Recommended Reads
-
Mulan's Lunar New Year
It's the Lunar New Year, and it happens to be Mulan's favorite festival! There is a lot to do to prepare for this important celebration, and for the first time, Mulan is old enough to help out. But everything Mulan does seems to turn out wrong. . . . Follow along with Mulan in this special Lunar New Year story that captures the unique sense of magic, imagination, and possibility that surrounds the holiday!
-
Lunar New Year
Learn all about the traditions of Lunar New Year—also known as Chinese New Year!
-
Baby Loves Lunar Phases on Chinese New Year!
While celebrating Chinese New Year, Baby discovers the science behind lunar phases! Accurate enough to satisfy an expert, yet simple enough for baby, this clever board book explores the lunar calendar, the moon's orbit, and the reason the moon seems to change shape.
-
Incredible Doom
Welcome to a new age...the age of the internet.
Allison is drowning under the weight of her manipulative stage magician father. When he brings home the family's first computer, she escapes into a thrilling new world where she meetings Samir, a like-minded new online friend who has just agreed to run away from home with her.
After moving to a new town and leaving all of his friends behind, Richard receives a mysterious note in his locker with instructions on how to connect to "Evol BBS," a dial-in bulletin board system, and meets a fierce punk named Tina who comes into his life and shakes his entire worldview loose.
Unlikely alliances, first love, and minor crime sprees abound in this teen graphic novel debut about making connections while your world is falling apart.
-
The Miseducation of Cameron Post
The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a stunning and provocative literary debut that was named to numerous best of the year lists.
Cameron Post feels a mix of guilt and relief when her parents die in a car accident. Their deaths mean they will never learn the truth she eventually comes to: that she's gay.
Orphaned, Cameron comes to live with her old-fashioned grandmother and ultraconservative aunt Ruth. There she falls in love with her best friend, a beautiful cowgirl.
When she’s eventually outed, her aunt sends her to God’s Promise, a religious conversion camp that is supposed to “cure” her homosexuality. At the camp, Cameron comes face to face with the cost of denying her true identity.
Don't miss this raw and powerful own voices debut, the basis for the award-winning film starring Chloë Grace Moretz.
-
Dead Flip
Edge-of-your-seat YA horror perfect for fans of Stranger Things
Growing up, Cori, Maz, and Sam were inseparable best friends, sharing their love for Halloween, arcade games, and one another. Now it’s 1992, Sam has been missing for five years, and Cori and Maz aren’t speaking anymore. How could they be, when Cori is sure Sam is dead and Maz thinks he may have been kidnapped by a supernatural pinball machine?
These days, all Maz wants to do is party, buy CDs at Sam Goody, and run away from his past. Meanwhile, Cori is a homecoming queen, hiding her abiding love of horror movies and her queer self under the bubblegum veneer of a high school queen bee. But when Sam returns—still twelve years old while his best friends are now seventeen—Maz and Cori are thrown back together to solve the mystery of what really happened to Sam the night he went missing. Beneath the surface of that mystery lurk secrets the friends never told one another, then and now. And Sam’s is the darkest of all . . .
Award-winning author of If You Could Be Mine and Here to Stay Sara Farizan delivers edge-of-your-seat terror as well as her trademark referential humor, witty narration, and insightful characters.
-
Child Soldier
Michel is like many other five-year-olds: he has a loving family and spends his days going to school and playing soccer. But in 1993, the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Michel and his family live, is a country in tumult. One afternoon Michel and his friends are kidnapped by rebel militants and forced to become child soldiers. Child Soldier is the sometimes heartbreaking but ultimately inspiring true story of the triumph of the human spirit.
-
I Was Their American Dream
I Was Their American Dream is at once a coming-of-age story and a reminder of the thousands of immigrants who come to America in search for a better life for themselves and their children. The daughter of parents with unfulfilled dreams themselves, Malaka navigated her childhood chasing her parents' ideals, learning to code-switch between her family's Filipino and Egyptian customs, adapting to white culture to fit in, crushing on skater boys, and trying to understand the tension between holding onto cultural values and trying to be an all-American kid.
Malaka Gharib's triumphant graphic memoir brings to life her teenage antics and illuminates earnest questions about identity and culture, while providing thoughtful insight into the lives of modern immigrants and the generation of millennial children they raised. Malaka's story is a heartfelt tribute to the American immigrants who have invested their future in the promise of the American dream. -
Finding My Voice
The groundbreaking Own Voices YA classic from Korean-American author Marie Myung-Ok Lee, reissued with a new foreword from Wicked Fox author Kat Cho.
Seventeen-year-old Ellen Sung just wants to be like everyone else at her all-white school. But hers is the only Korean American family in town, and her classmates in Arkin, Minnesota, will never let her forget that she’s different. At the start of senior year, Ellen finds herself falling for Tomper Sandel, a football player who is popular and blond and undeniably cute . . . and to her surprise, he falls for her, too. Now Ellen has a chance at a life she never imagined, one that defies the expectations of both her core friend group and her strict parents. But even as she stands up to racism at school and disapproval at home, all while pursuing a romance with Tomper, Ellen discovers that her greatest challenge is one she never expected: finding the courage to speak up and raise her voice. -
Butterfly Yellow
Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction! Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Ibi Zoboi, and Erika L. Sánchez, this gorgeously written and deeply moving novel is the YA debut from the award-winning author of Inside Out & Back Again. 4 starred reviews!
In the final days of the Việt Nam War, Hằng takes her little brother, Linh, to the airport, determined to find a way to safety in America. In a split second, Linh is ripped from her arms--and Hằng is left behind in the war-torn country.
Six years later, Hằng has made the brutal journey from Việt Nam and is now in Texas as a refugee. She doesn't know how she will find the little brother who was taken from her until she meets LeeRoy, a city boy with big rodeo dreams, who decides to help her.
Hằng is overjoyed when she reunites with Linh. But when she realizes he doesn't remember her, their family, or Việt Nam, her heart is crushed. Though the distance between them feels greater than ever, Hằng has come so far that she will do anything to bridge the gap.
-
Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina
The extraordinary memoir of an orphan who danced her way from war-torn Sierra Leone to ballet stardom, most recently appearing in Beyonce’s Lemonade and as a principal in a major American dance company.
"Michaela is nothing short of a miracle, born to be a ballerina. For every young brown, yellow, and purple dancer, she is an inspiration!” —Misty Copeland, world-renowned ballet dancer
Michaela DePrince was known as girl Number 27 at the orphanage, where she was abandoned at a young age and tormented as a “devil child” for a skin condition that makes her skin appear spotted. But it was at the orphanage that Michaela would find a picture of a beautiful ballerina en pointe that would help change the course of her life.
At the age of four, Michaela was adopted by an American family, who encouraged her love of dancing and enrolled her in classes. She went on to study at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at the American Ballet Theatre and is now the youngest principal dancer with the Dance Theatre of Harlem. She has appeared in the ballet documentary First Position, as well as on Dancing with the Stars, Good Morning America, and Nightline.
In this engaging, moving, and unforgettable memoir, Michaela shares her dramatic journey from an orphan in West Africa to becoming one of ballet’s most exciting rising stars. -
Monster
FADE IN: INTERIOR: Early morning in CELL BLOCK D, MANHATTAN DETENTION CENTER.
Steve (Voice-Over)
Sometimes I feel like I have walked into the middle of a movie. Maybe I can make my own movie. The film will be the story of my life. No, not my life, but of this experience. I'll call it what the lady prosecutor called me ... Monster. -
Who Put This Song On?
Trapped in sunny, stifling, small-town suburbia, seventeen-year-old Morgan knows why she's in therapy. She can't count the number of times she's been the only non-white person at the sleepover, been teased for her "weird" outfits, and been told she's not "really" black. Also, she's spent most of her summer crying in bed. So there's that, too.
Lately, it feels like the whole world is listening to the same terrible track on repeat--and it's telling them how to feel, who to vote for, what to believe. Morgan wonders, when can she turn this song off and begin living for herself?
Loosely based on her own teenage life and diaries, this incredible debut by award-winning poet Morgan Parker will make readers stand up and cheer for a girl brave enough to live life on her own terms--and for themselves.
"Morgan Parker put THIS song on--and I hope it never turns off." —Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin and Odd One Out
“A triumphant first impression in the YA space.” —Entertainment Weekly
“An incredibly heartfelt, deep story about a girl's coming of age.” —Refinery29 -
Concrete Rose
International phenomenon Angie Thomas revisits Garden Heights seventeen years before the events of The Hate U Give in this searing and poignant exploration of Black boyhood and manhood. A Printz Honor Book!
If there's one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it's that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad's in prison.
Life's not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav's got everything under control.
Until, that is, Maverick finds out he's a father.
Suddenly he has a baby, Seven, who depends on him for everything. But it's not so easy to sling dope, finish school, and raise a child. So when he's offered the chance to go straight, he takes it. In a world where he's expected to amount to nothing, maybe Mav can prove he's different.
When King Lord blood runs through your veins, though, you can't just walk away. Loyalty, revenge, and responsibility threaten to tear Mav apart, especially after the brutal murder of a loved one. He'll have to figure out for himself what it really means to be a man.
-
Yummy
A graphic novel based on the life and death of Robert "Yummy" Sandifer, an eleven-year-old gang member from Chicago's Southside who was killed by his own gang members.
Eleven-year-old Roger is trying to make sense of his classmate Robert "Yummy" Sandifer's death, but first he has to make sense of Yummy's life. Yummy could be as tough as a pit bull sometimes. Other times he was as sweet as the sugary treats he loved to eat. Was Yummy some sort of monster, or just another kid?
As Roger searches for the truth, he finds more and more questions. How did Yummy end up in so much trouble? Did he really kill someone? And why do all the answers seem to lead back to a gang-the same gang Roger's older brother belongs to?
Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty is a compelling dramatization based on events that occurred in Chicago in 1994. This gritty exploration of youth gang life will force readers to question their own understandings of good and bad, right and wrong.
-
Let Me Hear a Rhyme
In this striking new novel by the critically acclaimed author of Allegedly and Monday's Not Coming, Tiffany D. Jackson tells the story of three Brooklyn teens who plot to turn their murdered friend into a major rap star by pretending he's still alive.
Brooklyn, 1998. Biggie Smalls was right: Things done changed. But that doesn't mean that Quadir and Jarrell are cool letting their best friend Steph's music lie forgotten under his bed after he's murdered--not when his rhymes could turn any Bed Stuy corner into a party.
With the help of Steph's younger sister Jasmine, they come up with a plan to promote Steph's music under a new rap name: the Architect. Soon, everyone wants a piece of him. When his demo catches the attention of a hotheaded music label rep, the trio must prove Steph's talent from beyond the grave.
As the pressure of keeping their secret grows, Quadir, Jarrell, and Jasmine are forced to confront the truth about what happened to Steph. Only, each has something to hide. And with everything riding on Steph's fame, they need to decide what they stand for or lose all that they've worked so hard to hold on to--including each other.
"Jackson scores a bullseye with her passionate homage to Black city life in the late '90s." (Publishers Weekly, "An Anti-Racist Children's and YA Reading List")
-
The Black Kids
Los Angeles, 1992
Ashley Bennett and her friends are living the charmed life. It’s the end of senior year and they’re spending more time at the beach than in the classroom. They can already feel the sunny days and endless possibilities of summer.
Everything changes one afternoon in April, when four LAPD officers are acquitted after beating a black man named Rodney King half to death. Suddenly, Ashley’s not just one of the girls. She’s one of the black kids.
As violent protests engulf LA and the city burns, Ashley tries to continue on as if life were normal. Even as her self-destructive sister gets dangerously involved in the riots. Even as the model black family façade her wealthy and prominent parents have built starts to crumble. Even as her best friends help spread a rumor that could completely derail the future of her classmate and fellow black kid, LaShawn Johnson.
With her world splintering around her, Ashley, along with the rest of LA, is left to question who is the us? And who is the them? -
Girls Running
Running can shape a young athlete in healthy, positive ways for the rest of her life.
Girls Running offers the guidance and tools girls need to thrive on their running journey, right from the start. With straight talk on training, physiology, menstruation, sports nutrition, a winning mindset, body image issues, gear, team-building, and competition, Girls Running educates and empowers young runners to achieve their potential and love running more.
Girls Running is a go-to guide for everything girls need to know to run better--and love the journey while doing it!
-
A Story of Travel in 50 Vehicles
Including a mix of common and not-so-familiar vehicles from a variety of cultures, A History of Travel in 50 Vehicles explores how creative thinkers have envisioned new ways to move about in the world. From the first foot migration out of Africa to the Model T Ford, hot air balloons, submarines, rickshaws, and moon rockets, humans have combined imagination, daring, and scientific and technical knowledge to improve existing vehicles or create new ones. It illustrates the persistence of creative ideas by tracing modern vehicles back hundreds of years to their original conception.
-
What Animals Want
All animals need food, water and shelter. But what about their social and emotional needs?
Modern science tells us that animals experience a wide range of emotions--from fear and anxiety to friendship and happiness. What Animals Want is an animal-care book with a difference. It introduces young readers to the Five Freedoms and helps them think about their pets' physical and emotional needs, providing a framework for thinking about the welfare of all animals in human care, including farm, exotic and wild animals. Author Jacqueline Pearce wrote this book in consultation with the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BC SPCA), an organization internationally recognized for its innovative humane education and animal welfare work.
-
Jobs of the Future
Discover a world of possibility in this colorful and inspiring guide to a wide range of futuristic careers. Be inspired to develop a new hobby that could become your future career!
-
Tiny Dancer
A teenage ballet dancer struggles to find her next step, and her place in the world, in this exquisite graphic memoir—a follow-up to the Sibert Honor–winning To Dance.
-
Minecraft for Makers
Minecraft for Makers explores the intersection of this creative and beloved electronic game with the real world. It gives readers the opportunity to take familiar objects from the game - such as blocks, jack o'lanterns, and mobs - and make real-world versions of them. Begin with simple crafting projects using wood, paint, and LEGOs. Then move up to projects that involve basic electronics with LEDs. And, finally, advance to Arduino microcontroller projects that teach programming skills and basic robotics. The skills build progressively on one another, from chapter to chapter, and the emphasis is on fun all the way!
-
Teen Writer's Guide
Imagine you had a road map for writing the book you've always dreamed of writing--a step-by-step guide from testing your story ideas, to visualizing your characters' types and voices, to building a world that comes to life, to navigating the publishing industry, and going the distance to reach your writing goals.
As co-founder of Teen Author Boot Camp, one of the nation's largest writing conferences specifically for teens, and Young Adult author, Jennifer Jenkins has helped thousands of teens travel the world of writing. Teen Writer's Guide: Your Road Map to Writing is the culmination of years of research and teaching, providing a detailed road map to writing your own story and steering through the detours and pit stops along the way. Perfect for teen writers, their teachers, and anyone who has an interest in breaking down the craft of writing in fun and manageable ways, this book is sure to take you to your final destination--and help you enjoy the journey along the way
-
Understanding Comics
Praised throughout the cartoon industry by such luminaries as Art Spiegelman, Matt Groening, and Will Eisner, this innovative comic book provides a detailed look at the history, meaning, and art of comics and cartooning.
-
Become an App Inventor: The Official Guide from MIT App Inventor
Have you ever wanted to build your own mobile apps? App Inventor, a free and revolutionary online program from MIT, lets you do just that. With the help of this companion guide chock-full of colorful graphics and easy-to-follow instructions, readers can learn how to create six different apps, including a working piano, a maze game, and even their own chat app to communicate with friends—then use what they’ve learned to build apps of their own imagination. User-friendly code blocks that snap together allow even beginners to quickly create working apps. Readers will also learn about young inventors already using their own apps to make a difference in their communities, such as the girls from Moldova whose app helps alert residents when local well water is contaminated. Or the boys from Malden, Massachusetts, whose app lets users geotag potholes to alert city hall when repairs are needed. With this inspiring guide, curious young dreamers can become real inventors with real-world impact.
-
JavaScript Coding for Teens
Everything teens need to get started with JavaScript
Have you ever wanted to make your own game? How about an awesome website? Then JavaScript Coding for Teens is the book for you! It doesn't matter if you're not sure what a variable is, are stumped about syntax, or don't even know how to use JavaScript on your computer! This simple guide to coding for beginners walks you through every part of the process with easy-to-understand language and straightforward directions. You'll be coding like a pro in no time!
-
Needle and Thread
Choosing between living the life you want and living the life you’re “supposed to have” is not always an easy choice. Noah, embracing his true-self, wants to pursue a career in costume design, something his loving, public service parents would never approve of. Azarie, the perfect, model daughter of a very stern, traditional family, dreams of embracing the hobbies she secretly loves, hobbies her social circle would never abide by. The two live different lives and their social statuses keep them from ever crossing paths until they have a chance encounter that exposes some common ground: the desire to be who they truly are. Together, the two set out to put it all on the line and show everyone what they’re made of and what they want to achieve in the form of cosplay. Their growing friendship will be tested and their faith in themselves, as well as each other, will be tried.
-
Make
Here you will find unique, photographically precise diagrams of breadboarded components, to help you build circuits with speed and precision. A new shopping guide and a simplified range of components, will minimize your investment in parts for the projects. A completely new section on the Arduino shows you how to write properly structured programs instead of just downloading other people's code. Projects have been reworked to provide additional features, and the book has been restructured to offer a step-by-step learning process that is as clear and visually pleasing on handheld devices as it is on paper. Full color is used throughout.
-
Stop and Smell the Cookies
A picture book about a rambunctious boy who learns to manage his big feelings. Sometimes Dash gets so excited that his chest feels warm and fuzzy, his toes dance, and his fingertips tickle the air. When that starts, he can’t seem to control what he does next, and often, trouble follows.
Luckily, with a little help, Dash finds a way to slow himself down when big feelings threaten to take over.
-
Being Mindful Like Grandpa
When worrying takes over, a boy uses mindfulness to calm down, just like Grandpa taught him.
Every fall a boy hikes up the mountain with his grandpa and parents. Except this year he and his parents moved to a new place, and Grandpa's back home. As the boy sets out on a new mountain trail with his parents, he begins to worry about everything that's different. But he remembers that when Grandpa needs to calm his worries, he uses mindfulness. So the boy does too. -
Straw
Meet Straw! He's always rushed straight to the finish. But when his speedy streak gets the best of him, it takes a friend to show Straw how to drink in the amazing world around him. This delightful story celebrates the joys of taking it slow.
-
What's in Your Mind Today?
Children who struggle with negative thoughts may wonder how to make them go away. In this guided, illustrated meditation for kids, this book offers a simple mindfulness practice, not to banish bad thoughts, but to feel calm in the midst of thoughts that come and go. Children will learn how to breathe and center themselves in their bodies, find different ways to think about their positive and negative thoughts, and ultimately learn that they have the ability to feel calm and at peace no matter what kinds of thoughts happen to be in their mind at any particular moment.
-
Here and Now
A stunning celebration of mindfulness, meditation, and enjoying each moment. This lush picture book is a fantastic tool for engaging children who are schooling from home who are eager to feel connected to their world while managing new anxieties.
-
A Little Space for Me
With clever, inventive art and universally relatable themes, A Little Space for Me is a heartwarming picture book about the importance of mindfulness, understanding, and finding a moment of peace within a big, busy world.
-
Namaste Is a Greeting
Discover namaste’s many meanings in a simple, lyrical text, paired with a charmingly detailed visual narrative about a little girl’s kindness.
-
Meditation Is an Open Sky
Feeling mindful is feeling good! You know when you’re having a bad day, you have that wobbly feeling inside and nothing seems to go right? Find a quiet place, sit down, and meditate! In this daily companion, kids of any age will learn simple exercises to help manage stress and emotions, find focus, and face challenges. They’ll discover how to feel safe when scared, relax when anxious, spread kindness, and calm anger when frustrated. Simple, secular, and mainstream, this mindfulness book is an excellent tool for helping kids deal with the stresses of everyday life.
-
Follow Your Breath!
The perfect kid-friendly introduction to mindfulness. Pedro’s friends — Yulee, Nick, Martin and Sally — are at his house for a sleepover. Pedro is moving in a few days, and he’s been feeling sad and worried about the change. To help Pedro feel better, his mom decides to teach the five friends about mindfulness. As the children practice focusing on their bodies, using their senses, paying attention to their feelings and accepting life as it happens, Pedro learns there are many ways to manage the stress of his upcoming move. It’s an enlightening journey to peace and calm, and kids will want to be present.
-
The Cat on the Mat
Beginning readers will learn to cultivate calmness and focus with the Cat in the Hat in this simple rhymed introduction to mindfulness meditation!
-
Hurry Up!
A busy boy and his dog learn to slow down and enjoy life together in this lyrical, rhyming picture book perfect for hurried families everywhere.
-
How to Draw Chiller Monsters, Werewolves, Vampires, and Zombies
From movies to comics to graphic novels, monsters and their ilk tap into the terror that lurks in the darkest regions of the human collective unconscious. Enduringly popular characters, from vampires to zombies, provide an exciting challenge and appeal to comics and animation artists. How to Draw Chiller Monsters, Werewolves, Vampires and Zombies features the artwork of comic-book artist and Hollywood monster designer Kerry Gammill, Gene Colan as well as Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, Jack Davis, David Hartman, Frank Frazetta, Basil Gogos, and Wally Wood.
-
The Costume Making Guide
Packed with more than 30 step-by-step demonstrations that teach the skills you need to bring all your favorite characters to life no matter the genre, Kamui Cosplay deconstructs the work that goes into making a complete costume, from the first thought to the final photo. Tutorials cover design planning, fabricating body armor, 3D painting techniques and more. Best of all, you can adapt every lesson to use in all future fandom projects spanning video games, books, anime, movies and even your own original characters!
-
The Geeky Stitching Co's Little Book of Cross Stitch
You will find over thirty of our bestselling designs in this book as well as seven new patterns to stitch up, we have everything from rainbows to fluffy animals and not a country cottage in sight! A great book for beginners as well as experienced stitchers who are fans of stitching cute stuff and fun puns.
-
My Thoughts Are Clouds
A poetry collection that both illustrates what mindfulness is and encourages young, growing minds to be present.
-
Happy
A perfect bedtime read, this picture book gently encourages children to explore the senses and discover their path to mindfulness.
-
Being a Dog: a Tail of Mindfulness
Simply be like a dog with this irresistible picture book by beloved author Maria Gianferrari and illustrated by #1 New York Times bestselling artist Pete Oswald that introduces readers to mindfulness.
Join a young child and their dog as they experience every minute of the day to its fullest--from the second they wake up to the moment they fall asleep. Readers will love barking, wagging, and sniffing along with the gentle cues in the book.
-
Breathe Like a Bear
Breathe Like a Bear is a beautifully illustrated collection of mindfulness exercises designed to teach kids techniques for managing their bodies, breath, and emotions. Best of all, these 30 simple, short breathing practices and movements can be performed anytime, anywhere: in the car to the grocery store, during heavy homework nights at home, or even at a child’s desk at school.
-
BTS: Blood, Sweat & Tears
BTS have exploded onto the global music scene with their distinctive brand of music, impressive choreography, and socially conscious lyrics. With multiple chart-topping albums and record-breaking music videos under their belts, these seven-men—RM, Suga, J-Hope, Jin, V, Jimin, and Jungkook—are an unstoppable force and an international phenomenon.
In Blood, Sweat & Tears, K-pop columnist Tamar Herman explores the group’s origins, meteoric rise, wide-ranging activism, and close-knit relationship with their fans. With full color photos, spotlights on each member, and a play-by-play of their discography, this book is a celebration of all things BTS and a must-have for fans worldwide! -
Idol Gossip
Delicious gossip squares off with genuine heart in this inside look at a K-pop academy.
Every Friday after school, seventeen-year-old Alice Choy and her little sister, Olivia, head to Myeongdong to sing karaoke. Back in San Francisco, when she still had friends and earthly possessions, Alice took regular singing lessons. But since their diplomat mom moved them to Seoul, her only musical outlet is vamping it up in a private karaoke booth to an audience of one: her loyal sister. Then a scout for Top10 Entertainment, one of the biggest K-pop companies, hears her and offers her a spot at their Star Academy. Can Alice navigate the culture clashes, egos, and extreme training practices of K-pop to lead her group onstage before a stadium of 50,000 chanting fans—and just maybe strike K-pop gold? Not if a certain influential blogger and the anti-fans get their way . . .
This debut novel is about standing out and fitting in, dreaming big and staying true. It will speak to fans of K-pop and to anyone who is trying to take their talents to the next level. -
Fireworks
Fame and friendship can get complicated, especially when there are more than platonic feelings at play in this rom com perfect for fans of Kat Cho and Maurene Goo!
Seventeen-year-old Lulu Li has her last summer before college all planned out. But her plans go awry when she learns that Kite Xu, her old next-door neighbor and childhood friend, will be returning home from South Korea.
Lulu hasn’t seen Kite since eighth grade, after he left the country to pursue a career in K-pop, eventually debuting in the boy group Karnival. When Karnival announces that Kite will be taking a break from K-pop activities for mysterious reasons, the opportunity to rekindle their friendship arises.
Star-struck and nostalgic, Lulu tries to reconnect with Kite. As they continue to bond and reminisce over the past, Kite’s sister, Connie, warns Lulu not to get too close to her brother. The harder Lulu tries to deny her feelings, the stronger they get. But how could a K-pop star ever fall for a nobody from home? And even if he did, is there any way for their relationship to end but badly?
Underlined is a line of totally addictive romance, thriller, and horror paperback original titles coming to you fast and furious each month. Enjoy everything you want to read the way you want to read it. -
Zero O'Clock
In early March 2020 in New Rochelle, New York, teenager Geth Montego is fumbling with the present and uncertain about her future. She only has three friends: her best friend Tovah, who's been acting weird ever since they started applying to college; Diego, who she wants to ask to prom; and the K-pop band BTS, because the group always seems to be there for her when she needs them (at least in her head).
She could use some help now. Geth's small city becomes one of the first COVID-19 containment zones in the US. As her community is upended by the virus and stirred up by the growing Black Lives Matter protests, Geth faces a choice and a question: Is she willing to risk everything to fight for her beliefs? And if so, what exactly does she believe in? C.J. Farley captures a moment in spring 2020 no teenager will ever forget. It sucks watching the world fall apart. But sometimes you have to start from zero.
-
K-POP Now!: The Korean Music Revolution
K-Pop Now! examines Korea's high-energy pop music and is written for its growing legions of fans. Pop culture expert Mark Russell features the most famous groups and singers and takes an insider's look at how they have made it to the top.
In 2012, Psy's song and music video "Gangnam Style" took the world by storm. But K-Pop, the music of Psy's homeland of Korea, has been winning fans with its infectious melodies and high-energy fun since long before that. Featuring talented singers and eye-catching visuals, K-Pop is the music of the moment.
Although K-Pop is a relatively new phenomenon in the West, it is rapidly gaining traction and reaching much larger audiences --thanks in large part to social media like YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram -- the Girls Generation single "Gee" has almost three hundred million views!
K-Pop Now! includes:- Profiles of current K-Pop artists and their hits.
- A look at Seoul's trendiest hangout spots.
- Interviews with top artists like Kevin from Ze:A and Brian Joo from Fly to the Sky.
- A look at the K-Pop idols of tomorrow.
You'll meet the biggest record producers, the hosts of the insanely popular "Eat Your Kimchi" website, and K-Pop groups like Big Bang, TVXQ, 2NE1, Girls Generation, HOT, SES, FinKL Busker Busker, and The Koxx. The book also includes a guide for fans who plan to visit Seoul to explore K-Pop up close. -
Made in Korea
Frankly in Love meets Shark Tank in this feel-good romantic comedy about two entrepreneurial Korean American teens who butt heads—and maybe fall in love—while running competing Korean beauty businesses at their high school.
There’s nothing Valerie Kwon loves more than making a good sale. Together with her cousin Charlie, they run V&C K-BEAUTY, their school’s most successful student-run enterprise. With each sale, Valerie gets closer to taking her beloved and adventurous halmeoni to her dream city, Paris.
Enter the new kid in class, Wes Jung, who is determined to pursue music after graduation despite his parents’ major disapproval. When his classmates clamor to buy the K-pop branded beauty products his mom gave him to “make new friends,” he sees an opportunity—one that may be the key to help him pay for the music school tuition he knows his parents won’t cover…
What he doesn’t realize, though, is that he is now V&C K-BEAUTY’s biggest competitor.
Stakes are high as Valerie and Wes try to outsell each other, make the most money, and take the throne for the best business in school—all while trying to resist the undeniable spark that’s crackling between them. From hiring spies to all-or-nothing bets, the competition is much more than either of them bargained for.
But one thing is clear: only one Korean business can come out on top. -
The Unofficial BTS Bible
Join BTS’s ARMY and learn the history of the international K-POP sensation!
BTS (aka Bangtan Sonyeondan) has become one of K-POP’s most well-known singing groups. The seven-member Korean boy band formed in 2013 and has slowly grown to worldwide fame through their music. Despite slow beginnings, the K-POP group now has millions of listeners around the world. They led the Korean Wave of music into the United States in 2017, and as of 2019, they are the only Korean group to top the US Billboard 200, and the first group since the Beatles to have three number-one albums in less than a year.
BTS is also known for breaking the mold of K-POP, including social topics such as mental health, individualism, and social commentary in their hip-hop lyrics. TIME Magazine named the Korean Pop group as one of the 25 most influential people on the internet and named them as one of TIME's 100 most influential people of 2019.
In the BTS Bible, you’ll learn everything you could want to know about the sensational singing group, including:- Individual member profiles
- Band concept and style
- History of their six-year rise to fame
- Chart-topping songs and videos
- Interviews with worldwide fans and music experts
- And more!
Don’t get left behind in the wake of the BTS success. Read all about the K-POP group that is changing the face of international music in the Unofficial BTS Bible.
-
K-Pop Confidential
In this romantic coming-of-age novel about chasing big dreams, a Korean-American girl travels to Seoul in hopes of debuting in a girl group at the same K-pop company behind the most popular boy band on the planet. Perfect for fans of Mary H. K. Choi and Jenny Han.
Candace Park knows a lot about playing a role. For most of her life, she's been playing the role of the quiet Korean girl who takes all AP classes and plays a classical instrument, keeping her dreams of stardom-and her obsession with SLK, K-pop's top boyband-to herself. She doesn't see how a regular girl like her could possibly become one of those K-pop goddesses she sees on YouTube. Even though she can sing. Like, really sing.So when Candace secretly enters a global audition held by SLK's music label, the last thing she expects is to actually get a coveted spot in their trainee program. And convincing her strict parents to let her to go is all but impossible ... although it's nothing compared to what comes next. Under the strict supervision of her instructors at the label's headquarters in Seoul, Candace must perfect her performance skills to within an inch of her life, learn to speak Korean fluently, and navigate the complex hierarchies of her fellow trainees, all while following the strict rules of the industry. Rule number one? NO DATING, which becomes impossible to follow when she meets a dreamy boy trainee. And in the all-out battle to debut, Candace is in danger of planting herself in the middle of a scandal lighting up the K-pop fandom around the world.If she doesn't have what it takes to become a perfect, hair-flipping K-pop idol, what will that mean for her family, who have sacrificed everything to give her the chance? And is a spot in the most hyped K-pop girl group of all time really worth risking her friendships, her future, and everything she believes in?
-
How to Speak K-POP
Wouldn't it be amazing if you could understand what your favorite Kpop idol says to you or the jokes from your favorite Korean drama on Netflix?
How to Speak KPOP is all about helping you to understand Korean words from the pop culture without getting into too much Korean grammar or any boring language textbook type of study.
Here is the truth.
Korean language and KPOP language are two very different things.
Korean pop culture has an exceptionally unique language and it still evolves further as the K-POP, K-Drama, and K-Movies have been expanding to other countries and beloved by other language speakers. Some KPOP words wouldn't be easy for even a native Korean speaker to even guess what they mean. That's because it requires a deep understanding of the cultural background first before anything else.
How to Speak KPOP is the most straightforward guide book to learn Korean words from Korean dramas, movies, and pop culture. It uniquely combines the most popular Korean slang words and trendy phrases that cannot be found in the ordinary Korean language textbook. And it will give you a full explanation of the cultural background of the word and help you to understand why it is being used like that. This book will give you a fun and easy way to learn the most popular Korean words one by one.
It will also help you to know how the word is pronounced with the Romanized alphabets. Please don't forget to read and say a word from the examples. The examples are thoughtfully picked to sound just like a native and a true KPOP fan who knows what KPOP language is all about. Try out words you learned to your Korean friend or write a fan letter with them to your favorite idol star.
They will be pleasantly surprised. Learning a foreign language is very rewarding, and learning a cultural background even opens your eyes and heart to a whole new experience. You will get both from this book!
-
Korean Culture Dictionary - From Kimchi To K-Pop and K-Drama Clichés. Everything About Korea Explained!
Before reading this book, you probably had some moments of curiosity in your life where you questioned certain things about Korean culture. Why is there a Pepsi logo on the Korean flag? Why do Korean kids in my class only have like... three last names (Kim, Lee, Park)? If you are a K-Drama addict, and even took the time to watch variety shows with your favorite idols, your thoughts and interest towards Korea may have grown even deeper! What does 'Korea' mean, and why do Koreans love kimchi so much?
Maybe, if you're a Koreaboo, you may wonder why you become a year (or two years) older as soon as arriving in Korea, why there's so much drama in those street tent bars, and how Koreans drink so much soju from those infamous green bottles. And, probably the question on everyone's mind in 2020, why is BTS so dang popular (honorable mention: What the heck does "Gangnam Style" mean)?
Well, if you get lost in translation, you can simply look up the word in the dictionary or on the latest phone app. But what if you get lost between cultures and there's no one to kindly fill you in on what's going on? You can get by with a lucky guess, but not only is there no guarantee that you will get lucky next time, but you are also missing a valuable opportunity to learn about Korean culture indepthly!
Regardless of who you are and where you come from - a K-Pop/K-Drama fanatic, an expat living in Korea, a student who just got accepted to study abroad in Korea (congrats!), or even a second-generation Gyopo from the Korean diaspora, you no longer have to stay puzzled and irritated by not being able to understand the peculiarities you find in Korea overall!
This book is jam-packed with over 350 essential topics and most frequently asked questions, covering every aspect of Korean culture by laying out all the details on the "Five Ws (Who, What, When, Where, Why) and How." After reading, you can fully understand Korea and appreciate its culture inside and out!
Most importantly, we've written this book with people like you in mind, so having zero knowledge about Korea is absolutely fine! However, if you are the proud K-Culture know-it-all of your friend group you can put your knowledge to the test and even learn some new interesting facts to surprise your friends with by jumping between sections of your choice.
-
Idols of K-Pop
K-pop is a multibillion dollar industry that's been bubbling under the radar for years, but the Korean Wave has finally engulfed us all, and, boy, are we lapping it up. BTW is breakig YouTube records, selling out arenas and stadiums, and basically winning Twitter. And they're not alone. BLACKPINK, EXO, and TWICE are following close behind them, and then there's BIGBANG, NCT, Red Velvet, and Wanna One -- ONE? You'll want the ALL! Whether you're new to K-pop or a die-hard super stan, Idols of K-Pop is your must-have guide to the current K-pop scene -- packed with photos, facts, stats, and gossip. Learn the lingo, meet the idols breaking the internet and pushing fashion boundaries, and go heart-eyes emoji over the cutest aegyo moments from your favorite maknae. Whatever your bias, you need this book.
-
I'll Be the One
The world of K-Pop has never met a star like this. Debut author Lyla Lee delivers a deliciously fun, thoughtful rom-com celebrating confidence and body positivity--perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Julie Murphy.
Skye Shin has heard it all. Fat girls shouldn't dance. Wear bright colors. Shouldn't call attention to themselves. But Skye dreams of joining the glittering world of K-Pop, and to do that, she's about to break all the rules that society, the media, and even her own mother, have set for girls like her.
She'll challenge thousands of other performers in an internationally televised competition looking for the next K-pop star, and she'll do it better than anyone else.
When Skye nails her audition, she's immediately swept into a whirlwind of countless practices, shocking performances, and the drama that comes with reality TV. What she doesn't count on are the highly fat-phobic beauty standards of the Korean pop entertainment industry, her sudden media fame and scrutiny, or the sparks that soon fly with her fellow competitor, Henry Cho.
But Skye has her sights on becoming the world's first plus-sized K-pop star, and that means winning the competition--without losing herself.
-
Shine
Crazy Rich Asians meets Gossip Girl by way of Jenny Han in this knock-out debut about a Korean American teen who is thrust into the competitive, technicolor world of K-pop, from Jessica Jung, K-pop legend and former lead singer of one of the most influential K-pop girl groups of all time, Girls’ Generation.
What would you give for a chance to live your dreams?
For seventeen-year-old Korean American Rachel Kim, the answer is almost everything. Six years ago, she was recruited by DB Entertainment—one of Seoul’s largest K-pop labels, known for churning out some of the world’s most popular stars. The rules are simple: Train 24/7. Be perfect. Don’t date. Easy right?
Not so much. As the dark scandals of an industry bent on controlling and commodifying beautiful girls begin to bubble up, Rachel wonders if she’s strong enough to be a winner, or if she’ll end up crushed… Especially when she begins to develop feelings for K-pop star and DB golden boy Jason Lee. It’s not just that he’s charming, sexy, and ridiculously talented. He’s also the first person who really understands how badly she wants her star to rise.
Get ready as Jessica Jung, K-pop legend and former lead singer of Korea’s most famous girl group, Girls’ Generation, takes us inside the luxe, hyper-color world of K-pop, where the stakes are high, but for one girl, the cost of success—and love—might be even higher. It’s time for the world to see: this is what it takes to SHINE. -
Seoulmates
Her ex-boyfriend wants her back. Her former best friend is in town. When did Hannah's life become a K-drama?
Hannah Cho had the next year all planned out--the perfect summer with her boyfriend, Nate, and then a fun senior year with their friends.
But then Nate does what everyone else in Hannah's life seems to do--he leaves her, claiming they have nothing in common. He and all her friends are newly obsessed with K-pop and K-dramas, and Hannah is not. After years of trying to embrace the American part and shunning the Korean side of her Korean American identity to fit in, Hannah finds that's exactly what now has her on the outs.
But someone who does know K-dramas--so well that he's actually starring in one--is Jacob Kim, Hannah's former best friend, whom she hasn't seen in years. He's desperate for a break from the fame, so a family trip back to San Diego might be just what he needs...that is, if he and Hannah can figure out what went wrong when they last parted and navigate the new feelings developing between them. -
Once Upon a K-Prom
What would you do if the world's biggest K-pop star asked you to prom? Perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Sandhya Menon, this hilarious and heartfelt novel brings the glamour and drama of the K-pop world straight to high school.
Elena Soo has always felt overshadowed. Whether by her more successful older sisters, her more popular twin brother, or her more outgoing best friend, everyone except Elena seems to know exactly who they are and what they want. But she is certain about one thing - she has no interest in going to prom. While the rest of the school is giddy over corsages and dresses, Elena would rather spend her time working to save the local community center, the one place that's always made her feel like she belonged.
So when international K-pop superstar Robbie Choi shows up at her house to ask her to prom, Elena is more confused than ever. Because the one person who always accepted Elena as she is? Her childhood best friend, Robbie Choi. And the one thing she maybe, possibly, secretly wants more than anything? For the two of them to keep the promise they made each other as kids: to go to prom together. But that was seven years ago, and with this new K-pop persona, pink hair, and stylish clothes, Robbie is nothing like the sweet, goofy boy she remembers. The boy she shared all her secrets with. The boy she used to love.
Besides, prom with a guy who comes with hordes of screaming fans, online haters, and relentless paparazzi is the last thing Elena wants - even if she can't stop thinking about Robbie's smile...right?
-
I'm a Volcano!
In friendly, simple text and with funny, engaging, and informative illustrations, a young volcano will teach readers everything there is to know about these exploding wonders. And while volcanoes can be a bit scary, kids will learn that they are carefully monitored and that they give us a lot of beautiful things too!
-
Look After Us
Babies and toddlers will love lifting the sturdy card flaps to discover five different endangered animals in their natural habitats. With a special fold-out ending that shows the difference conservation efforts have made to whales, Look After Us has a positive message about the importance of looking after our world and the animals that live in it.
This book features simple, repeating text on each page to encourage little ones to join in with reading the story, and bright colorful artwork. -
Wonderful You
Celebrate exactly what makes you YOU in this new book that champions self-expression and self-love. Whether silly, curious, sad, or glad, Wonderful You! reminds kids to be proud to be themselves, and to embrace the many faces of YOU.
With beautiful artwork featuring an array of kids and lovely text, this book will encourage the youngest of readers to celebrate what makes them unique every single day.
-
Buster's Trip to Victory Lane
This book will encourage children to face their fears as they follow Buster--a rescued race car who navigates new challenges and learns to never give up!
-
The Labyrinth of Doom
Knight-in-training Tim and his best friend, Belinda, embark on a quest to save Princess Grace in this second book in this hilarious, highly illustrated Once Upon a Tim middle grade series.
-
Sometimes, All I Need Is Me
Meet a young girl who loves her cozy home. It smells like cinnamon tea and feels like warm pajamas. But even when she’s away from home, and everything is different, she finds a way to become her own home, where she feels calm. At night, when it’s too dark and her feet are cold, her room can be a little scary. But she creates her own light when she closes her eyes and thinks of the sun. With friendliness and charm, the author shows young readers how to find comfort and confidence within. Her heartwarming picture book reassures children that sometimes, everything we need—courage, joy, peace, and love—is already inside us.
-
Stellarlune
Stellarlune—and the mysterious Elysian—might be the key to everything. But finding truth in the Lost Cities always requires sacrifice. And as the Neverseen’s plans sharpen into terrifying focus, it appears that everyone has miscalculated. The Lost Cities’ greatest lie could destroy everything. And in the battle that follows, only one thing is certain: nothing will ever be the same.
-
Alphabedtime
A cast of adorable alphabet characters make this clever bedtime story a standout!
-
Wolfish
Twelve-year-old Rae is content as the adopted daughter of shepherds, helping with the flock and reveling in the beauty of her family's hillside farm. But after a frightening encounter with a wolf--to whom she feels a sudden, peculiar connection--Rae realizes there is much more to her past, and her future, than she could have imagined.
Inspired by Roman mythology, this mysterious and uniquely magical adventure explores the intricate roles of nature and fate in our lives, the power of language to shape our world, and the boundless importance of love and kindness. -
Corinne
When the powder's fresh, Corinne snaps on her skis and takes a deep breath of crisp mountain air. She and her sister, Gwynn, have always called Aspen home, but moving in with their new stepdad, Arne, changes everything. Sure, there are perks -- like a fancy bedroom and a new puppy named Flurry whom Corinne trains to do search and rescue. Still, Corinne feels uncomfortable in her new family and hides the truth from her best friend, Cassidy. The facts finally come out in the most disastrous way, and Corinne runs to the only place left that feels like home. But when she becomes lost on the mountain, will her survival skills be enough to save her?
-
Hello Farm!
Babies will love to experience the appealing, high-contrast black-and-white images in this engaging board book. With a tactile die-cut cover and super-bright fluorescent inks on every page, which feature simple black-and-white illustrations, this series has been specially designed to capture your little one's attention. Babies will meet a host of friendly farm animals, such as a sheep baaing hello, a chicken clucking, a pig oinking, a cow mooing, and more fun animals and sounds.
-
Storm on Snowbelle Mountain
Bo discovers friendly yetis in this early chapter book!
Unicorn Bo and friends set out to explore Snowbelle Mountain and maybe run into some yetis! Bo and their friends disagree about the best way to go about their adventure, and Bo ultimately learns to appreciate living in the moment.
-
An Anthology of Aquatic Life
Dive into the wondrous world of water and discover the stories of more than 100 incredible aquatic lifeforms.
The underwater world is so much bigger than young minds can fathom and there is always more to learn. An Anthology of Aquatic Life is a stunning ocean encyclopedia for young readers to explore, with reference pages packed with fascinating information, little learners will be captivated as they discover the facts, stories and myths behind their favorite sea-life animals.
-
Rover and Speck: This Planet Rocks!
Two mismatched rovers alone on a distant planet — what could possibly go wrong? When Rover crash-lands on a rocky planet and finds Speck stranded and in need of a battery charge, the two hardly seem destined to be teammates. Will they help each other?
-
Booker the Library Bat 1: The New Guard
The launch of a picture book series about the adventures of a book-loving bat and his buddies as they patrol and protect their library home. Booker the bat has completed his training and he’s excited to report for duty as the newest guard at the Joanina Library in Coimbra, Portugal. His job is to fly through the stacks at night, gobbling down the bugs that are in turn eating the 200,000 antique leather books. It’s the perfect job for Booker, because he loves to read. And now he’s saving books!
-
An Elephant & Piggie Book: My Friend Is Sad
Gerald is careful. Piggie is not.
Piggie cannot help smiling. Gerald can.
Gerald worries so that Piggie does not have to.
Gerald and Piggie are best friends.
In My Friend is Sad, Gerald is sad. How can Piggie be happy if Gerald is sad? -
Big Feelings
The newest picture book from the creators of All Are Welcome to help children navigate BIG FEELINGS!
Celebrate kindness, inclusivity, and diversity. Now with Big Feelings, this book helps children navigate the emotional challenges they face in their daily lives.
What should we do when things don't go to plan? We may feel mad, frustrated, or overwhelmed, but by talking it through, compromising, and seeing another point of view, we can start fresh, begin anew. -
Just Feel
Full-color guide empowering kids to problem solve, harness inner strength, and gain grit and emotional awareness.
-
My Feelings
Young readers will learn that a person can have many feelings, and that they don't stay the same all the time. Expressive photographs provide kids with visual clues to different emotions.
-
What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking
An unruly cast of emotions come alive in this romping dream-world.
Curiosity, a lithe and floppy-eared creature, perches above the open world and gazes out with a zippy blend of hope, wonder, and longing. From the tip of a chimney, we bound into the quiet and mischievous world of feelings, meeting a troupe of tufted creatures as we go. Sympathy helps snails cross a sidewalk to safety, fear pirouettes in an attempt to camouflage with wallflowers, and pleasure reclines across a doily-donned reading chair, sipping a cup of tea. Elsewhere, our insecurities – pesky, cavorting beings – build intricate cages and stride about with clattering sets of keys. -
Journey into the Mind (Disney/Pixar Inside Out)
Disney/Pixar Inside Out takes you to a place that everyone knows but no one has ever seen: inside the human mind. Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions – Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness.
-
Being Edie Is Hard Today
This warm and tender story about being yourself--even when you're sad, anxious, or feeling lonely--reminds readers that human connection is essential, tears can heal, and a new day is always coming.
-
What Are You Glad About? What Are You Mad About?
Clever, hilarious, and poignant poems that touch on every aspect of the roller-coaster ride that is childhood.
From school to family to friends, from Grrrr to Hooray! -
How Do You Feel?
Do you feel happy? Sad? Silly? Angry? This simple book helps children and parents talk about feelings.
With simple, sparse language, and bright, expressive illustrations, this book introduces very young readers to a wide range of emotions. Detailed art encourages identification and discussion of the different characters' emotional reactions, and serves as a springboard for discussion on emotional intelligence, self-regulation, and coping skills. -
I Feel Teal
A little girl has a rainbow of emotions in this gentle debut picture book that encourages little ones to express their feelings through color.
-
Little Unicorn Is Sad
.A little unicorn's rainbow-colored mane shifts to a single color when he's feeling a particularly strong emotion. It seems like a storm comes over him when he's sad, and his mane turns deep blue. But when he repeats a breathing exercise, the clouds clear and his rainbow returns--and if he ever feels sad again, he'll know just what to do.
-
Inside Out Driven by Emotions
This unique chapter book reveals unseen stories from Inside Out. Each chapter offers a different retelling of the film from one of Riley's Emotions: Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust.
-
Guy Stuff Feelings
You're growing up--and so are your feelings and emotions. You might feel your emotions more strongly or have new feelings you don't know how to talk about. From the author of the bestselling Guy Stuff: The Body Book for Boys, this book will help you learn to identify all the feelings you have, from anger to sadness to embarrassment to happiness. Then use the tips inside for managing and expressing your emotions in positive ways.
-
My Mixed Emotions
This thoughtful, engaging book is packed with helpful hints, tips, and techniques for helping children learn to recognize and express their emotions.
-
The Color Monster
One day, Color Monster wakes up feeling very confused. His emotions are all over the place; he feels angry, happy, calm, sad and scared all at once! To help him, a little girl shows him what each feeling means through color. As this adorable monster learns to sort and define his mixed up emotions, he gains self-awareness and peace as a result.
-
Fieldwork
Not long after Iliana Regan''s celebrated debut, Burn the Place, became the first food-related title in four decades to become a National Book Award nominee in 2019, her career as a Michelin star-winning chef took a sharp turn north. Long based in Chicago, she and her new wife, Anna, decided to create a culinary destination, the Milkweed Inn, located in Michigan''s remote Upper Peninsula, where much of the food served to their guests would be foraged by Regan herself in the surrounding forest and nearby river. Part fresh challenge, part escape, Regan''s move to the forest was also a return to her rural roots, in an effort to deepen the intimate connection to nature and the land that she''d long expressed as a chef, but experienced most intensely growing up.
On her family''s farm in rural Indiana, Regan was the beloved youngest in a family with three much older sisters. From a very early age, her relationship with her mother and father was shaped by her childhood identification as a boy. Her father treated her like the son he never had, and together they foraged for mushrooms, berries, herbs, and other wild food in the surrounding countryside--especially her grandfather''s nearby farm, where they also fished in its pond and young Iliana explored the accumulated family treasures stored in its dusty barn. Her father would share stories of his own grandmother, Busia, who''d helped run a family inn while growing up in eastern Europe, from which she imported her own wild legends of her native forests, before settling in Gary, Indiana, and opening Jennie''s Café, a restaurant that fed generations of local steelworkers. He also shared with Iliana a steady supply of sharp knives and--as she got older--guns.
Iliana''s mother had family stories as well--not only of her own years marrying young, raising headstrong girls, and cooking at Jennie''s, but also of her father, Wayne, who spent much of his boyhood hunting with the men of his family in the frozen reaches of rural Canada. The stories from this side of Regan''s family are darker, riven with alcoholism and domestic strife too often expressed in the harm, physical and otherwise, perpetrated by men--harm men do to women and families, and harm men do to the entire landscapes they occupy.
As Regan explores the ancient landscape of Michigan''s boreal forest, her stories of the land, its creatures, and its dazzling profusion of plant and vegetable life are interspersed with her and Anna''s efforts to make a home and a business of an inn that''s suddenly, as of their first full season there in 2020, empty of guests due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She discovers where the wild blueberry bushes bear tiny fruit, where to gather wood sorrel, and where and when the land''s different mushroom species appear--even as surrounding parcels of land are suddenly and violently decimated by logging crews that obliterate plant life and drive away the area''s birds. Along the way she struggles not only with the threat of COVID, but also with her personal and familial legacies of addiction, violence, fear, and obsession--all while she tries to conceive a child that she and her immune-compromised wife hope to raise in their new home.
With Burn the Place, Regan announced herself as a writer whose extravagant, unconventional talents matched her abilities as a lauded chef. In Fieldwork, she digs even deeper to express the meaning and beauty we seek in the landscapes, and stories, that reveal the forces which inform, shape, and nurture our lives.
-
Everything the Light Touches
Shai is a young woman in modern India. Lost and drifting, she travels to her country's Northeast and rediscovers, through her encounters with indigenous communities, ways of being that realign and renew her.
Evelyn is a student of science in Edwardian England. Inspired by Goethe's botanical writings, she leaves Cambridge on a quest to wander the sacred forests of the Lower Himalayas.
Linnaeus, a botanist and taxonomist who famously declared "God creates; Linnaeus organizes," sets off on an expedition to an unfamiliar world, the far reaches of Lapland in 1732.
Goethe is a philosopher, writer, and one of the greatest minds of his age. While traveling through Italy in the 1780s, he formulates his ideas for "The Metamorphosis of Plants," a little-known, revelatory text that challenges humankind's propensity to reduce plants--and the world--into immutable parts.
Drawn richly from scientific and botanical ideas, Everything the Light Touches is a swirl of ever-expanding themes: the contrasts between modern India and its colonial past, urban and rural life, capitalism and centuries-old traditions of generosity and gratitude, script and "song and stone." Pulsating at its center is the dichotomy between different ways of seeing, those that fix and categorize and those that free and unify. Pariat questions the imposition of fixity--of our obsession to place permanence on plants, people, stories, knowledge, land--where there is only movement, fluidity, and constant transformation. "To be still," says a character in the book, "is to be without life."
Everything the Light Touches brings together, with startling and playful novelty, people and places that seem, at first, removed from each other in time and place. Yet as it artfully reveals, all is resonance; all is connection.
-
On Assignment
Jim and Elaine Larison spent years studying, exploring, and living in wild places, making more than thirty environmental films, most for the National Geographic Society. These films won more than forty international awards from leading environmental and broadcast organizations. This memoir tells the story behind the adventure and describes the rather substantial personal costs of this career.
While shooting film in Alaska, Jim Larison narrowly survived a devastating airplane crash in the Bering Sea. Later, while filming on the Great Barrier Reef, the Larisons fought off an aggressive twelve-foot tiger shark. Midway through their careers, the Larisons were nearly swept to their deaths by an icefall while filming on Mount Robson. A thrilling adventure story, full of risk and personal conflict, On Assignment is also a touching look at the tender bonds that held the married couple together while they struggled to complete their many film assignments.
The Larisons were changed by what they saw and what they captured on film: the destruction of forests, the death of coral reefs, and global warming.
In the beginning, the Larisons wanted nothing more than to spend time in the wilderness. By the end, they were fighting for its very survival.
-
The Mountain in the Sea
Humankind discovers intelligent life in an octopus species with its own language and culture, and sets off a high-stakes global competition to dominate the future.
When Dr. Ha Nguyen--a pioneering marine biologist with a very specific, cephalopod-focused résumé--is offered the chance to travel to the remote Con Dao Archipelago to investigate a highly intelligent, dangerous octopus species, she doesn't pause long enough to look at the fine print. She will be the only scientist to have access to these octopuses, who just may hold the key to extrahuman intelligence.
DIANIMA--a transnational tech corporation best known for its groundbreaking work in artificial intelligence, including having developed the world's first true android--has purchased the islands, evacuated their population, and sealed the archipelago off from the world. That android, along with a battle-tested security officer, will form the entirety of Nguyen's team as she attempts to understand the octopuses' sophisticated communications. But she may not have much time. Forces larger and more powerful than DIANIMA want access to the octopuses and are ruthless and innovative in their pursuit. And meanwhile, of course, the octopuses themselves may have something to say about it.
A near-future thriller about the nature of intelligence, Ray Nayler's The Mountain in the Sea is at once a dazzling literary debut and a mind-blowing inquiry into some of humanity's most alluring questions.
-
Fen, Bog and Swamp
A lifelong acolyte of the natural world, Annie Proulx brings her witness and research to the subject of wetlands and the vitally important role they play in preserving the environment—by storing the carbon emissions that accelerate climate change. Fens, bogs, swamps, and marine estuaries are crucial to the earth’s survival, and in four illuminating parts, Proulx documents their systemic destruction in pursuit of profit.
In a vivid and revelatory journey through history, Proulx describes the fens of 16th-century England, Canada’s Hudson Bay lowlands, Russia’s Great Vasyugan Mire, and America’s Okeefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. She introduces the early explorers who launched the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, and writes of the diseases spawned in the wetlands—the Ague, malaria, Marsh Fever.
-
Darkness
Ornithologist Dr. Gina Solomon, PhD, can’t believe her good fortune when she’s picked as one of a small group of Stanford University scientists lucky enough to be allowed to conduct research on Attu Island, Alaska. But a dream come true soon turns into a nightmare when she witnesses the horrifying break-up of a small plane. As the pieces rain down around her into the frigid waters of the Bering Sea, Gina heads toward the crash site looking for survivors and discovers James "Cal" Callahan. But when the two realize the plane crash wasn’t an accident—and that the individuals responsible are still on the island—will they escape before they’re swallowed up in darkness forever?
Set against the harsh wilderness of Alaska, Darkness is yet another of Robards’s “scintillating romantic thrillers” (Publishers Weekly) featuring the well-paced suspense and twists that has made Robards an icon in the romance genre. -
Walk the Vanished Earth
In the tradition of Station Eleven, Severance and The Dog Stars, a beautifully written and emotionally stirring dystopian novel about how our dreams of the future may shift as our environment changes rapidly, even as the earth continues to spin.
The year is 1873, and a bison hunter named Samson travels the Kansas plains, full of hope for his new country. The year is 1975, and an adolescent girl named Bea walks those very same plains; pregnant, mute, and raised in extreme seclusion, she lands in an institution, where a well-meaning psychiatrist struggles to decipher the pictures she draws of her past. The year is 2027 and, after a series of devastating storms, a tenacious engineer named Paul has left behind his banal suburban existence to build a floating city above the drowned streets that were once New Orleans. There with his poet daughter he rules over a society of dreamers and vagabonds who salvage vintage dresses, ferment rotgut wine out of fruit, paint murals on the ceiling of the Superdome, and try to write the story of their existence. The year is 2073, and Moon has heard only stories of the blue planet—Earth, as they once called it, now succumbed entirely to water. Now that Moon has come of age, she could become a mother if she wanted to–if only she understood what a mother is. Alone on Mars with her two alien uncles, she must decide whether to continue her family line and repopulate humanity on a new planet.
A sweeping family epic, told over seven generations, as America changes and so does its dream, Walk the Vanished Earth explores ancestry, legacy, motherhood, the trauma we inherit, and the power of connection in the face of our planet’s imminent collapse.
This is a story about the end of the world—but it is also about the beginning of something entirely new. Thoughtful, warm, and wildly prescient, this work of bright imagination promises that, no matter what the future looks like, there is always room for hope. -
The Fallen Stones
Atop a hill in the rainforest of Belize, next to the ruins of a fallen civilization, a butterfly farm raises the brilliant blue morpho.
What starts out as the worst vacation ever turns into a quest to learn more about the first-of-its-kind farm when journalist Diana Marcum inadvertently discovers this wildlife sanctuary, which is supported by an international live-butterfly trade.
She quickly becomes acquainted with Clive, the whimsical British millionaire whose childhood passion created an industry, and Sebastian, the Maya farm manager whose stern expression belies a soft heart. Before long Diana and her partner, Jack Moody--new to being a couple--have moved into a long-empty jungle house, cohabitating with bats, scorpions, toucans, iguanas, and the vulnerable but resilient butterflies.
Just ahead, although they don't know it, are a hurricane and a global pandemic.
This warm, funny tale of finding a way forward when the world seems to be falling apart is filled with the beauty of the natural world and a heartfelt cry to protect it--beginning with butterflies.