The Best New Children’s & YA Books of September
by the Brightly Editors
The beginning of a new school year and a change in season comes with exciting new books to read. This month, you’ll find beautiful new picture books to pore over, fun and funny middle grade novels, and spine-tingling young adult books to get lost in. Here are the best children’s and young adult books publishing this month.
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Picture Books
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Let’s Put That Away!
Available from:This delightful board book teaches tiny readers about keeping their space tidy. Follow little children as they take out toys to play with and books to read. Toddlers will love helping the characters figure out where to put the items away.
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Good Night Thoughts
Available from:From actor and author of I Don’t Want to Read This Book, Max Greenfield (New Girl), comes a new picture book about a child who can’t fall asleep. The child’s thoughts run around their brain, making it impossible to sleep. Only when they examine their runaway thoughts do they get a handle on their anxiety and settle down.
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Leo’s First Vote
Available from:Leo’s dad will participate in his first vote as a US citizen, and Leo gets to accompany him to the polls. Likewise, Leo gets to participate in a class vote at school, where he learns how the process works and that every vote is essential.
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Where’s Bearry?
Available from:When Remo snuggles into bed at night, he realizes his best friend and favorite toy, Bearry, is missing. He looks everywhere but can’t find his toy. As the search continues, Remo worries that he will never find Bearry. But with a few calming techniques, Remo continues the search and eventually finds his best friend.
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Bookie and Cookie
Available from:Bookie and Cookie are best friends and spend lots of time playing together. When Bookie suggests something new, Cookie gets upset, and the two friends have their first disagreement. But everything is more fun with a friend, and the children realize that good friends are worth the extra effort.
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Birthday Soup
Available from:Maia can’t wait to eat her special seaweed soup on her birthday. She helps with the chopping, drying, and stirring. But when it’s time for her friends to come over, Maia worries that they won’t like the special soup. However, she courageously shares her family’s culture and traditions with her friends and is pleasantly surprised with the results.
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My Olive Tree
Available from:The importance of community shines through this heartfelt story about a young Palestinian girl. With her grandpa’s help, the girl plants and grows her first olive tree. But when war comes to Palestine and her tree gets destroyed, the entire community comes together to create a lasting legacy.
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PictureFace Lizzy
Available from:Beloved actor Josh Gad delivers a thought-provoking picture book about consumerism and the fleeting enjoyment that comes from new things. A girl named Eve wants a PictureFace Lizzy doll more than anything else. But when she finally gets the toy, the novelty quickly wears off, and Eve isn’t sure why she wanted it so badly.
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Ms. Rachel and the Special Surprise: Encouraging Speech and Learning Through Play and Music
Available from:Ms. Rachel fans will love this new board book featuring their favorite characters, songs, and lessons from her YouTube channel. Little readers will recognize phrases, words, and gestures, encouraging speech and learning. This educational book will be a hit with toddlers and caregivers!
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Grumpy Monkey Play All Day
Available from:Everyone’s favorite curmudgeon is back in a new story about procrastination. Jim Panzee finds any excuse to put off doing his chores. But after a long day of playing and avoiding responsibilities, he discovers he is tired, dirty, and grumpy. This humorous cautionary tale is perfect for teaching little ones the benefits of avoiding procrastination.
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Chapter Books & Middle Grade
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Sunset of the Sabertooth Graphic Novel
Available from:Get lost in the full-color graphic novel adaptation of this popular Magic Tree House book! Join Jack and Annie as the tree house whisks them to the Ice Age, where they have a prehistoric adventure.
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Popcorn
Available from:From the author of Wink comes another funny and heartfelt middle grade novel for kids. Picture day gets progressively worse for Andrew as he deals with one disaster after another. When he learns his grandmother has gone missing, he worries that his growing anxiety will become too much to handle. This relatable story is interspersed with illustrations and real tips and tricks on how to handle anxiety and OCD.
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Impossible Creatures
Available from:Fans of The Golden Compass and Fablehaven will love this breathtaking new fantasy series. Christopher joins forces with a girl named Mal to discover why the last remaining haven for mythical creatures is losing its magic. The friends race to find answers as magical creatures grow sick and die. But the further they dig, the more they understand that nobody else can help them. So, they strike out on their own to find the root of the problem and destroy it before the magical land disappears forever.
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Nell of Gumbling: My Extremely Tiny Forest Adventure
Available from:An errant wish turns a rite of passage into a disaster in this hilarious graphic novel about a girl who lives in a fairytale town. Nell and her entire grade must spend a week camping in the enchanted woods, but when they get shrunk to the size of a Thumbkin, the campout goes from bad to worse. First crushes, magic, and adventure make this a must-read for graphic novel lovers.
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Dr. Seuss Graphic Novel: The Grinch Takes a Vacation
Available from:Everyone’s favorite green grump heads out on vacation in this giggle-worthy graphic novel. When the Whos all go on vacation, the Grinch decides to give it a try. But as he visits one place after another, nothing feels quite right, and he begins to think that vacations aren’t for him. Thankfully, Max, the dog, convinces him to keep trying.
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Lily and Nico
Available from:This interactive early chapter book combines short stories about best friends Lily and Nico with social-emotional learning. Each story presents a different scenario and allows the reader to choose which action to take. It also contains several questions and activities to help kids reflect on the stories and discuss the choices.
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YA
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Shadows of Perl
Available from:Dive back into the dazzling world of House of Marionne with the much-anticipated sequel! Quell joins the House of Perl, where her magic is celebrated, but she uncovers dark secrets as she searches for clues about her mother. Meanwhile, her lover-turned-enemy, Jordan, knows that Quell is the biggest threat to his house and must make a heart-wrenching decision.
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Old Wounds
Available from:Get ready to have shivers run down your spine because this YA horror novel is impossible to set down. On a road trip to California, two transgender teens get captured by the locals in a small Kentucky town. They plan to sacrifice one of the teens to a monster who eats girls. This bone-chilling novel delivers a story about identity, monsters, and gender wrapped in a spooky tale.
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When the World Tips Over
Available from:From the author of I’ll Give You the Sun comes another gorgeous, funny, and dazzling story about a family. After their father abandons them, siblings Dizzy, Miles, and Wynton feel lost. When a rainbow-haired girl blows into their lives, she fills their days and hearts with color, love, and hope. But nothing good lasts forever, and the siblings must deal with more heartbreak before learning to turn to each other.
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