Book to Screen

Here at Tundra Books, we are all huge movie and T.V. lovers and we get extra excited when what we see on the screen is adapted from our very own books! Keep reading to find out which of your favorite Tundra titles are set to hit the big – and slightly less big – screen!

Picture Books

Wilding Pictures, the Toronto-based indie production company, has acquired the rights to the book series Professor Goose Debunks Fairy Tales and is set to make a loose adaptation of the book series as its first kids project.

Professor Goose Debunks Goldilocks and the Three Bears
By Paulette Bourgeois
Illustrated by Alex G. Griffiths
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267305 | Tundra Books
Mother Goose’s fairy tales are NOT based in science, and her great niece Professor Goose thinks it’s time to share the truth. Join Professor Goose as she – literally – travels through the pages of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, fact-checking, exposing the flaws and explaining the science. Bears don’t live in cottages – they prefer dens! The smallest bowl of porridge wouldn’t be “just right” – it would have been the coldest! Professor Goose is delighted to see Baby Bear use the scientific method and Goldilocks’s fight or flight response. And maybe Goldilocks should have used a GPS so she wouldn’t have gotten lost in the first place? Jammed with jokes and wonderfully silly illustrations, this book entertains while it introduces basic scientific laws and rules to young readers. At the back of the book, readers will find Professor Goose’s instructions on how to engineer their own chair for a (teddy) bear!

Professor Goose Debunks The Three Little Pigs
By Paulette Bourgeois
Illustrated by Alex G. Griffiths
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267329 | Tundra Books
Release Date: February 13, 2024
The second in a fractured fairy tale series by the author of Franklin the Turtle! Join Professor Goose in this STEM-filled picture book as she fact-checks classic fairy tales and shares the science behind these flawed stories. Mother Goose’s fairy tales are NOT based in science, and her great niece Professor Goose thinks it’s time to share the truth. Join Professor Goose as she – literally – travels through the pages of The Three Little Pigs, fact-checking, exposing the flaws and explaining the science. Did you know that pigs run in a zigzag pattern? And that there’s no way a wolf’s breath would be strong enough to blow down anything, even if he has his whole pack with him? And that hay bales are strong enough to resist most up, down and sideways forces? Sounds like the perfect material for building a house! . . . Or, not. But not to worry – Professor Goose is armed with helpful hints on how to make a structure strong enough to withstand hurricane forces! Jammed with jokes and hilarious illustrations, this book entertains while it introduces basic scientific laws and rules to young readers. At the back of the book, readers will find Professor Goose’s new, carefully researched fairy tale ending as well as her favorite facts about coding!

Toronto-based company Portfolio Entertainment and Treehouse have taken Cale Atkinson’s Where Oliver Fits and have expanded it into nine animated short videos as well as a Christmas special.

Where Oliver Fits
By Cale Atkinson
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781101919071 | Tundra Books
Oliver has always dreamed about where he will fit. Will he be in the mane of a unicorn? The tentacle of a pirate squid? The helmet of an astronaut? When he finally goes in search of his perfect place, he finds that trying to fit in is a lot harder than he thought. But like any puzzle, a little trial and error leads to a solution, and Oliver figures out exactly where he belongs. Where Oliver Fits is a sweet and funny story that explores all the highs and lows of learning to be yourself and shows that fitting in isn’t always the best fit . . .

Image courtesy of The Jim Henson Company

The Jim Henson Company, with animation partner Factory, is developing How to Make Friends with a Ghost as a new stop-motion animation series for kids ages 5 -9 years old.

How to Make Friends with a Ghost
By Rebecca Green
40 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Paperback
ISBN 9781774880401 | Tundra Books
What do you do when you meet a ghost? One: Provide the ghost with some of its favorite snacks, like mud tarts and earwax truffles. Two: Tell your ghost bedtime stories (ghosts love to be read to). Three: Make sure no one mistakes your ghost for whipped cream or a marshmallow when you aren’t looking! If you follow these few simple steps and the rest of the essential tips in How to Make Friends with a Ghost, you’ll see how a ghost friend will lovingly grow up and grow old with you. A whimsical story about ghost care, Rebecca Green’s debut picture book is a perfect combination of offbeat humor, quirky and sweet illustrations, and the timeless theme of friendship.

Ryan Reynolds’ Maximum Effort production company has launched a new show on Fubo called “Bedtime Stories With Ryan.” This 15-episode series features Reynolds reading new and classic bedtime stories including The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt, Night Lunch, and Narwhal and Jelly: Peanut Butter and Jelly.

The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt
By Riel Nason
Illustrated by Byron Eggenschwiler
48 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735264472 | Tundra Books
Ghosts are supposed to be sheets, light as air and able to whirl and twirl and float and soar. But the little ghost who is a quilt can’t whirl or twirl at all, and when he flies, he gets very hot. He doesn’t know why he’s a quilt. His parents are both sheets, and so are all of his friends. (His great-grandmother was a lace curtain, but that doesn’t really help cheer him up.) He feels sad and left out when his friends are zooming around and he can’t keep up. But one Halloween, everything changes. The little ghost who was a quilt has an experience that no other ghost could have, an experience that only happens because he’s a quilt . . . and he realizes that it’s OK to be different.

Night Lunch
By Eric Fan
Illustrated by Dena Seiferling
48 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735270572 | Tundra Books
Noses sniff the air as mouthwatering smells waft down city streets, luring growling bellies to the Night Owl. Inside this elegant, horse-drawn establishment, a feathery cook works the grill, serving up tasty dishes for shift-workers and operagoers alike: a mince pie for Fox, a ham sandwich for Badger and puddings for little Possums. Mouse, a poor street sweeper, watches as the line of customers swells, ever hopeful that someone will drop a morsel of food – but Owl’s cooking is far too delicious for more than a crumb to be found. As the evening’s service winds down, weary Owl spots trembling Mouse. Has he found his own night lunch, or will he invite this small sweeper inside for a midnight feast for two? From the imagination of two acclaimed picture book creators, together for the first time, this dreamlike picture book is a magical ode to Victorian lunch wagons. Evoking the sounds, sights, smells and tastes of the city at night, Night Lunch reveals how empathy and kindness as well as dignity and gratitude can be found – and savored – in the most unexpected places.

Peanut Butter and Jelly: A Narwhal and Jelly Book #3
By Ben Clanton
64 Pages | Ages 6-9 | Paperback
ISBN 9780735262461 | Tundra Books
When Jelly wonders what a unicorn is, Narwhal explains that they’re pretty much narwhals of the land (!) – and then gets carried away with a grand plan to see one. With the help of Star, Narwhal’s wish comes true in the wildest, weirdest way: Narwhal gets some land legs and takes their first step ashore. After some wibble-wobbling and a bit of practice, Narwhal is soon galloping along in search of unicorns, though Jelly is a little land sick. Before they know it, Star has the duo blasting off to a magical planet where everyone is a unicorn! But Jelly’s out-of-this-world adventure makes him feel out of his comfort zone, and he wishes he were at home . . . can Narwhal cheer Jelly up and also party down with their new unicorn pals?

Middle Grade

ABC Signature, the production company subsidiary of Disney Entertainment, has picked up the film rights for David A. Robertson’s middle-grade fantasy series The Misewa Saga.

The Barren Grounds: The Misewa Saga #1
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735266124 | Puffin Canada
Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster home in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They each feel disconnected, from their culture and each other, and struggle to fit in at school and at their new home – until they find a secret place, walled off in an unfinished attic bedroom. A portal opens to another reality, Askí, bringing them onto frozen, barren grounds, where they meet Ochek (Fisher). The only hunter supporting his starving community, Misewa, Ochek welcomes the human children, teaching them traditional ways to survive. But as the need for food becomes desperate, they embark on a dangerous mission. Accompanied by Arik, a sassy Squirrel they catch stealing from the trapline, they try to save Misewa before the icy grip of winter freezes everything – including them.

The Great Bear: The Misewa Saga #2
By David A. Robertson
240 Pages | Ages 10+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735266155 | Puffin Canada
Back at home after their first adventure in the Barren Grounds, Eli and Morgan each struggle with personal issues: Eli is being bullied at school, and tries to hide it from Morgan, while Morgan has to make an important decision about her birth mother. They turn to the place where they know they can learn the most, and make the journey to Misewa to visit their animal friends. This time they travel back in time and meet a young fisher that might just be their lost friend. But they discover that the village is once again in peril, and they must dig deep within themselves to find the strength to protect their beloved friends. Can they carry this strength back home to face their own challenges?

The Stone Child: The Misewa Saga #3
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735266186 | Tundra Books
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. 

The Portal Keeper: The Misewa Saga #4
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781774880258 | Tundra Books
Release Date: October 10, 2023
Eli and Morgan experience life-changing revelations in this new adventure in the award-winning, Narnia-inspired Indigenous middle-grade fantasy series.
While exploring World’s End, an area in Aski they’ve just discovered, Morgan and Emily delight in their developing relationship, while Eli struggles to understand his new-found power: the ability to locate a portal. A shocking turn of events leads them to a new village, Ministik, where the animal beings who live there are going missing. Horrified to discover who is responsible, the children vow to help and turn to friends, old and new. But it’s getting harder and harder to keep the two worlds separate, especially when details of a traditional legend change everything. Forever.

Art images courtesy of Studio Ghibli and IMDB

Studio Ghibli and acclaimed director Hayao Miyazaki have loosely adapted Genzaburo Yoshino’s middle-grade novel How Do You Live? into the animated feature film The Boy and the Heron set to open the 2023 Toronto Internation Film Festival.

How Do You Live?
By Genzaburō Yoshino
Foreword by Neil Gaiman
Translated by Bruno Navasky
288 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735271883 | Puffin Canada
Anime master Hayao Miyazaki’s favorite childhood book and a beloved Japanese classic, this uplifting coming-of-age story brings philosophy, history and wonder together, available in English for the first time.
The streets of Tokyo swarm below fifteen-year-old Copper as he gazes out into the city of his childhood. Struck by the thought of the infinite people whose lives play out alongside his own, he begins to wonder, how do you live? Considering life’s biggest questions for the first time after the death of his father, Copper turns to his dear uncle for heart-warming wisdom. As the old man guides the boy on a journey of philosophical discovery, a timeless tale unfolds, offering a poignant reflection on what it means to be human. But when Copper betrays one of his new friends, how will he ask for forgiveness – and how can he forgive himself? How Do You Live? is the inspiring, transformative story of a young man who, like his namesake Copernicus, looks to the stars and uses his discoveries to answer the question of what kind of person he will grow up to be.

Young Adult

Picturestart, the production company behind book adaptations like Wonder and The Hunger Games, has obtained adaptive rights to Xiran Jay Zhao’s Iron Widow for a film franchise with J.C. Lee set to write the screenplay.

Iron Widow
By Xiran Jay Zhao
416 Pages | Ages 14+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735269958 | Tundra Books
The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn’t matter that the girls often die from the mental strain. When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it’s to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected – she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.​ To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia​. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way – and stop more girls from being sacrificed.

Cover Reveal: The Portal Keeper

Tundra Books is excited to be publishing The Portal Keeper on October 10, 2023! Fan-favorite author David A. Robertson returns with the fourth book in The Misewa Saga, an epic adventure full of new-found powers, mysterious disappearances of entire towns, and two worlds moving closer and closer together.

“I’m thrilled to finally reveal the cover for the epic fourth book in The Misewa Saga: The Portal Keeper! The cover is illustrated by Winona Nelson and designed by Gigi Lau. The last books in the series will focus more on Eli, so we wanted a new look to focus more on Eli and to highlight the series name, giving it a bigger presence. I hope you like it!”

– David A. Robertson

Cover Illustration: Winona Nelson
Cover Design: Gigi Lau

The Portal Keeper: The Misewa Saga #4
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781774880258 | Tundra Books
Release Date: October 10, 2023
Eli and Morgan experience life-changing revelations in this new adventure in the award-winning, Narnia-inspired Indigenous middle-grade fantasy series.
While exploring World’s End, an area in Aski they’ve just discovered, Morgan and Emily delight in their developing relationship, while Eli struggles to understand his new-found power: the ability to locate a portal. A shocking turn of events leads them to a new village, Ministik, where the animal beings who live there are going missing. Horrified to discover who is responsible, the children vow to help and turn to friends, old and new. But it’s getting harder and harder to keep the two worlds separate, especially when details of a traditional legend change everything. Forever.

Also by David A. Robertson:

The Barren Grounds: The Misewa Saga #1
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735266124 | Puffin Canada
Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster home in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They each feel disconnected, from their culture and each other, and struggle to fit in at school and at their new home – until they find a secret place, walled off in an unfinished attic bedroom. A portal opens to another reality, Askí, bringing them onto frozen, barren grounds, where they meet Ochek (Fisher). The only hunter supporting his starving community, Misewa, Ochek welcomes the human children, teaching them traditional ways to survive. But as the need for food becomes desperate, they embark on a dangerous mission. Accompanied by Arik, a sassy Squirrel they catch stealing from the trapline, they try to save Misewa before the icy grip of winter freezes everything – including them.

The Great Bear: The Misewa Saga #2
By David A. Robertson
288 Pages | Ages 10+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735266155 | Puffin Canada
Back at home after their first adventure in the Barren Grounds, Eli and Morgan each struggle with personal issues: Eli is being bullied at school, and tries to hide it from Morgan, while Morgan has to make an important decision about her birth mother. They turn to the place where they know they can learn the most, and make the journey to Misewa to visit their animal friends. This time they travel back in time and meet a young fisher that might just be their lost friend. But they discover that the village is once again in peril, and they must dig deep within themselves to find the strength to protect their beloved friends. Can they carry this strength back home to face their own challenges?

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. 

On the Trapline
By David A. Robertson
Illustrated by Julie Flett
48 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266681  | Tundra Books
A boy and Moshom, his grandpa, take a trip together to visit a place of great meaning to Moshom. A trapline is where people hunt and live off the land, and it was where Moshom grew up. As they embark on their northern journey, the child repeatedly asks his grandfather, “Is this your trapline?” Along the way, the boy finds himself imagining what life was like two generations ago – a life that appears to be both different from and similar to his life now. This is a heartfelt story about memory, imagination, and intergenerational connection that perfectly captures the experience of a young child’s wonder as he is introduced to places and stories that hold meaning for his family.

The Song That Called Them Home
By David A. Robertson
Illustrated by Maya McKibbin
52 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266704 | Tundra Books
One summer day, Lauren and her little brother, James, go on a trip to the land with their Moshom (grandfather). After they’ve arrived, the children decide to fish for dinner while Moshom naps. They are in their canoe in the middle of the lake when the water around them begins to swirl and crash. They are thrown overboard and when Lauren surfaces she sees her brother being pulled away by the Memekwesewak — creatures who live in and around water and like to interfere with humans. Lauren must follow the Memekwesewak through a portal and along a watery path to find and bring back James. But when she finally comes upon her brother, she too feels the lure of the Memekwesewak’s song. Something even stronger must pull them back home.  

2023 TLA Conference

Hello book lovers! The Tundra Books team is headed down south to the 2023 TLA conference happening in Austin, Texas on April 19th to April 22nd. We’ll be showcasing many of our wonderful titles at booth 2435! Come by and say hello to our Executive Editor, Sam Swenson; Editor, Peter Phillips; Marketing and Publicity Senior Associate, Sam Devotta; and our Publicity Manager, Evan Munday!

On Friday, April 21st at 8:30am to 9:30am please join our authors David A. Robertson and Cherie Dimaline with moderator Cynthia Leitich Smith in the Austin Convention Center, Room 16A, for a panel on Decolonizing Library Shelves through the Rise of Indigenous Children’s Authors.

We will also be hosting signings at booth 2435! This is based on first come, first serve. One copy per person while quantities last and you must be in line for the signing to receive a complimentary copy.

Looking for literary assets for your schools and libraries? We’ve got you covered, ask about our catalogs, brochures, posters, postcards, bookmarks, buttons, art cards, sticker sheets, and pop sockets!

And don’t forget to follow us online @tundrabooks as we post live from the show floors!

ALA LibLearnX 2023

Hello book lovers! The Tundra Books team is headed down south to ALA’s LibLearnX happening in New Orleans on January 27th to January 30th. We’ll be showcasing many of our wonderful titles at booth 225! Come by and say hello to our Fiction Publishing Director, Lynne Missen; Editorial Director and Author, David A. Robertson; Marketing and Publicity Senior Associate, Sam Devotta; and our Marketing and Publicity Associate Director, Sylvia Chan!

On Saturday, January 28th at 1:30pm to 2:45pm please join our authors David A. Robertson and Cherie Dimaline with moderator Andrea Rogers in the Morial Convention Center, Room 391-392, for a panel on Decolonizing Library Shelves through the Rise of Indigenous Children’s Authors.

We will also be hosting a number of signings at booth 225! This is based on first come, first serve. One copy per person while quantities last and you must be in line for the signing to receive a complimentary copy.

Looking for literary assets for your schools and libraries? We’ve got you covered, ask about our posters, bookmarks, buttons, art cards, stickers, pop sockets!

And don’t forget to follow us online @tundrabooks as we post live from the show floors!

Our New Art Director: Meet Gigi!

Hi, my name is Gigi and I’m the new Art Director at Tundra Books. I’m originally from Vancouver and come from a chatty media-intense family: my parents ran the city’s first Chinese-language radio station with my father hosting live interviews and news shows and my mother as his producer, my sister is a journalist and digital news leader at CBC, while I was the introvert focused on visual storytelling and graphic communications.
 
I love working with creatives across all media and have been lucky to collaborate with so many from all backgrounds throughout my 16 years in publishing. Pure thrill is opening my email to find sketches and final art from artists! Previously, I was Art Director at HTP Books, designing and art directing books across six imprints including YA and MG titles. 
 
I live in Toronto with my husband and two kids. I picked up cycling over the pandemic as a mental health escape and am pushing myself at how far I can go by bike, this year’s longest ride was 140km. Now my must-do when visiting new cities is to explore a city by bike – you can see so much more!

Photo credit: Kristin Lewis

5 Random Facts About Me

  1. I have over 20 cousins.
  2. I love to indoor rock climb. 
  3. I’m a tea drinker (and only Earl Grey) even though I worked in coffee shops in high school and university.
  4. My hands have been photographed for two romance book covers. I retired from amateur hand modelling after there was feedback that my hands looked like kids’ hands.
  5. I can’t watch horror films.

Favorite Penguin Random House Titles

Ten Little Dumplings
By Larissa Fan
Illustrated by Cindy Wume
48 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266193 | Tundra Books
In the city of Tainan, there lives a very special family – special because they have ten sons who do everything together. Their parents call them their ten little dumplings, as both sons and dumplings are auspicious. But if you look closely, you’ll see that someone else is there, listening, studying, learning and discovering her own talent – a sister. As this little girl grows up in the shadow of her brothers, her determination and persistence help her to create her own path in the world . . . and becomes the wisdom she passes on to her own daughter, her own little dumpling. Based on a short film made by the author, inspired by her father’s family in Taiwan, Ten Little Dumplings looks at some unhappy truths about the place of girls in our world in an accessible, inspiring and hopeful way.

Story Boat
By Kyo Maclear
Illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735263598 | Tundra Books
When a little girl and her younger brother are forced along with their family to flee the home they’ve always known, they must learn to make a new home for themselves – wherever they are. And sometimes the smallest things – a cup, a blanket, a lamp, a flower, a story – can become a port of hope in a terrible storm. As the refugees travel onward toward an uncertain future, they are buoyed up by their hopes, dreams and the stories they tell – a story that will carry them perpetually forward.

Time Is a Flower
By Julie Morstad
56 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267541 | Tundra Books
What is time? Is it the tick tick tock of a clock, numbers and words on a calendar? It’s that, but so much more. Time is a seed waiting to grow, a flower blooming, a sunbeam moving across a room. Time is slow like a spider spinning her web or fast like a wave at the beach. Time is a wiggly tooth, or waiting for the school bell to ring, or reading a story . . . or three! But time is also morning for some and night for others, a fading sunset and a memory captured in a photo taken long ago. In this magical meditation on the nature of time, Julie Morstad shines a joyful light on a difficult-to-grasp concept for young readers and reminds older readers to see the wonders of our world, including children themselves, through the lens of time.

The Barren Grounds: The Misewa Saga #1
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266100 | Puffin Canada
Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster home in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They each feel disconnected, from their culture and each other, and struggle to fit in at school and at their new home – until they find a secret place, walled off in an unfinished attic bedroom. A portal opens to another reality, Askí, bringing them onto frozen, barren grounds, where they meet Ochek (Fisher). The only hunter supporting his starving community, Misewa, Ochek welcomes the human children, teaching them traditional ways to survive. But as the need for food becomes desperate, they embark on a dangerous mission. Accompanied by Arik, a sassy Squirrel they catch stealing from the trapline, they try to save Misewa before the icy grip of winter freezes everything – including them.

Iron Widow
By Xiran Jay Zhao
400 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735269934 | Penguin Teen Canada
Release Date: September 21, 2021
The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn’t matter that the girls often die from the mental strain. When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it’s to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected – she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.​ To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia​. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way – and stop more girls from being sacrificed.

Favorite Non Penguin Random House Titles

Anticipated Penguin Random House Titles

  • Dim Sum Palace by X. Fang
  • The Song That Called Them Home by David A. Robertson and Maya McKibbin
  • The Only Way to Make Bread by Cristina Quintero and Sarah Gonzales