It's always a joy to see new releases by my clients! Lot and lots of new releases for 2025:

Before You, by Anne Sawan (illustrated by Karen Obuhanych) is a picture book about the serene but sometimes boring days before the arrival of a child into a household - and the joyous chaos of the "new normal." It's published by Abrams.

Painting the Sky with Love is a Valentine/love picture book by Mary E. Haque (illustrated by Tatiana Gardel), published by Feiwel & Friends, in which a child "paints" the sky with love. Hearts cascade and float down, as people open their hearts. 

And Then Came You: When Families Grow, Love Grows Too, a picture book by Christina Shawn (illustrated by Shahrzad Maydani), published by Chronicle, asks: what if you like things just the way they are? What if you aren't happy about a new parent, a messy pet or a baby sister who cries a lot and leaks goo? Change can be scary, but even a full heart has room to grow.  

Starry, Starry Heist is the latest middle-grade novel by Karen Briner (published by Holiday House). Max Rose-Rodrieguez has more important things to do than finishing sixth-grade: like time travelling to stop the theft of Van Gogh's "Starry Night" before it's even been painted. 

On the Last Day of School, the newest picture book by Maggie Rudd (illustrated by Taia Morley) celebrates and honors the memories of the closing school year. The bulletin board is empty; the art has been taken down. It's the final recess on the playground. There's a little sadness at goodbyes, but excitement for all that lies ahead. The book is published by Farrar, Straus Children's.

Freedom Celebration: A Juneteenth Party is an early reader from the pov of a girl welcoming her friend (the reader) to her family's Juneteenth barbeque celebration. Relatives help with telling the historical significance and emotional aspects of the holiday, and its resonance today. Angela Dalton is the author (Keisha Morris illustrated); publisher is HarperCollins. 

You Can Sit with Me, a picture book by Rachel Tawil Kenyon (illustrated by Tatiana Kamshilina) is published by Feiwel & Friends. The simple, yet profound, gesture of offering a kid - whoever they are - a place to sit is precisely what's needed in a new or overwhelming space. It's always time to demonstrate kindness. Rachel has a second book in 2025: Thanksgiving is a Blessing (illustrated by Udayana Lugo), published by Beaming. Warm and accessible imagery surrounds Thanksgiving as a holiday, as sacred time, and as a state of mind and being. 

Elizabeth Verdick has three picture books out in 2025. A bustling school bus and driver take care of their beloved riders each day in the cheerful, bouncy Trusty Bus (illustrated by Jeff Harter), published by Beach Lane. Also from Beach Lane: Not a Spot to Spot: The True Story of Kipekee, the Giraffe Born without Spots, celebrates the joys of being unique in the story of a rare reticulated giraffe born without spots, who captured the world's heart. Zoe Waring illustrated. Elizabeth's third title is Make Way for Harriet and May (illustrated by Yana Kozak; published by WorthyKids). The world can be too much for May; too loud. Too busy. Too people-y. But then she spies Harriet, a gloriously big stuffed spider, and takes her home. Snug in a Harriet hug, May feels safe and the world feels less scary.   

In Ellie Kirk's Bonnie Bailey and the Faire of Worlds, a thirteen-year old girl keeps a magical faire from imploding; falls a bit in love with a Pegasus-riding teen cowboy from an alternate universe; and saves her family's beloved apiary. The middle-grade novel is published by WorthyKids. 

Barn in Fall: Festival Fun on the Farm, a board book by Chambrae Griffith (illustrated by Taia Morley; published by Cottage Door) celebrates autumn with Barn opening her doors to young guests who choose pumpkins, ride hayrides, and enjoy the farm animals. When it's time to rest in the glow of harvest moonlight, Barn hugs all the animals as they nestle in soft beds of hay. 

Author-illustrator Ron Grady's new picture book, Beatrice Looks for Home (published by Nancy Paulsen) is about a girl's love of her country life, and her adjustment when Papa gets a new job in a faraway city. When a surprise package from Gramm arrives, a notebook, camera and some encouragement are Beatrice's tools for finding new adventures around every corner of her city. 

The Memory Spinner is the debut middle-grade novel of C.M. Cornwell. It's a luminous fantasy about a girl who must choose between staying immersed in a magical past with her deceased mother, or saving those she loves most in the complicated - yet real - present. It's published by Delacorte. 

Patrice Karst's newest picture book is How Jackson Found His Joy Again (illustrated by Kristina Jones), about a boy whose sadness is resolved and his joy returned, through courage and the aid of a school counselor, in a story told through the use of colors as a metaphor for joy. Her second picture book of 2025 is The Invisible String Family Celebration (illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff). Twenty-five years after the publication of the bestselling phenomenon, The Invisible String, this is an inclusive new edition, taking readers on the same emotional journey as the original book, but through the lens of many children from different backgrounds and places, all of whom are connected to their loved ones, each other - and us! - by their Invisible Strings. Both titles are published by Little, Brown.