Candlewick

Description

Thirteen-year-old Ivan is a tender-hearted vampire who prefers a plant-based diet. In his daydreams, he rejects his destiny and hangs out in the human world forever! But would it be worth it if it means hiding his truest self? Born into a family of vampires, cheerful Ivan is a black sheep: he loves sunshine, his best friends are human, and he can’t stomach the thought of eating meat. So when Ivan’s vampire fangs come in on his first day of eighth grade, he’s determined to keep them a secret. He wants to stay in day school, with his sweet group of human BFFs, rather than transfer to night school with the rest of the teenage vampire crowd. Sure, that means he’ll have to lie to everyone, but how hard can it be? He will just act normal. Keeping his secret gets much harder when Ivan is assigned a new lab partner: transfer student Damien. Around him, Ivan acts anything but normal. He’s fainting and fumbling and far from blending in. Ivan even finds himself thinking about blood and heartbeats and vampire kisses . . . All. Day. Long. Is it safe to spend time with humans, or is Ivan turning into a bloodthirsty vampire against his wishes? He always thought he would do anything to stay in the human world, but maybe it’s too dangerous to keep pretending. . . . Fans of Fake Blood will sink their teeth into this graphic novel that’s perfect for readers navigating first crushes, unpredictable emotions, and the perils of middle school. Featuring LBGTQ+ characters and a unique, homespun art style, Snyder’s debut is fang-tastic.

Creative Team

Description

In a stunning sequel to The Genius Under the Table , Eugene Yelchin’s graphic memoir depicts his harrowing journey from Leningrad’s underground art scene to a state-run Siberian asylum—and to eventual safety in the US. No longer the creative little boy under his grandmother’s table, Yevgeny is now a young adult, pursuing his artistic dreams under the constant threat of the KGB’s stranglehold on Russia’s creative scene. When a chance encounter with an American woman opens him up to a world of romance and possibility, Yevgeny believes he has found his path to the future—and freedom overseas. But the threat of being drafted into the military and sent to fight in Afghanistan changes everything in a terrible instant, and he takes drastic measures to decide his fate, leading to unthinkable consequences in a mental hospital. With bold art bringing a vivid reality to life, National Book Award Finalist and Newbery Honoree Eugene Yelchin’s sequel to the acclaimed memoir The Genius Under the Table returns to Yevgeny’s saga, balancing the terror and oppression of Soviet Russia with the author’s signature charm and dark wit. I Wish I Didn't Have to Tell You This shines a stark spotlight on history while offering a poignant, nuanced, and powerfully resonant look at growing up in—and ultimately leaving—Cold War Russia in the early 1980s.

Description

Two feathered friends are Frog and Toad for the emoji generation in this delightful graphic novel series for emerging readers by a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor winner. Owl and Penguin want to make a pizza. But they can’t agree on how to toss the dough. Owl can do it better . . . no, Penguin can do it best! Hmmm, maybe they should just get takeout. Sometimes friends disagree. Though Owl and Penguin are opposites, they like to solve their conflicts with creative play. From making snow creatures to hiking a mountain, there’s nothing these pals can’t get through together. In three nearly wordless stories, expressive art leads the storytelling, supplemented by simple text captions and emoticon-style images in speech bubbles. This innovative format supports visual literacy and sight word recognition for the earliest independent readers. With warm humor and a joyful palette, it’s perfect for kids to giggle over on their own. I Like to Read® Comics are perfect for kids who are challenged by or unengaged in reading, kids who love art, and the growing number of young comics fans. Filled with eye-catching art, humor, and terrific stories, these comics provide unique reading experiences for growing minds. Like their award-winning I Like to Read® counterparts, these books are created by celebrated artists and support reading comprehension to transform children into lifelong readers. A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

Creative Team

Description

“Among the infinite universes of the multiverse, anything is possible . . . even time travel. . . . The various antics and shenanigans are funny and well served by the dynamic art.” — Kirkus Reviews The two-headed chicken is back, with twice the adventure, twice the jokes, and a lot more heads (wait, did they just accidentally turn into a double-headed space snake?). Having lost the Astrocap™ somewhere in the multiverse, our intrepid hero dons the Timecap™ to scour the timestream, which looks a lot like broccoli, in search of it. But danger and drama await with every time-hopping POOZB! of the Timecap™, including hungry dinosaurs, fierce werewolves, poet Emily Dickinson, a fish with a mustache who wants to talk about feelings, and even the return of the chicken’s archenemy, Kernel Antlers, the shape-shifting moose! With lively art and quirky nods to history and literature, readers will be swept along for oodles of zany escapades—and brought into the book itself through games, puzzles, drawing activities, and even as a vital character. Tom Angleberger’s absurdist humor shines on every page of this nonstop ride.

Creative Team

Description

It’s nonstop goofy comedy as Two-Headed Chicken invades other books in this third graphic novel adventure from New York Times best-selling creator Tom Angleberger. Our zany hero, Two-Headed Chicken, has traveled the multiverse using the AstroCap and romped through the chronoverse using the TimeCap. Now they dare to ask: What happens if they use both caps at the same time? Answer: Chaos! Unfortunately, the chaos is so ridiculous that the reader slams their book closed, trapping the double-noggined main character in eternal darkness. But wait! Two-Headed Chicken escapes into the Cosmic Library, which contains every book ever written. Now, still pursued by the chicken-hungry moose Kernel Antlers, Two-Headed Chicken hops their way through a parade of familiar titles, from a hundred-acre wood to a kissy vampire novel, interacting with the befuddled characters and leaving mayhem in their wake. With interactive puzzles and activities and wall-to-wall jokes, Tom Angleberger delivers another absurdist delight in this madcap series.