Category: Holiday Spotlight

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Holiday Spotlight: Penguin Young Readers 2022

Here at Penguin Random House Canada, we’re lucky to work with so many different publisher lists. This holiday season, we’ll be highlighting each one with a dedicated post to help you find the perfect gift (or your next read). Today’s post is all about Penguin Young Readers.

All My Rage
By Sabaa Tahir
384 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593202340 | Razorbill
Lahore, Pakistan. Then. Misbah is a dreamer and storyteller, newly married to Toufiq in an arranged match. After their young life is shaken by tragedy, they come to the United States and open the Clouds’ Rest Inn Motel, hoping for a new start. Juniper, California. Now. Salahudin and Noor are more than best friends; they are family. Growing up as outcasts in the small desert town of Juniper, California, they understand each other the way no one else does. Until The Fight, which destroys their bond with the swift fury of a star exploding. Now, Sal scrambles to run the family motel as his mother Misbah’s health fails and his grieving father loses himself to alcoholism. Noor, meanwhile, walks a harrowing tightrope: working at her wrathful uncle’s liquor store while hiding the fact that she’s applying to college so she can escape him – and Juniper – forever. When Sal’s attempts to save the motel spiral out of control, he and Noor must ask themselves what friendship is worth – and what it takes to defeat the monsters in their pasts and the ones in their midst. From one of today’s most cherished and bestselling young adult authors comes a breathtaking novel of young love, old regrets, and forgiveness – one that’s both tragic and poignant in its tender ferocity.

Busy Betty
By Reese Witherspoon
Illustrated by Xindi Yan
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593465882 | Flamingo Books
Busy Betty has always been busy . . . even when she was just a baby! When Betty gives Frank a big hug, she realizes he needs a bath, PRONTO! Her best friend, Mae, is coming over, and Betty can’t have the smelliest dog in the whole world! But giving Frank a bath is harder than she thought and just when everything seems impossible, with Mae’s help, Betty learns she can accomplish anything with perseverance, teamwork, and one great idea. From Reese Witherspoon comes a smart and larger-than-life character who encourages young readers to celebrate what makes them unique and realize that anything is possible!

ChupaCarter
By George Lopez with Ryan Calejo
Illustrated by Santy Gutierrez
272 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593465974 | Razorbill
Twelve-year-old Jorge is a misunderstood middle school misfit who has been sent to live with his grandparents in New Mexico. After catching the attention of his belligerent principal and the school bullies on his very first day of school, Jorge is lonely, resentful, and desperate for a friend. But the only kid who shares his interest in junk food and games turns out to be a young chupacabra – a legendary monster with a fearsome reputation! The truth is, Carter is anything but savage – he’s kind, a good listener, and has great taste in sneakers. For Jorge, being friends with a mythical creature is awesome. But when local cattle turn up dead and his principal – who’s obsessed with hunting – learns of Carter’s existence, Jorge must play a dangerous game of cat and mouse to keep his friend safe.

Echoes and Empires
Morgan Rhodes
400 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593351659 | Razorbill
Josslyn Drake knows only three things about magic: it’s rare, illegal, and always deadly. So when she’s caught up in a robbery gone wrong at the Queen’s Gala and infected by a dangerous piece of magic – one that allows her to step into the memories of an infamously evil warlock – she finds herself living her worst nightmare. Joss needs the magic removed before it corrupts her soul and kills her. But in Ironport, the cost of doing magic is death, and seeking help might mean scheduling her own execution. There’s nobody she can trust. Nobody, that is, except wanted criminal Jericho Nox, who offers her a deal: his help extracting the magic in exchange for the magic itself. And though she’s not thrilled to be working with a thief, especially one as infuriating (and infuriatingly handsome) as Jericho, Joss is desperate enough to accept. But Jericho is nothing like Joss expects. The closer she grows to Jericho and the more she sees of the world outside her pampered life in the city, the more Joss begins to question the beliefs she’s always taken for granted – beliefs about right and wrong, about power and magic, and even about herself. In an empire built on lies, the truth may be her greatest weapon.

Green Is for Christmas
By Drew Daywalt
Illustrated by Oliver Jeffers
32 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593353387 | Philomel Books
When Green Crayon claims that green is the only color for Christmas, other crayons let him know that there would be no Christmas without them either. No candy canes or Santa without Red, no snow without White, no bells or stars without Silver, and no cookies or reindeer without Tan! The crayons agree that they all need to come together to make Christmas special. This humorous, small hardcover Christmas story is the perfect stocking stuffer and a great gift for fans of The Day The Crayons Quit – and all kids who like to color.

Singing with Elephants
Margarita Engle
224 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593206690 | Viking Books for Young Readers
Cuban-born eleven-year-old Oriol lives in Santa Barbara, California, where she struggles to belong. But most of the time that’s okay, because she enjoys helping her parents care for the many injured animals at their veterinary clinic.
Then Gabriela Mistral, the first Latin American winner of a Nobel Prize in Literature moves to town, and aspiring writer Oriol finds herself opening up. And when she discovers that someone is threatening the life of a baby elephant at her parents’ clinic, Oriol is determined to take action. As she begins to create a world of words for herself, Oriol learns it will take courage and strength to do what she thinks is right – even if it means keeping secrets from those she loves. A beautifully written, lyrically told story about the power of friendship – between generations, between humans and animals – and the potential of poetry to inspire action, justice, and acceptance.

That’s Not My Name!
by Anoosha Syed
40 Pages | Ages 3-5 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593405178 | Viking Books for Young Readers
Mirha is so excited for her first day of school! She can’t wait to learn, play, and make new friends. But when her classmates mispronounce her name, she goes home wondering if she should find a new one. Maybe then she’d be able to find a monogrammed keychain at the gas station or order a hot chocolate at the cafe more easily. Mama helps Mirha to see how special her name is, and she returns to school the next day determined to help her classmates say it correctly – even if it takes a hundred tries.

The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen
Isaac Blum
224 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593525821 | Philomel Books
Hoodie Rosen’s life isn’t that bad. Sure, his entire Orthodox Jewish community has just picked up and moved to the quiet, mostly non-Jewish town of Tregaron, but Hoodie’s world hasn’t changed that much. He’s got basketball to play, studies to avoid, and a supermarket full of delicious kosher snacks to eat. The people of Tregaron aren’t happy that so many Orthodox Jews are moving in at once, but that’s not Hoodie’s problem.
That is, until he meets and falls for Anna-Marie Diaz-O’Leary – who happens to be the daughter of the obstinate mayor trying to keep Hoodie’s community out of the town. And things only get more complicated when Tregaron is struck by a series of antisemitic crimes that quickly escalate to deadly violence. As his community turns on him for siding with the enemy, Hoodie finds himself caught between his first love and the only world he’s ever known. Isaac Blum delivers a wry, witty debut novel about a deeply important and timely subject, in a story of hatred and betrayal – and the friendships we find in the most unexpected places.

This Book is Not a Present
By Max Greenfield
Illustrated by Mike Lowery
40 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593462362 | G.P. Putnam’s Sons BFYR
We all know kids who carry a book everywhere they go. Kids who can’t stop reading, even if it’s long after bedtime. Kids who love nothing more than sitting quietly in the corner, turning page after page . . . this book is a love letter to all the other kids. The ones who wouldn’t dream of asking for a book as a present. The ones who unwrap the box hoping to find anything – a dog, a skateboard, even socks – besides a book. Packed with clever, fourth-wall-breaking gags from Max Greenfield (New Girl) and eye-popping art from New York Times bestselling illustrator Mike Lowery, this ideal read-aloud may not wag its tail or come with wheels, but it’s sure to have even the most reluctant bibliophiles laughing all the way to the end.

Thirst
Varsha Bajaj
192 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593354391 | Nancy Paulsen Books
Minni lives in the poorest part of Mumbai, where access to water is limited to a few hours a day and the communal taps have long lines. Lately, though, even that access is threatened by severe water shortages and thieves who are stealing this precious commodity – an act that Minni accidentally witnesses one night. Meanwhile, in the high-rise building where she just started to work, she discovers that water streams out of every faucet and there’s even a rooftop swimming pool. What Minni also discovers there is one of the water mafia bosses. Now she must decide whether to expose him and risk her job and maybe her life. How did something as simple as access to water get so complicated?

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Holiday Spotlight: Candlewick Press 2022

Here at Penguin Random House Canada, we’re lucky to work with so many different publisher lists. This holiday season, we’ll be highlighting each one with a dedicated post to help you find the perfect gift (or your next read). Today’s post spotlights Candlewick Press.

A Very Mercy Christmas
By Kate DiCamillo
Illustrated by Chris Van Dusen
32 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536213607 | Candlewick
Stella Endicott felt joyful. She felt like something miraculous might happen. She wanted to sing. When Stella gets the sudden idea to go caroling, she has a little trouble getting someone to join her. Her brother, Frank, is not good at spontaneity. The Watsons are very involved in a precarious fruitcake attempt (but happy to send their pig, Mercy, out for the occasion). Eugenia Lincoln declines, a bit rudely, to accompany on her accordion, and Horace Broom is too busy studying planetary movement. Will Stella need to sing by herself – with enthusiastic contributions from the pig, the cat, and the horse she picks up on the way? Or does the evening hold a miracle Stella hadn’t expected? With tender affection for Mercy Watson and all her Deckawoo Drive friends, Kate DiCamillo and Chris Van Dusen offer a picture-book homage to the season that is perfectly suited for family sharing – perhaps with some cups of hot cocoa and a stack of well-buttered toast.

Christmas Street
By Jonathan Emmett
Illustrated by Ingela P Arrhenius
26 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Board Book
ISBN 9781536227529 | Candlewick
Everyone is busy on Christmas Street! Who is baking gingerbread? Who is wrapping presents? And who’s that coming down the chimney? Find out in this follow-up to Alphabet Street. And after you read the rhyming story, lift the flaps to learn the letters of the alphabet and seasonal words. Then flip the book and have fun with the giant snowy concertina play-scene on the reverse! With two large, sturdy flaps on every spread; bright, cheerful artwork from Ingela P. Arrhenius, illustrator of the best-selling series of lift-the-felt-flap board books and the Peekaboo board book series; and a clever rhyming text from Jonathan Emmett, this is a charming Christmas alphabet book that little ones will return to again and again.

I Love You All Year Round: Four Classic Guess How Much I Love You Stories
By Sam McBratney
Illustrated by Anita Jeram
72 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536228540 | Candlewick
When seeds, plants, and other creatures begin to change in the spring, Little Nutbrown Hare has lots of questions, including wondering what he will turn into one day. By summer, he notices colors everywhere – lovely greens, reds, and blues – but there’s one color he likes best of all. In autumn, the wind sends leaves flying, inspiring some hiding and chasing – and a funny surprise for Big Nutbrown Hare. And when wintertime comes, Little Nutbrown Hare makes a discovery: that “I Spy” is especially fun to play in the snow. Returning to shelves with a charming new cover, this collection of simple, endearing tales, starring two of the world’s most beloved characters, is perfect for sharing with little hares any time of year.

One and Everything
By Sam Winston
48 Pages | Ages 7-10 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536215663 | Candlewick
Once there were many stories in the world. There were stories with sunsets and wonderful tales filled with fairies and dinosaurs. But one day, a story decided that it was the best, the most important story ever. It called itself the One and started to consume every other story it came across. The One ate stories made of seas and others full of dogs. Soon it seemed that the One was all there was . . . or was it? Inspired by the Endangered Alphabets project, aimed at preserving cultures by sharing their unique scripts, author-illustrator Sam Winston uses writing systems such as cuneiform and Tibetan, Egyptian hieroglyphs and ogham to illustrate this book in his signature typography-based style, using symbols and letters that have relayed the world’s stories over the centuries.

Peppa Pig and the Christmas Surprise
By Candlewick Press
32 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536228106 | Candlewick
It’s Christmas morning, and Santa has left presents under the tree for everyone. But no one is more delighted than Grandpa Pig, whose gift is something he’s always wanted: a drone! Everyone rushes outside to try it out, and Peppa and George love watching where it flies. But when its battery runs low, the drone is supposed to fly home. Where is that? Could it be . . . the North Pole? As Peppa and George watch and wait, they spot friends having wintry fun while Grandpa’s gift flies farther and farther away. What kind of Christmas surprise will it take for him to get it back?

Sunday Funday: An Activity for Every Weekend of the Year
By Katherine Halligan
Illustrated by Jesus Verona
112 Pages | Ages 7-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536227482 | Candlewick
Make every Sunday a fun day with an amazing activity to keep you busy each weekend of the year. From gardening projects and obstacle courses to creative crafts and recipes, there’s something fun to do no matter what the weather is. Packed with fifty-two seasonal activities for all ages, this book will be sure to make every weekend a fantastic one.

This Is Not My Hat
By Jon Klassen
35 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Board Book
ISBN 9781536228052 | Candlewick
When a tiny fish shoots into view wearing a round blue topper (which happens to fit him perfectly), trouble could be following close behind. So it’s a good thing that enormous fish won’t wake up. And even if he does, it’s not like he’ll ever know what happened. . . . Visual humor swims to the fore as the best-selling Jon Klassen follows his breakout debut with another deadpan-funny tale.

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas: Or Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas
By Clement C. Moore
Illustrated by Matt Tavares
32 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536217995 | Candlewick
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there. Once upon a time, children imagined St. Nicholas as a stern, skinny bishop who was as likely to dole out discipline as Christmas presents. But thanks to the poem “Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas” – written by Clement C. Moore in 1822 and published the next year in the Troy Sentinel – a plumper, merrier St. Nick was born, transformed into the sleigh-riding, chimney-diving jolly old elf we now call Santa Claus. With gorgeous monochrome illustrations by Matt Tavares that are meticulously true to pre-Victorian times, this reissue of the holiday favorite ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas Or Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas honors the poem’s original language in a definitive keepsake volume.

Two-Headed Chicken
By Tom Angleberger
208 Pages | Ages 7-10 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536223217 | Walker Books US
Anything is possible in the multiverse, including a madcap adventure starring a plucky two-headed chicken. But look out – there’s a chicken-hungry moose in pursuit! In this fourth wall-breaking graphic novel, our double-headed hero is chased through dozens of bizarre universes, from an ocean planet with a disturbing mermoose (that you can never unsee) to a world where chickens drive cars, and even to a land covered with . . . pizza sauce? With each BZOOP! of the universe-hopping Astrocap, the only thing to expect is the unexpected. Packed with jokes, quizzes, and games, the two-headed chicken’s wacky escapades will remind readers of such favorites as Dog Man and CatStronauts. Absurdist superstar Tom Angleberger makes his original graphic novel debut with this lightning-fast caper that will have readers laughing out loud and eager for each new page.

Where’s Waldo? Destination: Everywhere!
By Martin Handford
32 Pages | Ages 5-9 | Paperback
ISBN 9781536228908 | Candlewick
Have you ever wondered which of his many adventures Waldo loved best? Seek the answer in this paperback collection of some of Waldo’s most iconic journeys. Everyone’s favorite bespectacled explorer has been many places – the land of dragon flyers, a Jurassic arena of sports-loving dinosaurs, even the set of black-and-white movies in Hollywood. Join Waldo as he handpicks his favorite journeys of all time, revisiting twelve of his most fantastic travels in a paperback collection with a fresh cover and a surprise at the end of the book. Eye-boggling games await Waldo-watchers alongside every scene in this tribute to Waldo’s many years wandering the world.

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Holiday Spotlight: DK 2022

Here at Penguin Random House Canada, we’re lucky to work with so many different publisher lists. This holiday season, we’ll be highlighting each one with a dedicated post to help you find the perfect gift (or your next read). Today’s post spotlights DK.

101 Great Science Experiments: A Step-by-Step Guide
By Neil Ardley
120 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Paperback
ISBN 9781465428264 | DK Children
Find out how to make a rainbow, build a buzzer, see sound, construct a circuit, bend light, play with shadows, measure the wind, weigh air, and create an underwater volcano. The astonishing variety of experiments are all very easy and entirely safe, with step-by-step text and everyday ingredients. Biology, chemistry, and physics are brought to life, showing budding young scientists that science is all around us all the time. As you have fun trying out experiments with friends and family, core scientific principles are presented in the most memorable way. With chapters covering important topics such as color, magnets, light, senses, electricity, and motion, the laws of science are introduced in crystal-clear text alongside specially commissioned full-color photography for children to understand. Follow in the footsteps of Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, and all the other great minds with 101 Great Science Experiments and learn the secrets of science you’ll never forget.

An Anthology of Aquatic Life: DK Children’s Anthology
By Sam Hume
224 Pages | Ages 7+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780744059823 | DK Children
From the deepest, widest ocean to the tiniest puddle, this beautiful compendium takes young readers on an enthralling journey through the aquatic world, meeting amazing animals, ingenious plants, and much more along the way. Stunning photography and gorgeous illustrations complement storybook descriptions about each lifeform, and children can uncover hundreds of fascinating facts as they read. Did you know that elephant seals that can hold their breath underwater for more than an hour, or that the Victoria Amazonica water lily can support the weight of an adult, or that the brown basilisk reptile can run across water? Discover the science of how plants have learned to live, feed, and breathe in water, and take a look at the unique challenges of distinct ecosystems on feature spreads about rivers, lakes, wetlands, and more. There’s also a visual index, packed with reference information including the size and location of each species. With foil on the cover, gilded edges, and a ribbon for keeping your place, An Anthology of Aquatic Life makes an attractive gift for any child who can’t get enough of the natural world – and it’s perfect for young readers to explore by themselves or for bedtime stories. From sharks and sailfish, to bulrushes and beetles, there’s something for everyone in this celebration of all things aquatic.

Disney Encanto The Ultimate Sticker Book
By DK
16 Pages | Ages 5-7 | Paperback
ISBN 9780744053173 | DK Children
Meet a magical family living in a magical home in Disney’s new movie Encanto and in this fun sticker book. Travel to Colombia with this ultimate sticker book, featuring beautiful images and artwork from Disney’s new movie Encanto. Discover all the key characters, including Mirabel Madrigal and her family, and encounter the magic of the Encanto. Disney Encanto Ultimate Sticker Book will help kids to relive the wonder of Disney’s newest movie. Fun stickering activities will keep kids aged 5-7 entertained for hours and, with more than 100 stickers, there are plenty of extra stickers, too.

Find My Favorite Things
By DK
16 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Board Book
ISBN 9780744026603 | DK Children
From an exciting town to a sunny beach, a beautiful park to a colorful toyshop, little ones visit their best-loved places, search through the busy scenes, then point to and name all sorts of delightful things, building their vocabulary. They follow entertaining characters like the little girl and her mum buying things for a birthday party, the young boy out and about with his grandparents, and playful Patch, the mischievous pup. They count scampering squirrels, fluttery butterflies, flying birds, and more. Plus there are favorite toys and fabulous treats to find, and a cool cat is hiding somewhere in each scene! A perfect interactive book to share with pre-reading toddlers or older children just beginning to read, every scene has “Can you spot?” questions, things to find that are certain colors or patterns, and open-ended prompts to encourage observation, exploration, and conversation. And at the end of the book, little ones can play a fun “Look back and find . . . ” game. With so many favorite things to talk about, and characters to follow from page to page, children can use their imaginations to tell their own story. Perhaps they will continue the story even after they have finished the book!

My Encyclopedia of Very Important Dinosaurs
By DK
224 Pages | Ages 5-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781465468482 | DK Children
Journey back in time to discover a prehistoric world of dinosaur facts. Dust off your fossil brush and let’s practice our paleontology skills! Little dino-lovers (and their dino-loving parents) will delight in this visually stunning dinosaur book. Dig up dazzling dinosaurs, see dinosaur bones up-close and learn facts about fossils. Feed your little one’s imagination with this bright and playful educational book. Discover the incredible lost world and meet dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, and Stegosaurus. Each dinosaur has its name written phonetically, so you and your child can sound them out together. This dinosaur encyclopedia will tap into every child’s natural curiosity and answer all their questions about these prehistoric creatures! Packed with up-to-date facts and discoveries, your little fossil hunter will get to explore the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. Go on a journey of dinosaur discovery! This kid’s book includes detailed profiles of popular dinosaurs, as well as the more unfamiliar species. Covering a huge range of dino-tastic topics, this is the book that every young dinosaur enthusiast will want to own. For Little Dinosaur Lovers Who Want To Know Everything. Every important person needs to know about the amazing creatures that once ruled the Earth, and this book has them covered. Packed with jaw-dropping fun facts, startling discoveries, and colorful illustrations. My Encyclopedia of Very Important Dinosaurs is the perfect book for any young reader who can’t get enough of dinosaurs!

The Grumpy Reindeer: A Winter Story About Friendship and Kindness
By DK
Illustrated by Clare Wilson
18 Pages | Ages 0-3 | Board Book
ISBN 9780744065060 | DK Children
From the team behind the bestselling book, The Happy Pumpkin, comes a new winter wonderland adventure for Christmas! Travel to the North Pole and meet the grumpiest reindeer there ever was, who needs a little help learning about the happiness that can come from making friends. It’s the most wonderful time of the year – but not for one grumpy reindeer! He huffs and puffs and scares all the other reindeer off. But when Santa asks him for his help, the grumpy reindeer soon realizes that sometimes being on your own isn’t fun after all! A magical, heartwarming book about making room for others and the power behind choosing to be kind. Little ones will begin to understand that while everyone should have a shoulder to lean on, sometimes we need to show kindness in order to get it back. Featuring the most festive illustrations, adults and children will love to read aloud and follow the story of this reindeer to see if his frown does ever turn upside down!

The Met Lost in the Museum: A seek-and-find adventure in The Met
By DK
72 Pages | Ages 7-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780744033625 | DK Children
Seven-year-old Stevie is lost in the galleries! She needs to locate a series of artworks to find her way out and back to her family. Can you help her? Follow Stevie as she explores the most exciting and intriguing galleries and exhibitions inside The Met in this beautifully illustrated seek-and-find adventure! As Stevie moves through The Met’s galleries of Greek and Roman art, Ancient Egypt, and Modern and Contemporary art, learn about the rarest and most beautiful objects found in the museum’s prestigious galleries. Who can you find? What will you discover?

The Ultimate Disney Sticker Book
By DK
16 Pages | Ages 7-10 | Paperback
ISBN 9780744033656| DK Children
Meet timeless Disney characters like Mickey Mouse, as well as newer fan favorites including Moana and Elsa. Find the stickers to fill the spaces and learn all about your favorite characters and movies along the way. With enchanting images and captions, this sticker book allows fans to learn about Disney characters from the classics to modern favorites. The Ultimate Disney Sticker Book is a must-have for any young Disney fan.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s Very First Encyclopedia
By DK
224 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780744065237 | DK Children
Travel around the world to explore the continents, discover where different animals live, learn all about the people who came before us, and find out how your body works in this colorful and charming first reference book for children aged 5-7. Young learners can find out all about light and sound, the planets in the Solar System, how plants grow, and much, much more in this one-of-a-kind introduction to common core subjects.

Ultimate Sticker Book: Diggers and Dumpers
By DK
16 Pages | Ages 5-8 | Paperback
ISBN 9780756609740 | DK Children
Big building machines fill the pages of this delightful sticker book. Your child will learn everything about these hard-working vehicles, from excavators and bulldozers to forklifts and cranes. Do you have a construction-obsessed kiddo in your life? This digger activity book is filled with 60 reusable stickers, fun facts, and interesting activities. Cheerful photographs show these machines in action, digging and dumping away! Experience all the energy and excitement of a day at the construction site. Let your little budding engineers dig deep into the world of diggers and dumpers as they expand their knowledge on these powerful machines! They will discover what a dredging bucket is used for, why concrete is mixed in a machine and how tall a dump truck is. Taking subjects that kids love, like massive diggers and dumpers, the Ultimate Sticker Book series is packed with activities that are simple enough for children to do independently but engaging enough to keep their interest. With tons of fun stickers that can be reused and moved, this adventure book will keep your children entertained as they work through the pages. The reusable stickers are designed to develop dexterity in children, which is an important step in early childhood development.

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Holiday Spotlight: Holiday House 2022

Here at Penguin Random House Canada, we’re lucky to work with so many different lists. This holiday season, we’ll be highlighting each one with a dedicated post to help you find the perfect gift (or your next read). Today’s post is all about Holiday House.

A Seed Grows
By Antoinette Portis
40 Pages | Ages 3-6 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823448920 | Neal Porter Books
To understand how a seed becomes a sunflower, you have to peek beneath the soil and wait patiently as winding roots grow, a stalk inches out of the earth, and new seeds emerge among blooming petals. Leading up to a striking fold-out spread of a full-grown sunflower, the lively, bold illustrations in A Seed Grows offer a close-up view of each step of the growth cycle. Additional material in the back of the book explains the science of plant life cycles, and goes into more detail on the ways in which flowers and seeds depend on other creatures.

Aces Wild: A Heist
By Amanda DeWitt
352 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781682634660 | Peachtree Teen
Some people join chess club, some people play football. Jack Shannon runs a secret blackjack ring in his private school’s basement. What else is the son of a Las Vegas casino mogul supposed to do? Everything starts falling apart when Jack’s mom is arrested for their family’s ties to organized crime. His sister Beth thinks this is the Shannon family’s chance to finally go straight, but Jack knows that something’s not right. His mom was sold out, and he knows by who. Peter Carlevaro: rival casino owner and jilted lover. Gross. Jack hatches a plan to find out what Carlevaro’s holding over his mom’s head, but he can’t do it alone. He recruits his closest friends – the asexual support group he met through fandom forums. Now all he has to do is infiltrate a high-stakes gambling club and dodge dark family secrets, while hopelessly navigating what it means to be in love while asexual. Easy, right? A wild romp told in a can’t-look-away-from voice, Aces Wild is packed with internet friend hijinks and ace representation galore!

Fire on Headless Mountain
by Iain Lawrence
256 Pages | Ages 9-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823446544 | Margaret Ferguson Books
Virgil is making his older siblings trek to a mountain lake on a trip unlike any they’ve taken before. They carry precious cargo: the ashes of their beloved mother, who asked that her remains be scattered at her favorite spot. Then a forest fire is sparked by a bolt of lightning at the exact moment when their van breaks down, and the journey quickly turns to disaster. Virgil finds himself separated from his brother and sister. With the fire moving closer and closer, he isn’t sure he can make it alone in the wilderness. But with the memory of his late mother, a science teacher, and all her lessons about the ecosystem and fire safety to guide him, he quickly learns that survival starts with letting go of your fears and taking action. Fire on Headless Mountain is a thrilling adventure tale that showcases not only the overwhelming beauty and terrifying power of nature, but also the gift of memory when facing great emotional and physical trials.

Flipping Forward Twisting Backward
by Alma Fullerton
144 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781682633663 | Peachtree
The gym is where Claire shines and she’s on her way to qualifying for the state championships. But at school, she’s known as a troublemaker – which is fine with her since it helps her hide her reading problem. Claire has never been able to make sense of the wobbling jumble of letters on a page.
When a sympathetic principal wonders if she’s acting out because she may have dyslexia, she’s stunned. Claire has always assumed she’s dumb, so she’s eager to get evaluated. But her mother balks. Afraid Claire will be labeled “stupid,” she refuses testing. Can Claire take on both her reading challenges and her mother’s denial? Is it worth jeopardizing her dream of the state championships? Told in clear and poignant verse and featuring black and white illustrations, Claire’s struggle with something that seems to come easily to everyone else will resonate with readers and have them cheering her on.

Hell Followed With Us
By Andrew Joseph White
416 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781682633243 | Peachtree Teen
Sixteen-year-old trans boy Benji is on the run from the cult that raised him – the fundamentalist sect that unleashed Armageddon and decimated the world’s population. Desperately, he searches for a place where the cult can’t get their hands on him, or more importantly, on the bioweapon they infected him with. But when cornered by monsters born from the destruction, Benji is rescued by a group of teens from the local Acheson LGBTQ+ Center, affectionately known as the ALC. The ALC’s leader, Nick, is gorgeous, autistic, and a deadly shot, and he knows Benji’s darkest secret: the cult’s bioweapon is mutating him into a monster deadly enough to wipe humanity from the earth once and for all. Still, Nick offers Benji shelter among his ragtag group of queer teens, as long as Benji can control the monster and use its power to defend the ALC. Eager to belong, Benji accepts Nick’s terms . . . until he discovers the ALC’s mysterious leader has a hidden agenda, and more than a few secrets of his own.

Luli and the Language of Tea
By Andrea Wang
Illustrated by Hyewon Yum
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823446148 | Neal Porter Books
When five-year-old Luli joins her new English as a Second Language class, the playroom is quiet. Luli can’t speak English, neither can anyone else. That’s when she has a brilliant idea to host a tea party and bring them all together. Luli removes her teapot, thermos, and teacups from her bag and calls out “Chá!” in her native Chinese. One by one, her classmates pipe up in recognition: in Russian, Hindi, Turkish, Persian, Arabic, and Spanish, Portuguese, and Swahili. Tea is a tasty language they all know well, and it gives them a chance to share and enjoy each other’s company. When all the tea is gone and it’s time for dessert, Luli gets to use her favorite English word, cookie! After that, the playroom isn’t so quiet. Informed by her own experience as the child of Chinese immigrant parents, Andrea Wang makes the point that when you’re looking to communicate with people, you look for a common bond.

No Filters and Other Lies
By Crystal Maldonado
336 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823447183 | Holiday House
Golden-haired Max Monroe has it all: beauty, friends, and tons of followers. Her picture-perfect existence seems eminently enviable. Except it’s all fake. “Max” is actually Kat Sanchez, a quiet and sarcastic 17-year-old living in drab Bakersfield, California. Nothing glamorous about her existence – just bad house parties, a crap school year, and the awkwardness of dealing with best friend Hari’s unrequited love. But while Kat’s life is far from perfect, she thrives as Max: doling out advice, sharing beautiful photos, networking with fans, even finding a real friend (or more? – Is Kat into girls!?) in a gorgeous Fat follower named Elena. But the closer Elena and “Max” get, the more Kat feels she has to keep up the façade. “Max” is the first time people have really listened to what Kat has to say – and after a lifetime of invisibility (including ice-cold indifference from her parents) can she really give that up? But when one of Kat’s posts goes viral and gets back to the girl she’s been stealing photos from, her entire world – real and fake – comes crashing down around her. Can she escape the web of lies she’s woven without hurting the people she loves?

One Million Trees: A True Story
By Kristen Balouch
40 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823448609 | Margaret Ferguson Books
When Kristen Balouch was 10 years old, her parents made a surprising announcement: their whole family was going on a trip to plant trees! Kristen, her sisters, and her mom and dad – and their pet, Wonder Dog! – flew from their California home to a logging site in British Columbia. There, they joined a crew working to replant the trees that had been cut down. In One Million Trees, Kristen reflects on the forty days they spent living in a tent, covered in mud and bug bites, working hard every day to plant a new forest. Young readers will learn a little French, practice some math skills, and learn all about how to plant a tree the right way! The kid-friendly, engaging text is paired with bold illustrations, full of fun details and bright colors. The story ends with a modern-day look at what Kristen’s family helped accomplish: a stand of huge trees growing on what used to be an empty, muddy patch of bare stumps. An author’s note shares more information on deforestation, sustainable logging practices, and the irreplaceable environmental benefit of old growth forests. . . . Plus, the amazing things even a small group of people can do when they work together.

The Universe in You: A Microscopic Journey
By Jason Chin
40 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823450701 | Neal Porter Books
In Your Place in the Universe, Jason Chin zoomed outward, from our planet, solar system, and galaxy to the outer reaches of the observable universe. Now, Chin reverses course, zooming in past our skin to our cells, molecules, and atoms, all the way down to particles so small we can’t yet even measure them.
Like its companion, The Universe in You is a mind-boggling adventure that makes complex science accessible and enjoyable to readers of any age. Impeccably researched, wholly engrossing, and with extensive backmatter for additional learning, The Universe in You is another knockout from the award-winning creator of Redwoods, Grand Canyon, and other distinguished works of nonfiction for young readers

The Vermilion Emporium
by Jamie Pacton
416 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781682634882 | Peachtree Teen
On the morning Twain, a lonely boy with a knack for danger, discovers a strand of starlight on the cliffs outside of Severon, a mysterious curiosity shop appears in town. Meanwhile, Quinta, the ordinary daughter of an extraordinary circus performer, chases rumors of the shop, the Vermilion Emporium, desperate for a way to live up to her mother’s magical legacy. When Quinta meets Twain outside of the Emporium, two things happen: One, Quinta is sure she’s infatuated with this starlight boy, who uses his charm to hide his scars. Two, they enter the store and discover a book that teaches them how to weave starlight into lace. Soon, their lace catches the eye of the Casorina, the ruler of Severon. She commissions Quinta and Twain to make her a starlight dress and will reward them handsomely enough to make their dreams come true. However, they can’t sew a dress without more material, and the secret to starlight’s origins has been lost for decades. As Quinta and Twain search the Emporium for answers, though, they discover the secret might not have actually been lost – but destroyed. And likely, for good reason. A powerful and romantic adventure set in a whimsically magical world. The Vermilion Emporium shines a light into the darkest spaces. It’s about healing in a world shrouded with despair and discovering a spark of magic when you need it most.

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Holiday Spotlight: Puffin Canada and Penguin Teen Canada 2022

Here at Penguin Random House Canada, we’re lucky to work with so many different lists. This holiday season, we’ll be highlighting each one with a dedicated post to help you find the perfect gift (or your next read). Today’s post is all about Puffin Canada and Penguin Teen Canada.

Ghostlight
By Kenneth Oppel
400 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735272330 | Puffin Canada
The story of the tragic death of sixteen-year-old Rebecca Strand and her lighthouse keeper father is just an elaborate tale Gabe tells tourists for his summer job on the Toronto Island. Or so he thought. When his ghost tours awaken Rebecca’s spirit, Gabe is drawn into a world far darker than any ghost story he’s ever heard. Rebecca reveals that she and her father were connected to The Order, a secret society devoted to protecting the world from “the wakeful and wicked dead” – malevolent spirits like Viker, the ghost responsible for their deaths. But now the Order has disappeared and Viker is growing even stronger, and he’ll stop at nothing to wreak chaos and destruction on the living. Gabe and his friends – both living and dead – must find a way to stop Viker before they all become lost souls.

Green Mountain Academy
By Frances Greenslade
240 Pages | Ages 9-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267848 | Tundra Books
After a family trip turned disastrous when their truck broke down in the middle of an old logging road in Oregon, Francie is now back in British Columbia. People try to make things as “normal” as possible for her, but they don’t understand that trying to be normal in your old life that’s exploded is the worst feeling in the world. Luckily for Francie, the wilderness is still soothing, and an opportunity to attend the Green Mountain Academy, a tiny boarding school perched on the side of a mountain, seems perfect. It’s a new start, with new friends and a chance at a new family. But when a winter storm hits, knocking out all the power, news that a small plane has gone missing unsettles Francie. Knowing that the chance of survival in the middle of a wild nighttime snowstorm diminishes over time, Francie is compelled to leave the cozy school and set out into the icy cold, swirling snowstorm.

Me Three
By Susan Juby
224 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735268722 | Puffin Canada 
Eleven-year-old Rodney is starting sixth grade in a new school, in a new home in a new state. The new school is really old and smells like someone ate a couple of pounds of glue and then barfed it back up, and he’s in a class with a bunch of kids who seem to sort of hate him. Even his best friend won’t write him back. It’s strange, because just a couple of months ago, Rodney was one of the most popular guys in his fifth-grade class. He lived in Las Vegas, with his mom, older sister and his dad, who was a successful professional poker player. Now his old life is over – his mom even says they shouldn’t tell anyone their real last name. Because of something his dad did. Or something people said that he did. His dad says it’s all a big misunderstanding, but he’s now staying in a center “for people who are having problems, like being addicted to drugs or gambling, or because other people don’t understand that you are just funny and friendly and sometimes you give people hugs or put your arm around them and they accuse you of taking liberties and ruin everything.” Rodney is confident that it won’t be long until the misunderstanding is all cleared up and they can all go back to their old life. But he can only keep the truth at bay for so long . . . .

Seekers of the Fox: Thieves of Shadow #2
By Kevin Sands
400 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735270442 | Puffin Canada
Rule number one: Never mess with magic. Even so, a life-or-death situation calls for Callan and his criminal friends to make a deal with the Eye – the sinister, sentient artifact they stole from a sorcerer. It’s Lachlan’s life in exchange for a future task, and the gang has no choice but to agree. But even as Lachlan is resurrected, it’s not without cost. Through the Eye, Callan can see a tiny purple stain inside Lachlan’s soul, which will eventually consume him. The cure – and their part of the deal – lies with the Dragon’s Teeth, a pair of swords with extraordinary powers, and the search for them leads the thieves on a quest that will unravel the mystery of the Eye. Old friends, new betrayals, and an even more daring break-in than the last culminate in a confrontation that will take all the gang’s skill and power to resist – or they’ll die trying.

The Final Trial: Royal Guide to Monster Slaying #4
By Kelley Armstrong
320 Pages | Ages 10-14 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735270206 | Puffin Canada
The time has come! After discovering the true reason for the monster migration, Rowan is on an expedition to ultimately prove that she is worthy of the ebony monster-slaying sword on her back. She and her twin brother, Rhydd, their friends Dain and Alianor, as well as some other trusted advisors – and the ever-growing group of monstrous companions – are on a mission to help protect the dragon living in their homeland and are travelling to kingdoms beyond to make their case. But not everyone agrees that people can live peacefully alongside monsters, especially when new terrifying creatures appear. It will take everything Rowan has to fight off threats of all kinds, from both monsters and people. It won’t be easy, but if she succeeds, she will become Royal Monster Hunter at long last.

The Grave Thief
By Dee Hahn
344 Pages | Ages 9-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735269439 | Puffin Canada 
Twelve-year-old Spade is a grave thief. With his father and brother, he digs up the recently deceased to steal jewels, the main form of trade in Wyndhail. Digging graves works for Spade – alone in the graveyard at night, no one notices his limp or calls him names. He’s headed for a lifetime of theft when his father comes up with the audacious plan to rob a grave in the Wyndhail castle cemetery. Spade and his brother get caught in a royal trap, and Spade must find the master of the Woegon: a deadly creature that is stalking the castle by night. Along the way, he meets Ember, the queen’s niece, and together they race to solve the mystery of the legendary Deepstones and their connection to the Woegon, the queen, a missing king and the mysterious pebble Spade finds in the Wyndhail cemetery. This is a fantastic story of friendship, bravery, grief and acceptance.

The Puffin Keeper
By Michael Morpurgo
Illustrated by Benji Davies
112 Pages | Ages 9-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735271807 | Puffin Canada
As a child, Allen is saved from a nautical disaster by Benjamin Postlethwaite, a solitary lighthouse keeper. Years later, Allen returns to the lighthouse, and the two nurse an injured young puffin back to health. When Allen is called up to fight in World War Two, he’s not sure he’ll see his mother or Benjamin again, but his fond memories of his time at the lighthouse keep him going, even through prison camp. Allen and Ben’s enduring friendship over the years is the basis for this story about friendship, art, war and an incredibly adorable puffin. From masterful storyteller Michael Morpurgo and world-class illustrator Benji Davies comes this truly beautiful tale which will enchant readers of all ages.

The Stone Child: The Misewa Saga #3
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266162 | Puffin Canada
After discovering a near-lifeless Eli at the base of the Great Tree, Morgan knows she doesn’t have much time to save him. And it will mean asking for help – from friends old and new. Racing against the clock, and with Arik and Emily at her side, Morgan sets off to follow the trail away from the Great Tree to find Eli’s soul before it’s too late. As they journey deep into the northern woods, a place they’ve been warned never to enter, they face new challenges and life-threatening attacks from strange and horrifying creatures. But a surprise ally comes to their aid, and Morgan finds the strength to focus on what’s most important: saving her brother’s life. 

Unstoppable Us, Volume 1: How Humans Took Over the World
By Yuval Noah Harari
Illustrated by Ricard Zaplana Ruiz
208 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781774882214 | Puffin Canada
Even though we’ll never outrun a hungry lion or outswim an angry shark, humans are pretty impressive – and the most dominant species on the planet. So, how did we become “unstoppable”? The answer to that is one of the strangest tales you’ll ever hear. And it’s a true story. From learning to make fire and using the stars as guides to cooking meals in microwaves and landing on the moon, prepare to uncover the secrets and superpowers of how we evolved from our first appearances millions of years ago. Acclaimed author Yuval Noah Harari has expertly crafted an extraordinary story of how humans learned to not only survive but also thrive on Earth, complete with maps, a timeline, and full-color illustrations that bring his dynamic, unputdownable writing to life.

Wrong Side of the Court
By H. N. Khan
312 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735270879 | Penguin Teen Canada
Fifteen-year-old Fawad Chaudhry loves two things: basketball and his mother’s potato and ground-beef stuffed parathas. Both are round and both help him forget about things like his father, who died two years ago, his mother’s desire to arrange a marriage to his first cousin, Nusrat, back home in Pakistan, and the tiny apartment in Regent Park he shares with his mom and sister. Not to mention his estranged best friend Yousuf, who’s coping with the shooting death of his older brother. But Fawad has plans: like, asking out Ashley, even though she lives on the other, wealthier side of the tracks, and saving his friend Arif from being beaten into a pulp for being the school flirt, and making the school basketball team and dreaming of being the world’s first Pakistani to be drafted into the NBA. All he has to do now is convince his mother to let him try out for the basketball team. And let him date girls from his school. Not to mention somehow get Omar, the neighborhood bully, to leave him alone.

Tundra Book Group