*DISCLOSURE* Thank you to Scholastic for providing product samples in order to facilitate this post. All thoughts are strictly my own.
Check out our favorite new releases in both the YA and picture book categories from Scholastic this month!
One Small Hop
When Ahab and his friends find a bullfrog in their town — a real, live bullfrog, possibly the last bullfrog in North America — they have several options:
A. Report it to the Environmental Police Force. Too bad everyone knows they're a joke.
B. Leave it be. They're just a bunch of kids — what if they hurt it by moving it?
C. Find another real, live bullfrog on the black market. Convince their parents to let them bike to Canada. Introduce the two frogs. Save all of frogkind.
Ahab convinces the rest of the group that C is their only real option. Because if they don't save this frog, who will? Their quest, which will involve fake ice cream, real frog spawn, and some very close calls, teaches Ahab that hope is always the logical choice, and science is always better with friends.
Last Gate of the Emperor
By Prince Joel Makonnen , Kwame Mbalia
Yared Heywat lives an isolated life in New Addis — a hardscrabble city with rundown tech, lots of rules, and not much to do. His worrywart Uncle Moti and bionic lioness Besa are his only family… and his only friends.
Often in trouble for his thrill-seeking antics and smart mouth, those same qualities make Yared a star player of the underground augmented reality game, The Hunt for Kaleb's Obelisk. But when a change in the game rules prompts Yared to log in with his real name, it triggers an attack that rocks the city. In the chaos, Uncle Moti disappears.
Suddenly, all the stories Yared's uncle told him as a young boy — of kingdoms in the sky and city-razing monsters — are coming to life. And somehow Yared is at the center of them.
The Ghosts We Keep
By Mason Deaver
On the night Liam Lawson's twin brother is killed in a hit-and-run accident, his entire world crumbles around him. But before he has a chance to process, Liam is faced with a barrage of people he hardly knows offering empty condolences and assorted casseroles. Despite being close to his mother — and best friends, Joel and Vanessa — he feels lost, isolated by grief, and completely out of control.
Through group therapy, Liam learns how to be more open with his mother, about the night of the accident and the repressed emotions that have been causing his panic attacks and anxiety to get worse, and to have the courage to come out to Joel and Vanessa even as he's still in the process of figuring things out for himself.
This book is about grief. But it's also about why we live. Why we have to keep moving on, and why we should
The Girl from the Sea
By: Molly Knox Ostertag
Fifteen-year-old Morgan has a secret: she can’t wait to escape the perfect little island where she lives. She’s desperate to finish high school and escape her sad divorced mom, her volatile little brother, and worst of all, her great group of friends … who don’t understand Morgan at all. Because really, Morgan’s biggest secret is that she has a lot of secrets, including the one about wanting to kiss another girl.
Then one night, Morgan is saved from drowning by a mysterious girl named Keltie. The two become friends and suddenly life on the island doesn’t seem so stifling anymore.
But Keltie has some secrets of her own. And the girls start to fall in love, everything they’re each trying to hide will find its way to the surface… whether Morgan is ready or not.
Free to Be Elephant Me
By: Giles Andreae
Illustrator: Guy Parker-Rees
It's time for the Elephant Games! Every young elephant parades their talent in front of the king to earn their special elephant name. But Num-Num doesn't have a special skill to display. With a little help from some familiar friends, will this little elephant learn that being yourself is the most important talent of them all?
Readers will love seeing all their favorite characters from Giraffes Can't Dance return, including a funny cameo from Gerald himself! Free to be Elephant Me is perfect for family sharing and for teaching young readers about the importance of being yourself.
Llama Glamarama
By Simon James Green Illustrator Garry Parsons
Larry lives a slow and quiet life at the barn with all the other llamas, just the way they like it. But at night when everyone has gone to bed, Larry loves to dress up in bright costumes and DANCE! He has to hide this from the others, for fear that they won't approve of his raucous ways. One day, he stumbles upon the Llama Glamarama, a carnival full of music, laughter, and yes — dancing!
Will this vibrant celebration give Larry the pride he needs to bring his dance back home? A bright and colorful rhyming story with a powerful message about celebrating differences, Llama Glamarama is the perfect Pride picture book for everyone!
Find these and many more great books at Scholastic!
Disclosure: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
