From the New Yorker “20 Under 40” author of Atmospheric Disturbances comes a brain-twisting adventure story of a girl named Fred on a quest through a world of fantastical creatures, strange logic, and a powerful prejudice against growing up. Fred and her math-teacher mom are always on the move, and Fred is getting sick of it. She’s about to have yet another birthday in a new place without friends. On the eve of turning thirteen, Fred sees something strange in the living room: her mother, dressed for a party, standing in front of an enormous paper lantern—which she steps into and disappears. Fred follows her and finds herself in the Land of Impossibility—a loopily illogical place where time is outlawed, words carry dire consequences, and her unlikely allies are a depressed white elephant and a pugnacious mongoose mother of seventeen. With her new friends, Fred sets off in search of her mom, braving dungeons, Insult Fish, Fearsome Ferlings, and a mad Rat Queen. To succeed, the trio must find the solution to an ageless riddle. Gorgeously illustrated and reminiscent of The Phantom Tollbooth and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Rivka Galchen’s Rat Rule 79 is an instant classic for curious readers of all ages.

Rat Rule 79: An Adventure (Yonder)

Teen & Young Adult

Galchen, Rivka

Literature & Fiction

Yonder

“Rivka Galchen delivers joy and cleverness reminiscent of The Phantom Tollbooth, Alice in Wonderland, and Hayao Miyazaki movies” (NPR, Best Books of 2019) in Rat Rule 79, a brain-twisting adventure story about friendship, growing up, and peanut-butter-pickle sandwiches. 
Fred and her math-teacher mom are always on the move, and Fred is getting sick of it. She’s about to have yet another birthday in a new place without friends. On the eve of turning thirteen, Fred sees something strange in the living room: her mother, dressed for a party, standing in front of an enormous paper lantern―which she steps into and disappears. 
Fred follows her and finds herself in the Land of Impossibility―a loopily illogical place where time has been outlawed by a mad Rat Queen, along with birthday parties and, most cruelly, peanut butter. Fred meets Downer, a downcast white elephant, and Gogo, a pugnacious mongoose mother of seventeen, who help her in her quest to find her mom. Together they must brave dungeons, Insult Fish, a Know-It-Owl, Fearsome Ferlings, and ultimately the Rat Queen herself―and solve an ageless riddle to escape certain doom. 
Gorgeously illustrated and reminiscent of The Phantom Tollbooth and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Rivka Galchen’s Rat Rule 79 is an instant classic for curious readers of all ages.

Rat Rule 79: An Adventure

From award-winning Nordic author and illustrator Linda Bondestam comes a new kind of climate change story, narrated by an adorable axolotl who is―possibly―the last of its kind. 
In a forest of seaweed there was ME, a rare and beautiful little axolotl, going for my first-ever swim. 
So graceful, and yet so lonesome―out of 987 eggs, mine was the only one that hatched. 
Who knows, maybe I was the last axolotl in these waters? 
At the bottom of a lake in Mexico City, our axolotl narrator goes to underwater school, collects treasures tossed away by the big lugs on land, and has dance parties with tiger salamander friends. Life is good! 
But as the world gets hotter and hotter, the water gets murkier. Friends become harder to find, and the lonesome axolotl grows even lonelier. Until one day when, out of the blue, a colossal wave carries the axolotl into a surprising new future…. 
Bittersweet, droll, existential, and hopeful, My Life at the Bottom is a tale from the climate crisis unlike any other. Combining her irresistible visual wit with exquisite aquatic art and rare empathy, Linda Bondestam brings us a story of catastrophe that bursts with life.

My Life at the Bottom: The Story of a Lonesome Axolotl

Children's Books

Bondestam, Linda

Animals

With over one million copies sold in Spanish, Mexican literary legend Juan Villoro's The Wild Book is a fantastical homage to libraries, in which a boy is sent to live with his kooky, book-obsessed uncle in a library where books have supernatural powers and adventure lies behind every cover. Thirteen-year-old Juan's summer is off to a terrible start. First, his parents separate. Then, almost as bad, Juan is sent away to his strange Uncle Tito's house for the entire break! Who wants to live with an oddball recluse who has zigzag eyebrows, drinks fifteen cups of smoky tea a day, and lives inside a huge, mysterious library? As Juan adjusts to his new life among teetering, dusty shelves, he notices something odd: the books move on their own! He rushes to tell Uncle Tito, who lets his nephew in on a secret: Juan is a Princeps Reader, which means books respond magically to him, and he's the only one who can find the elusive, never-before-read Wild Book. But will Juan and his new friend Catalina get to The Wild Book before the wicked, story-stealing Pirate Book does? An unforgettable adventure story about books, libraries, and the power of reading, The Wild Book is the instant-classic young readers' debut by beloved, prize-winning Mexican author Juan Villoro.

The Wild Book (Yonder)

VILLORO, JUAN

An uplifting picture book about a Jewish boy and a Muslim boy who bond on the soccer field - translated into English, Hebrew, and Arabic. Two boys, one Jewish and the other Muslim, bond over their shared love of soccer in this beautifully illustrated picture book. Daniel and Ismael, one Jewish and the other Muslim, don't know each other yet, but they have more in common than they could ever imagine. Right after they meet in a park, the ball starts rolling, and soon they're starring in the greatest soccer game of all, the kind where the scoreboard doesn't matter. Restless Books will publish Daniel & Ismael in a tri-lingual edition, with English, Hebrew, and Arabic all sharing the page.

Daniel and Ismail (Yonder)

Iglesias Yacher, Juan Pablo

One of the world’s oldest and best-loved tales, now retold and illustrated in thrilling detail for readers of all ages. Rama pulled the splendid arrow out of his quiver. It had been given to him long ago by the sage Agastya who had told him that he could use it only once and only for a great enemy. The incomparable arrow held the wind in its feathers, the sun and the moon in its shining tip, the earth in its shaft and the power of the doomsday fire in its flight. Ramayana—an unforgettable tale of love, adventure, flying monkeys and god acting in the world of humans—has been treasured by readers around the world for thousands of years. Now in an authoritative, gripping retelling by the renowned Ramayana scholar Arshia Sattar, readers have a new chance to explore this classic’s riches. Rama is a brave young prince who is forced into exile. His brother Lakshmana and his wife, the beautiful princess Sita, loyally follow him into the depths of the mysterious forest, where they encounter strange and dangerous creatures. None is as terrifying as Ravana, the ten-headed demon king who kidnaps Sita and takes her to a fortified city in the middle of the ocean. To rescue her, Rama enlists the help of hundreds of thousands of magical monkeys and bears to fight the demon army and win her back. Even the gods gather to witness the harrowing battle. Will Rama and his friends prevail, and will Sita return to him? Only these captivating pages will tell…

Ramayana: An Illustrated Retelling (Yonder)

Sattar, Arshia

Ellie’s Voice: or Trööömmmpffff

Raud, Piret

An entrancing adventure for today’s troubled planet, The Casket of Time is a fantastical tale of time travel and environmental calamity from celebrated Icelandic author Andri Snær Magnason. Teenage Sigrun is sick of all the apocalyptic news about the “situation” and, worse, her parents’ obsession with it. Sigrun’s family—along with everyone else—decides to hibernate in their TimeBoxes®, hoping for someone else to fix the world’s problems . But when Sigrun’s TimeBox® opens too early, she discovers an abandoned city overrun by wilderness and joins a band of kids who are helping a researcher named Grace solve the “situation.” The world, according to Grace, is under an ancient curse. There once was a princess named Obsidiana, who was trapped in time by the greedy king of Pangea. To protect Obsidiana from dark and gloomy days, the king put her in a crystal casket made of spider silk woven so tightly that time itself couldn’t penetrate. The king’s greed for power doomed his kingdom and the trapped princess. Sigrun sees eerie parallels between the tale of Obsidiana and the present-day crisis, and realizes it’s up to her and her friends to break the ancient curse and fix the world.

The Casket of Time (Yonder)

Magnason, Andri Snær

Action & Adventure

A 2021 USBBY Outstanding International Book From the dung-beetle to the blue whale, no creature is too humble or huge for Finnish author and illustrator duo Laura Merz and Aino Järvinen in1,001 Creatures, a gorgeously illustrated, interactive exploration of the natural world. Under the sun, the moon, and the stars all the creatures of the world, big and small, carry out their own tasks as part of nature's great balance. Have you ever wondered how a crocodile keeps its teeth clean? Or why herons like to sit on the backs of water buffalo? What exactly does a giant blue whale eat to get so big? In1,001 Creatures, Aino Järvinen and Laura Merz playfully investigate the complex and awe-inspiring world of twenty-six fascinating insects, reptiles, and mammals. With fun facts and captivating illustrations,1,001 Creaturesexplores the diversity of the animal world and its ecosystems. Interactive questions allow readers to take their curiosity and imagination off the page and into the real world with prompts to create their own artwork, imitate a camel's unique walk, and discover the ways in which all creatures are connected in the world. Järvinen's humorous style and Merz's unique watercolor illustrations painted from memory using non-traditional materials, enhance the central message that we're allin this together--human, squid, and penguin alike.

1,001 Creatures

Merz, Laura

Järvinen, Aino

Product Description 
In a lush, sun-dappled forest, animal friends discover the advantages of living slowly, in this soothing picture book from beloved South Korean author and illustrator Yeorim Yoon and Jian Kim. 
Little Bird is all aflutter―too many things to do. Elephant cries with frustration when a shoelace breaks. Rabbit tries so hard and loses the race anyway. But what about Slow Lizard? 
Just like my name, I live a slow, relaxed life. 
And because I live a slow life, 
I see many things, 
I hear many things, 
and I have lots of time to help my friends. 
Meandering through a sunny forest, Slow Lizard’s friends learn how wonderful it is to slow down together. Filled with blooming trees and fluffy flower beds, It’s OK, Slow Lizard glows with the beauty of a hidden magic world, where we take the time to help each other enjoy life―even when the rain comes. 
 From School Library Journal 
K-Gr 2-This is a book in two parts. In the first half of the book, Slow Lizard introduces us to his friends. He describes scenarios that arise as a result of each anthropomorphized character's personality traits: Elephant has a short temper, Rabbit rushes without paying attention, and so on. Slow Lizard is a patient, mindful friend. Halfway through the book, he wonders if his friends are as happy to have him around as he is to have them. However, the book does not explore that doubt. In the second half, the animals set off on a journey to gather apples before a storm arrives. Each friend has a strength: Elephant helps carry large loads, Rabbit knows the way through the brush, and so on. Through their combined efforts, they make it home safe and dry, basket of apples in tow. The animals live in a world created by the most ebullient of colored pencils, with green plants, purple lilacs, and bright red apples. Most scenes are viewed from a comfortable middle distance, although one ingenious spread shows a first-person view of fluffy clouds seen through a hole in a leaf. Elephant is a friendly yellow, Little Bird is a bubbly blue. Slow Lizard resembles a frog head on a tiny dinosaur body in gentle green. VERDICT A look at the dynamics of friendship helps set this apart in a growing collection of mindfulness books, and the illustrations are worth getting lost in. Recommended for larger collections.-Chance Lee Joyner, Haverhill P.L., MAα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. 
 Review 
“Kim’s rich colored-pencil illustrations, in a sweet pastel palette, portray the adorable friend group enjoying tea, apples, and picture books with peaceful smiles in their forest home. Readers and nonreaders alike will surely love quietly enjoying the lovingly rendered, abundant details in the combination of full spreads, Slow Lizard and Little Bird’s teatime on giant, pillowy peonies, in particular. Comforting as a cup of flower tea shared with a friend.” 
―Kirkus Reviews\n“With lovely illustrations, tons of warmth, and even more heart, this book shines with friendship and the secret to truly enjoying life.” 
―Tonja Drecker, Bookworm for Kids\n“Textural illustrations in soft colors depict the narrative in spreads that invite long pauses, emphasizing Slow Lizard's mindfulness…. The reassuring, encouraging narrative has a gentle tone, and the closing point, that ‘rain will always stop, and the sky will always clear up,’ is a useful one for kids experiencing big emotions. A quiet book with a meaningful message, winsomely told.” 
―Shelle Rosenfeld, Booklist\n“Together, Yoon's soothing prose, Jian Kim's winsome spreads, and Chi-Young Kim's crisp translation create a comforting, multi-layered literary gift to return to for many years (decades!) to come.” 
―Terry Hong, Shelf Awareness, Starred Review 
 Review 
“I was peaceful and cozy reading this beautifully illustrated picture book about a group of animals helping each other be calm. The pace is pleasingly slow, almost

It's OK, Slow Lizard

Yoon, Yeorim

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