell simple stories. For children who recognize familiar words and can sound out new words with help.

Join Thumper and his sisters for their greatest adventures ever!


Build a secret clubhouse, have a day out with Papa, make some new friends and more in this brand new collection. Each story is the ideal length to be read aloud in five minutes, perfect for bedtime, story time or anytime!




Complete your collection with best-selling, fan favorites!

• 5-Minute Disney Princess Stories
• Disney Bedtime Favorites Storybook Collection
• Disney Princess Storybook Collection
• 5-Minute Snuggle Stories
• 5-Minute Disney Pixar Stories
• 5-Minute Star Wars Stories
• And much more!

Young Hiram Walker was born into bondage. When his mother was sold away, Hiram was robbed of all memory of her—but was gifted with a mysterious power. Years later, when Hiram almost drowns in a river, that same power saves his life. This brush with death births an urgency in Hiram and a daring scheme: to escape from the only home he’s ever known.

So begins an unexpected journey that takes Hiram from the corrupt grandeur of Virginia’s proud plantations to desperate guerrilla cells in the wilderness, from the coffin of the Deep South to dangerously idealistic movements in the North. Even as he’s enlisted in the underground war between slavers and the enslaved, Hiram’s resolve to rescue the family he left behind endures.

Justyce McAllister is a good kid, an honor student, and always there to help a friend--but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. Despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can't escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates.

Justyce looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to find out.

Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best friend, Manny, windows rolled down, music turned up--way up, sparking the fury of a white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are fired. Justyce and Manny are caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it's Justyce who is under attack.

Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves, but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood--where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape. Matters do not go as planned--Cora kills a young white boy who tries to capture her. Though they manage to find a station and head north, they are being hunted.

In Whitehead's ingenious conception, the Underground Railroad is no mere metaphor--engineers and conductors operate a secret network of tracks and tunnels beneath the Southern soil. Cora and Caesar's first stop is South Carolina, in a city that initially seems like a haven. But the city's placid surface masks an insidious scheme designed for its black denizens. And even worse: Ridgeway, the relentless slave catcher, is close on their heels. Forced to flee again, Cora embarks on a harrowing flight, state by state, seeking true freedom.

In Jason Mott’s Hell of a Book, a Black author sets out on a cross-country publicity tour to promote his bestselling novel. That storyline drives Hell of a Book and is the scaffolding of something much larger and more urgent: Mott’s novel also tells the story of Soot, a young Black boy living in a rural town in the recent past, and The Kid, a possibly imaginary child who appears to the author on his tour.

As these characters’ stories build and converge, they astonish. For while this heartbreaking and magical book entertains and is at once about family, love of parents and children, art and money, it’s also about the nation’s reckoning with a tragic police shooting playing over and over again on the news. And with what it can mean to be Black in America.

It is the story--set in post-Civil War Ohio--of Sethe, an escaped slave who has risked death in order to wrench herself from a living death; who has lost a husband and buried a child; who has borne the unthinkable and not gone mad: a woman of "iron eyes and backbone to match." Sethe lives in a small house on the edge of town with her daughter, Denver, her mother-in-law, Baby Suggs, and a disturbing, mesmerizing intruder who calls herself Beloved.

Sethe works at "beating back the past," but it is alive in all of them. It keeps Denver fearful of straying from the house. It fuels the sadness that has settled into Baby Suggs' "desolated center where the self that was no self made its home." And to Sethe, the past makes itself heard and felt incessantly: in memories that both haunt and soothe her...in the arrival of Paul D ("There was something blessed in his manner. Women saw him and wanted to weep"), one of her fellow slaves on the farm where she had once been kept...in the vivid and painfully cathartic stories she and Paul D tell each other of their years in captivity, of their glimpses of freedom...and, most powerfully, in the apparition of Beloved, whose eyes are expressionless at their deepest point, whose doomed childhood belongs to the hideous logic of slavery and who, as daughter, sister and seductress, has now come from the "place over there" to claim retribution for what she lost and for what was taken from her.

The unforgettable New York Times best seller begins with the story of two half-sisters, separated by forces beyond their control: one sold into slavery, the other married to a British slaver. Written with tremendous sweep and power, Homegoing traces the generations of family who follow, as their destinies lead them through two continents and three hundred years of history, each life indeliably drawn, as the legacy of slavery is fully revealed in light of the present day.

Effia and Esi are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and lives in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle. Unbeknownst to Effia, her sister, Esi, is imprisoned beneath her in the castle's dungeons, sold with thousands of others into the Gold Coast's booming slave trade, and shipped off to America, where her children and grandchildren will be raised in slavery. One thread of Homegoing follows Effia's descendants through centuries of warfare in Ghana, as the Fante and Asante nations wrestle with the slave trade and British colonization. The other thread follows Esi and her children into America. From the plantations of the South to the Civil War and the Great Migration, from the coal mines of Pratt City, Alabama, to the jazz clubs and dope houses of twentieth-century Harlem, right up through the present day, Homegoing makes history visceral, and captures, with singular and stunning immediacy, how the memory of captivity came to be inscribed in the soul of a nation.

From Ralph Ellison--author of the classic novel of African-American experience, Invisible Man--the long-awaited second novel. Here is the master of American vernacular--the rhythms of jazz and gospel and ordinary speech--at the height of his powers, telling a powerful, evocative tale of a prodigal of the twentieth century.

"Tell me what happened while there's still time," demands the dying Senator Adam Sunraider to the itinerate Negro preacher whom he calls Daddy Hickman. As a young man, Sunraider was Bliss, an orphan taken in by Hickman and raised to be a preacher like himself. Bliss's history encompasses the joys of young southern boyhood; bucolic days as a filmmaker, lovemaking in a field in the Oklahoma sun. And behind it all lies a mystery: how did this chosen child become the man who would deny everything to achieve his goals? Brilliantly crafted, moving, wise, Juneteenth is the work of an American master.

Conjure Women is a sweeping story that brings the world of the South before and after the Civil War vividly to life. Spanning eras and generations, it tells of the lives of three unforgettable women: Miss May Belle, a wise healing woman; her precocious and observant daughter Rue, who is reluctant to follow in her mother's footsteps as a midwife; and their master's daughter Varina. The secrets and bonds among these women and their community come to a head at the beginning of a war and at the birth of an accursed child, who sets the townspeople alight with fear and a spreading superstition that threatens their newly won, tenuous freedom.

Today's feminist movement has a glaring blind spot, and paradoxically, it is women. Mainstream feminists rarely talk about meeting basic needs as a feminist issue, argues Mikki Kendall, but food insecurity, access to quality education, safe neighborhoods, a living wage, and medical care are all feminist issues. All too often, however, the focus is not on basic survival for the many, but on increasing privilege for the few. That feminists refuse to prioritize these issues has only exacerbated the age-old problem of both internecine discord and women who rebuff at carrying the title. Moreover, prominent white feminists broadly suffer from their own myopia with regard to how things like race, class, sexual orientation, and ability intersect with gender. How can we stand in solidarity as a movement, Kendall asks, when there is the distinct likelihood that some women are oppressing others?

In her searing collection of essays, Mikki Kendall takes aim at the legitimacy of the modern feminist movement, arguing that it has chronically failed to address the needs of all but a few women. Drawing on her own experiences with hunger, violence, and hypersexualization, along with incisive commentary on reproductive rights, politics, pop culture, the stigma of mental health, and more, Hood Feminism delivers an irrefutable indictment of a movement in flux. An unforgettable debut, Kendall has written a ferocious clarion call to all would-be feminists to live out the true mandate of the movement in thought and in deed.

When fourteen-year-old Carlotta Walls walked up the stairs of Little Rock Central High School on September 25, 1957, she and eight other black students only wanted to make it to class. But the journey of the "Little Rock Nine," as they came to be known, would lead the nation on an even longer and much more turbulent path, one that would challenge prevailing attitudes, break down barriers, and forever change the landscape of America.

But for Carlotta and her eight comrades, simply getting through the door was the first of many trials. Angry mobs of white students and their parents hurled taunts, insults, and threats. Arkansas's governor used the National Guard to bar the black students from entering the school. Finally, President Dwight D. Eisenhower was forced to send in the 101st Airborne to establish order and escort the Nine into the building. That was just the start of a heartbreaking three-year journey for Carlotta, who would see her home bombed, a crime for which her own father was a suspect and for which a friend of Carlotta's was ultimately jailed-albeit wrongly, in Carlotta's eyes. But she persevered to the victorious end: her graduation from Central.

Breaking her silence at last and sharing her story for the first time, Carlotta Walls has written an inspiring, thoroughly engrossing memoir that is not only a testament to the power of one to make a difference but also of the sacrifices made by families and communities that found themselves a part of history.

The abolition of slavery in the aftermath of the Civil War is a familiar story, as is the civil rights revolution that transformed the nation after World War II. But the century in between remains a mystery: if emancipation sparked "a new birth of freedom" in Lincoln's America, why was it necessary to march in Martin Luther King, Jr.'s America? In this new book, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., one of our leading chroniclers of the African-American experience, seeks to answer that question in a history that moves from the Reconstruction Era to the "nadir" of the African-American experience under Jim Crow, through to World War I and the Harlem Renaissance.

Through his close reading of the visual culture of this tragic era, Gates reveals the many faces of Jim Crow and how, together, they reinforced a stark color line between white and black Americans. Bringing a lifetime of wisdom to bear as a scholar, filmmaker, and public intellectual, Gates uncovers the roots of structural racism in our own time, while showing how African Americans after slavery combatted it by articulating a vision of a "New Negro" to force the nation to recognize their humanity and unique contributions to America as it hurtled toward the modern age.

The story begins in 1619—a year before the Mayflower—when the White Lion disgorges “some 20-and-odd Negroes” onto the shores of Virginia, inaugurating the African presence in what would become the United States. It takes us to the present, when African Americans, descendants of those on the White Lion and a thousand other routes to this country, continue a journey defined by inhuman oppression, visionary struggles, stunning achievements, and millions of ordinary lives passing through extraordinary history. 

Four Hundred Souls is a unique one-volume “community” history of African Americans. The editors, Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain, have assembled ninety brilliant writers, each of whom takes on a five-year period of that four-hundred-year span. The writers explore their periods through a variety of techniques: historical essays, short stories, personal vignettes, and fiery polemics. They approach history from various perspectives: through the eyes of towering historical icons or the untold stories of ordinary people; through places, laws, and objects. While themes of resistance and struggle, of hope and reinvention, course through the book, this collection of diverse pieces from ninety different minds, reflecting ninety different perspectives, fundamentally deconstructs the idea that Africans in America are a monolith—instead it unlocks the startling range of experiences and ideas that have always existed within the community of Blackness. 

In late August 1619, a ship arrived in the British colony of Virginia bearing a cargo of twenty to thirty enslaved people from Africa. Their arrival led to the barbaric and unprecedented system of American chattel slavery that would last for the next 250 years. This is sometimes referred to as the country’s original sin, but it is more than that: It is the source of so much that still defines the United States.

The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning “1619 Project” issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together eighteen essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with thirty-six poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance. The essays show how the inheritance of 1619 reaches into every part of contemporary American society, from politics, music, diet, traffic, and citizenship to capitalism, religion, and our democracy itself.

“I was a devil in other countries, and I was a little devil in America, too.” Inspired by these few words, spoken by Josephine Baker at the 1963 March on Washington, MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellow and bestselling author Hanif Abdurraqib has written a profound and lasting reflection on how Black performance is inextricably woven into the fabric of American culture. Each moment in every performance he examines—whether it’s the twenty-seven seconds in “Gimme Shelter” in which Merry Clayton wails the words “rape, murder,” a schoolyard fistfight, a dance marathon, or the instant in a game of spades right after the cards are dealt—has layers of resonance in Black and white cultures, the politics of American empire, and Abdurraqib’s own personal history of love, grief, and performance.

Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship—and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.

Just Mercy is at once an unforgettable account of an idealistic, gifted young lawyer’s coming of age, a moving window into the lives of those he has defended, and an inspiring argument for compassion in the pursuit of true justice.

In light of recent tragedies and widespread protests across the nation, The Progressive magazine republished one of its most famous pieces: James Baldwin’s 1962 “Letter to My Nephew,” which was later published in his landmark book, The Fire Next Time. Addressing his fifteen-year-old namesake on the one hundredth anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, Baldwin wrote: “You know and I know, that the country is celebrating one hundred years of freedom one hundred years too soon.”

Award-winning author Jesmyn Ward knows that Baldwin’s words ring as true as ever today. In response, she has gathered short essays, memoir, and a few essential poems to engage the question of race in the United States. And she has turned to some of her generation’s most original thinkers and writers to give voice to their concerns.

Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism—and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves. In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.

Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society.

In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and current crisis. Americans have built an empire on the idea of “race,” a falsehood that damages us all but falls most heavily on the bodies of black women and men—bodies exploited through slavery and segregation, and, today, threatened, locked up, and murdered out of all proportion. What is it like to inhabit a black body and find a way to live within it? And how can we all honestly reckon with this fraught history and free ourselves from its burden?

Between the World and Me is Ta-Nehisi Coates’s attempt to answer these questions in a letter to his adolescent son. Coates shares with his son—and readers—the story of his awakening to the truth about his place in the world through a series of revelatory experiences, from Howard University to Civil War battlefields, from the South Side of Chicago to Paris, from his childhood home to the living rooms of mothers whose children’s lives were taken as American plunder. Beautifully woven from personal narrative, reimagined history, and fresh, emotionally charged reportage, Between the World and Me clearly illuminates the past, bracingly confronts our present, and offers a transcendent vision for a way forward.

In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an unseen phenomenon in America as she explores, through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings.

Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people’s lives and behavior and the nation’s fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. Using riveting stories about people—including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball’s Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others—she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day. She documents how the Nazis studied the racial systems in America to plan their outcasting of the Jews; she discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against; she writes about the surprising health costs of caste, in depression and life expectancy, and the effects of this hierarchy on our culture and politics. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity.

In 2013, Alicia Garza wrote what she called “a love letter to Black people” on Facebook, in the aftermath of the acquittal of the man who murdered seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin. Garza wrote: 

Black people. I love you. I love us. Our lives matter.
 
With the speed and networking capacities of social media, #BlackLivesMatter became the hashtag heard ’round the world. But Garza knew even then that hashtags don’t start movements—people do. 
 
Long before #BlackLivesMatter became a rallying cry for this generation, Garza had spent the better part of two decades learning and unlearning some hard lessons about organizing. The lessons she offers are different from the “rules for radicals” that animated earlier generations of activists, and diverge from the charismatic, patriarchal model of the American civil rights movement. She reflects instead on how making room amongst the woke for those who are still awakening can inspire and activate more people to fight for the world we all deserve. 
 
This is the story of one woman’s lessons through years of bringing people together to create change. Most of all, it is a new paradigm for change for a new generation of changemakers, from the mind and heart behind one of the most important movements of our time.

The Emperor needs necromancers.

The Ninth Necromancer needs a swordswoman.

Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead nonsense.

Tamsyn Muir’s Gideon the Ninth unveils a solar system of swordplay, cut-throat politics, and lesbian necromancers. Her characters leap off the page, as skillfully animated as arcane revenants. The result is a heart-pounding epic science fantasy.

Brought up by unfriendly, ossifying nuns, ancient retainers, and countless skeletons, Gideon is ready to abandon a life of servitude and an afterlife as a reanimated corpse. She packs up her sword, her shoes, and her dirty magazines, and prepares to launch her daring escape. But her childhood nemesis won’t set her free without a service.

Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Reverend Daughter of the Ninth House and bone witch extraordinaire, has been summoned into action. The Emperor has invited the heirs to each of his loyal Houses to a deadly trial of wits and skill. If Harrowhark succeeds she will be become an immortal, all-powerful servant of the Resurrection, but no necromancer can ascend without their cavalier. Without Gideon’s sword, Harrow will fail, and the Ninth House will die.

Of course, some things are better left dead.

THE LOCKED TOMB TRILOGY
BOOK 1: Gideon the Ninth
BOOK 2: Harrow the Ninth
BOOK 3: Alecto the Ninth

Shizuka Satomi made a deal with the devil: to escape damnation, she must entice seven other violin prodigies to trade their souls for success. She has already delivered six.

When Katrina Nguyen, a young transgender runaway, catches Shizuka's ear with her wild talent, Shizuka can almost feel the curse lifting. She's found her final candidate.

But in a donut shop off a bustling highway in the San Gabriel Valley, Shizuka meets Lan Tran, retired starship captain, interstellar refugee, and mother of four. Shizuka doesn't have time for crushes or coffee dates, what with her very soul on the line, but Lan's kind smile and eyes like stars might just redefine a soul's worth. And maybe something as small as a warm donut is powerful enough to break a curse as vast as the California coastline.

As the lives of these three women become entangled by chance and fate, a story of magic, identity, curses, and hope begins, and a family worth crossing the universe for is found.

The acclaimed modern science fiction masterpiece, included on Library Journal's Best SFF of 2016, the Barnes & Nobles Sci-Fi Fantasy Blog Best Books of 2015, the Tor.com Best Books of 2015, Reader’s Choice, as well as nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the Kitschie, and the Bailey's Women's Prize.

Follow a motley crew on an exciting journey through space—and one adventurous young explorer who discovers the meaning of family in the far reaches of the universe—in this light-hearted debut space opera from a rising sci-fi star.

Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain.

Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe.

FINALIST FOR THE 2021 PULITZER PRIZE IN HISTORY. INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER.

New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice. Winner of the 2021 Randy Shilts Award for Gay Nonfiction. One of The Washington Post's Top 50 Nonfiction Books of 2020.

From a young Harvard- and Cambridge-trained historian, and the Creator and Executive Producer of The Book of Queer (coming June 2022 to Discovery+), the secret history of the fight for gay rights that began a generation before Stonewall.

In 1957, Frank Kameny, a rising astronomer working for the U.S. Defense Department in Hawaii, received a summons to report immediately to Washington, D.C. The Pentagon had reason to believe he was a homosexual, and after a series of humiliating interviews, Kameny, like countless gay men and women before him, was promptly dismissed from his government job. Unlike many others, though, Kameny fought back.

Based on firsthand accounts, recently declassified FBI records, and forty thousand personal documents, Eric Cervini's The Deviant's War unfolds over the course of the 1960s, as the Mattachine Society of Washington, the group Kameny founded, became the first organization to protest the systematic persecution of gay federal employees. It traces the forgotten ties that bound gay rights to the Black Freedom Movement, the New Left, lesbian activism, and trans resistance. Above all, it is a story of America (and Washington) at a cultural and sexual crossroads; of shocking, byzantine public battles with Congress; of FBI informants; murder; betrayal; sex; love; and ultimately victory.

From the Fab Five--the beloved hosts of Netflix's viral hit Queer Eye--comes a book that is at once a behind-the-scenes exclusive, a practical guide to living and celebrating your best life, and a symbol of hope.
Feeling your best is about far more than deciding what color to paint your accent wall or how to apply nightly moisturizer. It's also about creating a life that's well-rounded, filled with humor and understanding--and most importantly, that suits you. At a cultural moment when we are all craving people to admire, Queer Eye offers hope and acceptance. After you get to know the Fab Five, together they will guide you through five practical chapters that go beyond their designated areas of expertise (food & wine, fashion, grooming, home decor, and culture), touching on topics like wellness, entertaining, and defining your personal brand, and complete with bite-sized Hip Tips for your everyday quandaries. Above all else, Queer Eye aims to help you create a happy and healthy life, rooted in self-love and authenticity.

A high-strung pastry chef’s professional goals are interrupted by an unexpected career transition and the introduction of her wildly attractive nonbinary kitchen manager in this deliciously fresh and witty queer rom-com.

Simone Larkspur is a perfectionist pastry expert with a dream job at The Discerning Chef, a venerable cookbook publisher in New York City. All she wants to do is create the perfect loaf of sourdough and develop recipes, but when The Discerning Chef decides to bring their brand into the 21st century by pivoting to video, Simone is thrust into the spotlight and finds herself failing at something for the first time in her life.

To make matters worse, Simone has to deal with Ray Lyton, the new test kitchen manager, whose obnoxious cheer and outgoing personality are like oil to Simone’s water. When Ray accidentally becomes a viral YouTube sensation with a series of homebrewing videos, their eccentric editor in chief forces Simone to work alongside the chipper upstart or else risk her beloved job. But the more they work together, the more Simone realizes her heart may be softening like butter for Ray.

Things get even more complicated when Ray comes out at work as nonbinary to mixed reactions—and Simone must choose between the career she fought so hard for and the person who just might take the cake (and her heart).

A National Bestseller
An NPR Book of the Year
Finalist for the 2021 Goodreads Choice Awards

From the bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus and The Editor comes a warm and deeply funny novel about a once-famous gay sitcom star whose unexpected family tragedy leaves him with his niece and nephew for the summer.

Patrick, or Gay Uncle Patrick (GUP, for short), has always loved his niece, Maisie, and nephew, Grant. That is, he loves spending time with them when they come out to Palm Springs for weeklong visits, or when he heads home to Connecticut for the holidays. But in terms of caretaking and relating to two children, no matter how adorable, Patrick is, honestly, overwhelmed.

So when tragedy strikes and Maisie and Grant lose their mother and Patrick's brother has a health crisis of his own, Patrick finds himself suddenly taking on the role of primary guardian. Despite having a set of "Guncle Rules" ready to go, Patrick has no idea what to expect, having spent years barely holding on after the loss of his great love, a somewhat-stalled acting career, and a lifestyle not-so-suited to a six- and a nine-year-old. Quickly realizing that parenting--even if temporary--isn't solved with treats and jokes, Patrick's eyes are opened to a new sense of responsibility, and the realization that, sometimes, even being larger than life means you're unfailingly human.

With the humor and heart we've come to expect from bestselling author Steven Rowley, The Guncle is a moving tribute to the power of love, patience, and family in even the most trying of times.

Welcome to Charon's Crossing.
The tea is hot, the scones are fresh, and the dead are just passing through.

When a reaper comes to collect Wallace from his own funeral, Wallace begins to suspect he might be dead.

And when Hugo, the owner of a peculiar tea shop, promises to help him cross over, Wallace decides he’s definitely dead.

But even in death he’s not ready to abandon the life he barely lived, so when Wallace is given one week to cross over, he sets about living a lifetime in seven days.

Hilarious, haunting, and kind, Under the Whispering Door is an uplifting story about a life spent at the office and a death spent building a home.

WANTED:
One (fake) boyfriend
Practically perfect in every way

Luc O'Donnell is tangentially--and reluctantly--famous. His rock star parents split when he was young, and the father he's never met spent the next twenty years cruising in and out of rehab. Now that his dad's making a comeback, Luc's back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything.

To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice, normal relationship...and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. He's a barrister, an ethical vegetarian, and he's never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words: perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately, apart from being gay, single, and really, really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust has settled. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened.

But the thing about fake-dating is that it can feel a lot like real-dating. And that's when you get used to someone. Start falling for them. Don't ever want to let them go.

Discover the LGBT romance about exact opposites falling in perfectly imperfect love that New York Times and USA Today bestselling author CHRISTINA LAUREN calls "hilarious, witty, tender, and stunning."

Weaving together American history, dramatic family chronicle, and searing episodes of memoir, Annette Gordon-Reed's On Juneteenth provides a historian's view of the country's long road to Juneteenth, recounting both its origins in Texas and the enormous hardships that African-Americans have endured in the century since, from Reconstruction through Jim Crow and beyond. All too aware of the stories of cowboys, ranchers, and oilmen that have long dominated the lore of the Lone Star State, Gordon-Reed--herself a Texas native and the descendant of enslaved people brought to Texas as early as the 1820s--forges a new and profoundly truthful narrative of her home state, with implications for us all.

In The Food of Oaxaca, acclaimed chef Alejandro Ruiz shares the cuisine of Mexico's culinary capital through fifty recipes both traditional and original. Divided into three parts, the book covers the classic dishes of the region, the cuisine of the coast, and the food Ruiz serves today at his beloved restaurant, Casa Oaxaca. Here are recipes for making your own tortillas, and for preparing tamales, salsas, and moles, as well as Ruiz's own creations, such as Duck Tacos with Coloradito; Shrimp, Nopal, Fava Bean, and Pea Soup; and Oaxacan Chocolate Mousse. Also included are thoughtful essays on dishes, ingredients, kitchen tools, and traditions; recommendations on where to eat; and a comprehensive glossary to help fully immerse readers in the food of Oaxaca, making this an indispensable volume for home cooks and travelers alike.

Chef Anto Cocagne and Photographer Aline Princet take us on a unique food journey and introduce us to the best recipes from Gabon, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Congo, and Ethiopia. We will discover the main characteristics of these cuisines, the specialties of each region, the produce, the ideal pantry, the basics, as well as mouthwatering recipes for appetizers, main courses, side dishes, street food, desserts, and drinks. And since no one evokes a cuisine better than its daughters and sons, we meet African musicians, writers, artists, and creatives who tell stories about their favorite dishes, their family cooking memories, and what these recipes represent for them today.

Arabiyya celebrates the alluring aromas and flavors of Arab food and the welcoming spirit with which they are shared. Written from her point of view as an Arab in diaspora, Reem takes readers on a journey through her Palestinian and Syrian roots, showing how her heritage has inspired her recipes for flatbreads, dips, snacks, platters to share, and more. With a section specializing in breads of the Arab bakery, plus recipes for favorites such as Salatet Fattoush, Falafel Mahshi, Mujaddarra, and Hummus Bil Awarma, Arabiyya showcases the origins and evolution of Arab cuisine and opens up a whole new world of flavor.

It is the mid-eighteenth century, and in the thirteen colonies founded by Great Britain, anxious colonists desperate to conquer and settle North America’s “First Frontier” beyond the Appalachian Mountains commence a series of bloody battles. These violent conflicts are waged against the Native American tribes whose lands they covet, the French, and the mother country itself in an American Revolution destined to reverberate around the world.

This is the setting of Blood and Treasure, and the guide to this epic narrative is America’s first and arguably greatest pathfinder, Daniel Boone—not the coonskin cap-wearing caricature of popular culture but the flesh-and-blood frontiersman and Revolutionary War hero whose explorations into the forested frontier beyond the great mountains would become the stuff of legend. Now, thanks to painstaking research by two award-winning authors, the story of the brutal birth of the United States is told through the eyes of both the ordinary and larger-than-life men and women who witnessed it.

In 1808, an American merchant ship happened upon an uncharted island in the South Pacific and unwittingly solved the biggest nautical mystery of the era: the whereabouts of a band of fugitives who, after seizing their vessel, had disappeared into the night with their Tahitian companions. Pitcairn Island was the perfect hideaway from British authorities, but after nearly two decades of isolation its secret society had devolved into a tribalistic hellscape; a real-life Lord of the Flies, rife with depravity and deception.

Seven generations later, the island's diabolical past still looms over its 48 residents; descendants of the original mutineers, marooned like modern castaways. Only a rusty cargo ship connects Pitcairn with the rest of the world, just four times a year. In 2018, Brandon Presser rode the freighter to live among its present-day families; two clans bound by circumstance and secrets. While on the island, he pieced together Pitcairn's full story: an operatic saga that holds all who have visited in its mortal clutch--even the author.

From the white sand beaches of Dry Tortugas to the snowy peaks of Denali, this captivating book combines authoritative park maps with hundreds of graphics and photographs to tell the stories of America's sixty beloved national parks. Former ranger and author Jonathan Waterman introduces readers to the country's scenic reserves and highlights the extraordinary features that distinguish each: magnificent landmarks, thriving ecosystems, representative wildlife, fascinating histories, and more. With striking imagery and state-of-the-art graphics reflecting details of wildlife, climate, culture, archaeology, recreation, and more, this lush reference provides an up-close look at what makes these lands so special--and so uniquely American. A heartfelt foreword from National Geographic CEO Gary Knell reminds us how important these lands are to our lives and our national pride.

America's national parks spring from an idea as radical as the Declaration of Independence: that the nation's most magnificent and sacred places should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone. In this evocative and lavishly illustrated narrative, Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan delve into the history of the park idea, from the first sighting by white men in 1851 of the valley that would become Yosemite and the creation of the world's first national park at Yellowstone in 1872, through the most recent additions to a system that now encompasses nearly four hundred sites and 84 million acres.