María Dolores Águila

Apr 25, 2024 | publishersweekly.com | X Fang |María Dolores Águila |Deborah Hopkinson |Jennifer J. Yu

X. Fang. Tundra, $18.99 (48p) ISBN 978-1-7748-8202-3When their flying saucer crash-lands near Mr. and Mrs. Li’s rural home at midnight, a trio of aliens tries their darndest to convince the couple that “we are DEFINITELY human.” The three clearly resemble blue chess pieces with ovoid heads and huge eyes, but instead of challenging their story or sending them elsewhere, Mr. Li “did what kind humans do.

Apr 25, 2024 | publishersweekly.com | Brittany Cavallaro |Emily Henry |Jeff Zentner |María Dolores Águila

High schoolers Florence, a dancer, and Jude, a photographer, meet while participating in the traditional “sunrise night,” the last day of art camp, during which campers stay out all night. Despite the pair’s individual challenges—Florence worries that a worsening eye condition will end her ability to dance and Jude struggles with heightened anxiety in the aftermath of his parents’ divorce—they make each other laugh, and think, and hope.

Apr 25, 2024 | publishersweekly.com | Deborah Diesen |María Dolores Águila |Deborah Hopkinson |Jennifer J. Yu

María Dolores Águila, illus. by Magdalena Mora. Dial, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-5934-6207-2In this activist picture book, a child living in San Diego’s Barrio Logan vividly narrates, in English and Spanish, a story of individual and collective strength. In their Chicane neighborhood, which now sits adjacent to a freeway and a junkyard, Elena and Mami encounter jacaranda blossoms, close-knit neighbors, and a tiendita, as well as vehicle fumes and noise.