| Just a month into 2025 and we already have a mountain of new reviews and buzz for forthcoming books to share! Set the tone for the year with the featured children’s picks below that celebrate growth, new experiences, and leaving the world a better place than you found it.
We’re also excited to share a Batchelder Honor Book and four Consortium titles named USBBY Outstanding International Books. And, in case you’re already nostalgic for 2024, check out our roundup of last year’s best books from Consortium publishers.
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All in a Year
by Chihiro Takeuchi
Berbay Publishing • January 2025 • 9781922610690 • iPage
This follow-up to the celebrated All in a Day follows the Tanaka family as they move out of their apartment building and into a house. See how their life changes and how the family engages with their new environment, keeps ties with their old community, and celebrates together. All in a Year helps young readers make sense of the concept of time and just how much can happen in the course of a year.
Kirkus Reviews calls the book “lots of spirited, stimulating good fun” and praises the interactivity, noting, “Children will delight in finding other, unasked-for items, since the bright, flat visuals feature numerous vibrant neighborhood activities.”
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The Paper Bridge
by Joelle Veyrenc, illus. Seng Soun Ratanavanh, trans. Katy Lockwood-Holmes
Floris Books • May 2025 • 9781782509073 • iPage
Anya lives in a paper village, among delicate paper trees and paper houses. When dangerous winds blow through the village, Anya crafts a paper bridge and ventures to a new town, where she meets strangers who may be able to help save her home. With stunning art created using the art of kirigami, this moving story serves as a subtle allegory for climate change.
A review from bookseller Jeanette S. of Northshire Bookstore (Manchester Center, VT) notes, “This book will become a favorite of most people . . . a modern classic.” Librarian Charessa S. of Centralia Public Library (Centralia, IL) adds, “If you’re looking to expand your collection with unique titles . . . I’d pick up this one.”
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Prisons Must Fall
by Mariame Kaba and Jane Ball, illus. Olly Costello
Haymarket Books • April 2025 • 9798888904411 • iPage
From Mariame Kaba, New York Times-bestselling author of We Do This ‘Til We Free Us, and social worker Jane Ball comes a powerful book illustrating the harm caused by prisons. Showing prison through a child’s eyes, the book follows families and friends as they march together in search of a new way, exploring alternatives and building toward restorative justice and community support.
Beth W., co-owner of Wild Rumpus Books (Minneapolis, MN), says, “Kaba and Costello help us re-imagine a world of true rehabilitation and community care, one without indignation or limitations. This stunning ode to abolition is a beacon of light in stifling times and reminds us there is potential for a brighter future.”
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Little Monica, known as Minimoni, sets out to unravel the mystery of love alongside her loyal dog, Max. Is love something big that can move mountains, or is it found in the small, everyday moments? With humor and curiosity, Minimoni embarks on a quirky quest to explore what love truly means.
Elizabeth B. of Schuler Books (Grand Rapids, MI) says, “Fantastic illustrations and a great narrative that tackles the tricky to understand concept, love. This will be a great tool for parents to have conversations with their kids.”
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Luisa decides to break the strict rules of the time period she lives in with a simple but revolutionary gesture: putting on pants. Based on the real-life story of activist Luisa Capetillo, this book illustrates how one act inspired an important social transformation. A Spanish-language edition, Los pantalones de Luisa, will be published simultaneously.
Emma Lee K. of the New York Public Library calls the book an “inspiring story of a girl who wasn’t afraid to be herself,” drawing attention to the “lovely illustrations.”
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Outstanding International Children’s Books and a Batchelder Honor
Earlier this week the 2025 Youth Media Awards were presented at the ALA’s LibLearnX conference, and A Sleepless Night (Transit Children’s Editions) was selected for a Batchelder Honor! Congratulations to the pubisher and contributors.
Congrats to all!
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★ “Cailleach’s backstory and misguided guardianship affirm the importance of biodiversity and serve as an apt allegory for human communities: ‘You belong here. We all belong here.’ . . . A magically transcendent adventure that blends climate concerns with Celtic lore.” — Kirkus Reviews
★ “Readers will be captivated. . . . Beautifully written and accompanied by a glossary and a map of the island, this is a book to be shared again and again. Highly recommended for all libraries.” — School Library Journal
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| | The Gone Book
by Helena Close
Little Island Books • April 2025 • 9781912417445
★ “This taut, emotionally authentic story told from Matt’s naturally flowing first-person perspective features raw, sometimes uncomfortable, language and complex characterization and offers no easy answers. Powerful.” — Kirkus Reviews
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| | Calm
by Susan Baker
Neem Tree Press • April 2025 • 9781911107934
★ “In her page-turner, debut author Baker evokes dystopian despair reminiscent of classic titles. Morally ambiguous characters give the story depth; readers will not know whom to trust. A gripping examination of our human need to feel.” — Kirkus Reviews
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| | Astro
by Manuel Marsol, trans. Lizzie Davis
Transit Children’s Editions • March 2025 • 9798893389043
★ “This Spanish import mixes meditations on mortality with an outer-space setting. . . . [This] will also challenge children’s very perceptions of what it means to be alive. An achingly beautiful testament to life, love, and death among the stars.” — Kirkus Reviews
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| | My Dear Sea
by André Carrilho
Blue Dot Kids Press • April 2025 • 9798989858835
“An immensely gorgeous tale of oceanic depth, perfect for reading aloud to preschoolers and early elementary children.” — School Library Journal
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| | Between the Pipes
by Albert McLeod with Elaine Mordoch and Sonya Ballantyne, illus. Alice RL
Portage & Main / HighWater Press • September 2024 • 9781774921043
“The authors deftly confront multiple layers of intolerance exacerbated by toxic masculinity. Ojibwe artist RL uses saturated full color (with well-placed, empowering rainbows) to capture Chase’s self-empowering journey. The result is a compelling, hope-giving antidote against potential at-risk suicide among 2-Spirit/Indigenous LGBTQQIA+ youth.” — Booklist
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| | The Expedition
by Tuvalisa Rangström, illus. Klara Bartilsson, trans. Saskia Vogel
Transit Children's Editions • April 2025 • 9798893380019
“A unique mashup of biology and super-abundant whimsy that will charm fans of the strange and unusual.” — Kirkus Reviews
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Featured Collections: SEL, Ramadan, and Valentine's Day
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2024’s Best Books
See which titles from Consortium publishers have been lauded as some of 2024’s best! We’ve rounded up the books featured on year-end best of lists across the web on our Best of 2024 page.
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