Preschool
Papilio
by Ben Clanton, Andy Chou Musser, Corey R. Tabor
Introducing Papilio Polyxenes, the Black Swallowtail Butterfly! She’s an adorable and hilarious caterpillar who is ready to join the world and become a butterfly! But growing up is a complicated work in progress, and Papilio encounters some hiccups as she learns to fly, fall, and feed. While avoiding foes and making friends, she transforms from caterpillar, to chrysalis, to butterfly and most importantly, learns to believe in herself along the way. It's a tale told in three parts by three friends!
What Happened to You?
by James Catchpole
What happened to you? Was it a shark? A burglar? A lion? Did it fall off? A boy named Joe is trying to play pirates at the playground, but he keeps being asked what happened to his leg. Bombarded with questions and silly suggestions, Joe becomes more and more fed up, until the kids finally understand they don't need to know what happened — and that they’re wasting valuable playtime!
Primary (Kindergarten–Grade 2)
City Summer, Country Summer
by Kiese Laymon
Three boys spend one special summer exploring the Mississippi woods and woulds and coulds of sharing the kind of freeing friendship that is love.
Watched over and given space to discover by Grandmama and Mama Lara, New York, Country, and little C find camaraderie in their contrasts and all the unspoken things between them while playing games of marco polo in the thick garden and sledding on cardboard by the underpass.
América Is Her Name
by Luis J. Rodríguez
Set in Chicago’s Pilsen barrio, América Is Her Name follows a young girl who struggles in school until a visiting poet inspires her to express herself through writing. Encouraged to use her voice in Spanish or English, América discovers her identity and self-worth. This uplifting story highlights the power of creativity to overcome adversity and shows that determination can lead to success, even in challenging environments.
Intermediate (Grades 3–5)
What Happened to the Naked Mole Rat? A Graphic Novel (Class Pet Ghost Detective)
by Akeem S. Roberts
Mr. Pebbles is dead, and everyone thinks it’s Carter’s fault!
When Carter’s third-grade class accuses him of killing the class pet, a naked mole rat named Mr. Pebbles who shivers a lot and smells a little funny, can Carter clear his name . . . with the help of Mr. Pebbles's ghost?
Merci Suarez Can’t Dance
by Meg Medina
Seventh grade is going to be a real trial for Merci Suárez. For science she’s got no-nonsense Mr. Ellis, who expects her to be as smart as her brother, Roli. She’s been assigned to co-manage the tiny school store with Wilson Bellevue, a boy she barely knows, but whom she might actually like. And she’s tangling again with classmate Edna Santos, who is bossier and more obnoxious than ever now that she is in charge of the annual Heart Ball.
One thing is for sure, though: Merci Suárez can’t dance — not at the Heart Ball or anywhere else. Dancing makes her almost as queasy as love does, especially now that Tía Inés, her merengue-teaching aunt, has a new man in her life. Unfortunately, Merci can’t seem to avoid love or dance for very long. She used to talk about everything with her grandfather, Lolo, but with his Alzheimer’s getting worse each day, whom can she trust to help her make sense of all the new things happening in her life? The Suárez family is back in a touching, funny story about growing up and discovering love’s many forms, including how we learn to love and believe in ourselves.
Middle School (Grades 6–8)
First State of Being
by Erin Entrada Kelly
When twelve-year-old Michael Rosario meets a mysterious boy from the future, his life is changed forever. It's August 1999. For twelve-year-old Michael Rosario, life at Fox Run Apartments in Red Knot, Delaware, is as ordinary as ever — except for the looming Y2K crisis and his overwhelming crush on his sixteen-year-old babysitter, Gibby.
But when a disoriented teenage boy named Ridge appears out of nowhere, Michael discovers there is more to life than stockpiling supplies and pining over Gibby. Michael discovers that his new friend has a book that outlines the events of the next twenty years, and his curiosity morphs into something else: focused determination. Michael wants — no, needs — to get his hands on that book. How else can he prepare for the future? But how far is he willing to go to get it?
A Hero’s Guide to Summer Vacation
by Pablo Cartaya
Gonzalo Alberto Sánchez García has never considered himself the hero of his own story. He’s an observer, quietly snapshotting landscapes and drawing the creatures he imagines emerging from them. Forced to spend the summer with his estranged grandfather, Alberto William García — the very famous reclusive author — Gonzalo doesn't expect to learn that heroes and monsters are not only the stuff of fantasy.
But that’s precisely what happens when Gonzalo’s CEO mother, Veronica, sends Alberto on tour to promote the final book in his fantasy series for children and Gonzalo must tag along, even though he feels no connection to his grandfather or the books. The two embark on a cross-country road trip from Mendocino to Miami in a classic 1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass S convertible named Mathilde. Over the course of ten epic days on the highway, they will slay demons, real and imagined; confront old stories to write new ones; and learn what it truly means to show up for your family.
High School (Grades 9–12)
Threads That Bind
by Kika Hatzopoulou
Descendants of the Fates are always born in threes: one to weave, one to draw, and one to cut the threads that connect people to the things they love and to life itself. The Ora sisters are no exception. Io, the youngest, uses her Fate-born abilities as a private investigator in the half-sunken city of Alante.
But her latest job leads her to a horrific discovery: somebody is abducting women, maiming their life-threads, and setting the resulting wraiths loose in the city to kill. To find the culprit, she must work alongside Edei Rhuna, the right hand of the infamous Mob Queen — and the boy with whom she shares a rare fate-thread linking them as soul mates before they’ve even met.
The investigation turns personal when Io's estranged oldest sister shows up on the arm of her best suspect. Amid unveiled secrets from her past and her growing feelings for Edei, Io must follow clues through the city’s darkest corners and unearth a conspiracy that involves some of the city’s most powerful players before destruction comes to her own doorstep.
Chronically Dolores
by Maya Van Wagenen
Dolores Mendoza is struggling with a painful chronic illness and a life in disarray. When she meets Terpsichore, a glamorous, autistic girl stuck in homeschooling, they form a pact: help each other escape their personal traps. But as their plan unfolds, Dolores’s unreliable narration and questionable decisions threaten not only their friendship but also a betrayal that could change everything.
Books in Spanish
La maleta de tesoros (Pre-K–K)
de Natalia Sylvester, ilustraciones de Juana Medina
Dulce aprecia cada momento de la visita de su abuela, desde los dulces hasta el olor familiar de Perú. Cuando la abuela debe irse, Dulce decide reunir artículos para sus primos en Perú para conectarlos con sus parientes en Estados Unidos. Antes de partir, la abuela le da a Dulce un regalo especial, recordándole que el hogar se define por el amor, no la distancia.