YA Underground came about after I wrote a piece about self-published memoirs. For many years I have been actively trying to find new books for my kids that accurately reflect their lives (and believe me, it’s not all about being poor and downtrodden—if there were an African American Harry Potter I’d be more than thrilled). I hoped having a column (and committee, more on that in a future column) would send books my way—new authors to bring to light—especially for our teens’ reading pleasure. Let’s be clear. It is still by chance that I come across the ones that I do. I’d say I’ve read five books to every one that I feel is even worth mentioning.*

Marilyn Jones’s book is worth mentioning.

Jones has written a passionate memoir about her experience as an abuse survivor, single mother, crack addict, and college student. Written with humor and insight, From Crack to College & Vice Versa is equally real and thoughtful. Jones grew up with her loving grandparents, where food and nurturing were abundant. It was the 1970s in San Francisco’s Fillmore district, steeped in a strong Black Panther presence, and among many businesses owned by Black people, which instilled in her a sense of self-pride and love. At age 9, she moved into her father’s house where she encountered a toxic mixture of mental, physical, and sexual abuse. Jones was introduced to crack cocaine in 1985 when she was 19 years old.

In a detailed account filled with important insight, Jones describes the life of a crack addict: exchanging  her body for drugs, in and out of juvenile hall, county jails, drug treatment, and losing her children. She writes, “When I first got locked up, I was very angry, (but ultimately) I gave up fighting the system and adjusted my ability to function and not be so angry was looked upon as progress by the juvenile facility’s staff, but all I did was learn how to be in jail.” Also important are her insights and writing about the college experience, and the inherent racism and classism she experienced from curriculum to people being scared of her impassioned discussion style.

Self-published, Jones did a good job with the cover From Crack to College. The type face and interior design is functional but not particularly pretty, and the book could definitely, no doubt about it, use an editor to clean up the misspellings and repetitions, and improve overall flow and narration. In spite of the flaws, Jones’s voice shines through.

I gave the book to Janelle (not her real name), a biracial 17-year-old. She likes to read Chicken Soup for the Soul and inspirational books, and reads when she is not in the facility. When I asked for her feedback on From Crack to College, she said, “Has it been edited? Some stuff you can tell it hasn’t, because she said it twice. This is a book that wants to tell her story. It’s important because if you on crack you think there is no turning back, but it’s a major turnaround because some people can’t even get off weed and go to college. It gives you hope and inspiration and makes you want to go for something.”

In this genre, A Piece of Cake by Cupcake Brown still stands out as the superstar of drug memoirs, particularly for teens of color, but of interest to all teens. African American Cupcake is thrust into the foster care system when her mother dies. Experiencing abuse, gangs, and drug addiction, she completely turns her life circumstances around and becomes a lawyer and an internationally bestselling author. Well-written, filled with a ton of action and valuable insight, the memoir details clearly the interesting steps Brown took to change—it’s off the charts!

I asked Janelle to talk with me about a few of the books she read on the topic of crack, and terrifically, she explains where From Crack to College is in the spectrum. “Come Back: A Mother and Daughter’s Journey Through Hell and Back is a one—the book talked to me. Diary of a Crack Addict’s Wife is a two. The writing was more to tell the story with so much detail you can see it. It was kind of slow and I put it down a lot, because it was hard to find the action part. From Crack to College is a three. It was more like me writing a book and giving it to you. But it was real, talked like us, was shorter and easier to read. There was action.”  While clearly Janelle values a well written and edited story (as most everyone does), and clearly, race and class aren’t always of the utmost importance in relate-ability (Come Back is about a middle class white mother and daughter), there is enough of value in From Crack to College to pick up, read and easily finish the book.

I couldn’t find my one copy of From Crack to College for several weeks—girls were reading it. I tracked down Amanda, a 16-year-old African American girl who isn’t a big reader, and she had the book in her room. She sums it up perfectly—“The way she writes could be better but the overall story is good.”

Indeed, there is enough in From Crack to College that sets it apart from mainstream memoirs, making it a truly worthwhile read for anyone, including a population whose interests aren’t always reflected on our library shelves or served at the checkout desk. These teens need books that are really by, about, and for them.

Bottom line: this book belongs not only on inner city and urban library shelves; it belongs in libraries everywhere.

From Crack to College & Visa Versa is available on Amazon or direct from the author. I gave Jones the information on how to set up her book with Ingram, but she would only receive $1.10 per copy, so decided against it.

*In case anyone comes across the titleBitter Fruit: the Street Ministryand thinks it might have potential due to it’s provocative and street teen-pick-up immediately cover, two words: Nope. None.

Brittenum, DeVan Faye. Bitter Fruit: the Street Ministry. Brittenum. 2013. pap. $7.99. ISBN 9781482047462.

Brown, Cupcake. A Piece of Cake. Broadway Books. pap. $11.49. ISBN 9781400052295.

Fontaine, Claire and Mia. Come Back: A Mother and Daughter’s Journey Through Hell and Back. William Morrow. pap. $15.95. 0060859718

Hunter, Cynthia. Diary of a Crack Addict’s Wife. Kensington. 2005. Tr $15.00. ISBN 0758208340

Jones, Marilyn Denise. From Crack to College & Vice Versa. Marilyn D. Jones. 2013. pap. $14.95.  ISBN 9780989427401.

Bryan’s reading aloud from his book to the warmly receptive crowd was a tough act to follow but publisher Justin Chanda piqued our interest by noting, “It’s rare to be reminded why you are in the business,” as he introduced The Boy on the Wooden Box, a Holocaust memoir. The book, which debuts late this month, is the story of Leon Leyson, a boy who was saved by Oskar Shindler. Unfortunately, Leyson died before seeing the book’s release.

I was also excited to learn that Bill Joyce, author the of multi-platformed The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (2012) will publish, in cooperation with Moonbot Studios, The Mischievians, a story of global mischief-makers, and that Phyllis Reynolds Naylor will end her “Alice” series with Now I’ll Tell You Everything. In the new book, Alice updates her life up to the age of 60.

In September, Brian Floca’s long-awaited Locomotive will chug onto many of our bookshelves. The month also brings “Talk Like a Pirate Day” (the 19th), which will be celebrated with Pirates Love Underpants, the latest in author Claire Freedman and illustrator by Ben Cort’s “underpants” franchise.

October will also see some timely releases. Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin have reunited their barnyard friends for Halloween in Click, Clack, Boo!  Also for Halloween is The Power of Poppy Pendle by Natasha Lowe, a sweet story about a good witch with bonus recipes.

And then the preview became dogs galore, with the introduction of Debra Frasier’s Spike: Ugliest Dog in the Universe; God Got a Dog by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Marla Frazee; and Bob Dylan’s If Dogs Run Free, based on one of his lesser-known songs. Dylan isn’t the only celebrity with a book based on a song this year: Jewel has debuted Sweet Dreams, while John Lithgow’s Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo will drop in October. Both books come with CDs.

What do you get when you team up two zany guys like Jon Sciezska and Mac Barnett? You get a redo of a benign book entitled Birthday Bunny into the hilariously entertaining Battle Bunny. It’s a picture book with fun illustrations by Mathew Myers that kids of all ages will find amusing. Who could resist a book that is described as a “hip kid’s Elements of Style” featuring a Tim Burton-ish teacher?

You should also be checking out Thrice Told Tales: Three Mice Full of Writing Advice by Catherine Lewis, illustrated by Joost Swarte.

A couple of trilogies-plus-one books are on their way: Rick Yancy’s Final Descent, the fourth in his “Monstrumologist” series, and Fire and Ash, the fourth book in Jonathan Maberry’s Rot & Ruin series.

Sharon Messenger and Lisa McMann prove to be busy ladies with several books on the fall list. Messenger will debut Keeper of the Lost Cities: Exile and Let the Sky Fall. McMann has three upcoming titles this fall, Island of Fire, the latest in her “Unwanteds” series—described as Hunger Games meets Harry Potter—Bang, the second in her “Visions” series, and Don’t Close Your Eyes.

Those looking for books to meet your Common Core needs will have a wealth of titles to choose from on S&S’s list. For interesting stories about real people, try Jeanette Winter’s Henri’s Scissors, a true life story about Matisse, or The Tree Lady, which tells the story of Katherine Olivia Sessions, the woman responsible for the millions of trees and plants that populate Balboa Park in San Diego. And Let’s Go Nuts! Seeds We Eat may fit nicely into a science curriculum.

Lastly, I was delighted to learn that two-time Caldecott Medalist Nonny Hogrogian and her husband, Newbery Honor Medalist David Kherdian, have collaborated on a new book: Come Back, Moon, which will be released in October.

It’s also exciting to find out that Simon & Schuster has launched a website and app for the parents and educators of beginning readers called Ready To Read; it features classroom guides, activity sheets, and certificates.

By Laura Lutz

Needless to say, publishers want to get the word out about their hottest upcoming titles. One way to achieve this is through previews to educators, but these are often available only to those who either live in New York City or attend conferences. More publishers, however, including Simon & Schuster and Scholastic, are previewing their books online, making the whole process more accessible to all.

I recently viewed Scholastic’s online preview for Fall 2013 and—great news—you can watch it, too. It’s a star-studded list and here are some of the titles that have me pretty excited for the coming months:

Starting with the picture books, Robie Harris’s When Lions Roar sounded really lovely and sweet.  It’s a story about dealing with your fears, something that so many young children grapple with. Chris Raschka’s illustrations feature muted colors (compared to some of his other work) and white space to give the book a comforting feel.  Editor David Saylor says that the story “will make the scary things go away.”  While we librarians sometimes often grow weary of such statements, this book likes like it will offer comfort to little kids facing a big world.

For major “wow” factor, there’s Train by Elisha Cooper, which features all manner of trains as they travel through the U.S.  A sure hit for transportation fans.

Hiding Phil by Eric Barclay is among a number of animal stories in the picture book category.  Phil is an elephant that three kids want to keep as a pet—if only they can keep their parents from finding out.  A great storytime read-aloud.  Trouper by Meg Kearney, illustrated by E.B. Lewis, is a story about a three-legged dog, who wants to be adopted. This poignant tale is based on Kearney’s real-life dog, Trouper, who was saved from a kill shelter.

Get ready for the Dream Teams of children’s literature. The Green Bath is the lively, final collaboration between author Margaret Mahy and illustrator Steven Kellogg; editor Arthur Levine calls it “brilliantly bubblicious.”  Ready for another How Do Dinosaurs… story?  How Do Dinosaurs Say I’m Mad? by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague addresses temper tantrums and the “terrible twos.”  I could almost hear the drumroll when The Birthday Queen was presented. A new book from Don and Audrey Wood, it’s incredibly vibrant and eye-catching.

Next up was the early reader category.  Pam Muñoz Ryan is launching a new series based on a previous picture book character, Tony Baloney: School Rules.  With a focus on school adventures and sibling relationships, this is a fun, rhyming read.  You all should know about another new series: Discover More Readers. This nonfiction set addresses multiple levels on multiple topics and is right in line with the Common Core.

Next on the docket: graphic novels. The Lost Boy by Greg Ruth features black and white art with a creepy feel that recalls Dave McKean’s work in The Graveyard Book.  Dogs Of War by Sheila Keenan and Nathan Fox features three short stories about canines at work in three different conflicts. Finally, The Silver Six, by A.J. Lieberman and Darren Rawlings, is about a group of orphans who escape to an uninhabited moon while being chased by a ruthless henchman.

As for middle grade, there are some intriguing new titles.  Perennially popular Gordon Korman launches a new series, The Hypnotists: Book 1, which is about a kid who is a true mind-bender.  And look out, Star Wars fans. Jeffrey Brown’s Star Wars: Jedi Academy is a cool mash-up of Jedi fandom and Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  Matthew J. Kirby’s The Lost Kingdom is a reimagining of Colonial America that combines Kirby’s love of Jules Verne’s stories and the legend of a Welsh prince. Sounds fascinating, right?

One of my favorite presenters, though—and I think you’ll agree once you see the video—is editor Barry Cunningham booktalking The Wolf Princess by Cathryn Constable.  He describes it as “a little bit of The Little Princess, a little bit of The Thief Lord, and certainly a book for the book huggers.”  At which point, he hugs the book.  Librarian hearts will swoon.  Once past that, you’ll realize that this is a book about a young girl’s journey to Russia to discover her heritage; it’s all romance, beauty, and adventure.  This one could be top of my list.

Serafina’s Promise by Ann E. Burg sounds particularly moving.  Set in a rural village outside of Port-au-Prince, it’s a novel in verse about a girl who must overcome great odds to pursue her dream of being a doctor.  Editor Tracy Mack rightly says that this book teaches empathy through the power of story.

In the Young Adult category, Walter Dean Myers has created a prequel to his books Fallen Angels and Sunrise Over Fallujah. It’s Invasion, a World War II story about two unlikely friends. Using primary source photos, The Nazi Hunters, by Neal Bascomb, will surely appeal to fans of Steve Sheinkin’s Bomb. Bascomb’s true story about government agents searching for escaped Nazi war criminals reads like a spy novel.  And in more nonfiction, James L. Swanson brings history alive for teens with “The President Has Been Shot!” about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Fans of Kristin Cashore and Tamora Pierce, look out for Sorrow’s Knot by Erin Bow, which features strong, smart women who must dig deep to overcome adversity.  Speaking of Tamora Pierce, her prequel to The Will of the Empress, Battle Magic, is on this list as well.

Editor David Levithan gave a compelling booktalk for Jeff Hirsch’s Darkest Path, stating that Hirsch “amazingly, keeps thinking of new ways that our world can go wrong.”  In this case, America is in its second Civil War with battle lines drawn across religious affiliations.  It sounds completely gripping.

This being YA, romance is in the air. (but no love triangles that I could tell, hallelujah).  Natalie Standiford’s The Boy On The Bridge is about an American college student who travels abroad to Cold War era Russia and falls in love. Torn, set in modern-day, war-ravaged Afghanistan, sounds like a difficult read, though also a romantic one.  David Massey shares a story about a cross-cultural romance with a touch of magic realism, illuminating hope in dark times.

These are just the highlights, so make sure to check out the preview for yourself. The e-catalog is also available. There you’ll find information about format, prices, publication dates, and more. Happy reading.

None other than Mo Willems made a guest appearance at the event, telling attendees that, after a decade with Pigeon, he wanted to write “a dirty book.”  Therefore, in April of 2014, The Pigeon Needs a Bath will debut, what Willems calls, “the most fecal book” he’s ever written. During Willems read of the book, the audience—as all Pigeon lovers do—quickly joined in participating in the books refrain.

Author and poet, Marilyn Singer was also in attendance, and shared her upcoming book, Rutherford B. Who Was He: Poems About the Presiden (December), illustrated by John Hendrix. It is a great book for teaching facts about the president using poetry.

Here is an example:

Theodore Roosevelt
A city boy who loved the country,
an animal lover, who loved to hunt.
A Rough Rider, rancher and a scholar,
a diplomat, yet also blunt.

He took on greedy corporations
and foreign powers with this trick.
A president should speak quite softly,
but always carry a very large stick.

A book trailer for the new title has also been created:

Hidden among the veteran writers at the presentation was Cristen Terrill, a debut author. She treated the attendees to a reading from All Our Yesterdays, her time travel young adult novel told in a dual narrative that takes place both in the present and past.

Another YA title that was featured was Elizabeth Wein’s Rose Under Fire (September).  Set in a concentration camp during World War II, it is told from the point of view of Rose Justice, an American pilot (and poet) who is shot down and sent to Ravensbrück.

We were also introduced to a new British import, the series “Lockwood & Co.” by Jonathan Stroud.  The first book in the series is The Screaming Staircase (September), which features a group of kids who open the Physic Detection Agency to battle an epidemic of ghosts in London.

Yet Don’t Play with Your Food (January), Bob Shea’s tale of how a group of bunnies outsmart a monster was the highlight of the preview for many.  It was performed by the Disney Hyperion folks, who donned hand puppets to act out scenes from the book.

Though Marciano is best known for carrying on the Madeline legacy created his grandfather, Ludwig Bemelmans, he puts his brush aside to write a middle school novel about a “truly horrible boy” in The 9 Lives of Alexander Baddenfield (October). Says editor Sharyn November, “The evil text and art by Sophie Blackall play off each other. It has a bit of Charles Addams.”

Humorous for entirely different reasons, the title of the day had to be Why Dogs Eat Poop (October), by Francesca Gould and David Haviland, a nonfiction tome all about the gross-but-true things you never knew about animals. Believe it or not, the book will help meet Common Core State Standards.

In the same vein, Penguin has created a comprehensive Nonfiction Guide [PDF], a guide to its popular nonfiction titles grouped into overlapping grade bands: K–4, 4–8, and 7 and up. The books are organized thematically by science, history, and social studies, and each grade band has an associated text set, with nonfiction and historical fiction titles surrounding one specific topic: Art & Artists (K–4), Heroes (4–8), and the Civil Rights Movement (7 and up). There is also an author study on Jean Fritz.

Also in October—just in time for National Bullying Prevention Month—is the debut of Until It Hurts to Stop, Jennifer R. Hubbard’s (@JennRHubbard) novel that examines the lasting effects of bullying. Penguin has also created materials on this important topic: the Pledge to Play Nice kit.

The program, which is geared for grades PreK–3, contains a poster with activities aligned to Common Core State Standards, along with a pledge (created by Llama Llama author and illustrator Anna Dewdney), and stickers and certificates for pledge takers.

On a lighter note, food will take center stage this fall in two celebrity books. Haylie Duff’s (@HaylieK) The Real Girls Kitchen (October) aims to help young girls become foodies, while the first book in the “Recipe for Adventure” series by Giada De Laurentis, Naples, is a story centered around a Pizzafest.

Raccoons also like pizza, and in the Secret Pizza Party (September) by Adam Rubin, illustrated Daniel Salmieri (@rubinsalmieri), readers can follow a raccoon on his quest for his favorite food. And perhaps the most famous raccoon of all kidlit, Rascal, is turning 50 this year; in celebration of the event, a special anniversary edition of the Sterling North book will be released.

New titles are also on the horizon from even more familiar names, like Eric Carle’s Friends (November) and QB1 from Mike Lupica, which drops in September just in time for football season.

QB1, which has been described as “Friday Night Lights meets the Manning brothers,” also marks the launch of Penguin’s “Read to the End Zone” sweepstakes. Kids at schools and libraries will be encouraged to read as many Lupica books that they can, with each book counting as 10 yards. Once kids “reach the end zone,” they can enter the sweepstakes for a chance to win a Penguin-sponsored Superbowl party for their classroom or library, and a Skype visit with Mike Lupica the week before the big game in January. The contest will run from September to December.

Fall also marks the end of some best-selling series, such as Anthony Horowitz’s final Alex Rider book, Russian Roulette: Story of an Assassin, and Adam Gidwitz’s finale to his fairy tale series, The Grimm Conclusion. Both books will be available in October. Meanwhile, fans of Marie Lu’s (@Marie_Lu) “Legend” series will get closure to her trilogy with Champion, set for November.

In September, we also see the start of a new series:  T.A. Barron—known as the “Merlin Man” because of his best-selling Merlin series—will debut his take on a new myth with Atlantis Rising.

Penguin also has the holidays covered. Beginning with Ten Orange Pumpkins (September), a new counting book by Stephen Savage (@savageartist) for Halloween, followed up in October with Loren Long’s An Otis Christmas and Jon Agee’s Little Santa, the story of Santa as a youth.

Groundhog Weather School and the reissue of the updated The Buck Stops Here: The Presidents of the United States will both be popular in February and year round.  The updates for The Buck Stops Here were done by the 94-year-old Alice Provensen.

The reissue of Jack: The Early Years of John F. Kennedy will also be a welcome addition in 2014 for marking the fiftieth anniversary of the president’s assassination.

And on a personal note, as a resident of the Hudson Valley, I am always attuned to books set in upstate New York.  Ones to watch for this fall include Printz Award winner Meg Rosoff’s Picture Me Gone  (October), which features a girl and her father traveling from London to New York State to find a missing friend, while Carol Goodman’s Blythewood is set against historical events at a 1911 Hudson Valley boarding school, where mysterious happenings are afoot.

I also plan to add these titles to my nightstand:

The Creature Department (November) by Robert Paul Weston. Razorbill has teamed up with Framestore, an animation company, to create the creatures from the book so that they, as well as the author, will be available for classroom Skype visits. See the animated book cover here.

The Girl Who Heard Colors (September) by Mary Harris, illustrated by Brantley-Newton, is a picture book that introduces the five senses and synesthesia, an ability to perceive one sense with another. Lady Gaga, Duke Ellington, and Jimi Hendrix all have been synesthetes.

The Fantastic Family Whipple (August) by Matthew Ward. This debut middle grade story is about a boy who has to deal with menacing clowns while trying to find a world record to break.

Brotherhood by A.B. Westrick (@ABWestrick) is a middle grade story set during the reconstruction era that has two brothers involved with the KKK during its formation.

Closing the event, Julie Berry (@JulieBerryBooks), gave an emotional reading—due to the love she has for the character, she told the crowd—of a passage from her new book, All the Truth That’s in Me (September). The YA novel tells the story of Judith, a young girl in colonial times who becomes speechless after a horrifying trauma.

Lee Wade and Anne Schwartz were up first, beginning with a new Daisy book from Caldecott winner Chris Raschka, Daisy Gets Lost (October). The whole room seemed to sigh as slides of the book’s lively illustrations took center stage. Rocket’s Mighty Words (July) by Tad Hills is meant to teach early language, and Dream Dog (September), written by Lou Berger and illustrated by David J. Catrow, will add to what will turn out to be a season full of cute canine offerings.

Brush of the Gods (June) by Leonore Look and illustrated by Meilo So, is an introduction to artist Wu Daozi; it’s already garnered four starred reviews. A completely different style of dazzling art can be seen in The Beginner’s Guide to Running Away from Home by Jennifer LaRue Huget, illustrated using wire and cloth by Red Nose Studio. Kids will want to figure out just how the illustrations were created.

Random House editor Maria Modugno got a bit teary introducing what she called her most important book yet, Snowflakes Fall (October), written by Patricia McLachlan and illustrated by Steven Kellogg. The tag line? “No two the same, all beautiful.”

The Random House imprint has also “gone to the dogs.” Readers will enjoy a dog’s-eye view of a day at school through poetry and photographs in Dog-Gone School (July), written by Amy Schmidt with photographs by Ron Schmidt. And in Bad Astrid, written by Eileen Brennan and illustrated by Regan Dunnick, the protagonist confronts the school bully; both characters are playfully represented as pups.

The Alfred A. Knopf imprint’s pitch began with—yes, you guessed it, a dog book! Dog Loves Counting (September) by Louise Yates follows Dog Loves Books and Dog Loves Drawing. Legend Anita Lobel is also back with Lena’s Sleep Sheep (August); the title says it all. And picture book offerings were rounded out by bullying expert Trudy Ludwig with The Invisible Boy (October).

Moving on to early literacy, Step into Reading is starting a new line of comic readers, incorporating speech balloons. Step into Reading is also introducing a new level 3 reader about Anne Frank. And Ruth Chew’s “witch” titles are coming back into print as Stepping Stone books.

The list of middle grade titles kicked off with the dystopian novel that started it all. Jeanne DuPrau’s The City of Ember is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a handsome new edition featuring a poster and a new short story. And for readers who love Wonder, check out Twerp by Mark Goldblatt, in which the bullying of a special-needs sixth-grade boy is recounted in short chapters with an accessible voice.

For pure fun, Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library (June), Chris Grabenstein’s book-based puzzles and scavenger hunt, make this into an ode to libraries. Action lovers should try the new post-apocalyptic thriller by Peggy Eddleman, Sky Jumpers (September).

Delacorte has a new middle-grade novel that its editors call “an exciting find.” Set in the 1959 segregated south, it follows an 11-year-old boy who is a great pitcher, but who stutters. Paperboy by Vince Vawter is being compared to The Help and To Kill a Mockingbird.

New Knopf middle-grade will include a trilogy of historical mysteries by Cynthia Voigt, starting with Mister Max: The Book of Lost Things (September). Equally intriguing are two other historically inspired books debuting in October, Will in Scarlet (October) by Matthew Cody, a Robin Hood origins story, and The Great Trouble by Deborah Hopkinson, based on the London cholera epidemic of 1854.  Although fiction, Hopkinson has included extensive back matter and primary source excerpts.

Wendy Lamb Books began its preview pitch with the movie tie-in version of The Watsons go to Birmingham, showing off photos from the movie set, and then shared a few novels, including Odessa Again by Dana Reinhardt, a YA author making her middle-grade debut, and a new Kevin Spencer novel, Vote, by Gary Paulsen. Both titles were released in May.

Random has several YA sequels debuting soon, including Untold (September), Sarah Rees Brennan’s sequel to Unspoken; Brian Falkner’s second Recon Team Angel novel, Task Force (September), and Sarah Zettel’s Golden Girl (June), a follow-up to the BFYA listed novel, Dust Girl.

Delacorte also made a big impression with its teen line-up. In the new Mistborn Trilogy by fantasy master Brandon Sanderson, Steelheart (September), the Epics took over earth 10 years before; now humans are ready to fight back and get revenge for the family members they lost. Lauren Kate is also introducing a new series, beginning with Teardrop (October) in which a 17-year-old Louisiana native’s tears have the power to raise Atlantis. James Dashner also begins a new trilogy about gamers and cyberterrorists with The Eye of Minds (October). And those are only the tip of the iceberg!

Nonfiction readers will enjoy the YA edition of Sonia Nazario’s immigrant story, Enrique’s Journey (August), which includes an update on Enrique’s attempts to be reunited with his mother.

Highlights in YA from Knopf includes Chasing Shadows (August) by Cybil Award winner Swati Avasthi incorporates graphic novel chapters to represent one character’s thoughts while in a coma, and David Levithan celebrates the 10th anniversary of Boys Meets Boy with Two Boys Kissing (August), based on a true incident of two boys trying to break the record for the longest kiss. Adele Griffin and Margo Lanagan both have new books coming from Knopf as well.

Listening Library, the Random House audiobook division, boasts a stellar line-up of new productions, including H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine (June) read by Derek Jacobi, an upcoming Kate DiCamillo middle-grade novel Flora & Ulysses: the Illuminated Adventures (with the print edition coming from Candlewick in September), and the much-loved novels of Rainbow Rowell, Fangirl (September), joining the already released and acclaimed Eleanor & Park.

The morning finished with a talk from guest author Robin Wasserman about her upcoming horror novel, The Waking Dark (Knopf, September). Robin shared how difficult she finds it to talk about her own writing, and especially about where her ideas might originate.

She also said that, as a teen, she babysat a great deal and lived in terror that something bad would happen on her watch. (Hint, hint: this ties in significantly with one of her characters in Waking Dark.) She also talked about how much reading horror helped her get through bad times at school. She believes that enjoying horror fiction is not about being scared, but about being brave.

First up were the picture books, and Candlewick started it off with a bang: Dinosaur Kisses (August) by David Ezra Stein. Featuring an overzealous young dinosaur, this book has huge storytime potential for toddlers; the dinosaur just wants to hug and kiss and play…but ends up biting and pushing in all his excitement. Working in a limited palette of greens, yellows, and browns, Stein demonstrates once again that he has his finger on the pulse of the kid experience.

Librarian Laura Lutz, with librarian Bina Williams, presenting Matt Phelan’s Bluffton.

As you can imagine, much of Candlewick’s team was tied up with BEA preparations so yours truly agreed to help them out by presenting a couple of titles. I had the privilege of sharing How to Train a Train, written by Jason Carter Eaton and illustrated by Caldecott Honoree John Rocco. This is a clever pseudo-guidebook on how to make a train your pet. Many librarians in the room were talking about the sons, nephews, and friends in their life who will go nuts over this transportation-themed picture book.  The sad news?  You’ll have to wait until September for this one, folks.

Journey, by debut author-illustrator Aaron Becker, was met with longing sighs and excited gasps by the preview attendees.  A young girl escapes to an imaginary world…and what a world it is. Wordless, lovely, and quiet, this was succinctly described as “a novel in picture book form.”  This releases in August, but it’s already received two starred reviews and—if the gushing around the room was any indication—it’s likely to receive more in its future. A delight…and, I daresay, a highlight of the preview.

Toon Books was up next with its latest slate of beginning comics for young readers. The Big Wet Balloon is the American debut of world-renowned Argentine artist Ricardo Liniers. Two sisters have an adventure in the rain, and readers will be dying to romp in the puddles alongside them. This comes out in September, publishing simultaneously in English and Spanish.

Readers will also be excited to have another book from Geoffrey Hayes in their hands; Patrick Eats His Peas and Other Stories (August).  And fans of Otto rejoice: Otto’s Backwards Day, by Frank Cammuso and Jay Lynch, debuts in August as well. Otto ends up in a backwards world; the catch is that the world is a palindrome, just like Otto’s name. Clever!

To change the pace, editor Sarah Ketchersid next presented With a Mighty Hand: The Story in the Torah, adapted by Amy Ehrlich and illustrated by Daniel Nevins (August). This includes the first five books of the Hebrew bible and a genealogy map. But what elicited excited murmurs from the attendees was the artwork—hand-painted on wood, the book’s illustrations are rich in color and quite stunning.

You’ll all be thrilled to find out another Kate DiCamillo story is on its way in August. Flora and Ulysses, illustrated by K.G. Campbell, is a middle-grade novel that’s a nice transition for kids ready to move on from Mercy Watson but not quite up to the length of A Tale of Despereaux. The black-and-white illustrations—featuring a girl that looks, entertainingly, like Candlewick’s Sharon Hancock, executive director of school and library marketing—have a graphic novel feel to them and are certain to appeal to DiCamillo fans everywhere.

Next in the proceedings, I was up again to present Matt Phelan’s new graphic novel Bluffton. A fictionalized version of Buster Keaton’s real-life summers spent in Bluffton, Michigan, this will wow readers who already believed Phelan had outdone himself with Storm in the Barn and Around the World. You won’t have to wait long for this one: it comes out in July.

Preview attendees were seeing stars when they heard the names “David Almond” and “Oliver Jeffers.”  Their new collaboration is The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas (August). It’s a fanciful adventure story with a carnival-themed twist. We were all left envying the Brits; this has already been published in the UK, those lucky blokes.

Candlewick’s Jenny Choy, marketing manager, had us all on the edge of our seats whilst talking about Fallout by Todd Strasser. It’s 1962 and the bomb has gone off. A family scrambles into their shelter but are followed by others in their neighborhood. Suddenly a shelter built for four is housing ten. Jenny described the scenes in the shelter as being “filthy, oppressive, and claustrophobic,” and we all swooned a little when we learned we had to wait until September to see what happens.

Romeo and Juliet, as imagined by acclaimed illustrator Gareth Hinds…not much more to say about that, right? We know this graphic novel version will be outstanding. Featuring a diverse cast to capture Shakespeare’s universality, this comes out in September.

Young adult titles were next. There is the Wuthering Heights retelling that got excited murmurs from the room, Black Spring (August) by Alison Croggon. It has a magical quality to it, with witches and “ancient laws of vendetta.” Can’t wait to curl up with this on a drizzly fall afternoon! Also on the YA docket is Living with Jackie Chan, Jo Knowles’ companion story to Jumping Off Swings. This time, the story is told from perspective of Joss.

Ears perked up upon hearing about debut author Susann Cokal’s story of court intrigue in an imagined Scandinavian country. The Kingdom of Little Wounds is an upstairs-downstairs type story featuring feminist themes and true history details. Sweeping and rich in detail, this October title has enormous crossover appeal. And just look at that cover.

We all reacted quite strongly to the pitch for More Than This by Patrick Ness—immediately we all whispered and gushed. This was described to us as a “page-turner,” “heartbreaking,” “dramatic.”  It sounds like an absolute heart-stopper. How many days until September?

Lastly, we got a special treat: one of our own, Monica Edinger, Dalton School teacher and blogger at Educating Alice, spoke about her new book, Africa Is My Home. Telling the little-known story of the real-life children aboard Amistad, this labor of love was thirteen years in the making for Edinger. She uses primary source materials and archival images to drive the story home; accompanied by illustrations from Robert Byrd, this is an emotional and rich book. The room was so supportive of Edinger, and we all can’t wait for this one to come out in October.

With that, we all scurried off to BEA to meet authors, network, and check out upcoming titles.  We’re already looking forward to next year.