WWW.PUBLISHERSWEEKLY.COM 63Review_CHILDREN’S
all three tales, new creatures and
dilemmas appear as fast as the old ones are
dispatched, with opportunities for readers
to help out now and then (“Use your
finger to find out which path they should
follow”). Evildoers are often reassuringly
incompetent (one makes a gingerbread
house with salt instead of sugar), and
famous characters from classic children’s
books make cameo appearances (“I’m
Mr. Mole, and this is Mr. Badger”). Author-
illustrator Troïnowski’s loopy drawings,
brilliant colors, and hectic pacing make
this book the perfect companion to while
away a long journey. Ages 8–12. (Jan.)★ Almost American Girl
Robin Ha. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray,
$17.99 (240p) ISBN 978-0-06-268509-4
In her YA debut, adult author Ha (Cook
Korean!: A Comic Book with Recipes) creates
a graphic novel memoir about a girl’s tran-
sition from Korea to America. Tomboyish
Chuna, 14, and her single mother have
always been each other’s closest relation-
ship. But when her mother decides to
remarry, Chuna is uprooted from her
comfortable life in South Korea to the
completely foreign environs of Huntsville,
Ala. Faced with
bullying from
her classmates
and stepfamily,
Chuna’s only
solace is in
drawing comics.
It is only when
Chuna is once
more uprooted
to the far more
ethnically
diverse McLean, Va., that she begins to
build relationships and an identity that
blends her Korean and American identities.
Ha’s vivid recollections impart a clear
sense of place, whether they describe the
Korea of her mother’s generation or 21st-
century Korea, Alabama, and Virginia,
depicting each location with distinctive
details. The colors are muted, allowing the
vibrancy of the storytelling to shine.
Touching and subtly humorous, this emo-
tive memoir is as much about the steadfast
bond between a mother and daughter as it
is about the challenges of being an immi-
grant in America. Ages 13–up. (Jan.) ■Comics
The Gang of the Feline Sun
(Brina the Cat #1)
Giorgio Salati, trans. from the Italian by Olivia
Rose Doni, illus. by Christian Cornia. Papercutz,
$14.99 (88p) ISBN 978-1-5458-0425-4
On a mountain vacation with her human
family, city cat Brina enjoys exploring the
wilderness. Then she meets a one-eyed cat,
Vespucci, who persuades her that she
deserves more independence. She escapes
and joins Vespucci’s Gang of the Feline Sun,
a group of freedom-loving cats. Reveling
in her new life of chasing small prey and
playing tricks on the locals, “Brina’s mind
is like a clear blue sky,” even as her human
family searches frantically for her. Soon,
though, Brina realizes that she may have
traded one kind of cage for another. In
brightly hued scenes, Cornia (When
Unicorns Poop) uses parallel color palettes
to visually define both feline and human
viewpoints. An occasional narrator’s
remarks distract more than they enhance,
but with dual story lines, Italian author
Salati (Disney Hamlet, Starring Donald Duck)
tells an endearing tale that explores the
meaning of freedom and familial bonds.
Ages 8–12. (Jan.)
The Runaway Princess
Johan Troïanowski, trans. from the French by
Anne and Owen Smith. Random House
Graphic, $20.99 (272p) ISBN 978-0-593-12416-
1; $12.99 paper ISBN 978-0-593-11840-5
This fizzy, inventive graphic trio of
stories stars Robin, a princess who, in the
first episode, skips out on her tutor Elias’s
etiquette class and sets off for the Aquatic
Carnival in nearby Noor, finding four lost
brothers on the way. (“I’m Paul,” the oldest
says, politely. “This is Matt, Lee, and
Omar.”) The five soon reach Noor, the
City of Water,
where a mermaid
floating in a
bubble bewitches
Paul and the
younger boys
disappear (“You
sure get lost a
lot,” Robin says,
in the Smiths’
natural-sounding
translation). In
PICTURE BOOKS
Johnny’s Pheasant Cheryl Minnema, illus. by
Julie Flett. University of Minnesota, ISBN 978-1-
5179-0501-9, Nov.
Roly Poly Mem Fox, illus. by Jane Dyer, photos
by Jeanne Birdsall. Beach Lane, ISBN 978-1-4814-
4556-6, Nov.
The Serious Goose Jimmy Kimmel. Random
House, ISBN 978-0-525-70775-2, Dec.
Sisters First Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara
Pierce Bush, illus. by Ramona Kaulitzki. Little,
Brown, ISBN 978-0-316-53478-9, Nov.
This Is Baby Jimmy Fallon, illus. by Miguel
Ordóñez. Feiwel and Friends, ISBN 978-1-250-
24560-1, Oct.
Vivaldi Helge Torvund, illus. by Mari Kanstad
Johnsen. NYR Children’s Collection, ISBN 978-1-
68137-374-4, Nov.
FICTION
Blood Heir (Blood Heir #1) Amélie Wen Zhao.
Delacorte, ISBN 978-0-525-70779-0, Nov.
Gravemaidens Kelly Coon. Delacorte, ISBN 978-
0-525-64782-9, Dec.
Madame C.J. Walker Builds a Business
Rebel Girls, illus. by Salini Perera. Timbuktu Labs,
ISBN 978-1-7331-7619-4, Nov.
The Paris Project Donna Gephart. Simon &
Schuster, ISBN 978-1-5344-4086-9, Oct.
Poemsia Lang Leav. Andrews McMeel,
ISBN 978-1-5248-5107-1, Oct.
Wake Me After the Apocalypse Jordan Rivet.
Jordan Rivet, ASIN B07G35YHLT, Self-published.
COMICS
Lily the Thief Janne Kukkonen. First Second,
ISBN 978-1-250-19355-1, Nov.
NONFICTION
Can You Hear the Trees Talking? Peter
Wohlleben, trans. by Shelley Tanaka. Greystone
Kids, ISBN 978-1-77164-434-1, Oct.
Enough Is Enough: How Students Can Join
the Fight for Gun Safety Michelle Roehm
McCann. Beyond Words, ISBN 978-1-58270-700-6,
Oct.
Just Feel Mallika Chopra, illus. by Brenna
Vaughan. Running Press, ISBN 978-0-7624-9474-3,
Oct.
Leading the Way: Women in Power Janet
and Theresa Howell, illus. by Kylie Akia and
Alexandra Bye. Candlewick, ISBN 978-1-5362-
0846-7, Oct.
Spotted Tail David Heska Wanbli Weiden, illus.
by Jim Yellowhawk and Pat Kinsella. Reycraft,
ISBN 978-1-478867883, Oct.http://www.publishersweekly.comONLINE ONLY