It’s that time of year again. That time when I complain about how we’re always rushing the seasons in retail. It is September 25th, three full months before Christmas, and yet I am getting carton upon carton of holiday books.
I just barely have a Halloween display up and running and now I’ve got a back shelf devoted to Christmas and Hanukkah books. I try to be a retail purist, and resist the urge to set a Christmas display much before Thanksgiving. And every year, my staff outvotes me and we set up the books much earlier. The only reason we do that is because so many people are buying their holiday books earlier and earlier.
I’ve noticed, too, that more people in September have bought a book saying it’s a holiday present than I can ever remember in the past. It’s always curious who these highly organized people are. They obviously plan ahead, and they are smartly spreading the financial burden of the holiday season through several months. But I will never understand these people.

When I was a kid the Christmas display went up the day after Thanksgiving and that was just fine for everyone. We enjoyed the season we were in.Halloween didn’t share the aisle with Thanksgiving and Christmas. I liked that. There was a real honesty in that to me. No one would have thought that having Christmas books up in September was a good idea. Why now do I feel like not having a section of Christmas books is actually hurting my business? I will remain steadfast, for now, and always know where my holiday books and decorations are, but I am loathe to put them until the beginning of November.
And no matter how much I might want to, I will not begin wearing my Santa hat until the day after Thanksgiving.

Retailers often have one chance to work with a new customer. Staff help gets judged immediately by customers as actually helpful or actively not. There is an art to reading a customer. If you squander your one chance, you very well might have lost a sale.
Here are some things we try to remember as customers come in.
– Greet them, but don’t approach right away.
– Pay attention to their body language. Are they engaged in browsing or are they sighing because they can’t find something?
– Let some time pass before asking them if they need help. We always say as we walk by with a stack of shelving (always best to have a task so the customer doesn’t feel trapped), “Let me know if I can help you find anything?” This question is far less threatening than the “Do you need help?” It allows the shopper to look around and let you know that they can’t find the poetry section.
– Never hover. Nothing can ruin a quiet day at the bookstore more than an over-eager bookseller who just won’t let you be.
– Again, the art of noticing body language comes into play during the browsing phase. Some people don’t ask for help, but clearly would appreciate some. It’s your job as the staffer on the floor to aid this person in finding a book. People have lots of ways of letting you know they’re stymied. Sighing is a big clue. Saying to the children in a voice just loud enough for you to hear: “I wonder if they have that book by Eric Carle?” If you hear this, then you go up and ask them what they’re looking for.
– If they ask for book recommendations, do not overwhelm them. I find it’s easy to get carried away and that can be detrimental to book purchases. It’s far better to pick two to three books you’re passionate about and talk about them rather than throw a huge stack at someone. However, there are also people who want big stacks. They will be leaning in and actively listening.
– Never, ever, make someone feel bad for their choice of book. There can be nothing worse than passing judgment on someone’s reading. I don’t really care what people are reading, I’m just glad they’re reading and looking for books in my store.
– Lastly, most customers have made a conscious choice to visit your store. Remember that without them, we’d have far fewer people to talk to about books.

This past summer we had two student staffers. We’ve been without them for almost a month. PJ is up the road at the University of Vermont and David began his junior year of high school. I love having young staffers at the store and I’m finding myself missing them.
PJ, who will ultimately be leaving us next fall when she gets her Master’s in Scotland, isn’t fully leaving us  – she’s just drastically cutting back her hours, from 24 hours a week to eight. This is something we really feel. Her pleasant demeanor and knowledge and love of books make her a real asset to the store. And having great help Fridays and all weekend from her has been a boon all summer. It’s been great to see PJ go from a shy teenager to a confident young woman who loves to talk to customers about books.
I’ll always remember the first day PJ really flew solo, as it were. It was her first Christmas season with us and I asked her to run the register. Up till then we’d really only trained on it and she was good but timid with customers, preferring instead to shelve, organize and clean. Her eyes widened in fear and she rang people up all day and started to love it. I knew that throwing her off the retail deep end was the only way to go.
Young David, as I sometimes call him, is finishing his first summer of employment with us. We were his first job and he’s done great. I mentioned him in an earlier blog about working with kids. The learning curve for young people working with the public is steep. He’s handled some tough customers very gracefully. Of course, the younger the staffer the better they are at the computer. So, getting him up and running on our point of sale took far less time than with someone older, and that was delightful.
As both PJ and David head back to school I know we are losing some energy, lots of laughs and two work horses. I never feel bad about a young person carrying heavy boxes to the basement. It’s sort of a rite of passage that I secretly revel in. I also enjoy scaring the bejeepers out of the young ones at least once a summer. So, now I have to wait for the busy rush of Christmas to get my young staffers back, and I can’t wait.

It’s not every day that a good customer writes a book and gets it published. Jeanne Blackmore is that customer.  She is also one of my favorites. All of us in retail have customers we love to see walk in the door. Sometimes it’s because we know they love books and tend to buy a lot, and sometimes it’s because seeing them walk in the store means at least 15 minutes of laughter and good conversation. Jeanne is a great combination of both.
Her debut picture book is called How Does Sleep Come? and it’s a lovely bedtime book, full of gorgeous illustrations and soothing, lovely text that makes me relaxed every time I read it. Jeanne’s grandfather is Roger Duvoisin, so she comes by her talent naturally. It struck me as funny that in all the years I’ve known Jeanne, I only learned of this familial connection when I read the press release. I liked her even more for that.
This was our first pajama party. We had cookies and milk for the kids and wine and cheese for the adults. Many kids came in their pjs and that was so cute to see. What you can’t see in the photo on the left was the book that the boy had tucked in the pocket of his robe. I loved his earnestness. It did break my heart, though, when he asked three times if any of the cookies were gluten free.
Jeanne may be a tax lawyer by day, but she sure handled the event like a pro. She asked the kids how they fall asleep. It’s amazing to me how shy noisy kids can get when asked a question. Then she showed the crowd her daughter’s special blanket and bunny. This was the only tense moment of the event. The smallest child in the crowd, probably three, clad in cow jammies, saw the bunny and was rapt. The bunny went around the room for all to touch, but when it went away all we could hear was this sad little voice, “Daddy, can you tell me where the bunny went?” Everyone chuckled. And later, when all the other kids were eating cookies, this little girl was at the desk, patting the bunny’s nose.
The book is based on Jeanne’s son Ben and she wrote it when he was two to help him sleep. It took her 20 minutes to write and the publisher asked her to change two words. Just two! Wow. The story works so gently and calmly that all the pj-clad kids who were bouncing around before the reading, were silent and leaning in during the reading. They were so quiet all the parents rushed to buy copies after the event. I’ve never actually seen kids quiet down so fast for so long.
It was a little bit like magic.
 
 

Flying Pig bookseller Darrilyn is not easily daunted, but a phone call this week tested her mettle. Last week, we received a mis-shipment of three boxes. We hadn’t ordered these books. They are heavy volumes, so while there were only 12 books in all, they arrived just four to a carton.
We called the publisher and explained that we had received these three mystery boxes, and would like to return them. The publisher offered to send call tags (for those of you not in the field, these are pre-paid mailing labels).
So far, so good.
The problem started when we then received one call tag, for one box. Our UPS man, savvily noticing that we only had a single call tag, picked up one box and headed on his merry way. Darrilyn headed to the phone to let the publisher know we needed two more call tags–and that’s where a simple shipping error turned into a Kafka-esque dramedy that took 15 to 20 minutes of staff time.
It took a good 12 minutes for Darrilyn to get across to the customer service rep (in a service center somewhere far, far away) what had happened. Every time she thought the situation was clear, the very polite but misunderstanding woman on the other end of the phone would ask for a piece of information that revealed we were still on different pages. For instance, she REALLY wanted our purchase order number. We would like to have given her that information, but since we hadn’t actually ordered the books, there was no PO number to provide. She also kept putting Darrilyn on hold and coming back with permission to return the books, which was kind, but since we hadn’t ordered them in the first place, unnecessary.
The fact that there were three boxes for only 12 books was particularly stymie-ing to the customer service rep, no matter how many times Darrilyn explained that they, the publisher whose rep we were speaking with, shipped that title four to a carton because they weighed so much. The confusion was compounded by the fact that we now only had eight books in two cartons to return, since one had gone back with the single call tag. This turned into a circular conversation that would have been hilarious if a line hadn’t started forming at the register. Patient customers were waiting for Darrilyn — who had expected a two-minute phone call — to be able to come back and sell books.
At the end of the call, after four on-hold sessions, Darrilyn was told that the rep we were speaking with was not able to do anything about the problem; we would need to talk to the person who had issued the single call tag. We were given this person’s first name and an assurance that we would be hearing from her. Let’s just say we aren’t quite holding our collective breath, and fully expect another round of “Who’s on First?” tomorrow.
All this by way of giving readers another glimpse into the glamorous world of bookselling. Frankly, we encounter enough little snafus in the day that we ARE responsible for without spending this much time on mistakes that aren’t ours.

There is a publisher, that shall remain nameless, that has a new habit of sending out invoices, statements and delinquency notices every Saturday morning. I find this a curious time to send things as seemingly important as trade delinquencies, as for most stores, these emails won’t be seen until Monday morning. Plus, it can be a harsh way to start your weekend.
I know with the closing of Borders, many publishers were left carrying enormous debt and now every penny counts. Yes we have, rightfully, gotten a few of these notices as our checks and statements have missed each other in the mail. Have we been three days late to pay because of a vacation or trade show? Of course we have. I do not enjoy these statements, but understand that the bill must get paid. And pay it I do.
As I sipped my morning coffee on Saturday I checked the store email and my heart sank when I saw it: the trade delinquency notice. No one wants to get emails like this. I wondered what I had missed, as I felt fairly current with this publisher when I factored in my credits. I took a gulp of coffee and opened the email’s attachment. I read through the list of items due and my credits. So far I couldn’t really see that I owed much. I got to the bottom of the page and saw that I owed the massive sum of 53 cents. It’s going to cost me more to mail a check for that amount than what I owe.
I feel for the publishers who are in a bind, but getting a threatening letter for a 53-cent balance really makes me mad and makes me feel sad for the business in general. But, I sent off my check with a 44-cent stamp and wondered what next week’s email will bring?

Start your medal handicapping engines, folks! Here’s the updated list of the year’s starred reviews for children’s and YA books from Booklist, The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, the Horn Book, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, and VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates).
So far, 744 books have received 1,218 starred reviews. Receiving a starred review is a special, joyful honor for a book and its creators. While everyone will understandably focus much interest on the books receiving multiple stars, and may lose steam before getting toward the bottom of the list, I encourage you to take a long look at the single-star books; those often are given to rare discoveries, not in the mainstream swim, and are well worth exploring.

Publishers and authors: starred reviews are counted only when they have been officially published by the review magazines. This update covers reviews published through September 10, 2012. If your book has an upcoming star, never fear: it will be included in a future update. Publishers may alert me to any oversights at ebluemle AT publishersweekly.com; please include all starred review sources and dates for any books you’re referencing.

We hope this list will be a handy resource for booksellers, librarians, teachers, readers, and folks in the children’s book industry. The list was compiled and formatted by one indie bookseller. It’s a labor of love and takes hours of research and data input (and time-consuming tinkering to standardize the entries). If you are using this as a purchasing tool, please consider ordering from an independent bookstore instead of an online store or chain. If you don’t have a local independent, there are scores of indies you can order from online via Indiebound.org.

Happy reading!
 
SEVEN STARS
Code Name Verity. Elizabeth Wein. Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423152194)
Fault in Our Stars, The. John Green. Dutton, $17.99 (9780525478812)
Seraphina. Rachel Hartman. Random, $17.99 (9780375866562)
 
SIX STARS
Jimmy the Greatest! Jairo Buitrago, trans. from the Spanish by Elisa Amado, illus. by Rafael Yockteng. Groundwood (PGW, dist.), $18.95 (9781554981786)
Z Is for Moose. Kelly Bingham, illus. by Paul O. Zelinsky. Greenwillow, $16.99 (9780060799847)
 
FIVE STARS
Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass: The Story Behind an American Friendship. Russell Freedman. Clarion, $18.99 (9780547385624)
and then it’s spring. Julie Fogliano, illus. by Erin E. Stead. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596436244)
Beyond Courage: The Untold Story of Jewish Resistance During the Holocaust. Doreen Rappaport. Candlewick, $22.99 (9780763629762)
Bitterblue. Kristin Cashore. Dial, $19.99 (9780803734739)
Brides of Rollrock Island, The. Margo Lanagan. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375869198)
Disenchantments, The. Nina LaCour. Dutton, $16.99 (9780525422198)
Drowned Cities, The. Paolo Bacigalupi. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316056243)
Green. Laura Vaccaro Seeger. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596433977)
Impossible Rescue, The: The True Story of an Amazing Arctic Adventure. Martin W. Sandler. Candlewick, $17.99 (97807636508)
Liar & Spy. Rebecca Stead. Random/Lamb, $15.99 (9780385737432)
Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95. Phillip Hoose. FSG, $21.99 (9780374304683)
Never Fall Down. Patricia McCormick. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99 (9780061730931)
No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller. Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, illus. by R. Gregory Christie. Carolrhoda Lab, $17.95 (9780761361695)
This Is Not My Hat. Jon Klassen. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763655990)
 
FOUR STARS
Beetle Book, The. Steve Jenkins. Houghton Mifflin, $16.99 (9780547680842)
Black Hole Is NOT a Hole, A. Carolyn Cinami DeCristofano, illus. by Michael Carroll. Charlesbridge, $18.95 (9781570917837)
Boy on Cinnamon Street, The. Phoebe Stone. Scholastic/Levine, $16.99 (9780545215121)
Brothers at Bat: The True Story of an Amazing All-Brother Baseball Team. Audrey Vernick, illus. by Steven Salerno. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547385570)
Certain October, A. Angela Johnson. Simon & Schuster, $15.99 (9780689865053)
Chloe. Peter McCarty. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $16.99 (9780061142918)
Crow. Barbara Wright. Random, $16.99 (9780375869280)
Dying to Know You. Aidan Chambers. Abrams/Amulet, $16.95 (9781419701658)
Extra Yarn. Mac Barnett, illus. by Jon Klassen. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $16.99 (9780061953385)
Final Four, The. Paul Volponi. Viking, $16.99 (9780670012640)
Froi of the Exiles. Melina Marchetta. Candlewick, $18.99 (9780763647599)
Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs. Mo Willems. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99 (9780062104182)
Grave Mercy. Robin LaFevers. Houghton Mifflin, $16.99 (9780547628349)
Home for Bird, A. Philip C. Stead. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596437111)
Island: A Story of the Galápagos. Jason Chin. Flash Point/Porter, $16.99 (9781596437166)
Just Ducks! Nicola Davies, illus. by Salvatore Rubbino. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763659363)
Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle. Claire A. Nivola. FSG/Foster, $17.99 (9780374380687)
Mighty Mars Rovers, The: The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity. Elizabeth Rusch. Houghton, $18.99 (9780547478814)
Miles to Go for Freedom: Segregation and Civil Rights in the Jim Crow Years. Linda Barrett Osborne. Abrams, $24.95 (9781419700200)
Miseducation of Cameron Post, The. Emily M. Danforth. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99 (9780062020567)
Raven Boys, The. Maggie Stiefvater. Scholastic Press, $18.99 (9780545424929)
Spindlers, The. Lauren Oliver, illus. by Iacopo Bruno. Harper, $16.99 (9780061978081)
Splendors and Glooms. Laura Amy Schlitz. Candlewick, $17.99 (9780763653804)
There Is No Dog. Meg Rosoff. Putnam, $17.99 (9780399257643)
Tiger Lily. Jodi Lynn Anderson. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780062003256)
Titanic: Voices from the Disaster. Deborah Hopkinson. Scholastic Press, $17.99 (9780545116749)
Traction Man and the Beach Odyssey. Mini Grey. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375869525)
Waiting. Carol Lynch Williams. S&S/Wiseman, $16.99 (9781442443532)
Water Sings Blue: Ocean Poems. Kate Coombs, illus. by Meilo So. Chronicle, $16.99 (9780811872843)
We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March. Cynthia Y. Levinson. Peachtree, $19.95 (9781561456277)
Wonder. R.J. Palacio. Knopf, $15.99 (9780375869020)
 
 
THREE STARS
After the Snow. S.D. Crockett. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (9780312641696)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. Benjamin Alire Sáenz. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781442408920)
Auntie Yang’s Great Soybean Picnic. Ginnie Lo, illus. by Beth Lo. Lee & Low, $18.95 (9781600604423)
Barnum’s Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World. Tracey Fern, illus. by Boris Kulikov. FSG/Ferguson, $17.99 (9780374305161)
Beneath a Meth Moon. Jacqueline Woodson. Penguin/Paulsen, $16.99 (9780399252501)
Boot & Shoe. Marla Frazee. S&S/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781442422476)
Boy + Bot. Ame Dyckman, illus. by Dan Yaccarino. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375867569)
Boy Called Dickens, A. Deborah Hopkinson, illus. by John Hendrix. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375867323)
Caddy’s World. Hilary McKay. S&S/McElderry, $16.99 (9781442441057)
Chaos, The. Nalo Hopkinson. S&S/McElderry, $16.99 (9781416954880)
Chuck Close Face Book. Chuck Close. Abrams, $18.95 (9781419701634)
Confusion of Princes, A. Garth Nix. HarperCollins, $17.99 (9780060096946)
Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip. Jordan Sonnenblick. Scholastic Press, $17.99 (9780545320696)
Difference Between You and Me, The. Madeleine George. Viking, $16.99 (9780670011285)
Diviners, The. Libba Bray. Little, Brown, $19.99 (9780316126113)
Duckling Gets a Cookie, The!? Mo Willems. Hyperion, $15.99 (9781423151289)
Every Day. David Levithan. Knopf, $16.99 (9780307931887)
Fairy Ring, The: Or, Elsie and Frances Fool the World. Mary Losure. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763656706)
Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau, The. Michelle Markel, illus. by Amanda Hall. Eerdmans, $17 (9780802853646)
Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn by Heart. Selected by Mary Ann Hoberman, illus. by Michael Emberley. Little, Brown/Tingley, $19.99 (9780316129473)
Giant and How He Humbugged America, The. Jim Murphy. Scholastic. $19.99 (9780439691840)
Girls of No Return. Erin Saddin. Scholastic/Levine, $17.99 (9780545310260)
Great Cake Mystery, The: Precious Ramotswe’s Very First Case. Alexander McCall Smith, illus. by Iain McIntosh. Random/Anchor, $12.99 (9780307743893)
Greyhound of a Girl, A. Roddy Doyle. Abrams/Amulet, $16.95 (9781419701689)
Hades: Lord of the Dead, Bk. 4. (Olympians Series). George O’Connor. First Second/Porter, $16.99 (9781596437616); pb. $9.99 (9781596434349)
Hero of Little Street, The. Gregory Rogers. Roaring Brook/Porter, $17.99 (9781596437296)
Hide & Seek. Il Sung Na. Knopf, $15.99 (9780375870781)
Homer. Elisha Cooper. Greenwillow, $16.99 (9780062012487)
I Know a Wee Piggy. Kimberly Norman, illus. by Henry Cole. Dial, $16.99 (9780803737358)
Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Never-Ending Search for a Cure. Jim Murphy and Alison Blank. Clarion, $18.99 (9780618535743)
It Jes’ Happened: When Bill Traylor Started to Draw. Don Tate, illus. by R. Gregory Christie. Lee & Low, $17.95 (9781600602603)
Jazz Age Josephine. Jonah Winter, illus. by Marjorie Priceman. Atheneum, $16.99 (9781416961239)
Just Behave, Pablo Picasso! Jonah Winter, illus. by Kevin Hawkes. Scholastic/Levine, $18.99 (9780545132916)
Keeping the Castle. Patrice Kindl. Viking, $16.99 (9780670014385)
Kindred Souls. Patricia MacLachlan. HarperCollins/Tegen, $15.99 (9780060522971)
Legends of Zita the Spacegirl (Zita the Spacegirl). Ben Hatke. First Second, hc $18.99 (9781596438064) pb $12.99 (9781596434479)
Lions of Little Rock, The. Kristin Levine. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399256448)
Little White Duck: A Childhood in China. Andres Vera Martinez and Na Liu. Lerner/Graphic Universe, pap. $9.95 (9780761381150)
Lulu and the Duck in the Park. Hilary McKay, illus. by Priscilla Lamont. Albert Whitman, $13.99 (9780807548080)
Machines Go to Work in the City. William Low, illus. bythe author. Holt, $16.99 (9780805090505)
Master of Deceit: J. Edgar Hoover and America in the Age of Lies. Marc Aronson. Candlewick, $25.99 (9780763650254)
Minette’s Feast: The Delicious Story of Julia Child and Her Cat. Susanna Reich, illus. by Amy Bates. Abrams. $16.95 (9781419701771)
Mom, It’s My First Day of Kindergarten! Hyewon Yum. FSG/Foster, $16.99 (9780374350048)
Mr. and Mrs. Bunny—Detectives Extraordinaire! Polly Horvath, illus. by Sophie Blackall. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $16.99 (9780375867552)
My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece. Annabel Pitcher. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316176903)
Obsidian Blade, The. Pete Hautman. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763654030)
Ocean Sunlight: How Tiny Plants Feed the Seas. Molly Bang and Penny Chisholm. Scholastic/Blue Sky, $18.99 (9780545273220)
Oh, No! Candace Fleming, illus. by Eric Rohmann. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375842719)
One and Only Ivan, The. Katherine Applegate, illus. by Patricia Castelao. HarperCollins, $16.99 (9780061992254)
One Year in Coal Harbor. Polly Horvath. Schwartz & Wade, $16.99 (9780375869709)
Out on the Prairie. Donna M. Bateman, illus. by Susan Swan. Charlesbridge, $15.95 (9781580893787)
Penny and Her Doll. Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow, $12.99 (9780062081995)
Penny and Her Song. Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow, $12.99 (9780062081957)
Pink Smog: Becoming Weetzie Bat. Francesca Lia Block. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780061565984)
Quiet Place, The. Sarah Stewart, illus. by David Small. FSG/Ferguson, $16.99 (9780374325657)
Rocket Writes a Story. Tad Hills. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375870866)
Sadie and Ratz. Sonya Hartnett, illus. by Ann James. Candlewick, $14.99 (9780763653156)
Second Chance Summer. Morgan Matson. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781416990673)
Second Life of Abigail Walker, The. Frances O’Roark Dowell. S&S/Atheneum, $16.99 (9781442405936)
Son. Lois Lowry. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $17.99 (9780547887203)
Starry River of the Sky. Grace Lin. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316125956)
Step Gently Out. Helen Frost, photos. by Rick Lieder. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763656010)
Summer of the Gypsy Moths. Sara Pennypacker. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $15.99 (9780061964206)
Team Human. Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780062089649)
Three Times Lucky. Sheila Turnage. Dial, $16.99 (9780803736702)
To the Mountaintop: My Journey Through the Civil Rights Movement. Charlayne Hunter-Gault. Roaring Brook/Flash Point, $22.99 (9781596436053)
Unfortunate Son, The. Constance Leeds. Viking, $16.99 (9780670013982)
Wicked and the Just, The. Jillian Coats Anderson. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547688374)
 
TWO STARS
1-2-3 Peas. Keith Baker. S&S/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781442445512)
After Eli. Rebecca Rupp. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763658106)
Amazing Adventures of John Smith, Jr. aka Houdini, The. Peter Johnson. Harper, $15.99 (9780061988905)
Amazing Harry Kellar, The: Great American Magician. Gail G. Jarrow. Boyds Mills/Calkins Creek, $17.95 (9781590788653)
Amber Brown Is Tickled Pink. Bruce Coville and Elizabeth Levy, illus. by Tony Ross. Putnam, $14.99 (9780399256561)
Amelia Anne Is Dead and Gone. Kat Rosenfield. Dutton, $17.99 (9780525423898)
Animal Masquerade. Marianne Dubuc, trans. from the French by Yvette Ghione. Kids Can, $16.95 (9781554537822)
Another Brother. Matthew Cordell. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (9780312643249)
Ant and the Grasshopper, The. Rebecca Emberley and Ed Emberley. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596434936)
Apple. Nikki McClure. Abrams, $12.95 (9781419703782)
Archie. Domenica More Gordon. Bloomsbury, $17.99 (9781599909363)
Ask the Passengers. A.S. King. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316194686)
Ballerina Swan. Allegra Kent, illus. by Emily Arnold McCully. Holiday House, $16.95 (9780823423736)
Beach Feet. Kiyomi Konagaya, trans. from the Japanese by Yuki Kaneko, illus. by Masamitsu Saito. Enchanted Lion (Consortium, dist.), $14.95 (9781592701216)
Bear Has a Story to Tell. Philip C. Stead, illus. by Erin E. Stead. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596437456)
Best Shot in the West: The Adventures of Nat Love. Patricia C. McKissack & Frederick L. McKissack, illus. by Randy DuBurke. Chronicle, $19.99 (9780811857499)
Big Adventure of the Smalls, The. Helen Stephens. S&S/Aladdin, $15.99 (9781442450585)
Black Heart (Curse Workers 03). Holly Black. S&S/McElderry, $17.99 (9781442403468)
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon. Steve Sheinkin. Roaring Brook/Flash Point, $19.99 (9781596434875)
Bon Appétit!: The Delicious Life of Julia Child. Jessie Hartland. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375869440)
Brixen Witch, The. Stacy DeKeyser, illus. by John Nickle. S&S/McElderry, $15.99 (9781442433281)
Bronte Sisters, The: The Brief Lives of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne. Catherine Reef. Clarion. $18.99 (9780547579665)
Bus Called Heaven, A. Bob Graham. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763658939)
Butterfly Clues, The. Kate Ellison. Egmont USA, $17.99 (9781606842638)
Cardboard. Doug TenNapel. Scholastic/Graphix, $24.99 (9780545418720); pb $12.99 (9780545418737)
Case of the Deadly Desperados, The. Caroline Lawrence. Putnam. $16.99 (9780399256332)
Castle: How It Works (My Readers). David Macaulay with Sheila Keenan. Macmillan, $15.99 hc (9781596437449); $3.99 pb (9781596437661)
Cat Tale. Michael Hall. Greenwillow, $16.99 (9780061915161)
Chickadee. Louise Erdrich. Harper, $15.99 (9780060577902)
Children and the Wolves, The. Adam Rapp. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763653378)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again. Frank Cottrell Boyce, illus. by Joe Berger. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763659578)
Chomp. Carl Hiaasen. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375868429)
Chopsticks. Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral. Razorbill, $19.99 (9781595144355)
Cinder. Marissa Meyer. Feiwel and Friends, $17.99 (9780312641894)
Cold Cereal. Adam Rex. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $16.99 (9780062060020)
Creepy Carrots! Aaron Reynolds, illus. by Peter Brown. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781442402973)
Demolition. Sally Sutton, illus. by Brian Lovelock. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763658304)
Dog Called Homeless, A. Sarah Lean. HarperCollins/Tegen, $16.99 (978006212209)
Dog in Charge. K.L. Going, illus. by Dan Santat. Dial, $16.99 (9780803734791)
Don’t Turn Around. Michelle Gagnon. Harper, $17.99 (9780062102904)
Double. Jenny Valentine. Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423147145)
Dragonswood. Janet Lee Carey. Dial, $17.99 (9780803735040)
Drama. Raina Telgemeier with colors by Gurihiru. Scholastic/Graphix, $10.99 (9780545326995)
Dunderheads Behind Bars, The. Paul Fleischman, illus. by David Roberts. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763645434)
Each Kindness. Jacqueline Woodson, illus. by E.B. Lewis. Penguin/Paulsen, $16.99 (9780399246524)
Electric Ben: The Amazing Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin. Robert Byrd. Dial, $17.99 (9780803737495)
Enchanted. Alethea Kontis. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547645704)
Explorer: The Mystery Boxes. ed. Kazu Kibuishi. Abrams/Amulet, $10.95 (9781419700095)
Few Bites, A. Cybèle Young. Groundwood (PGW, dist.), $18.95 (9781554982950)
FitzOsbornes at War, The (Montmaray Journals, 3). Michelle Cooper. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375870507)
Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It: False Apology Poems. Gail Carson Levine, illus. by Matthew Cordell. Harper, $15.99 (9780061787256)
Fourmile. Watt Key. FSG, $16.99 (9780374350956)
Freedom Song: The Story of Henry “Box” Brown. Sally M. Walker, illus. by Sean Qualls. HarperCollins, $17.99 (9780060583101)
Freedom’s a-Callin Me. Ntozake Shange, illus. by Rod Brown. Collins/Amistad, $16.99 (9780061337413)
Friends with Boys. Erin Faith Hicks. First Second, $15.99 (9781596435568)
Gem. Holly Hobbie. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316203340)
Giants Beware. Rafael Rosado and Jorge Aguirre. Roaring Brook/First Second, $14.99 (9781596435827)
Girl with Borrowed Wings, The. Rinsai Rossetti. Dial, $16.99 (9780803735668)
Good Braider, The. Terry Farish. Amazon, $17.99 (9780761462675)
Good News, Bad News. Jeff Mack. Chronicle, $16.99 (9781452101101)
Great Unexpected, The. Sharon Creech. HarperCollins, $16.99 (9780061892325)
Hans My Hedgehog: A Tale from the Brothers Grimm. Kate Coombs, illus. by John Nickle. S&S/Atheneum, $16.99 (9781416915331)
Helen’s Big World: The Life of Helen Keller. Doreen Rappaport, illus. by Matt Tavares. Disney-Hyperion, $17.99 (9780786808908)
Hello! Hello! Matthew Cordell. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423159063)
Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom, The. Christopher Healy, illus. by Todd Harris. HarperCollins/Walden, $16.99 (9780062117434)
Heroes of the Surf. Elisa Carbone, illus. by Nancy Carpenter. Viking. $16.99 (9780670063123)
His Name Was Raoul Wallenberg. Louise Borden. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $18.99 (9780618507559)
How Many Jelly Beans? A Giant Book of Giant Numbers! Andrea Menotti, illus. by Yancey Labat. Chronicle, $18.99 (9781452102061)
Humming Room, The. Ellen Potter. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (9780312644383)
I Hunt Killers. Barry Lyga. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316125840)
I Lay My Stitches Down: Poems of American Slavery. Cynthia Grady, illus. by Michele Wood. Eerdmans, $17 (9780802853868)
I’ll Save You Bobo! Eileen Rosenthal, illus. by Marc Rosenthal. S&S/Atheneum, $14.99 (9781442403789)
I’ve Lost My Hippopotamus. Jack Prelutsky, illus. by Jackie Urbanovic. Greenwillow, $18.99 (9780062014573)
In a Glass Grimmly. Adam Gidwitz. Dutton, $16.99 (9780525425816)
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Insomniacs, The. Karina Wolf; illus. by the Brothers Hilts. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399256653)
Jack and the Baked Beanstalk. Colin Stimpson. Candlewick/Templar, $15.99 (9780763655631)
Kali’s Song. Jeanette Winter. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375870224)
Katerina’s Wish. Jeannie Mobley. S&S/McElderry, $15.99 (9781442433434)
Kepler’s Dream. Juliet Bell. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399256455).
Kill Switch. Chris Lynch. Simon & Schuster. $16.99 (9781416927020)
Laundry Day. Maurie J. Manning. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547241968)
Lemonade in Winter: A Book About Two Kids Counting Money. Emily Jenkins, illus. by G. Brian Karas. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $16.99 (9780375858833)
Lies, Knives, and Girls in Red Dresses. Ron Koertge, illus. by Andrea Dezsö. Candlewick, $17.99 (9780763644062)
List, The. Siobhan Vivian. Scholastic/Push, $17.99 (9780545169172)
Listen to My Trumpet! Mo Willems. (An Elephant & Piggie Book). Hyperion, $8.99 (9781423154044)
Little Bird. Germano Zullo, illus. by Albertine. Enchanted Lion (Consortium, dist.), $16.95 (9781592701186)
Little Dog Lost: The True Story of a Brave Dog Named Baltic. Mônica Carnesi. Penguin/Paulsen, $15.99 (9780399256660)
Little Dog, Lost. Marion Dane Bauer. S&S/Atheneum. $14.99 (9781442434233).
Long Lankin. Lindsey Barraclough. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763658083)
Looking at Lincoln. Maira Kalman. Penguin/Paulsen, $17.99 (9780399240393)
Lovabye Dragon. Barbara Joosse, illus. by Randy Cecil. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763654085)
Magritte’s Marvelous Hat. D.B. Johnson. Houghton Mifflin, $16.99 (9780547558646)
Marathon. Boaz Yakin, illus. by Joe Infurnari. First Second, $16.99 (9781596436800)
Marching to the Mountaintop: How Poverty, Labor Fights, and Civil Rights Set the Stage for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Final Hours. Ann Bausum. National Geographic, $19.95 (9781426309397)
May B. Caroline Starr Rose. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $15.99 (9781582463933)
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. Jesse Andrews. Abrams/Amulet. $16.95 (9781419701764)
Me and Momma and Big John. Mara Rockliff, illus. by William Low. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763643591)
Meet Me at the Moon. Gianna Marino. Viking, $16.99 (9780670013135)
Mighty Miss Malone, The. Christopher Paul Curtis. Random/Lamb, $15.99 (9780385734912)
Mister Death’s Blue-Eyed Girls. Mary Downing Hahn. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547760629)
Monsieur Marceau: Actor Without Words. Leda Schubert; illus. by Gerard DuBois and Paul DuBois. Roaring Brook/Flash Point, $17.99 (9781596435292)
Monsters’ Monster, The. Patrick McDonnell. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316045476)
Mooshka: A Quilt Story. Julie Paschkis. Peachtree. $16.95 (9781561456208)
Mrs. Harkness and the Panda. Alicia Potter, illus. by Melissa Sweet. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375844485)
My Book of Life by Angel. Martine Leavitt. FSG/Ferguson, $17.99 (9780374351236)
My Family for the War. Anne C. Voorhoeve, tr. from German by Tammi Reichel. Dial. $17.99 (9780803733602)
Nanny Piggins and the Wicked Plan. R.A. Spratt, illus. by Dan Santat. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316199230)
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Now. Morris Gleitzman. Holt, $16.99 (9780805093780)
Oh No! Not Again! (Or How I Built a Time Machine to Save History) (Or At Least My History Grade). Mac Barnett, illus. by Dan Santat. Disney-Hyperion, $17.99 (9781423149125)
Olive and the Big Secret. Tor Freeman. Candlewick/Templar, $15.99 (9780763661496)
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One Times Square: A Century of Change at the Crossroads of the World. Joe McKendry. Godine, $19.95 (9781567923643)
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Paiute Princess: The Story of Sarah Winnemucca. Deborah Kogan Ray. FSG/Foster, $17.99 (9780374398972)
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Shiver Me Timbers!: Pirate Poems & Paintings. Douglas Florian. S&S/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781442413214)
Small Damages. Beth Kephart. Philomel, $17.99 (9780399257483)
Soonchild. Russell Hoban, illus. by Alexis Deacon. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763659202)
Sophia’s War: A Tale of the Revolution. Avi. S&S/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781442414419)
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Such Wicked Intent: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein, Book Two. Kenneth Oppel. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781442403185)
Surfer Chick. Kristy Dempsey, illus. by Henry Cole. Abrams, $16.95 (9781419701887)
Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World. Sy Montgomery and Temple Grandin. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $17.99 (9780547443157)
This Is Not a Test. Courtney Summers. St. Martin’s Griffin, $9.99 pb (9780312656744)
Those Rebels, John & Tom. Barbara Kerley, illus. by Edwin Fotheringham. Scholastic Press, $17.99 (9780545222686)
Throne of Glass. Sarah J. Maas. Bloomsbury, $17.99 (9781599906959)
Too Tall Houses. Gianna Marino. Viking, $16.99 (9780670013142)
Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, The. Aesop; retold and illus. by Helen Ward. Candlewick/Templar, $16.99 (9780763660987)
Tracing Stars. Erin E. Moulton. Philomel. $16.99 (9780399256967)
Try Not to Breathe. Jennifer R. Hubbard. Viking, $16.99 (9780670013906)
Two Crafty Criminals! And How They Were Captured by the Daring Detectives of the New Cut Gang. Philip Pullman, illus. by Martin Brown. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375870293)
Two for One (Bink and Gollie Series). Kate DiCamillo & Alison McGhee, illus. by Tony Fucile. Candlewick, $15.99 (97809763633615)
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Various Positions. Martha Schabas. FSG/Foster, $16.99 (9780374380861)
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We March. Shane W. Evans. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596435391)
Who Built the Stable? A Nativity Poem. Ashley Bryan. S&S/Atheneum, $16.99 (9781442409347)
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Words Set Me Free: The Story of Young Frederick Douglass. Lesa Cline Ransome, illus. by James E. Ransome. S&S/Wiseman, $16.99 (9781416959038)
Year of the Beasts, The. Cecil Castellucci, illus. by Nate Powell. Roaring Brook. $16.99 (9781596436862)
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ONE STAR
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All These Lives. Sarah Wylie. Farrar/Ferguson, $17.99 (9780374302085)
All You Never Wanted. Adele Griffin. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375870828)
Almost Home. Joan Bauer. Viking, $16.99 (9780670012893)
Annie and Helen. Deborah Hopkinson; illus. by Raul Colón. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375857065)
Annie Sullivan and the Trials of Helen Keller. Joseph Lambert, illus. by Joseph Lambert. Disney-Hyperion. $17.99 (9781423113362)
Apple Cake: A Recipe for Love. Julie Paschkis. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547807454)
Applesauce. Klaas Verplancke; trans. by Helen Mixter. Groundwood, $18.95 (9781554981861)
Are You a Cow? Sandra Boynton. Little Simon, $5.99 (9781442417335)
Arlo Needs Glasses. Barney Saltzberg. Workman, $15.95 (9780761168799)
Arthur Quinn and the World Serpent (The Father of Lies Chronicles). Alan Early. Mercier Press, $14.95 (9781856358279)
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Arts and Culture in the Early Islamic World. Lizann Flatt. Crabtree, $9.95 pb (9780778721741)
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B Is for Brooklyn. Selina Alko. Holt/Ottaviano, $16.99 (9780805092134)
Baby Bear Sees Blue. Ashley Wolff. S&S/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781442413061)
Baby’s in Black: Astrid Kirchherr, Stuart Sutcliffe, and the Beatles. Arne Bellstorf; trans. from the German by Michael Waaler. First Second/Roaring Brook, $24.99 (9781596437715)
Backseat A-B-See. Maria van Lieshout. Chronicle, $14.99 (9781452106649)
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Call the Shots. Don Calame. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763655563)
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Catch & Release. Blythe Woolston. Carolrhoda, $17.95 (9780761377559)
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Changeling (Order of Darkness, 1). Philippa Gregory. Simon Pulse, $18.99 (9781442453449)
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Children of Manzanar. Heather C. Lindquist, Heyday Books, $17.95 (9781597141604)
Chloe and the Lion. Mac Barnett, illus. by Adam Rex. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781324113348)
Christmas Tugboat, The: How the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Came to New York City. George Matteson and Adele Ursone, illus. by James E. Ransome. Clarion, $17.99 (9780618992157)
Christmas Wombat. Jackie French, illus. by Bruce Whatley. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547868721)
Christmastime. Alison Jay. Dial, $16.99 (9780803738041)
Citizen Scientists: Be a Part of Scientific Discovery from Your Own Backyard. Loree Griffin Burns. Holt, hc $19.99 (9780805090628); pap. $12.99 (9780805095173)
City Fish, Country Fish. Mary M. Cerullo; photos by Jeffrey L. Rotman. Tilbury House, $16.95 (9780884483236)
City of Lost Souls (The Mortal Instruments, 5). Cassandra Clare. S&S/McElderry, $19.99 (9781442416864)
City’s Son, The. Tom Pollock. Llewellyn/Flux, $16.99 (9780738734309)
Cloud Spinner, The. Michael Catchpool, illus. by Alison Jay. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375870118)
Code of Silence: Living a Lie Comes with a Price. Tim Shoemaker. Zonderkidz. $14.99 (9780310726531)
Cold Snap. Eileen Spinelli, illus. by Marjorie Priceman. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375857003)
Crafty Chloe. Kelly DiPucchio, illus. by Heather Ross. S&S/Atheneum, $16.99 (9781442421233)
Crater. Helium-3, Bk. 1. Homer Hickam. Thomas Nelson, $14.99 (9781595546647)
Creep and Flutter: The Secret World of Insects and Spiders. Jim Arnosky. Sterling, $14.95 (9781402777660)
Crimson Crown, The (Seven Realms). Cinda Williams Chima. Hyperion, $18.99 (9781423144335)
Croak. Gina Damico. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt/Graphia, $8.99 (9780547608327)
Crogan’s Loyalty. Chris Schweizer. Oni. $14.99 (9781934964408)
Crown of Embers, The. Rae Carson. Greenwillow, $17.99 (9780062026514)
Daredevil, v.1. Mark Waid, illus. by Paolo Rivera. Marvel, $19.99 (9780785152378)
Dark Eyes. William Harlan Richter. Razorbill, $17.99 (9781595144577)
Dark Lord: The Early Years. Jamie Thomson, illus. by Freya Hartas. Walker, $16.99 (9780802728494)
Day by Day. Susan Gal. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375869594)
Deadly Pink. Vivian Vande Velde. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547738505)
Deadweather and Sunrise. Geoff Rodkey. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399257858)
Dear Daisy Dunnington. Mathilde Stein; illus. by Chuck Groeninik. Lemniscaat USA, $17.95 (9781935954187)
Delia’s Dull Day: An Incredibly Boring Story. Andy Myer. Sleeping Bear Press, $16.95 (9781585368044)
Demon Catchers of Milan, The. Kat Beyer. Egmont USA, $16.99 (9781606843147)
Destined (Wings). Aprilynne Pike. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780061668128)
Devine Intervention. Martha Brockenbrough. Scholastic/Levine, $17.99 (9780545382137)
Diamond in the Desert, A. Kathryn Fitzmaurice. Viking, $16.99 (9780670012923)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Michael J. Martin. Morgan Reynolds, library edition, $28.95 (9781599351698)
Dinosaur Thunder. Marion Dane Bauer, illus. by Margaret Chodos-Irvine. Scholastic Press, $16.99 (9780590452960)
Discovering Black Ameria: From the Age of Exploration to the Twenty-First Century. Linda Tarrant-Reid. Abrams, $29.95 (9780810970984)
DJ Rising. Maia Love. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316121873)
Dodger. Terry Pratchett. Harper, $17.99 (9780062009494)
Dog is a Dog, A: And That’s Why He’s So Special. Clarice Rutherford; illus. by NJ Wiley. Alpine, $14.95 (9781577791034)
Dog Loves Drawing. Louise Yates. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375870675)
Dogs of Winter, The. Bobbie Pyron. Scholastic/Levine, $16.99 (9780545399302)
Dogs on Duty: Soldiers’ Best Friends on the Battlefield and Beyond. Dorothy Patent Hinshaw. Walker, $16.99 (9780802728456)
Don’t Squish the Sasquatch! Kent Redecker, illus. by Bob Staake. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423152323)
Don’t Copy Me! Jonathan Allen. Boxer Bks., dist. by Sterling, $16.95 (9781907967207)
Dragonborn. Toby Forward. Bloomsbury, $16.99 (9781599907246)
Dragons Love Tacos. Adam Rubin, illus. by Daniel Salmieri. Dial, $16.99 (9780803736801)
Drawing from the City. Teju Behan. Tara Books, $35.95 (9789380340173)
Dreaming Up: A Celebration of Building. Christy Hale. Lee & Low, $18.95 (9781600606519)
Drummer Boy of John John. Mark Greenwood; illus. by Frane Lessac. Lee & Low, $18.95 (9781600606526)
Earwig and the Witch. Diana Wynne Jones, illus. by Paul O. Zelinsky. Greenwillow, $15.99 (9780062075116)
East Dragon, West Dragon. Robyn Eversole, illus. by Scott Campbell. S&S/Atheneum, $16.99 (9780689858284)
Edgar Allan Poe’s Pie: Math Puzzlers in Classic Poems. J. Patrick Lewis, illus. by Michael Slack. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547513386)
Edumacation of Jay Baker. Jay Clark. Holt/Ottaviano, $16.99 (9780805092561)
Eep! Joke van Leeuwen. Translated by Bill Nagelkerke. Gecko. $7.95 (9781877579073)
Elephant’s Friend and Other Tales from Ancient India, The. Marcia Williams. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763659165)
Embrace. Jessica Shirvington. Sourcebooks, $9.99 (9781402271250)
Emperor of Time. Gregory King, illus. by Holly Wood. Weston & Wright, $21.95 (9780965693226)
Empty City, The (Survivors 01). Erin Hunter. HarperCollins, $16.99 (9780062102560)
Enchantress, The. Michael Scott. Delacorte, $18.99 (9780385735353)
Endlessly (Paranormalcy). Kiersten White. HarperCollins, $17.99 (9780061985881)
Erebos. Ursula Poznanski, trans. from the German by Judith Pattinson. Annick (Firefly, dist.), $29.95 (9781554513734)
Everneath. Brodi Ashton. HarperCollins/Balzer+Bray, $17.99 (9780062071132)
Everything You Need to Survive the Apocalypse. Lucas Klauss. Simon Pulse, $16.99 (9781442423886).
Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict, The. Trenton Lee Stewart, illus. by Diana Sudyka. Little, Brown/Tingley, $17.99 (9780316176194)
Failstate. John W. Otte. Marcher Lord (www.marcherlordpress.com), $15.99 trade paper (9781935929482)
Falcon. Tim Jessell. Random, $17.99 (9780375868665)
Fall from Grace. Charles Benoit. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780061947070)
False Prince, The. Jennifer A. Nielsen. Scholastic Press, $16.99 (9780545284134)
Fear (Gone). Michael Grant. HarperCollins/Tegen, $17.99 (9780061449154)
Fire Chronicle, The (Books of Beginning, 2). John Stephens. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375868719)
Fire in the Streets. Kekla Magoon. Aladdin, $15.99 (9781442422308)
Fish Had a Wish. Michael Garland. Holiday House, $14.95 (9780823423941)
Five Funny Bunnies: Three Bouncing Tales. Jean Van Leeuwen, illus. by Anne Wilsdorf. Marshall Cavendish, $17.99 (9780761461142)
Five Lives of Our Cat Zook. Joanne Rocklin. Abrams/Amulet, $16.95 (9780823424009)
Flock. Wendy Delsol. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763660109)
Flying the Dragon. Natalie Dias Lorenzi, illus. by Kelly Murphy. Charlesbridge, $16.95 (9781580894340)
Food: The New Gold. Kathlyn Gay. Twenty-First Century Books, $31.93 (9780761346074)
For Darkness Shows the Stars. Diana Peterfreund. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99 (9780062006141)
Fox Tails: Four Fables from Aesop. Amy Lowry, illus. by Amy Lowry. Holiday, $16.95 (9780823424009)
Foxy. Emma Dodd. Harper, $14.99 (9780062014191)
Fracture. Megan Miranda. Walker, $17.99 (9780802723093)
Freaky Fast Frankie Joe. Lutricia Clifton. Holiday House, $16.95 (9780823423675)
Frogs!: Strange and Wonderful. Laurence Pringle, illus. by Meryl Henderson. Boyds Mills, $16.95 (9781590783719)
From the Good Mountain: How Gutenberg Changed the World. James Rumford. Roaring Brook/Flash Point/Porter, $17.99 (9781596435421)
Further Tale of Peter Rabbit, The. Emma Thompson, illus. by Eleanor Taylor. Penguin/Warne, $20 (9780723269106)
Galahad Legacy, The. Dom Testa. Tor, $16.99 (9780765321121)
Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return. Zeina Abirached. Tr. from French by Edward Gauvin. illus. by author. Lerner/Graphic Universe, pap. $9.95 (9781575059419)
Garmann’s Secret. Stian Hole, trans by Don Bartlett. Eerdmans, $17 (9780802854001)
George Bellows: Painter with a Punch! Robert Burleigh. Abrams, $18.95 (9781419701665)
Georgia in Hawaii: When Georgia O’Keeffe Painted What She Pleased. Amy Novesky, illus. by Yuyi Morales. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780152054205)
Gideon. Olivier Dunrea. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $9.99 (9780618436613)
Girl in the Mirror: A Novel in Poems and Journal Entries. Meg Kearney. Persea Books, $15 (9780892553853)
Girl in the Park, The. Mariah Fredericks. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $16.99 (9780375868436)
Girl Meets Boy. Kelly Milner Hall, ed. Chronicle, $16.99 (9781452102641)
Girl Named Digit, A. Annabel Monaghan. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547668529)
Girl of Nightmares. Kendare Blake. Tor, $17.99 (9780765328663)
Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There, The. Catherynne M. Valente, illus. by Ana Juan. Feiwel & Friends, $16.99 (9780312649623)
Go Out and Play! Favorite Outdoor Games from Kaboom!, illus. by Julianna Rose. Candlewick, $11.99 (9780763655303)
Goblin Secrets. William Alexander. S&S/McElderry, $16.99 (9781442427266)
Golden Ass of Lucius Apuleius, The. adapted by M.D. Usher, illus. by T. Motley. Godine, $17.95 (9781567924183)
Golden Prince, The. Arthur Felix, illus. by Jenny Capon. Inside Pocket Publishing, $7.99 (9780956712233)
Goldilocks and Just One Bear. Leigh Hodgkinson. Candlewick/Nosy Crow, $15.99 (9780763661724)
Gone, Gone, Gone. Hannah Moskowitz. Simon Pulse, $16.99 hc (9781442453128); $9.99 pb (9781442407534)
Grave Robber’s Apprentice, The. Allan Stratton. Harper, $16.99 (9780061976087)
Halloween Forest. Marion Dane Bauer. Holiday House, $16.95 (9780823423248)
Hamsters Holding Hands. Kass Reich. Orca, $9.95 (9781459801233)
Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America. Andrea Davis Pinkney; illus. by Brian Pinkney. Disney-Hyperion, $19.99 (9781423142577)
Hands Around the Library: Protecting Egypt’s Treasured Books. Susan L. Roth and Karen Leggett Abouraya. Dial, $16.99 (9780803737471)
Happy Like Soccer. Maribeth Boelts, illus. by Lauren Castillo. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763646165)
Happy Little Yellow Box, The: A Pop-up Book of Opposites. David A. Carter. Little Simon, $12.99 (9781416940968)
Happy. Mies van Hout. Lemniscaat USA, $17.95 (9781935954149)
Harlem’s Little Blackbird: The Story of Florence Mills. Renee Watson, illus. by Christian Robinson. Random, $17.99 (9780375869730)
Have a Nice Day. Julie Halpern. Feiwel & Friends, $16.99 (9780312606602)
Here Come the Girl Scouts! The Amazing All-True Story of Juliette “Daisy” Gordon Low and Her Great Adventure. Shana Corey, illus. by Hadley Hooper. Scholastic, $17.99 (9780545342780)
Hilda and the Midnight Giant. Luke Pearson. Nobrow (Consortium, dist.), $24 (9781907704253)
Hippopposites. Janik Coat. Abrams Appleseed, $14.95 (9781419701511)
Hit the Road, Jack. Robert Burleigh, illus. by Ross MacDonald. Abrams, $17.95 (9781419703997)
Hope and Tears: Ellis Island Voices. Gwenyth Swain. Boyds Mills/Calkins Creek, $17.95 (9781590787656)
Horns, Tails, Spikes, and Claws. J. Elizabeth Mills, illus. by Jef Czekaj. Scholastic/Cartwheel, $6.99 (9780545393850)
Horse and the Plains Indians, The: A Powerful Partnership. Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, photos by William Muñoz. Clarion, $17.99 (9780547125510)
Horse Camp. Nicole Helget and Nate LeBoutillier. Egmont USA, $15.99 (9781606843512)
Horsefly and Honeybee. Randy Cecil. Henry Holt, $16.99 (9780805093001)
Horten’s Miraculous Mechanisms: Magic, Mystery, & a Very Strange Adventure. Lissa Evans. Sterling, $14.95 (9781402798061)
House Held Up by Trees. Ted Kooser. Illustrated by Jon Klassen. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763651077)
How Do You Feel? Anthony Browne. Candlewick, $14.99 (9780763658625)
How to Feel Good: 20 Things Teens Can Do. Tricia Mangan. Magination Press, $12.95 (9781433810404)
Hueys in the New Sweater, The. Oliver Jeffers. Philomel, $10.99 (9780399257674)
Human Body Factory: The Nuts and Bolts of Your Insides. Dan Green, illus. by Edmond Davis. Kingfisher, $16.99 (9780753468081)
Hush Little Monster. Denis Markell, illus. by Melissa Iwai. Little Simon, $9.99 (9781442441958)
I Am Thomas. Libby Gleeson, illus. by Armin Greder. IPG/Allen & Unwin, $19.99 (9781742373331)
I Don’t Believe It, Archie! Andrew Norriss, illus. by Hannah Shaw. Random/Fickling, $12.99 (9780385752503)
I Have a Dream. Martin Luther King, Jr., illus. by Kadir Nelson. Random House/Schwartz & Wade, $18.99 (9780375858871)
I Have the Right to be a Child. Alain Serres, trans. by Helen Mixter, illus. by Aurelia Fronty. Groundwood, $18.95 (9781554981496)
I Like Old Clothes. Mary Ann Hoberman, illus. by Patrice Barton. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375869518)
I Saw a Peacock with a Fiery Tail. Ramsingh Urveti. Tara Books, $17.50 (9789380340142)
I, Galileo. Bonnie Christensen. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375867538)
I, Too, Am America. Langston Hughes, illus. by Bryan Collier. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781442420083)
I’m Bored. Michael Ian Black, illus. by Debbie Ridpath Ohi. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781442414037)
Ice! The Amazing History of the Ice Business. Laurence Pringle. Calkins Creek, $17.95 (9781590788011)
If All the Animals Came Inside. Eric Pinder, illus. by Marc Brown. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316098830)
Illuminate: A Gilded Wings Novel, Book One. Aimee Agresti. Harcourt, $17.99 (9780547626147)
Immortal City. Scott Speer. Razorbill, $17.99 (9781595145062)
Immortal Rules, The. Julie Kagawa. Harlequin Teen, $18.99 (9780373210510)
In the Sea. David Elliott, illus. by Holly Meade. Candlewick, hardcover, $16.99 (9780763644987)
Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, Book III: The Unseen Guest. Maryrose Wood. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $15.99 (9780061791185)
Infinity and Me. Kate Hosford, illus. by Gabi Swiatkowska. Carolrhoda, $16.95 (9780761367260)
Insignia. S.J. Kincaid. HarperCollins/Tegen, $17.99 (9780062092991)
Intentions. Deborah Heiligman. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375868610)
Into the Woods (Bigfoot Boy, 1). J. Torres, illus. by Erin Faith Hicks. Kids Can, $17.95 hc (9781554537112); pb $9.95 (9781554537129)
Irises. Francisco X. Stork. Scholastic/Levine, $17.99 (9781545151351)
Island of Thieves. Josh Lacey. Houghton $15.99 (9780547763279)
It’s a Tiger! David LaRochelle; illus. by Jeremy Tankard. Chronicle, $16.99 (9780811869256)
It’s All About Me-ow. Hudson Talbott. Penguin/Paulsen, $16.99 (9780399254031)
It’s Raining, It’s Pouring (with CD). Christine Davenier. Performed by Peter, Paul, and Mary. Imagine/Peter Yarrow, $17.95 (9781936140770)
Itsy Bitsy Spider. Richard Egielski. S&S/Atheneum, $19.99 (9781416998952)
Jake and Lily. Jerry Spinelli. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $15.99 (9780060281359)
Jean Laffite: The Pirate Who Saved America. Susan Goldman Rubin, illus. by Jeff Himmelman. Abrams, $18.95 (9780810997332)
Jersey Angel. Beth Ann Bauman. Random/Lamb, $15.99 (9780385740203)
Jessica Rules the Dark Side. Beth Fantaskey. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547393094)
Just Right for Christmas. Birdie Black, illus. by Rosalind Beardshaw. Nosy Crow, $15.99 (9780763661748)
Just Say Boo! Susan Hood, illus. by Jed Henry. Harper, $12.99 (9780062010292)
Justin Case: Shells, Smells, and the Horrible Flip-Flops of Doom. Rachel Vail, illus. by Matthew Cordell. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (9781250000811)
Kaleidoscope. Salina Yoon. Little, Brown, $12.99 (9780316186414)
Keeping Safe the Stars. Sheila O’Connor. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399254598)
Kids of Kabul: Living Bravely Through a Never-Ending War. Deborah Ellis. Groundwood, $15.95 (9781554981816)
King Arthur’s Very Great Grandson. Kenneth Kraegel. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763653118)
Kite Day: A Bear and Mole Book. Will Hillenbrand. Holiday House, $16.95 (9780823416035)
Larf. Ashley Spires. Kids Can, $16.95 (9781554537013)
Last Dragonslayer, The. Jasper Fforde. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547738475)
Last Laughs. J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen, illus. by Jeffrey Stewart Timmins. Charlesbridge, $16.95 (9781580892605)
Last Princess, The. Galaxy Craze. Little, Brown/Poppy, $17.99 (9780316185486)
Last Song, The. Eva Wiseman. Tundra, $17.95 (9780887769795)
Laugh with the Moon. Shana Burg. Delacorte, $16.99 (9780385734714)
Leo Geo and His Miraculous Journey Through the Center of the Earth. Jon Chad. Roaring Brook, $15.99 (9781596436619)
Leopard Boy, The. Julia Johnson, illus. by Marisa Lewis. Frances Lincoln, $8.99 (9781847802132)
Lester’s Dreadful Sweaters. K.G. Campbell. Kids Can, $16.95 (9781554537709)
Let’s Sing a Lullaby with the Brave Cowboy. Jan Thomas. S&S/Beach Lane, $12.99 (9781442442764)
Letter Q: Queer Writers’ Notes to Their Younger Selves. Sarah Moon. Scholastic/Levine. $17.99 (9780545399326).
Letters to Leo. Amy Hest, illus. by Julia Denos. Candlewick, $14.99 (9780763636951)
Lia’s Guide to Winning the Lottery. Keren David. Frances Lincoln, $16.99 (9781847803313)
Little Bee. Edward Gibbs. Little, Brown/LB Kids, $8.99 (9780316127073)
Little Treasures: Endearments from Around the World. Jacqueline K. Ogburn, illus. by Chris Raschka. Houghton Mifflin, $16.99 (9780547428628)
Little Woods, The. McCormick Templeman. Random House/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (9780375869433)
Llama Llama Time to Share. Anna Dewdney. Viking, $17.99 (9780670012336)
Love and Leftovers. Sarah Tregay. HarperCollins/Tegen, $17.99 (9780062023582)
Lucy Can’t Sleep. Amy Schwartz. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596435438)
Madhattan Mystery. John J. Bonk. Walker. $16.99 (9780802723499)
Man from the Land of Fandango. Margaret Mahy. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547819884)
Mario Makes a Move. Jill McElmurry. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $16.99 (9780375868542)
Martin de Porres: The Rose in the Desert. Gary D. Schmidt, illus. by David Diaz. Clarion. $16.99 (9780547612188)
Martin on the Moon. Martine Audet, illus. by Luc Melanson. Owlkids, $15.95 (9781926973166)
Marty McGuire Digs Worms! Kate Messner, illus. by Brian Floca. Scholastic, hc $17.99 (9780545142458); pb $5.99 (9780545142472)
Maudie and Bear. Jan Ormerod, illus. by Ferya Blackwood. Putnam. $16.99 (9780399257094)
Max and Ruby’s Treasure Hunt. Rosemary Wells. Viking, $17.99 (9780670063178)
McElderry Book of Mother Goose, The: Revered and Rare Rhymes. Petra Mathers. S&S/McElderry, $21.99 (9780689856051)
Meet at the Ark at Eight. Ulrich Hub, illus. by Jörg Mühle. Eerdmans, $12 (9780802854100)
Midnight in Austenland. Shannon Hale. Bloomsbury, $22 (9781608196258)
Million Suns, A: An Across the Universe Novel. Beth Revis. Razorbill, $17.99 (9781595143983)
Money in Sports. Nick Hunter. Heinemann. hc, $34 (9781432959777); Raintree, pb, $9 (9781432959821)
Monkey Colors. Darrin Lunde, illus. by Patricia J. Wynne. Charlesbridge, $15.95 (9781570917417); pb. $6.95 (9781570917424)
Monster Returns, The. Peter McCarty. Holt, $16.99 (9780805090307)
Monument 14. Emmy Laybourne. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (9780312569037)
Moonlight. Helen V. Griffith, illus. by Laura Dronzek. Greenwillow, $16.99 (9780062032850)
More. I.C. Springman, illus. by Brian Lies. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547610832)
Mousterpiece. Jane Breskin Zalben. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596435490)
Mrs. Noodlekugel. Daniel Pinkwater, illus. by Adam Stower. Candlewick, $14.99 (9780763650537)
My Dad Is Big and Strong, BUT…: A Bedtime Story. Coralie Saudo, trans. from the French by Claudia Bedrick, illus. by Kris DiGiacomo. Enchanted Lion (Consortium, dist.), $16.95 (9781592701223)
My First Ghost. Maggie Miller and Michael Leviton, illus. by Stephanie Buscema. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423119494)
My Life Next Door. Huntley Fitzpatrick. Dial, $16.99 (9780803736993)
My Name is Parvana. Deborah Ellis. Groundwood, $16.95 (9781554982974)
My Snake Blake. Randy Siegel, illus. by Serge Bloch. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.99 (9781596435841)
National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry: 200 Poems with Photographs That Squeak, Soar, and Roar! J. Patrick Lewis. National Geographic, $24.95 (9781426310096)
National Parks: A Kid’s Guide to America’s Parks, Monuments, and Landmarks. Erin McHugh, illus. by Neal Aspinall et al. Black Dog and Leventhal, $19.95 (9781579128845)
Never Trust a Tiger (Animal Stories 2). Lari Don; illus. by Melanie Williamson. Barefoot, $7.99 (9781846867767)
New Year’s Reunion, A. Yu Li-Qiong, illus. by Zhu Cheng-Liang. Candlewick, $15.99 (9780763658816)
Nic Bishop Snakes. Nic Bishop. Scholastic Nonfiction, $17.99 (9780545206389)
Nightsong. Ari Berk., illus. by Loren Long. Simon & Schuster, $17.99 (9781416978862)
Nighttime Ninja. Barbara DaCosta, illus. by Ed Young. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316203845)
Noah Webster & His Words. Jerri Chase Ferris; illus. by Vincent X. Kirsch. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547390550)
Now I Am Big! Stephen Krensky, illus. by Sara Gillingham. Abrams Appleseed, $6.95 (9781419704161)
Obstinate Pen, The. Frank W. Dormer. Holt, $16.99 (9780805092950)
Odyssey, The. Gillian Cross, illus. by Neil Packer. Candlewick, $19.99 (9780763647919)
Oh! What a Surprise! Suzanne Bloom. Boyds Mills, $16.95 (9781590788929)
Oliver. Birgitta Sif. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763662479)
Oliver. Judith Rossell. HarperCollins, $16.99 (9780062022103)
Olivia and the Fairy Princesses. Ian Falconer. S&S/Atheneum, $17.99 (9781442450271)
Olivia Bean, Trivia Queen. Donna Gephardt. Delacorte, $16.99. 9780385740524
Ollie’s School Day: A Yes-And-No Book. Stephanie Calmenson. Holiday House, $15.95 (9780823423774)
On the Flip Side (Fab Life). Nikki Carter. Dafina/Kensington, $9.95 (9780758272690)
One for the Murphys. Lynda Mullaly Hunt. Penguin/Paulsen, $16.99 (9780399256158)
One Special Day: A Story for Big Brothers and Sisters. Lola M. Schaefer, illus. by Jessica Meserve. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423137603)
Otter and Odder: A Love Story. James Howe; illus. by Chris Raschka. Candlewick, $14 (97807636641740)
Otto the Book Bear. Katie Cleminson. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423145622)
Out of Sight, Out of Time (Gallagher Girls). Ally Carter. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423147947)
Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature. Nicola Davies, illus. by Mark Hearld. Candlewick, $19.99 (9780763655495)
Pandemonium. Chris Wooding, illus. by Cassandra Diaz. Scholastic/Graphix, $22.99 (9780545252218); pb $12.99 (9780439877596)
Pandemonium. Lauren Oliver. HarperCollins, $17.99 (9780061978067)
Passenger. Andrew Smith. Feiwel and Friends, $17.99 (9781250004871)
Passion for Victory, A: The Story of the Olympics in Ancient and Early Modern Times. Benson Bobrick. Knopf. $19.99 (9780375868696)
Peculiar, The. Stefan Bachmann. Greenwillow, $16.99 (9780062195180)
Peculiars, The. Maureen Doyle McQuerry. Abrams/Amulet, $16.95 (9781419701788)
Perfect Escape. Jennifer Brown. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316185578)
Pig Pig Meets the Lion. David McPhail. Charlesbridge, $15.95 (9781580893589)
Piggy Bunny. Rachel Vail, illus. by Jeremy Tankard. Feiwel and Friends, $14.99 (9780312649883)
Pinned. Sharon G. Flake. Scholastic, $17.99 (9780545057189)
Pip’s Trip (Loopy Coop Hens Series). Janet Morgan Stoeke. Dial, $16.99 (9780803737082)
Pirate Cinema. Cory Doctorow. Tor, $19.99 (9780765329080)
Poem Runs: Baseball Poems and Paintings. Douglas Florian. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547688381)
Pomelo Explores Color. Ramona Bădescu, trans. from the French by Claudia Zoe Bedrick, illus. by Benjamin Chaud. Enchanted Lion (Consortium, dist.), $15.95 (9781592701261)
President’s Stuck in the Bathtub, The: Poems About the Presidents. Susan Katz; illus. by Robert Neubecker. Clarion, $17.99 (9780547182216)
Prince Albert and the Doomsday Device. Clive London. Zova, $14.99 (9780615510569)
Promise the Night. Michaela Maccoll. Chronicle, $16.99 (9780811876254)
Quarantine: The Loners. Lex Thomas. Egmont USA, $17.99 (9781606843291)
Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover. Cece Bell. Candlewick, $14.99 (9780763654757)
Raja: Story of a Racehorse. Anne Hambleton. Old Bow, $12.95 (9780615540290)
Ready for Pumpkins. Kate Duke. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375870682)
Rebel McKenzie. Candice Ransom. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423145394)
Red Knit Cap Girl. Naoko Stoop. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316129466)
Red, White, and Boom! Lee Wardlaw, illus. by Huy Voun Lee. Holt, $16.99 (9780805090659)
Revenge of the Dinotrux. Chris Gall. Little, Brown, $16.99 (9780316132886)
Revived. Cat Patrick. Little, Brown, $17.99 (9780316094627)
Robin Hood. David Calcutt, illus. by Grahame Baker-Smith. Barefoot, $24.99 hc (9781846863578); $12.99 pb (9781846867996)
Rock God: The Legend of BJ Levine. Barnabas Miller. Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky, $7.99 (9781402259623)
Role of Religion in the Early Islamic World. Jim Whiting. Crabtree, $9.95 (9780778721765)
Ruby Redfort: Look into My Eyes. Lauren Child. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763651206)
Ruins. Orson Scott Card. Simon Pulse, $18.99 (9781416991779)
Safekeeping. Karen Hesse. Feiwel and Friends, $17.99 (9781250011343)
Sally Go Round the Stars: Favourite Rhymes from an Irish Childhood. Sarah Webb and Claire Ranson, illus. by Steve McCarthy. O’Brien (Dufour Editions, dist.), $23.95 (9781847172112)
Sarah Gives Thanks. Mike Allegra, illus. by David Gardner. Albert Whitman, $16.99 (9780807572399)
Scarlet. A.C. Gaughen. Walker. $17.99 (9780802723468)
Science, Medicine, and Math in the Early Islamic World. Trudee Romanek. Crabtree, $9.95 (9780778721772)
Sea Wolves, The (The Secret Journeys of Jack London, Book 2). Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon; illus. by Greg Ruth. HarperCollins, $16.99 (9780061863202)
Secret Letters. Leah Scheier. Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423124054)
Secret of the Fortune Wookiee (Origami Yoda). Tom Angleberger, illus. by Cece Bell. Abrams/Amulet, $12.95 (9781419703928)
Secret of the Manhattan Project, The. Doreen Gonzales. Enslow, library edition, $31.93 (9780766039544)
Secret Prophecy, The. Herbie Brennan. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $16.99 (9780062071804)
Secret Tree, The. Natalie Standiford. Scholastic Press, $16.99 (9780545334792)
Seed by Seed: The Legend and Legacy of John “Appleseed” Chapman. Esmé Raji Codell, illus. by Lynne Rae Perkins. Greenwillow, $16.99 (9780061455155)
Shadow and Bone. Bk. 1. (The Grisha Trilogy, 1). Leigh Bardugo. Holt, $17.99 (9780805094596)
Shadow on the Mountain. Margi Preus. Abrams/Amulet, $16.95 (9781419704246)
Shadow. Michael Morpurgo. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (9780312606596)
Shadowfell. Juliet Marillier. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375869549)
Shadows, The (Faerieground). Bracken, Beth, and Kay Fraiser. Stone Arch Books, $22.65 (9781434233066)
Sharpshooter (Vietnam 2). Chris Lynch. Scholastic, $16.99 (9780545270267)
Ship of Souls. Zetta Elliott. AmazonEncore, $9.95 (9781612182681).
Silence of Our Friends, The. Mark Long and Jim Demonakos; illus. by Nate Powell. First Second/Roaring Brook, $16.99 (9781596436183)
Sisters of Glass. Stephanie Hemphill. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375861093)
Sky Color. Peter Reynolds. Candlewick, $14 (9780763623456)
Sleep Like a Tiger. Mary Logue, illus. by Pamela Zagarenski. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547641027)
Slide. Jill Hathaway. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99 (9780062077905)
Small and Tall Tales of Extinct Animals. Damien Laverdunt, illus. by Hélène Rajcak. Gecko Press USA (Lerner, dist.), $22.95 (9781877579066)
Smudge and the Book of Mistakes: A Christmas Story. Gloria Whelan, illus. by Stephen Costanza. Sleeping Bear, $17.95 (9781585364831)
Soldier’s Secret, A: The Incredible True Story of Sarah Edmonds, a Civil War Hero. Marissa Moss. Abrams/Amulet, $16.95 (9781419704277)
Soldiers (World War II Sourcebook ). Charlie Samuels. Brown Bear Books, $35.65 (9781936333240)
Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am. Harry Mazer and Peter Lerangis. Simon & Schuster, $15.99 (9781416938958)
Someday Dancer. Sarah Rubin. Scholastic/Chicken House, $16.99 (9780545393782)
Sons of the 613. Michael Rubens. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547612164)
Sophie’s Fish. A.E. Cannon, illus. by Lee White. Viking, $15.99 (9780670012916)
Soul Searching: A Girl’s Guide to Finding Herself. Sarah Stillman, illus. by Susan Gross. Simon Pulse, $9.99 (9781582703039)
Spying and Security (World War II Sourcebook). Charlie Samuels. Brown Bear Books, $35.65 (9781936333257)
Squid and Octopus: Friends for Always. Tao Nyeu. Dial. $16.99 (9780803735651)
Star Wars: A Galactic Pop-up Adventure. Matthew Reinhart. Scholastic/Orchard, $36.99 (9780545176163)
Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, The. Jennifer E. Smith. Little, Brown/Poppy, $17.99 (9780316122382)
Stephen and the Beetle. Jorge Lujan; illus. by Chiara Carrer; trans. by Elisa Amado. Groundwood, $18.99 (9781554981922)
Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different. Karen Blumenthal. Feiwel and Friends, hc $16.99 (9781250015570); pb $8.99 (9781250014450)
Stick Is an Excellent Thing, A: Poems Celebrating Outdoor Play. Marilyn Singer, illus. by LeUyen Pham. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547124933)
Stories 1, 2, 3, 4. Eugene Ionesco, illus. and translated by Etienne Delessert. McSweeney’s McMullens, $19.95 (9781936365517)
Storm (Elemental, 1). Brigid Kemmerer. Kensington, $9.95 (9780758272812)
Stormdancer (Lotus War 01). Jay Kristoff. St. Martin’s/Dunne, $24.99 (9781250001405)
Story of the Blue Planet, The. Andri Snaer Magnason, trans. from the Icelandic by Julian Meldon D’Arcy, illus. by Áslaug Jónsdóttir. Seven Stories/Triangle Square, $12.99 (9781609804282)
Story of Things, The: From the Stone Age to the Modern Age in 10 Pop-Up Spreads. Neal Layton, paper engineering by Corina Fletcher. Hodder (IPG/Trafalgar Sq., dist.), $19.99 (9780340945322)
Story of Us, The. Deb Caletti. Simon Pulse, hardcover, $16.99 (9781442423466)
Storyteller, The. Michaelis, Antonia (author). Translated by Miriam Debbage. Abrams/Amulet, $18.95 (9781419700477).
Stronger: A Super Human Clash (Super Human #03). Michael Carroll. Philomel, $16.99 (9780399257612)
Summer and Bird. Katherine Catmull. Dutton, $16.99 (9780525953463)
Summer of the Wolves. Polly Carlson-Voiles. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $15.99 (9780547745916)
Summer on the Moon. Fogelin, Adrian (author). Peachtree, $15.95 (9781561456260)
Superman Versus the Ku Klux Klan: The True Story of How the Iconic Superhero Battled the Men of Hate. Rick Bowers. National Geographic, $16.95 (9781426309151)
Survival Guide for Kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders (and Their Parents), The. Elizabeth Verdick and Elizabeth Reeve. Free Spirit, $16.99 (9781575423852)
Survive. Alex Morel. Razorbill, $17.99 (9781595145109)
Survivors, The. Will Weaver. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780060094768)
Sweet Evil. Wendy Higgins. HarperTeen, $8.99 (9780062085610)
Sweetest Spell, The. Suzanne Selfors. Walker, $16.99 (9780802723765)
Tell Me About Your Day Today. Mem Fox, illus. by Lauren Stringer. S&S/Beach Lane, $17.99 (9781416990062)
Tempest, The. Julie Cross. St. Martin’s Griffin/Dunne, $17.99 (9780312568894)
Temptation of Angels, A. Michelle Zink. Dial/Penguin, $17.99 (9780803737266)
That’s Not a Daffodil! Elizabeth Honey. Allen & Unwin, dist. by IPG, $16.99 (9781742372488)
This is Not Forgiveness. Celia Rees. Bloomsbury, $17.99 (9781599907765)
This is So Not Happening (He’s So/She’s So, 3). Scott Kieran. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (9781416999553)
Those Darn Squirrels Fly South. Adam Rubin, illus. by Daniel Salmieri. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547678238)
Through to You. Emily Hainsworth. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $17.99 (9780062094193)
Tickle Time! Sandra Boynton. Workman, $6.95 (9780761168836)
Time Snatchers. Richard Ungar. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399254857)
Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives. Gene Barretta. Holt, $16.99 (9780805091083)
Tina’s Mouth: An Existential Comic Diary. Keshni Kashyap, illus. by Mari Araki. Houghton, $18.95 (9780618945191)
Tooth Mouse, The. Susan Hood, illus. by Janice Nadeau. Kids Can, $16.95 (9781554535651)
Trade and Commerce in the Early Islamic World. Allison Lassieur. Crabtree, $9.95 (9780778721796)
Trafficked. Kim Purcell. Viking, $16.99 (9780670012800)
Trains Go. Steve Light. Chronicle, $8.99 (9780811879422)
Traveling Restaurant, The: Jasper’s Voyage in Three Parts. Barbara Else. Gecko Press, $17.95 (9781877579035)
Treason. Berlie Doherty. Andersen, dist. by IPG, $9.99 (9781849391214)
Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse, A. Frank Viva. Candlewick/Toon, $12.95 (9781935179191)
True Legend. Mike Lupica. Philomel, $17.99 (9780399252273)
Tua and the Elephant. R.P. Harris, illus. by Taeeun Yoo. Chronicle, $16.99 (9780811877817)
Two Little Monkeys. Mem Fox, illus. by Jill Barton. S&S/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781416986874)
Two or Three Things I Forgot to Tell You. Joyce Carol Oates. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780062110473)
Tyler Makes Pancakes! Tyler Florence, illus. by Craig Frazier. Harper, $16.99 (9780062047526)
Unbearable Book Club for Unsinkable Girls, The. Julie Schumacher. Delacorte, $16.99 (9780385737739)
Under the Baobab Tree. Julie Stiegemeyer, illus. by E.B. Lewis. Zonderkidz, $16.99 (9780310725619)
UnWholly (Unwind, 2). Neal Shusterman. Simon & Schuster, $17.99 (9781442423664)
Valentine and His Violin. Philip Hopman. Lemniscaat USA, $17.95 (9781935954170)
Vampirina Ballerina. Anne Marie Pace, illus. by LeUyen Pham. Disney-Hyperion, $14.99 (9781423157533)
Vindico, The. Wesley King. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399256547)
Walking on Earth and Touching the Sky: Poetry and Prose By Lakota Youth at Red Cloud Indian School. Timothy P. McLaughlin, illus. by S. D. Nelson. Abrams, $19.95 (9781419701795)
Warrior’s Heart, The: Becoming a Man of Compassion and Courage. Eric Greitens. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547868523)
Wazzyjump. Michael Moniz. Simply Read Books, $16.95 (9781897476581)
What Boys Really Want. Pete Hautman. Scholastic, $17.99 (9780545113151)
What Came from the Stars. Gary D. Schmidt. Clarion, $16.99 (9780547612133)
What Can a Crane Pick Up? Rebecca Kai Dotlich, illus. by Mike Lowery. Knopf, $16.99 (9780375867262)
What Happens Next. Colleen Clayton. Little, Brown/Poppy , $17.99 (9780316198684)
What Little Boys Are Made of. Robert Neubecker. HarperTeen/Balzer + Bray, $14.99 (9780062023551)
What the Dog Said. Randi Reisfeld and H.B. Gilmore. Bloomsbury, $16.99 (9781599907024)
What to Do if an Elephant Stands on Your Foot. Michelle Robinson, illus. by Peter H. Reynolds. Dial, $16.99 (9780803733985)
What’s Left of Me. Kat Zhang. Harper, $17.99 (9780062114877)
What’s the Time, Mr. Wolf? Debi Gliori, illus. by Clive Bloom. Walker, $16.99 (9780802734327)
When Dinos Dawned, Mammals Got Munched, and Pterosaurs Took Flight: A Cartoon Prehistory of Life in the Triassic. Hannah Bonner. National Geographic, $17.95 (9781426308628)
When the Sea Is Rising Red. Cat Hellison. FSG, $16.99 (9780374364755)
Whole Lot of Lucky, A. Danette Haworth. Walker, $16.99 (9780802723932)
Wild About You! Judy Sierra, illus. by Marc Brown. Knopf, $17.99 (9780307931788)
Will Puberty Last My Whole Life? Real Answers to Real Questions from Preteens about Body Changes, Sex, and Other Growing-Up Stuff. Julie Metzger & Robert Lehman. Sasquatch Books, $16.95 (9781570617393)
Willow Queen’s Gate, The (Faerieground). Bracken, Beth, and Kay Fraiser. Stone Arch Books, $22.65 (9781434233042)
Wing Wing Brothers Math Spectacular, The! Ethan Long. Holiday House, $15.95 (9780823423200)
Wings of the Wicked (Angelfire 2). Allison Courtney Moulton. HarperCollins/Tegen, $17.99 (9780062002365)
Wish in the Woods, A (Faerieground). Bracken, Beth, and Kay Fraiser. Stone Arch Books, $22.65 (9781434233035)
World Away, A. Nancy Grossman. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (9781423151531)
You Are a Star! Michael Parker, Marilyn Ed Parker, and Caroline Wiedmer, illus. by Judith Rossell. Walker, $16.99 (9780802728418)
You Are Stardust. Elin Kelsey; illus by Soyeon Kim. Owlkids, $18.95 (9781926973357)
Zeke Bartholomew: Superspy! (Zeke Bartholomew #1) Jason Pinter. Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky, $7.99 (9781402257551)
Zelda the Varigoose. Sebastian Loth. North-South, $15.95 (9780735840768)
Zoe Letting Go. Nora Price. Razorbill, $17.99 (9781595144669)
Zombie Makers: True Stories of Nature’s Undead. Rebecca L. Johnson. Millbrook, $30.60 (9780761386339)
Zoo Girl. Rebecca Elliott. Lion Children’s Books, $14.99 (9780745963235)

The nature of a bookstore is that merchandise will get played with and looked at. This is a very good thing that most retailers encourage. A problem arises when little ones don’t understand the nature of business and can’t stop playing with something at the store.
We keep our sidelines by the register for two reasons. The first is they are a great impulse buy, so having them by the register is smart. The second reason we keep them within sight is so we can keep an eye on  the products. Sometimes these are things that can break easily or  they are the noisy toys. We have a really cute display of farmyard pens. These pens come as a cow, sheep, owl and pig. If the plastic tab is removed from the back of the animal’s head, they make that animal’s sound when the head is depressed. Generally, we’ll have one of each ready for kids to play with and the rest have the silencing plastic tab in place. For some reason all the tabs have been removed and every pen makes a very loud “Moo,” “Oink,” or in the case of the owl, the loudest, scariest shriek you’ve ever heard. I have to admit I’m not patient with these noises at the register for prolonged periods of time. But rather than be a total curmudgeon and just taking the pen away, I’ve found myself saying things like, “Don’t over moo the cow.” Really? Can you actually over moo a cow? I guess little ones don’t understand about batteries yet, and saying something could be over oinked seems to work with kids.
Stuffed animals can often present a challenge to little shoppers. Up until the time kids started going to stores, all stuffed animals could be played with, pretty much no matter where you were. At a store a child has to learn that these soft, lovable creatures either need to be left alone or paid for. We solved part of this problem by having toys that could be played with and hugged and sat on. This allowed the for-sale plushies to stay cleaner longer. The problem arises when it’s time to leave and a child wants to take the animal home. We have found a great way to break it to the child that they can’t have the animal is to tell them the animal lives at the store and has to stay. This they understand and it’s gentle without making the child feel bad.
Kids love to spin things. We have finger puppets hanging from a book mark spinner and kids love to flick the spinner as hard as they can to see what will happen to the puppets. I have always thought that this looked like a carnival ride where inevitably someone gets motion sick. A mom clearly had the same idea when I heard her say to her five-year-old, “It’s not a ride for the animals, sweetie.”
I chuckled when I heard this and watched the ride slow down, and I could see that all the animals were fine.
 

Generally, the bookseller is supposed to provide the service to the customers. We are expected to keep up the latest books, try our hardest to recommend books they will love, and much more. But sometimes our customers see that we need help and lend a hand.
I was at the coffee shop on Friday and two customers, Alison and her teenage daughter McKinley, were there. They motioned for me to come over and told me that they needed to return a book. This is generally not the way I like to begin my day, but my mood improved when Alison noticed that I was favoring my right shoulder.
“When we return the book, I’ll work on you.” I should mention that Alison does Thai massage. The thought of her helping my aching shoulder more than made up for the return. Alison was our very first customer in 1996. She did not come on the first day, she actually called three weeks before we opened. She brought McKinley, who was two months old at the time. We tried to convince her we weren’t really ready to have customers come in. She explained that she was going to Germany for several months and wanted to see the new bookstore.
We relented and let her in. She was appreciative and had a lengthy discussion with Elizabeth about classic books that she thought we should have. We had them, we just hadn’t unboxed everything yet. Alison let us know she was an author, but in a casual way, not in a “you must carry my books” kind of way. This was my introduction to Alison, who would be a constant in our lives ever since.
Alison is the author of one of my favorite picture books, The Drums of Noto Hanto. This book came out in 1999 and is a simple story about how a Japanese village fended off attacking samurais by beating their taiko drums and donning masks. The book’s message about nonviolence was fabulous, a message in 1999 that resonates even more loudly today.
We had one of our best events with Alison and that book. Two taiko drummers set up outside the store and drummed out the book. It was a traffic-stopping event that kids still remember. The kids had masks and the drumming was literally heart-stopping. We all felt the drums; Alison’s reading was inspired and every person at the event understood how the small village could have saved itself. I loved that the message was so clear, and based on a true story, that everyone understood its importance.
While Alison worked on my shoulder we talked about our love of The Drums of Noto Hanto. By the time she was done, I could actually raise my arm over my head for the first time in weeks and I had a great memory of a wonderful book that I hope someone brings back in print.
 
 

The leaves changing color isn’t the only joy of autumn.  There is also the stunning array of new books coming out. This week was a banner week for kids’ books. We unboxed so many books we couldn’t shelve before Tuesday, that we had our whole back counter full to bursting with September 4th release dates.
Houghton Mifflin-Harcourt had some yummy books that I was desperate to shelve. The first book that I adore is The Family Bedtime Treasury: Tales for Sleepy Times and Sweet Dreams. Normally  I’m not a fan of picture book treasuries because the art is reduced and often the text is abridged. Not so with this collection – it contains eight stories complete with musical or poetic accompaniment on CD that comes with the book. The books chosen are among my favorites ,ranging from The Quiet Book, Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep, and Bedtime Bunnies. A book like this is perfect for grandparents to have in the house. This way, they’ll always have eight great sleepytime stories to read to visiting grandkids.
Of course the middle-grade fiction is great as well. It’s always a good season when Gary Schmidt has a new novel out. This time he combines high fantasy with realistic fiction with What Came From the Stars, as our protagonist grieves for his recently deceased mother. This book should appeal to Schmidt fans as well as garner him some new fans who love fantasy.
There’s also Malcolm at Midnight by first-time author W.H. Beck, illustrated by Brian Lies. When Brian came to the store he talked about this book and it sounded great. I’ll confess, I haven’t read this one yet, but any book about a classroom rat, an iguana who wears glasses, and a case of mistaken identity has just moved to the top of my bedside stack.
HarperCollins had an equally impressive stack of books that came out on Tuesday. It’s not every day that Sharon Creech, Mo Willems, and Melissa Marr come out with new books. I saw these three in the shelving pile and thought, Ooh, something for everyone.
Sharon Creech has once again delivered a gem of a novel. It’s easy to forget how good she is until I read her and then I’m blown away. Her writing is simple and eloquent, and this story about how we’re all connected is just beautiful. Creech makes multiple story lines work with a touch of Irish fairy magic, ghost stories, and tales of murder.
Melissa Marr introduces readers to a new series with her latest, Carnival of Souls. It’s always fun for me to have a new book by her to give to teenage girls and boys as well. This book has a little of everything: daimons, fighting, a very tight caste system, and a great lead character, Mallory, who has been raised by a witch. Marr, like Creech, has a talent for blending multiple story lines seamlessly.
The last book from Harper is from Mo Willems. He has a very funny retelling of the classic tale Goldilocks, this time it’s Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs. The book is full of humor, and almost every page has a laugh-out-loud visual and just some flat-out funny passages. My favorite page is when one of the dinosaurs is laughing in Norwegian (why?). I love the randomness of that, and I think kids will crack up at it. In this story the hapless Goldilocks ignores all warning signs until she wises up and runs out the back door. She knows she’s supposed to be in the folktale and when she realizes that this version has dinosaurs and not bears, she hightails it out the back door.
These books are just a smattering of the yumminess that’s been coming this fall. This season looks to be chock-full of great books that I can’t wait to sell.