MacMillan

The Caldecott Medal–winning A Sick Day for Amos McGee is available unabridged in a new board book, paper cut–free for a younger set of listeners. Philip Stead takes us through the thoughtful routines of Amos McGee’s usual workday at the zoo, where “he always made time to visit his good friends” the elephant (who needs a chess partner), the rhinoceros, tortoise, and penguin, and the owl (who is afraid of the dark). One morning Amos wakes up with a bad head cold and calls in sick. After waiting and worrying and missing their friend, the animals hop on the bus and pay Amos a visit, giving him the care that he has so kindly provided them every other day of the week. With all feeling much better, Amos and friends settle in for the night so that they can catch the morning bus back to the zoo, together. Always with plenty to discover, Erin Stead’s lovely pencil-and-color illustrations hold the attentions of reader and child alike, with new things to discover with every reading (look for the tiny mouse!). Preschool. - Michelle

Priyanka’s mother refuses to discuss why she left India at 18…. A pashmina shawl stowed in an old suitcase sends Pri on “journeys” to India when she puts it on, and a cry to [the goddess] Shakti for help results in a phone call from an aunt she’s never met, inviting her to her mother’s home country. The pashmina goes with her, and as aunt and niece bond, Priyanka learns of her mother’s secret past and the power of the shawl, which gives the woman who wears it a vision of how to take the next step in life… The graphic-novel format keeps the story light…sorting the players’ many journeys through actual and imaginary spaces with shifts in background color. A fantasy with humor and substance, this is a book for girls seeking empowerment and agency. Grades 4–8. —Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

Flâneuse traces the relationship between singular women and their cities as a way to map their own lives in this journey that begins in New York and takes us to Paris via Venice, Tokyo, and London. “A deeply pleasurable book, whether you are a man or a woman, whether you know these cities (or books, or writers, or artists) or not. You will see these streets anew, just as if you were a flâneur in a New York neighborhood or along a canal in Venice. There is always something more to explore, just around the next corner―or on the next page.” ―—A.V. Club

In July 2015, the New Horizons probe reached Pluto after a 10-year voyage and sent back the first clear pictures of our solar system’s outermost neighbor. This is the inside story of how that journey happened, written by the scientists involved. You don’t need to be an astronomer to enjoy this book; it is easy to read and understand and provides fantastic insight into what it actually took to get this unlikely space mission off the ground. - Stuart

Fifty-five years ago, Robert F. Kennedy, acknowledging the growing frustration of African Americans, sought out James Baldwin, who in turn brought together Kennedy, Lorraine Hansberry, Kenneth Clark, and Jerome Smith for a conversation about history, politics and race. With passion, unflinching honesty, and the eloquence of a Baptist minister, Michael Eric Dyson—in this moment of political divide and #blacklivesmatter—wants to revisit that conversation. Will you join him? - Jocelyn

Although collected from essays Kendzior wrote for Al Jazeera between 2012 and 2014, they are just as timely and important today. Her book addresses the post-employment economy, race and religion, higher education, and the media with a fresh eye from living in Middle America. Her pieces are brief yet impactful, told up close and personal, making it an essential read in our efforts to truly understand each other and what makes up these United States today. - Melinda

“In Robin, Dave Itzkoff manages to straddle the man and the myth of Robin Williams, all the while helping us see why we fell in love with both. He has written a book about the truth and pain that lies in comedy, and the price paid by a sensitive soul.” —Amy Poehler

This is one of the strangest—and best-written—memoirs I’ve ever read. It tells the story of Michael’s aunt Harriet who, along with her husband Irving, is a very successful screenwriter. (She and Irving wrote Norma Rae, among other big movies.) Because Harriet has no children of her own, and because she senses “great potential” in Michael, she zeroes in on him when he’s still a very young child and essentially steals him (emotionally speaking) from his own family. Great awkwardness and emotional confusion follows. - Rico

Tessa Fontaine’s The Electric Woman is enthralling. Moving between the sustained emergency of a collapse in her mother’s health, the complicated, flawed relationship she has with her mother, and her 5 months as a crew member in the traveling sideshow the World of Wonders, Fontaine writes of the layer after layer of heartache and grind. With lovely, clear prose, she invites the reader in to her attempts to explore and escape reality through the hard and fascinating traveling sideshow life. A tenderly written, captivating memoir. - Chorel

Right off the bat, I felt a connection with Paul, who keeps a journal to track her books. I’m fantastically obsessed with doing this (I have a database! she admits nerdily). Each chapter is centered around a book that has made a difference in her life at one time or another. What I particularly enjoyed is that you don’t have to have read each mentioned book to relate. Perfect for any bibliophile. - Karena