Books Added to My Shelves in January 2025

This is my monthly roundup of books that I added to my shelves in January 2025. Some of the books came directly from authors or publishers, others were a purchase or a gift. You’ll find books from all kinds of genres including adult and children’s books. I’ll even share a few updates from our family’s life in the last month as well.

Family and Life Update

Reagan took a quick weekend trip to Denver to visit my niece and her two little boys. It was a quick trip, but so good to get away. I thought this driveway was so pretty during one of our walks on a frosty morning.

We also visited a butterfly pavilion which was so fun.

Reagan turned 20 and we celebrated by freezing while playing at Top Golf! We also joined family for a couple of meals. It’s hard to believe all three of our kids are now in their 20s.

Another gorgeous sunset out our back door was a reminder that God is there in the good and bad days. We lost a dear friend in the final days of December and celebrated his life in January. His loss will affect us for a long time.

Now on to the books! 

I finished 8 books in January: 5 audiobooks, 2 physical books, and 1 eBook. Be sure to follow me on Instagram, HERE to see snippets of what I’m reading or what’s going on in my daily life. Did you catch my Best Books of 2024 post? I also shared my Favorite Children’s Books of 2024.

This month’s list includes 9 adult fiction and nonfiction books being published in 2025 as well as 8 new children’s books coming soon. If they sound like something you’d like to read, preordering or asking your library to order helps out the author immensely.

If you have missed any of my recent book reviews, you can see all of them by clicking, HERE.  Or you can stay up to date with my monthly Quick Lit Roundup.

Clicking the photos of each book will take you to a link to purchase. If you choose to purchase through any of the links, I may receive a small commission without you having to pay a cent more for your purchase.

Audiobooks and eBooks – Fiction & Non-Fiction

HERE ONE MOMENT
By: Liane Moriarty
Narrated by: Caroline Lee and Geraldine Hakewell
Published: September 10, 2024
Publisher: Crown
Fiction
Audiobook through Audible

This book was on a lot of Best of 2024 lists and a few people whose reading aligns with mine have raved about it. I’ve only read APPLES TO APPLES by Moriarty even though several people have told me I would like her books. I heard the audio of this one was especially good.

Aside from a delay, there will be no problems. The flight will be smooth, it will land safely. Everyone who gets on the plane will get off. But almost all of them will be forever changed.

Because on this ordinary, short, domestic flight, something extraordinary happens. People learn how and when they are going to die. For some, their death is far in the future—age 103!—and they laugh. But for six passengers, their predicted deaths are not far away at all.

How do they know this? There were ostensibly more interesting people on the flight (the bride and groom, the jittery, possibly famous woman, the giant Hemsworth-esque guy who looks like an off-duty superhero, the frazzled, gorgeous flight attendant) but none would become as famous as “The Death Lady.”

Not a single passenger or crew member will later recall noticing her board the plane. She wasn’t exceptionally old or young, rude or polite. She wasn’t drunk or nervous or pregnant. Her appearance and demeanor were unremarkable. But what she did on that flight was truly remarkable.

A few months later, one passenger dies exactly as she predicted. Then two more passengers die, again, as she said they would. Soon no one is thinking this is simply an entertaining story at a cocktail party.

If you were told you only had a certain amount of time left to live, would you do things differently? Would you try to dodge your destiny?

I WILL BLOSSOM ANYWAY
By: Disha Bose
Published: May 6, 2025
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Romance
Format: eBook for Review

From the author of the GMA pick DIRTY LAUNDRY, her sophomore novel is a story of siblings and coming-of-age for one of them who finally gets to be the person she wants to be.

The third of four children born to a middle-class Calcutta family, quiet Durga is surprisingly the first to leave the nest of her loving, overbearing family. She is not as charming as her sister, Tia, as lighthearted as her brother, Arjun, or as clever as her youngest sister, Parul. But when she arrives in Ireland to work at a tech company, she finds that for the first time ever she is free—to have fun, to stay out, to sample everything that life has to offer. Suddenly, Durga can be whoever she wants to be. And she wants it all.

But freedom comes at a price. Durga falls in love with handsome, charismatic Jacob, and grows close with his sister, Joy, now Durga’s flatmate, and best friend. But when Jacob breaks up with Durga, she’s unmoored. Who will she choose to be: fearless Kali or peace-loving Durga? Will she stay in Ireland with her newfound identity and livelihood, or will she return to India, where she is comfortable? Perhaps neither option is enough. Durga must summon her inner Kali, the brave and fearless warrior, and fight for the life she truly desires.

PROMISE ME SUNSHINE
By: Cara Bastone
Published: March 4, 2025
Publisher: Dial Press Trade Paperback
Romance
Format: eBook for Review

I liked the synopsis of this one.

Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Ever since cancer stole away her best friend, she has been completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with her best friend, and the ever-laminated “live again” list of things she’s promised to do to survive her grief. But maybe if she acts like she has it all together, no one will notice she’s falling apart.

The only gigs she can handle right now are temporary babysitting jobs, and she just landed a great one, helping overworked, single mom Reese and her precocious daughter, Ainsley. The only catch: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of. . . a walking version of the grumpy cat meme. Worse – he seems to be able to see right through her.

Surprisingly, Miles knows a lot about grief and he offers Lenny a proposition. He’ll help her complete everything on her “live again” list if she’ll help him connect with Ainsley and overcome his complicated relationship with Reese. Lenny doubts anything can fill the void her best friend has left behind, but between late night ferry rides, midnight ramen, and a well-placed shoulder whenever she needs it, Miles just won’t stop showing up for her. Turns out, sometimes your life has to end to find your new beginning.

DOWNEYOSHUN
By: Art Young
Published: April 22, 2025
Publisher: Apprentice House
Historical Fiction
Format: eBook for Review

I have to admit, I was skeptical of this one with the strange title. But, after reading the synopsis, I was curious to see how the title and story meshed together.

Sally Osterhoff is a genius. When she grows up, she wants to be a mathematician, a teacher, and a carpenter; and she plans to swim in the 1968 and 1972 Olympics.
Her mother has other ideas, and will emotionally and physically abuse Sally to fit them. After all, she only wants what is best for her child. But between her father trying his best, the family next door who practically adopts her, and her Aunt & Uncle down in Ocean City where she spends her summers, Sally just might have the support and love she needs to make all of her dreams come true.
Set against the backdrop of the Civil Rights struggles, the Vietnam War, and the early Feminist movement, the story explores the power of found family, and how unconditional love can come from the least expected places. Downeyoshun is a not-always-sentimental vacation to the ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. Bring your swimsuit.

GOOD DIRT
By: Charmaine Wilkerson
Published: January 28, 2025
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Fiction
Format: eBook for Review

This was an automatic YES! I loved BLACK CAKE and look forward to her newest novel.

When ten-year-old Ebby Freeman heard the gunshot, time stopped. And when she saw her brother, Baz, lying on the floor surrounded by the shattered pieces of a centuries-old jar, life as Ebby knew it shattered as well.

The crime was never solved—and because the Freemans were one of the only Black families in a particularly well-to-do enclave of New England—the case has had an enduring, voyeuristic pull for the public. The last thing the Freemans want is another media frenzy splashing their family across the papers, but when Ebby’s high profile romance falls apart without any explanation, that’s exactly what they get.

So Ebby flees to France, only for her past to follow her there. And as she tries to process what’s happened, she begins to think about the other loss her family suffered on that day eighteen years ago—the stoneware jar that had been in their family for generations, brought North by an enslaved ancestor. But little does she know that the handcrafted piece of pottery held more than just her family’s history—it might also hold the key to unlocking her own future.

MAYA & NATASHA
By: Elyse Durham
Published: February 18, 2025
Publisher: Mariner
Historical Fiction
Format: eBook for Review

War, twin sisters, ballet, count me in! You know I love sister stories!

Maya and Natasha are twin sisters born in the midst of the Siege of Leningrad in 1941 and immediately abandoned by their mother, a prima ballerina at the Kirov Ballet who would rather die than not dance. Taken in by their mother’s best friend at the Kirov, the girls are raised to be dancers themselves. The Vaganova Ballet Academy—and the totalitarian Soviet regime—is the only world they know.

In 1958, now seniors at the Vaganova at the height of the Cold War, all Maya and Natasha and their classmates want is to dance with the Kirov, and to join the company on its tour to America next year. But a new law from the Kremlin upends Maya and Natasha’s due to fears of defection, family members may no longer travel abroad together. The Kirov can only accept one of them.

Maya, long accustomed to living in her sister’s shadow, accepts her bitter fate, until a new dance partner inspires her to dream bigger and practice harder. For the first time—and at the cruelest possible moment—the sisters are equally matched. And then one sister betrays the other, altering their lives forever and splitting them in two, though neither will stray far from the other’s orbit.

As one of the twins pursues her ballet career and experiences a world outside Russia for the first time, the other is cast in an epic film adaptation of War and Peace, produced and financed by the Soviet State. As the Cold War heats up, Maya and Natasha must confront their to East versus West; to the government that saved them versus their dreams of freedom; and, always, to each other.

HAPPY LAND
By: Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Published: April 8, 2025
Publisher: Berkley
Fiction
Format: eBook for Review

Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2025 by People, Harper’s Bazaar, PopSugar, Reader’s Digest, SheReads, Woman’s World, BookBrowse, and more, there is already a lot of buzz around her newest book, HAPPY LAND. I want to read more books by Dolen Perkins-Valdez after just adding one of her backlist titles, BALM, to my Kindle. I’ve read WENCH. Many have raved about TAKE MY HAND as well.

In the hills of Appalachia, there once existed a land ruled by a king and queen. Inspired by memories of African kingdoms, a community of formerly enslaved men and women grasped freedom on mountain land they owned. But freedom doesn’t always last forever . . .

Today, after years of silence, Nikki has been summoned to North Carolina by her estranged grandmother. But instead of revealing answers about their recent past, Mother Rita tells Nikki a shocking story about her great-great-great grandmother, Queen Luella, and the very land they stand on. Land Mother Rita insists must be protected at all costs.

As Nikki learns about the Kingdom of the Happy Land, she comes to realise how much of her identity is rooted in this family land, and how much they stand to lose if it, like so much else, is taken from them. It’s time to reclaim what’s theirs.

ELLA MINNOW PEA
A Novel in Letters
By: Mark Dunn
Published: September 17, 2002
Publisher: Vintage
Young Adult/Fantasy
Format: eBook Purchase

This one has been on my list just for the title. I love the play on words and have long been interested in the story of a girl named Ella Minnow Pea. It’s also said to be “a love letter to alphabetarians and logomaniacs everywhere”.

Ella Minnow Pea is a girl living happily on the fictional island of Nollop off the coast of South Carolina. Nollop was named after Nevin Nollop, author of the immortal pangram,* “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” Now Ella finds herself acting to save her friends, family, and fellow citizens from the encroaching totalitarianism of the island’s Council, which has banned the use of certain letters of the alphabet as they fall from a memorial statue of Nevin Nollop. As the letters progressively drop from the statue they also disappear from the novel. The result is both a hilarious and moving story of one girl’s fight for freedom of expression, as well as a linguistic tour de force sure to delight word lovers everywhere.

*pangram: a sentence or phrase that includes all the letters of the alphabet

PARIS UNDERCOVER
By: Matthew Goodman
Published: February 4, 2025
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Historical Non-Fiction
Format: eBook for Review

I have a hard time turning down a good WWII story, especially one that is true.

Etta Shiber and Kitty Bonnefous are the unlikeliest of two seemingly ordinary women, an American widow and an English divorcée, living quietly together in Paris. Yet during the Nazi occupation, these two friends find themselves unexpectedly plunged into the whirlwind of history. With the help of a French country priest and others, they rescue untold numbers of British and French soldiers trapped behind enemy lines—some of whom they daringly smuggle through Nazi checkpoints in the trunk of their car.

Ultimately the Gestapo captures them both. After eighteen months in prison, Etta, a New Yorker of Jewish descent, is returned to the United States in a prisoner exchange. Back home, hoping to bring attention to her friend Kitty’s bravery, Etta publishes a memoir about their work. Paris-Underground becomes a publishing sensation and Etta a celebrity. Meanwhile Kitty spends the rest of the war in solitary confinement in a Nazi prison, entirely unaware of the book that has been written about her – and the deeds that have been claimed in her name.

In researching this story, Matthew Goodman uncovered military records, personal testimonies, and Etta Shiber’s own never-before-seen wartime letters. Together they reveal, for the first time, the shocking truth behind Etta’s bestselling memoir and the unexpected, far-reaching consequences of its publication. More than just a story of two women’s remarkable courage, Paris Undercover is also a vivid, gripping account of deceit, betrayal, and personal redemption.

YOU DIDN’T HEAR THIS FROM ME
By: Kelsey McKinney
Published: February 11, 2025
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Non-Fiction
Format: eBook for Review

Have you ever said, “You didn’t hear this from me, but…” It seems that there is always some gossip going around. Someone is sick, someone is getting divorced, the police were at someone’s home, etc. I’ve been the person being talked about AND the person gossiping. But, lately, I’ve been trying to remove myself from situations and people that stir the pot, per se. I’m very interested in this one.

Can you keep a secret? As the pandemic forced us to socialize at a distance, Kelsey McKinney was mourning the juicy updates, jaw-dropping stories, and idle chatter that she’d typically collect over drinks with friends. She realized she wasn’t the only one missing these little morsels and her hunger for this aspect of normalcy took on a life of its own and the blockbuster Normal Gossip podcast was born. With listenership in the millions and gossip quickly becoming her day job, Kelsey found herself with the urge to think more critically about gossip as a form, to better understand the role that it plays in our culture.

In YOU DIDN’T HEAR THIS FROM ME, McKinney explores the murkiness of everyday storytelling. Why is gossip considered a sin and how can we better recognize when gossip is being weaponized against the oppressed? Why do we think we’re entitled to every detail of a celebrity’s personal life because they are a public figure? And how do we even define “gossip,” anyway? She dishes on the art of eavesdropping and dives deep into how pop culture has changed the way that we look at hearsay. But as much as the book aims to treat gossip as a subject worthy of rigor, it also hopes to capture the heart of how enchanting and fun it can be to lean over and whisper something a little salacious into your friend’s ear. With wit and honesty, McKinney unmasks what we’re actually searching for when we demand to know the truth – and how much the truth really matters in the first place.  

THE AMERICAN WOMAN
By: Zarna Garg
Published: April 29, 2025
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Memoir
Format: eBook for Review

Zarna Garg, an award-winning comedian, shares her life story in this new memoir. I’m not familiar with Garg or her comedy shows, but her story intrigued me.

Growing up in India, everyone called Zarna “so American” just for reading the newspaper, having deep thoughts, and talking back to anyone over the age of thirty. When Zarna’s dad tried to marry her off at age fourteen, Zarna fled the whole subcontinent for the glittering paradise of Akron, Ohio, where she got to become American for real.

On Zarna’s very American quest to find herself and her calling, she threw herself whole-heartedly into roles like dog-bite lawyer, crazy perfectionist stay-at-home mom, Indian matchmaker, prize-winning screenwriter, and more. It wasn’t until a dare led her to a stand-up comedy open mic that Zarna finally found her spiritual getting paid cold hard cash for her big fat mouth.

And as Zarna discovered, after surviving the brutal streets of Mumbai, the cutthroat world of stand-up comedy is nothing.

Physical Fiction and Non-Fiction Books

MORE OR LESS MADDY
By: Lisa Genova
Published: January 14, 2025
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Purchase

I have loved Lisa Genova’s books and was thrilled to hear she had a new book. I chose this as my Book of the Month choice. This story of a college freshman with mental health issues is something I see a lot at school.

Maddy Banks is just like any other stressed-out freshman at NYU. Between schoolwork, exams, navigating life in the city, and a recent breakup, it’s normal to be feeling overwhelmed. It doesn’t help that she’s always felt like the odd one out in her picture-perfect Connecticut family. But Maddy’s latest low is devastatingly low, and she goes on an antidepressant. She begins to feel good, dazzling in fact, and she soon spirals high into a wild and terrifying mania that culminates in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

As she struggles to find her way in this new reality, navigating the complex effects bipolar has on her identity, her relationships, and her life dreams, Maddy will have to figure out how to manage being both too much and not enough.

THE FAVORITES
By: Layne Fargo
Published: January 14, 2025
Publisher: Random House
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Purchase

I also chose this as my Book of the Month choice. This book is EVERYWHERE right now. Olympic skating is one of my favorite things to watch so I was immediately interested in this one.

She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and rollercoaster relationship. Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end.

As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public obsession with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story” through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary. But she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy either. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines.

DRESSING THE PART
Television’s Most Stylish Shows
By: Hal Rubenstein
Published: October 31, 2023
Publisher: Harper
Non-Fiction
Format: Hardcover Purchase

I got this book for a STEAL. This is an oversized, coffee-table style of book and I just LOVE IT! I absolutely love fashion in movies and TV shows. I love the older Great Gatsby because the fashion is better. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Downton Abbey, Sex and the City, Golden Girls, and Dynasty are other shows that I loved watching and waiting to see what the characters would wear. All these shows and more are featured in this book. Plus the photos…AH!!! It’s so good and I’ve only skimmed it.

From longtime fashion director, consultant, media personality, and author, Hal Rubenstein, comes a lush, full color, illustrated guide to the most influential fashion on television from the 1950s to today, revealing the surprising ways our favorite shows have significantly reflected and often shaped the way we dress. No other medium has shaped our lives as thoroughly and consistently as television. Since its advent in the 1950s, television has served as a portal for discovering culture, initiating trends, and altering shared perceptions. Yet as Hal Rubenstein contends, television has done much more; its most dramatic, lasting, and effective influence can be found in our closets. Our most popular and lasting fashion trends and hallmarks of personal style haven’t come from runways or magazines, but from what’s on TV. For decades television has served as a personal stylist, showing us how others dress and defining what we should be wearing. From Mary Tyler Moore’s capri pants on The Dick van Dyke Show and Emma Peel’s dominatrix jumpsuit on The Avengers to Olivia Pope’s trademark white trench on Scandal and Don Drapers’ grey sharkskin suits on Mad Men Dressing the Part is a rich history of popular American fashion and culture in the modern age. In this gorgeous compendium, the longtime fashion director and expert identifies the most stylish television shows of the past 70 years, highlighting the ways they have affected and often inspired ordinary Americans’ wardrobes. Combining his decades of fashion expertise and insider knowledge with lush photographs, archival sketches, fascinating interviews with  over two dozen of television’s best costume designers, commentary from showrunners and co-stars, and little-known backstories, Rubenstein reveals with insight and wit how television has shaped everyday fashion, guiding and often elevating how we dress. Illustrated with over 175 gorgeous, full-color photographs, Dressing the Part is an extraordinary survey of our most beloved shows and their most enduring impact on style, shining a spotlight on the most innate human characteristics of all—how we imitate and then adapt what we enjoy seeing on others.

Children’s Fiction and Non-Fiction

I SEE ME!
A Guess How Much I Love You Mirror Book
By: Sam McBratney
Illustrated by: Anita Jeram
Published: January 7, 2025
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Fiction
Format: Board Book

A perfect book for your little one’s first Valentine’s Day or Easter basket. Don’t miss this GUESS HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU gift set either!

Little Nutbrown Hare and Big Nutbrown Hare love to go out exploring together. What will they see today? “I spy a butterfly,” says Little Nutbrown Hare. And look, Big Nutbrown Hare has found a bird in a nest! There’s even a tadpole, wriggling around in the pond. But who is that peeking out from the water? Join an iconic pair of beloved characters in a sweet and comforting story for the littlest of readers, who will happily shout out at the end: “I see me!”

THIS SHEEP NEEDS YOUR HELP!
A Draw & Erase Adventure
By: David LaRochelle
Published: January 7, 2025
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Fiction
Format: Board Book/Activity Book

David LaRochelle is the author of GO AND GET WITH REX which was a favorite from 2024. This book and the one below are so great. Kids help move the story along by drawing items to fill in the pages. Erase and start over again making changes to the type of hat or umbrella they drew the first time. Such a great book for travel/road trips.

BAAA! Are you ready to rescue this woolly wanderer from a preposterous pack of predicaments? Quick—pick up the dry-erase marker that comes with this book and put your drawing skills to work. This sassy sheep will tell you everything she needs, including a skateboard, a wolf-proof disguise, and enough party hats for all the sheep in her flock. It’s up to YOU to complete the book. Once you’re done, just wipe off the pages and test your drawing prowess again. From the whimsical David LaRochelle, Geisel Award–winning author of See the Cat and its sequels, comes a clever, interactive adventure tailor-made for creative kids, enthusiastic doodlers, and anyone who’s not afraid of the Big Bad Wolf.

THIS PIRATE NEEDS YOUR HELP!
A Draw & Erase Adventure
By: David LaRochelle
Published: January 7, 2025
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Fiction
Format: Board Book/Activity Book

Again, great books for kids. Add these to your child’s Easter basket!

Yo-ho-HELP! Are you brave enough to fend off hungry sharks, navigate through treacherous waters, and outsmart a sinister sea serpent? Quick—pick up the dry-erase marker that comes with this book and put your drawing skills to work. This pirate and his parrot need help deciphering their map, digging up treasure, and opening a mysterious chest. It’s up to YOU to complete the book. Once you’re done, just wipe off the pages and test your drawing prowess again. From the swashbuckling David LaRochelle, Geisel Award–winning author of See the Cat and its sequels, comes a clever, interactive adventure tailor-made for creative kids, enthusiastic doodlers, and anyone who’s ever dreamed of being a pirate.

SO-HEE AND LOWY
By: Anna Kang
Illustrated by: Christopher Weyant
Published: April 22, 2025
Publisher: Two Lions
Fiction
Format: Paperback Picture Book

A new book from the award-winning husband and wife team that I have shared frequently here on the blog. So-Hee is an only child and is lonely. She would love a pet but is allergic to almost everything. Then she meets a snake and her life is changed. Now, I’m not sure I would like a pet snake, but I know people that love them. Kids without siblings or a myriad of allergies will relate to this story.

So-Hee is lonely. She doesn’t have a brother or sister, nor does she have many friends. More than anything, she longs for a pet she can hold and love. The trouble is, she’s allergic to just about everything. When So-Hee meets a snake named Lowy, all at once, her life starts to change in unexpected ways.

L IS FOR LOVE
By: Atinuke
Illustrated by: Angela Brooksbank
Published: September 3, 2024
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

A story set in Lagos perfect for Valentine’s Day reading.

L is for Lemons.
L is for Lucky.
L is for . . .
LOVE.

L is for lemons, and L is for lingering before leaving home. L is for everything to look at along the way: lightning and lazy lions and a lonely leopard. L is for the loud, large city where you will sell your sunny fruit—L is for Lagos! L is for the light streaming out of your windows as you arrive home late at night. And best of all . . . L is for love. Part buoyant alphabet book, encouraging toddlers’ first sounds and words, and part immersion in the joyful bustle of a busy Nigerian marketplace, this outing from Atinuke and Angela Brooksbank is a feast for the senses brimming with rich detail and visual humor.

TEN-WORD TINY TALES OF LOVE
By: Joseph Coelho
Illustrated by: Various Illustrators
Published: December 3, 2024
Publisher: Candlewick
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

You’ve heard of six-word stories, this book shares love with just ten words. Each tale is told with just ten words and each story features a different illustrator. This is a great way to introduce your child to poetry and different styles of illustration as well as celebrate Valentine’s Day.

s it possible to tell a tale of love using just ten words? The answer is an enthusiastic yes. And when those words are joined by illustrations from twenty top creators, the results can be stunning. In this unique compendium designed to spark the imagination, Joseph Coelho brings us cherished moments between siblings, worlds where nature blooms and heals, touching tales of beloved pets, and more. Each ten-word tale has been paired with one of the finest illustrators working today, among them Jon Klassen, Jarvis, Bob Graham, Myo Yim, Victoria Turnbull, and Ken Wilson-Max. Together the words and pictures set up a space for creativity as young readers imagine how the story might unravel—and are inspired to pen a ten-word tiny tale of their own. Prefaced by a note from the author, and with two creative writing challenges at the back, this is the perfect gift for all those ready to unleash their imaginations.

HOW DO YOU EAT COLOR?
By: Mabi David
Illustrated by: Yas Doctor
Translated by: Karen Llagas
Published: March 18, 2025
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

A Filipino to English translated children’s book about a boy, a girl, and their chameleon tasting the colorful fruits and vegetables.

Do you know how red tastes? What about blue, orange, purple, or even white? As a boy, a girl, and their chameleon go through their day, they meet a bounty of colorful fruits and vegetables. They wake up with bright tomatoes and hibiscus, taste sunshine in yellow pineapples and mangoes, yawn with purple yams, and drift off to sleep as the colors darken to black.

Translated from Filipino, this imaginative book features produce harvested from the Philippines and around the world. Whether children love carrots, moringa, dragon fruit, eggplants, or red beans, How Do You Eat Color? offers them dozens of different—and delicious—opportunities to eat something new. Engaging back matter after the story will help readers explore healthy eating and learn ways to incorporate plants into their meals.

TROUBLE DOG
From Shelter Dog to Conservation Dog
By: Carol A Foote
Illustrated by: Larry Day
Published: February 25, 2025
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

Based on a true story, a rescue dog finds the perfect job and family.

Tucker the dog never means to be trouble: he just loves to play. But at the animal shelter, every visitor says he’s too much trouble—until Laura. Laura thinks Tucker might be just right for a very special job. Could all his energy make him an amazing conservation dog? Laura trains Tucker to track down Gila monsters, endangered flowers, even grizzly bear poop. His first assignment is in Hawaii, searching for invasive rosy wolf snails hidden under leaves. Where will his nose lead him next?

With colorful, endearing art and dashes of humor, Trouble Dog invites children to join scientists—and their canine colleagues—in their work to save wildlife around the world. Readers will cheer for Tucker’s inspiring journey from shelter dog to eager trainee to confident globetrotter. The story concludes with photos and further information about the real dogs and trainers of Working Dogs for Conservation, the world’s largest and oldest conservation dog organization.

AND THERE WAS MUSIC
By: Marta Pantaleo
Translated by: Debbie Bibo
Published: April 22, 2025
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

A tribute to music and how it unites all of us.

Music is everywhere—can you hear it around you? Music might comfort you, or it might make you cry. Even if someone doesn’t know your language, they can still understand you. There are sounds to celebrate an important day and sounds to help us find courage, strength, and hope. There are notes to remind you of where you came from and to remind you of the people who came before you. Whether you love gospel choirs, piano concertos, mariachi bands, or gamelan orchestras, music can connect you with people from across our planet.

Humming with color and variety, And There Was Music is a tribute to an art form that unites humanity even as it showcases our diversity. Readers will enjoy spotting their favorite genres and instruments in the art—and using the back matter to discover even more sounds to love.

ALPACAS HERE, ALPACAS THERE
By: Carrie Tillotson
Illustrated by: Elisa Chavarri
Published: February 11, 2025
Publisher: Beach Lane Books
Non-Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

A rhyming non-fiction that teaches kids all about alpacas in North and South America. The pages include a rhyming story along with detailed facts about alpacas. Great for kids of multiple ages.

Alpacas here, alpacas there depend on people for their care.

Thousands of years ago, people living high in the Andes Mountains of South America domesticated alpacas from wild animals. Today, millions of alpacas are still raised in the Andes, but alpaca farming has also spread to North America and around the world. Find out all there is to know about the lives of alpacas, here, there, and everywhere!

HENRY’S PICTURE PERFECT DAY
By: Jenn Bailey
Illustrated by: Mika Song
Published: March 18, 2025
Publisher: Chronicle Kids
Fiction
Format: Hardcover Early Chapter Book

This is the third book in Henry’s series. Henry is neurodivergent and struggles with changes to his routine so you can imagine that Picture Day might be a bit disruptive for him. These are such great stories for kids to learn empathy and understand why some kids might feel anxious about disruptions to their schedules.

It is Picture Day for Classroom Ten! Mrs. Tanaka says that the class will take a perfect picture. And on Picture Day, everyone smiles. The trouble is that Henry does not feel perfect. His new shirt has stripes. He has never practiced smiling. And, worst of all, his front tooth is starting to wobble.

Join Henry and the kids of Classroom Ten in this warm and funny tale of Picture Day pressure, loose tooth trouble, and learning what it truly means to make a day—and a memory—that is picture perfect.

ADI OF BOUTANGA
A Story from Cameroon
By: Alain Serge Dzotap
Illustrated by: Marc Daniau
Published: April 15, 2025
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Middle-Grade Fiction
Format: Hardcover Picture Book

A coming-of-age story of a 13-year-old African girl whose uncle has declared it is time for her to marry. The novel in translation shares a young girl’s path to a different future.

Thirteen-year-old Adi lives in west Cameroon, where she loves swimming in the river, making dolls for her little sisters, and writing new words in her notebook at school. But one day Adi’s hands start to shake with terror. Uncle Amadou—the most powerful member of her family—has declared that Adi is old enough to get married. Mom cries softly under her hijab, but Dad “Don’t worry.” He knows a place where Adi can live and learn without fear…

Translated from the original French by the author, Adi of Boutanga is a memorable portrait of a girl and her family forging a path toward a brighter future. This richly illustrated book will open lasting conversations about gender equality, family relationships, and the liberating power of education. In the back matter, readers can explore an author’s note, a glossary of cultural terms, and other resources about the real Adi and her experiences.

SLEUTH & SOLVE ART
20+ Mind-Twisting Mysteries
By: Victor Escandell
Adaptations by: Ana Gallo
Published: April 15, 2025
Publisher:
Non-Fiction
Format: Hardcover Activity Book

I’ve shared these Sleuth & Solve books here before. Such a great way to learn and have fun while reading.

Looking for an awesome book of “who done it” mysteries for kids and adults? Sleuth & Solve encourages readers of all ages to practice deduction, inference, and logical reasoning to crack each case—and develop critical thinking skills at the same time.

In Sleuth & Solve: Art, 20+ mind-bending mysteries are inspired by a wide range of art periods and styles, from prehistoric art to Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, and more. Clues are embedded in every detail, and unexpected twists put your wits to the test! Bonus activities allow readers to create their own art, too.

Solving this collection of mini mysteries takes strong logic, a nimble imagination, and an artist’s sensibility. Play solo or with friends, collecting points for cracking each compelling case to reveal whose artsy sleuthing skills reign supreme.

ARTFUL MYSTERY PUZZLE BOOK: From Encyclopedia Brown and Sherlock Holmes to CLUE and Murdle, mysteries transfix, engage, and entertain. Following the previous books in the Sleuth & Solve series, this art-themed edition is a smart, age-appropriate spin on mysteries for kids who enjoy brain teasers and puzzles.

Which books are you adding to your reading list?

Click HERE to see all the posts featuring new books on my shelves.

So many books, so little time!