Back-to-school season is a blessing—especially because we get to look forward to the most anticipated children’s books of fall 2019!
Picture books
A Stone Sat Still by Brendan Wenzel
Chronicle | August 27
The Caldecott Honor-winning author-illustrator of They All Saw a Cat is a master at transforming the quotidian into the incredible. His latest explores the boundlessness of a single stone’s existence.
Small in the City by Sydney Smith
Neal Porter | September 3
The illustrator of Sidewalk Flowers and Town Is by the Sea makes his author-illustrator debut with a tender story narrated by a child, who is giving advice for navigating the big city to a missing friend.
The Hundred-Year Barn by Patricia MacLachlan & Kenard Pak
Katherine Tegen | September 10
Newbery Medal winner MacLachlan teams up with award-winning illustrator Pak for a generations-spanning tale of a big red barn.
Fly! by Mark Teague
Beach Lane | September 17
A bird and a baby converse back and forth through imagery-based speech bubbles in this utterly hilarious picture book. Reading this one aloud with a child will be so, so fun.
Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler
Nancy Paulsen | October 1
Based on her grandmother’s childhood, Wheeler’s latest tells the story of a family in the Wisconsin woods during the year after their father’s death. Let me count the ways this book will steal your heart: the narrative, the palette, the lines, the seasons, the characters, the fluid family pairings, the optimism, the team work, the authenticity, the games and the ultimate triumph.
Middle grade
Lalani of the Distant Sea by Erin Entrada Kelly
HarperCollins | September 1
Inspired by Filipino folktales, the fantasy debut from Newbery Medalist Kelly (Hello, Universe) follows a young girl named Lalani who leaves her island to save her mother and the members of her village. It begins as a story of darkness, but Lalani discovers the light within through kindness, integrity and steadfast love.
Beverly, Right Here by Kate DiCamillo
Candlewick | September 24
This is the third in DiCamillo’s series that began with Raymie Nightingale, but each novel stands on its own. This one is a master class in middle grade fiction, with a rewarding sense of community and Beverly’s delightful, unique voice ringing as true as ever.
Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds
Atheneum | October 8
Every single Reynolds book demands attention. This one tells 10 tangential stories within a neighborhood, and each unique chapter has its own style and punch.
The Story That Cannot Be Told by J. Kasper Kramer
Atheneum | October 8
Under Communist rule in the 1980s, living conditions in Romania were poor, especially in cities like Ileana’s Bucharest. Reminiscent of life under Nazi occupations, spies are everywhere and the paranoia is palpable and justified. When young Ileana ignores her parents’ instructions, their house is bugged, and she must immediately be sent away to a small town with unfamiliar grandparents and customs. There, she is introduced to the traditions of her culture through folktales, which are interspersed throughout the narrative.
