Tag: Scholastic Press

Posted in Teen, Young Adult/New Adult

Let’s Split Up gives all the YA creeps

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Let’s Split Up, by Bill Wood, (Sept. 2025, Scholastic Press), $14.99, ISBN: 9798225006143

Ages 12+

A horror-thriller for teens that’s heavily influenced by the Scooby Doo gang, Let’s Split Up starts with a bang: a town’s power couple, football player Brad and cheerleader Shelley, are found murdered in an abandoned mansion. Rumors immediately start circulating that they were murdered by the Carrington Ghoul, a ghost of the angry old former resident. But things aren’t adding up for Jonesy, Cam, Amber, and new girl Buffy. They start poking around, conducting their own investigation as the body count goes up and more secrets come to light, but that only serves to put themselves in the killer’s sights. They’re going to have to crack this case or risk being next on the list. There are some fun nods to the original Scooby gang here and there in the story, but these characters are more relatable to a new group of teen readers: Jonesy and Cam are two teen boys working through emerging feelings for one another; Amber is bisexual and trying to get her parents to understand that she can like both guys and girls; Buffy’s reasons for moving to the town just aren’t adding up. There are some tense, creepy moments that thriller and horror readers alike will enjoy, and it’s a quickly paced novel that makes for good weekend reading.

Have a horror or thriller reader you need to buy a gift for? Pair this with a card game like Don’t Get Stabbed! or Psycho Killer.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Messi brings his magic to picture book biographies!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Messi’s Magic: How Lionel Messi Became the G.O.A.T., by Caroline L. Perry/Illustrated by Luciano Lozano, (Sept. 2025, Scholastic Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781546147534

Ages 4-8

Soccer Lionel Messi is a household name (and then some here in my library’s community), and he didn’t have an easy journey to success. This picture book biography starts with Messi’s beginnings as a small, shy boy who loved soccer and was cheered on by his grandmother, his biggest fan. Showing an aptitude for the game, he endured expensive medical treatments to stimulate growth so that he could continue playing; when he was accepted by La Masia soccer academy, he experienced loneliness and depression. Was it all worth it? Today, he’s won the most professional awards of any player, is known the world over, and has a happy, soccer-obsessed family of his own, just as he grew up with. Perry tells Messi’s story with a humanistic point of view, concentrating on Messi’s family relationships and feelings of isolation on the road to success. Lozano’s illustrations move from close-up facial expressions to further away spreads that highlight action, particularly on the soccer field. Back matter includes a Messi timeline and additional facts. If you have sports fans in your community, this is a good choice for biography collections. Download free activity sheets to share! I know our library will be picking this one up.

 

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Books for your Lunar New Year storytime and collection

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Lunar New Year is coming! Are you ready? Here are some new books to add to your storytime!

I Love Lunar New Year, by Eva Wong Nava/Illustrated by Xin Li, (Nov. 2024, Scholastic Press), $7.99, ISBN: 9781546144649

Ages 4-6

A family comes together to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Narrated by Mai-Anne, a young girl who helps her family prepare their home for the New Year and serves as the readers’ guide to Chinese traditions, the story includes Nai Nai, Mai-Anne’s grandmother, who arrives in time for the festivities, and her Uncle Eric, who arrives from Canada to spend the holiday with the family. There are cultural traditions throughout the book, including decoration (red lanterns for happiness, green bamboo and cherry blossoms for health), food (noodles for long life, fish for good luck), and storytelling, as Nai Nai relates the story of the Great Race, the folktale that explains each animal’s representation in the Chinese Zodiac. Facts about Lunar New Year and the Dragon Dance make up the back matter. A great introduction to the holiday, this beautifully illustrates the folkloric with the familiar. I Love Lunar New Year has a starred review from School Library Journal.

Want to introduce a dragon craft like the one on the cover? Super Simple has a craft for you. My Creative Life has another fun one, geared toward a slightly older audience.

 

Let’s Celebrate Korean New Year!, by Michelle W. Park/Illustrated by Hyewon Yum, (Dec. 2024, Random House Books for Young Readers), $14.99, ISBN: 9780593567302

Ages 4-8

Sisters Madeleine and Eloise have so much to do before the family arrives for the Lunar New Year Party! Madeleine rushes around the house pulling Eloise behind her as they don their colorful hanboks make the tasty dumplings, also called mandoo, and set up the game they play, yutnori. It’s exhausting watching Eloise try to keep up with Madeleine, but the two sisters sit down together to write a poem to share with their family, and that’s when the magic happens: working together, the two girls are happy and able to celebrate family, the real heart of the holiday. Explanations and culture references run throughout the story and the pencil illustrations are cozy, inviting readers to stop and spend a while with Madeleine, Eloise, and their family. Back matter includes a Seollal – Korean New Year – activity, recipe, and a glossary of terms. Endpapers feature mandoo of different shapes across a field of blue, including ones that appear to have been made by Eloise, sharp-eyed readers will see. An interesting and playful story about Korean celebrations for Lunar New Year, this is another solid choice for collections. There are some fun crafts, including a make-your-own yutnori board, at this Chalk Academy webpage.

Posted in picture books

You Are a Star, Martin Luther King Jr.!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

You Are a Star, Martin Luther King Jr.!, by Dean Robbins/Illustrated by Anastasia Magloire Williams, (Jan. 2025, Scholastic Press), $8.99, ISBN: 9781338895100

Ages 5-7

Combine a first-person narrative with informative facts, add comic panels that provide additional information about Dr. King’s life, and you have the newest entry in the You Are a Star! series. Robbins brings Dr. King’s mission to younger readers in King’s own voice, using first-person storytelling to inform and inspire readers. Robbins looks at key moments in King’s life, from the first time he encountered discrimination through to the March on Washington; smaller side panels provide further context to those moments, and comic strips on each spread go into even smaller defining moments within those larger events. Williams’ comic book illustrations beautifully organize a wealth of information to capture the reader’s attention and feature a diverse and inclusive group of individuals supporting Dr. King’s dream. A stellar addition to picture book biographies.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Explore anxiety and feelings with Babette: Baa Haa

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Baa Haa, by Audrey Perrott/Illustrated by Ross Burach, (March 2025, Scholastic Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781546134039

Ages 4-8

Babette is a sheep who loves to laugh: so much that her friends have nicknamed her “Baa Haa”. But while it looks like Babette finds everything funny, she’s really covering up some big feelings, and it’s giving her a bellyache. Her friends discover her crying one day and gently let her know that “It’s okay if you’re not okay”, and that they love her for who she is. Filled with fun sheepy puns, Baa Haa examines anxiety and stress and the pressure many of us feel to cover up those feelings, whether it’s to make others feel better or to laugh off our own worries. Babette feels better after her friends support her and bolster her, and the image of the tightly wound ball of yarn in her belly immediately unravels, forming words like “icky”, “sad”, and “grumbly” – and isn’t that the best description of how it feels to embrace one’s true self? Pencil, crayon, and paint illustrations give a hand-drawn feeling to the story and the details are incredible; readers will love seeing Milton (from 2024’s Moo Hoo!) reading a copy of CosMOOpolitan Magazine, or a coffee mug in the principal’s office – Principal Lily Pad – that says, “Coffee makes me hoppy“. Baa Haa delivers a feast for the eyes and a supportive message for young readers. Download free activity sheets for a storytime extension.

Posted in Early Reader, Uncategorized

Women to Know: The Statue of Liberty – Let Liberty Rise!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Let Liberty Rise! How America’s Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty, by Chana Stiefel/Illustrated by Chuck Groenink, (March 2021, Scholastic Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781338225884

Ages 5-9

The Statue of Liberty is an American icon now, but back when she was first gifted to the U.S. from France, things were quite different. America needed to build a pedestal in order to hold up all 350 pieces of Lady Liberty, once she was assembled, but money was tight and the American people weren’t happy about ponying up the cash for it. Newspaperman Joseph Pulitzer caught wind of Lady Liberty’s dilemma, and used his newspaper, the New York World, to make an Americans an offer they couldn’t refuse: every donor to the pedestal fund would get their name printed in The World. Every. One. Donations began pouring in, many from schoolchildren who took up collections, saved candy money, and found ways to put aside a penny, a nickel, or more. On August 11, 1885, The World‘s headline announced that 120,000 donors raised $100,000, and the pedestal was built, allowing Lady Liberty to be freed from her crates and put together, in New York Harbor, where she stands today. Chana Steifel is straightforward yet fun in her storytelling, concentrating on how Americans – particularly schoolchildren – came together in a joint effort to accept France’s gift in style. Chuck Groenink’s light-hearted illustrations are show groups of children gathered together alongside quotes from actual letters received with donations; he makes Lady Liberty resplendent in her shining bronze glory. Comprehensive back matter includes a Statue of Liberty timeline, facts about the Statue, a bibliography, and photos from Lady Liberty’s construction. A necessary inclusion to your history collections!

Let Liberty Rise! has a starred review from School Library Journal. Chana Stiefel has a free curriculum guide available on her author webpage.