interactive books feature heavily in my gift recommending this year. Opportunities for off-screen activities & books that’ll excite those of us who love shorter chapters, illustrations, & gaming are popular requests. I’ve gotten ahold of (& tested) some great titles this year… Codebreaker (Martel)

Now they’re coming after minors. ICE is planning to open a new call center with a dedicated unit to track unaccompanied migrant children, according to internal contracting documents.

Out today!!!

Current read, loving it! A Black girl is trained to fight zombies to protect wealthy white people. But then she discovers families are going missing, and a conspiracy is afoot. I’m loving the main character. She’s (very rightly) angry, brilliantly clever, and totally kick ass. 📚💙 📚🤎

a queer YA SF involving imperialist vs clanner warfare & giant battle mech. I love the cool science meets mystic/myth mechanics of the fiction. I love how true-to-youth the story is: capable, but still learning & preoccupied w life as they know it. #booksky #kidsbooksky

okay, that was unexpected—& not in a bad way. but the copy attached to this book, & indeed this cover, is a bit misleading. It is not fast-paced. The chapters are short (some more than others) but there are 16 + 63 chapters over the course of 352 pages.

I’m noticing that the majority of my favorite fantasy reads for young readers this year have been out of the UK, AU, NZ. Unsurprising, but noteworthy.

okay, but this #middlegradefantasy is an absolute delight. Tourmaline & her adventures are marvelously entertaining. Tourmaline & George’s relationship is the best. The story is a masterclass on how to not fuss over all the details & how to move seamlessly & organically between POVs.

Out today!!

the second book in a marvelous #middlegrade SFF series. So many twists & turns. Great action sequences & tender moments. & Jane’s sense of humor continues to be incredible. (Also Aki 🖤) #booksky #kidsbooksky

Federal troops are being deployed into Democratic-led cities under the guise of fighting crime. But these deployments aren’t about safety—they’re about control. Vera Action Director Insha Rahman joined @staceyabrams.com on the #AssemblyRequired podcast:

know that I proceeded w caution at the suggestion that this first in a new series is “Godkiller meets Gideon the Ninth”.

a heavily illustrated middle grade novel (8-12) of a different -looking & -functioning baby rabbit so desirous of belonging they pursues a dangerous wish. The color illustrations on quality paper are gorgeous, how they weave in and out of the prose is brilliant.

Susan Stamberg, one of the greats. www.npr.org/2025/10/16/1...

that was a fun, lightly gruesome but ultimately romantic romp. Mallory is a hoot. The whole novel is charming. I could see a series forming (Fitcher is intriguing, isn’t he?), but works as an excellent standalone. #YA for Margaret Rogerson fans… #booksky #yabooksky Out November 4th

well that was a dark & twisty ride, with a gentler landing than I expected (not complaining (much)). The comparison to Rundell’s Impossible Creatures is sound in that it’s creative and risky narratively—as compared to US-born books.

Out today!!

“What’s today?” cried Scrooge, calling downward to a boy in Sunday clothes. “Today?” replied the boy. “Why, it’s Paperback Book Release Day sir!” RING SHOUT paperback w/foreword by author| Tor Nightfire | 10•14•25 Out Today! #Bookrelease #horror “Adam in the garden…”

Hire Colleen!

⭐️🎉 Cover reveal for Mr. Wolf’s Class Book Six—THE NEW STUDENT (August 4, 2026) published by @graphixbooks 🎉⭐️ 📚 Preorder today with your local bookstore or wherever you get books today!

Out today!!

Out today!!!

wow 🖤 did not want to put this one down. Funny, moving, beautifully paced… the action and the relationships are exciting. Yeah, so this will be in my top reads for 2025 & is definitely going to be hand-sold over the holidays.

Out today!!

The winner of the #2025IgnyteAwards for Outstanding Novel - Young Adult is HEIR by Sabaa Tahir

The winner of the #2025IgnyteAwards for Outstanding Middle Grade is THE LAST RHEE WITCH by Jenna Lee-Yun

Ah no, I loved Diane Keaton. Drat. Rest in peace, you glorious eccentric.

the blurb mentioned Witcher & Howls Moving Castle; I’d add Lloyd-Jones’ Huntress. It’s more Witcher than Howl (Aldaric is Howl-like); & if you go in expecting some twist on Beauty & the Beast, you wouldn’t be wrong, but not wholly correct either.

I’ve learned I can lure Bowie into napping near me if I have the quilt. Good thing the temps have cooled. #bowiecat @th3lostb0y.bsky.social#bowiecat

this YA graphic novel is wonderful. Visually lovely with sweet emotional exploration, some nice humor, & a delightful childhood romance. I love the queerness & fat rep, the vulnerability & empowerment … An absolute delight. #booksky #yabooksky #yagraphicnovel #graphicnovel

Out today, just finished this evening… That was a wild ride. 🥰 Oscar is incredible, and Natasha was dangerously close to being too much for me (the shower, really?), and it had me thinking Sachar and Holes and what’s with all the cool grandpas showing up in middle grade lit of late?!

A choose-your-own SEL adventure graphic novel for the younger set. Perfect for future therapists & those who like relationship drama & discussing the ins & outs of boundary making & best behavior.

came out today!! super cute. fun fantasy adventuring academy set up; first crush situation; great sibling dynamics. Looking forward to the next book. #booksky #kidsbooksky #kidsgraphicnovels

Bowie is definitely Sean’s kitten. @th3lostb0y.bsky.social

a refreshingly imaginative retelling of Cinderella in which she is dead, a ghost, a grudge, a house. The novella hits all the markers of the familiar story, but is so much more. Think Ella Enchanted meets Kingfisher or Novik. Think queer and disabled.

On September 26, Andy Bennett (l.) and Katy Halbacka (r.) celebrated their debut YA thriller Codebreaker (Wednesday Books), written under the pen name Jay Martel, with a codebreaking puzzle hunt in and around Wild Rumpus Books in Minneapolis. (Wild Rumpus Books)

cute! And great art. I kept hearing Lilo’s voice for Brume the entire time; a bit bossy, highly imaginative, a bit oblivious, 💯 delightful. The pig is a great character; the peeing scene is marvelously funny. 6+ unless irreverent children and peeing-while-standing pigs make you squeamish.

Surreal moment for America. Needless to say, if the normal police ever pulled something like this — pulling every single person out of an apartment building and handcuffing them to run warrant checks — they would be sued into oblivion. Yet ICE is going to get away with it entirely.

My god. “Watson said she saw agents dragging residents, including kids, out of the building without any clothes on and into U-Haul vans. Kids were separated from their mothers…’It was heartbreaking to watch…seeing kids coming out buck naked and taken from their mothers, it was horrible.’”

@skpawlicki.bsky.social was, until the Trump administration canceled the program, working as a Mellon fellow for the National Parks Service. She created the most incredible women's history programming, and now, she's recreated it entirely separately: storymaps.arcgis.com/collections/...

do YOU have an independent bookseller you love, ESPECIALLY one who might need a few extra bucks in their pocket? you can nominate them RIGHT NOW for a james patterson holiday bonus! it's free for you and takes all of three minutes!!! do it, you coward!!! www.bookweb.org/james-patter...

The Yukika Tarot landing is near! All the art, writing and design is done, and decks are currently to print with an expected arrival date of December 2nd. I am so excited to share what I’ve been working on since 2023. The Kickstarter campaign will launch October 15th, so stay tuned for preorders!

Cutting seniors’ medical benefits heading into flu season is such an evil proposition

Meet the New Host of Reading Rainbow: Mychal the Librarian | Book Riot

noticed Jessica Townsend recommend this series so I hunted this copy down from the library. I will be looking to order some for the store. It’s world & action is intense; tomb raider kept coming to mind—but fantastical. the gods mythology & multiple worlds is fascinating.

yeah, so this was fun. cinematic, exciting, great twists, turns, & serious peril. really well plotted & executed. The interactive code-breaking aspect is brilliant. I was really entertained & I think the YA crowd will be, too.

What look will you be rocking this Autumn? 1. rumpled sweater witch 2. resting goblin face 3. shambling darkness 4. Muppet on a budget

easily of of the most enjoyable biographies I’ve read. humorous and warm and incidentally informative and inspiring. a real charmer, which suits its subject. #booksky #kidsbooksky #picturebooks #arnoldlobel

my god, that realization in part three is masterful. by brain exploded. 🤯🖤 #currentlyreading #booksky

entering the plant adoption phase of homeownership. a name pending. (open to cat-friendly recs)