Ramadan Kareem by M. O. Yuksel, illustrated by Hatem Aly (HarperCollins, 40 pages, ages 4-8). Kids around the world celebrate Ramadan from the sighting of the crescent moon that marks the beginning to the next crescent a month later that signals that it’s time for the Eid celebration. In between, some of them fast for the first time, give money and food to neighbors, enjoy feasts before sunrise and after sunset, and attend mosque to pray and study the Qur’an. Eid means family gatherings, feasting, and gift giving, as the kids look forward to celebrating Ramadan again next year. Includes addit ..read more

The Monster and the Maze (Monkey King and the World of Myths) by Maple Lam (G. P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, 240 pages, grades 3-7). Sun Wukong, or the Monkey King, comes to life in a graphic tale combining Chinese and Greek mythologies. Bold, confident and fearless, the Monkey King sneaks into heaven where he confronts the gods with his request to become one of them. Although he’s a lowly beast, he’s told his wish will be considered if he can go on a quest to slay a monster. Sun Wukong ends up in Crete, on a quest to destroy the legendary Minotaur. When he finds the monster, toug ..read more

The Boy Who Said Wow by Todd Boss, illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh (Beach Lane Books, 40 pages, ages 4-8). Ronan is a boy who rarely speaks, and when Grandfather proposes a trip to the symphony, his parents are a bit skeptical. But Grandfather persists, and the two of them drive to the concert hall and find their seats. The lights go down, the music begins, and Ronan is swept away. In the moment of silence when the music ends, Ronan opens his mouth, and utters a loud, “Wow!” The audience laughs and claps, both for the orchestra and for Ronan. An author’s note shares that the story is based on ..read more

Unicorn Boy by Dave Ryan (First Second, 208 pages, grades 3-7). Brian leads a pretty ordinary life until the day a unicorn horn sprouts from his head. He tries to ignore, remove, or hide the horn, but there’s no getting around the fact that it’s there to say…and did I mention that the horn sings? A talking muffin turns out to be a cursed wizard who offers some help, and Brian’s best friend Avery is always a source of support, that is, until Avery is kidnapped by evil shadow creatures. Before long, Brian learns that his unicorn horn gives him superpowers, leading him on a quest to rescue Avery ..read more

Ahoy! by Sophie Blackall (Anne Schwartz Books, 48 pages, ages 4-8). As a parent gets ready to vacuum, a child is ready to set sail. “What are you playing?” asks the parent. “I’m not playing!” is the response. “Why are you shouting?” “Because there’s a storm coming!” Before long, the parent, despite protests of too much to do, is drawn into the game. Readers will enjoy watching everyday objects transform into part of the seascape then change back again when the two sailors are interrupted by an important adult phone call. There’s a storm, a shipwreck, and a daring rescue at sea that takes them ..read more

Listen to This by Jennifer Blecher (Greenwillow Books, 224 pages, grades 4-7). Lily is feeling left out when her two best friends, Maddie and Sasha, make the elite soccer team and don’t have as much time for her anymore. Maddie’s recently confided in Lily that she has a crush on a girl she met at summer camp, and Sasha is hiding a secret of her own. Meanwhile, Will mostly finds his best friend Gavin annoying, but not as annoying as constantly being the main topic of the parenting podcast his dad started after his mom died. In the middle of everyone’s business is mean girl Sienna, who’s sure L ..read more

Finding Home: Words from Kids Seeking Sanctuary by Gwen Agna and Shelley Rotner, photographed by Shelley Rotner (Clarion Books, 32 pages, ages 4-8). Children and their families from around the world come to the United States seeking sanctuary from war, famine, natural disasters, and other dangers. Many of the photos have cartoon bubbles with kids describing in their own words how they felt when they had to leave their countries, what they miss, and the difficulties and joys in their new homes. There’s additional narrative at the end about how some of the families got to the United States, as ..read more

One Day This Tree Will Fall by Leslie Bernard Booth, illustrated by Stephanie Fizer Coleman (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 40 pages, grades K-4). “Wounded, worn, twisted, torn. One day this tree will fall and this story will end. Won’t it?” To learn the answer to this question posed on page 1, the narrative goes back to the beginning when a seed survives its journey to become a seedling. Its story could have ended before it began, and it could have also been ended by wind, ice, drought, and fire. But the tree survives, becoming a home to many creatures. Eventually, the tree does fall, but even ..read more

The Last Zookeeper by Aaron Becker (Candlewick,, 40 pages, grades K-5). As he did in The Tree and the River, Aaron Becker uses a wordless story to deliver a subtle message about environmental degradation with a dollop of hope woven in. The zookeeper of the title is a large robot who looks after animals at a zoo that is spread out over several small islands. In its spare time, the robot enjoys building toy sailboats and floating them in the zoo’s waters. When drenching rains flood the area, the robot figures out a way to build an ark-like sailboat to rescue the animals. They sail through storm ..read more

Warrior on the Mound by Sandra W. Headen (Holiday House, 272 pages, grades 4-7). Cato loves baseball more than just about anything and aspires to join the Negro Leagues like his father, Daddy Mo, and his older brother Isaac. Daddy Mo died suddenly four years ago, and Cato is being raised by his grandparents, who have never told him the circumstances around his dad’s death. When white store owner Luke Blackburn builds a new baseball field for his son’s team, Cato and his friends sneak over to try it out themselves. When they’re caught, it’s the beginning of a chain of events that results in no ..read more