Back-to-School Treasures: Here Are the Children’s Books To Buy This September

If you’re a lover of children’s literature, you’ve probably already heard about some of the most headline-grabbing new books out this month. There’s a stunning new Hansel and Gretel picture book, with text by Stephen King written to accompany artwork from the late Maurice Sendak. There are new novels from a slew of former Newbery medalists, including Kate DiCamillo (Lost Evangeline), Rebecca Stead (The Experiment), Katherine Applegate (Pocket Bear), and Laura Amy Schlitz (The Winter of the Dollhouse). To walk into a bookstore this month is to walk into a treasure trove of brilliant new work for young people.

In this month’s column, I’m sharing ten more new treasures you’ll find on store shelves—the books for kids and teens that you might not have heard about yet, but that may soon become some of your young readers’ most-loved favorites.

*

Lotta Nieminen, Cake!: An Interactive Recipe Book (Cook in a Book)
(Phaidon Press, September 10)
Recommended for ages 2-4

The latest in Lotta Nieminen’s Cook in a Book series, Cake! is a clever, hands-on board book that takes readers through all the steps of baking a cake, from collecting ingredients to serving and tasting the finished confection. Sliders, spinners, and flaps let young readers participate in the recipe, spreading “butter” in the cake tin, adding “sprinkles” to the batter, and peeking inside the “oven.” While the book is recommended for very young foodies, older readers will enjoy it just as much: My elementary-aged kids were enchanted by all the interactive elements, and I liked the smart and eye-catching design. Best of all, the cake recipe included in the book really works, so young readers and their grown-ups can apply their new baking skills in their own home kitchens.

Philip Bunting, Dropbear
(Charlesbridge, September 9)
Recommended for ages 2-5

If you visit Australia, and if you seem a little gullible, you might be warned about the dropbear, a carnivorous koala-like creature that drops out of trees onto unsuspecting tourists’ heads. Philip Bunting’s new picture book uses this tall tale as a starting point for a funny and sweet story about a misunderstood dropbear and a little bird who’s determined to discover if the rumors about Dropbear’s terrifying behavior are true. Is he really stinky, rude, and ravenous? Or does he just want a hug? With crisp rhymes, appealing illustrations, and plenty of rereading potential, Dropbear is a great storytime option for preschool-aged kids.

Alex G. Griffiths, Fox and the Mystery Letter
(Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, September 9)
Recommended for ages 3-5

Fox lives all alone in a cottage in the woods, and that suits him fine, though he occasionally misses his friendship with—well, he doesn’t want to think about that. One day, Fox receives an anonymous letter inviting him to solve a puzzle. He can’t resist following the first clue, and soon he’s chasing smoke signals, finding notes in washed-up bottles, and traveling all the way to an island where he encounters a long-lost treasure. This picture book’s message about friendship and forgiveness is gentle and satisfying, and I love the cozy-feeling illustrations. (Who could resist befriending a fox in a sweater or a bear with a banjo?)

Mariana Ruiz Johnson (trans. Avi Silberstein), All Around a Year
(Greystone Kids, September 16)
Recommended for ages 4-8

Young kids have lots of questions about the cycle of the seasons. (In our house recently: What comes after summer? When will it snow? Is Halloween going to happen again this year?) Fortunately, caregivers can turn to All Around a Year to answer those questions in the most charming way possible. Author-illustrator Mariana Ruiz Johnson’s illustrated mouse family explores the evocative ups and downs of every season: drawing faces on foggy windows in winter, saying hello to their toes when it’s time for spring sandals, enjoying the smell of summer sunscreen, and making pumpkin stew in autumn. A Spanish-language edition of the book, La vuelta a un año, publishes simultaneously.

Debbie Fong, The Faraway Forest: Wally’s Route (Faraway Forest #1)
Illustrated by Debbie Fong with colors by Kayla Catanzaro
Chronicle, September 9
Recommended for ages 5-8

As the mom of a reader who’s still building confidence, I’m often in search of comic-style chapter books that entice kids to read independently, and Debbie Fong’s Faraway Forest series is just the sort of thing I’ve been looking for. This first installment focuses on raccoon mail carrier Wally and his sweet rabbit pal, Bo. Wally has promised his forest neighbors that he’ll get their mail to them (and help them change their lightbulbs or find their lost pets) no matter the weather, but despite his kindness and determination, he can’t seem to win the friendship of grumpy Mr. Sternbill. Drawing activities and a hidden object search give this sweet book extra kid appeal.

Karina Yan Glaser, The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli
(Allida, September 16)
Recommended for ages 8-12

The author of the popular Vanderbeekers series returns to middle grade fiction with a new story about two kids, separated by centuries, who go on parallel adventures. In Chang’An, China, in the year 731, Han Yu shares a special connection with animals and dreams of someday becoming a merchant and traveling the trade routes. In New York City’s Chinatown in 1931, Luli Lee daydreams about dim sum and worries about her parents, who are struggling to keep the family restaurant afloat during the Great Depression. When a mysterious illness comes to Chang’An, and when Luli’s parents receive a notice of foreclosure, both children set out on thematically linked journeys to help their families.

Ally Russell, Mystery James Digs Her Own Grave
(Delacorte, September 16)
Recommended for ages 10 and up

There are plenty of mysterious things about thirteen-year-old Mystery James. She was found abandoned in a cemetery when she was just a baby, and she has the peculiar talent of being able to smell ghosts, which happens a lot when she’s helping out at her adoptive tía’s funeral home. When a wealthy local woman dies and the valuable necklace she was supposed to be buried with goes missing, Mystery’s Tía Lucy is accused of the theft, putting her business in danger and sending Mystery on a quest to clear her aunt’s name. In order to succeed, though, she’ll have to converse with the dead, confront the undead, and get help from some real-life friends. Hand this novel to middle grade readers who love thrills, detective work, and page-turning adventures.

Julie Berry, If Looks Could Kill
(Simon & Schuster, September 16)
Recommended for ages 12 and up

I always look forward to new books from Printz honoree Julie Berry, and I’m particularly excited about her inventive new young adult novel, which imagines Medusa in the Victorian era, crossing paths with Jack the Ripper. When the Gorgon gets wind of Jack’s murders of young women, she demands mythic-scale vengeance. Jack flees to New York City, where teen Salvation Army workers Tabitha and Pearl are facing problems of their own as they attempt to rescue a friend from a brothel. I can’t wait to find out how real and supernatural dangers intertwine in this genre-bending historical adventure.

Susan Metallo, Reasons to Hate Me
(Candlewick, September 2)
Recommended for ages 14-17

This is it, everyone: a funny YA novel spotted in the wild! Debut author Susan Metallo brings plenty of humor and a snappy teen voice to Reasons to Hate Me, a high school drama that feels fresh and fun to read. Some things you should know about seventeen-year-old Jess Lanza are that she’s a theatre kid, she’s neurodivergent, and she’s just spent the summer being bullied online by classmates who’ve dubbed her a “Boyfriend Stealing Slutbag.” In Jess’s opinion, the insults are getting a little repetitive, so she fires back with blog posts in which she gives her bullies plenty of other, more legitimate reasons to dislike her. (“Reason #6: I am actively plotting against you.”) Over the course of Jess’s posts, readers learn about her complex relationship with her ex-best friend Chloe and uncover the truth about how the friendship broke apart.

Eugene Yelchin, I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This: A Graphic Memoir
(Candlewick, September 16)
Recommended for ages 14 and up

I loved Eugene Yelchin’s illustrated middle grade memoir, The Genius Under the Table, which recounted Yevgeny’s childhood in Russia during the Cold War. Now, in a sequel for older readers, Yevgeny has grown to be a young man at the beginning of a promising career as a theater set and costume designer. He lives with his mother and grandmother in Leningrad, a city he loves, though he dreams of someday traveling to America. When Yevgeny’s friendship with a Jewish refusenik, his romance with an American student, and the prospect of being drafted into war in Afghanistan upend his life, he begins to see his world through different eyes. Exploring questions of protest, courage, and survival that are as relevant today as they were under Brezhnev and Andropov, this unputdownable graphic memoir is a must-read for teens and adults.