I have managed to read authors from all over the globe for this issue (I think that World Kid Lit has a lot to do with this, thank you, friends). Here is a list of books by a host of different authors, some recently translated and published in the US.
Let’s start with illustrated books:
Watermelon Pool Bonsoir Lune (Author & Illustrator), Frances Cha (Translated by)
The only caveat I have with this book is that it made me want to immerse myself in a giant pool filled with watermelon, too!
Kids, grandparents, and parents are all eagerly waiting for summer and the one thing that makes everyone happy: to dive into a watermelon pool. After a large watermelon gets split in half, everyone can magically climb it, dig into the fruit, and make slides from the rind… it only lasts a day for the entire village, but it is a joyous one!
Bonsoir Lune is a picture book creator working in Korea. Watermelon Pool was her debut picture book, first published in 2015.
Watermelon Pool is on sale since June 02, 2026.
Published by Dial Books
Hardcover | Pages:60
ISBN: 9798217111787
Now, a search for the Sun:
Find the Sun by Andy Harkness (Author)
Sometimes a pervasive feeling can make you feel down, and you might think that there is not a single ray of hope. However, this book, written in poetic form, invites you to find that single ray of sunshine that is always there.
I still don’t know if the author sculpted the illustrations or if it’s just a clever effect, but it kept me guessing throughout.
The journey Eddie embarks on is profoundly personal; he braves inner turmoil and comes up stronger.
Find the Sun is on sale since May 05, 2026.
Published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Hardcover | Pages:40
ISBN: 9781547618767
Up next, a board book about Rugby:
Let’s Play Rugby! Gordon D’Arcy (Author), Paul Howard (Author), Ashwin Chacko (Illustrated by)
This is a beautiful book about a sport everyone enjoys in my household. My husband is a rugby trainer and knows Gordon D’Arcy as the great retired rugby player he is. He won two Six Nations medals with Ireland, three Heineken Cups with Leinster, and toured with the British and Irish Lions. The idea to showcase a baby some enjoyable rugby moments is a great one (similar to the one we reviewed recently about Chess for Babies).
From reviewing basic skills and some of the nice sounds and images a team makes, Let’s Play Rugby! encourages all kids to give rugby a go – in their bedrooms, living rooms, and gardens. It truly is a picture book for children and grown-ups to tackle together.
Let’s Play Rugby! will be available on April 28, 2026.
Publisher: Little Island Books
Pages: 32 Paperback
EAN/UPC: 9781915071774
Now for an interesting story about interconnectedness:
Banana Express. The Big Journey Behind One Small Delivery by Jung Jinho (Author), Aerin Park (Translated by)
What needs to happen for you to get your order on time? This backwards reverse engineering of a delivery is a joy to watch unfold (and is a great intro point to discuss Amazon and politics).
You tap a screen, and, as if by magic, bananas appear on your doorstep, just in time for breakfast. Simple, right? However, how many people needed to have moved before this happened?
Trucks, vendors, night-time workers… all are connected, and you have to acknowledge the work behind the seemingly easy-peasy offer of the delivery app.
Banana Express is on sale since June 02, 2026.
Published by Scribble Us
Hardcover | Pages: 40
ISBN: 9781964992280
Up next, a book about a slug (I love these):
This Is What a Slug Does by Mimi May (Author), Aniek Bartels (Illustrated by)
If I had the space, I think I would have an entire library filled with hilarious books about odd animals. Snails, slugs, beetles, horned toads… I would particularly favor nonfiction ones, because silly facts and jokes about animals are my jam.
So, here comes Simon: a big foot, a slow stance, and lots of slime, what does he do all day? Check this page crawler to find out! From learning about how he sees, to why slime is important, and how he can even duck his head in case of danger, the illustrations and info in this book are a great match for a fun take on this particularly slimy, common creature.
This Is What a Slug Does is be available since June 23, 2026.
Publisher: Post Wave
Pages: 32 Hardcover
EAN/UPC: 9798895090695
Up next, a book about caring for one another:
The River of Caregiving by Jocelyn Chung (Author), Sarah Gonzales (Illustrated by)
Although this book veers closely into the realm of moralism, it steers clear because of the lyrical way in which it portrays how everything you pay forward ends up landing squarely on your lap. Be kind, because around you, many people are being kind to you.
In this particular family, a river of caregiving ebbs and flows: The grandfather cares for the little girl by picking her up from school with a snack and a smile. She cares for him by keeping him company at his doctors’ appointments with a snack and a smile. Her mother helps her grandmother like she once helped her mother when she was younger.
Through occasions big and small, it’s a comfort to know this river of love is ever-present, that a family can flow in a river of caregiving, taking care of each other.
The River of Caregiving is on sale since May 19, 2026.
Published by Nancy Paulsen Books
Hardback | Pages: 32
ISBN: 9780593533604
Now for a book about a delicious siesta:
The Fluffy Futon by Yuichi Kasano (Author)
This fun take on a fluffy futon and a nap keeps adding more and more animals to the party!
Grandma spreads her newly washed futon to dry in the sun. The futon is soft and clean, so the cat can’t resist nestling down for a snooze. Grandma joins in, soon followed by the hen and her chicks, a little boy, a dog, a goat, and some pigs.
The only thing I found hard to believe is that nobody made a noise or released a smell that woke everybody else!
The Fluffy Futon is available since June 02, 2026.
Publisher: Gecko Press
Pages: 28/ Hardcover
EAN/UPC: 9798348024208
Up next, a beautiful Sunday:
Sundays Under the Lemon Tree Julia Busuttil Nishimura (Author), Myo Yim (Illustrated by)
I really want to try out the recipe at the end of this book. I had no idea you could make ricotta with seawater! (Learning new things is always a good sign)
Julia Busuttil Nishimura, the author, writes cookbooks. You cannot guess it, though, because the warm family story of what needs to be done before preparing a scrumptious apple cake for a Sunday gathering… doesn’t feel like a recipe in a cookbook; it feels like a story. A warm memory, a nice moment, to be always fondly remembered.
First, the young protagonist has to gather seawater with her dad, walking a bit towards the edge of the sea. Then, the ricotta is made, after that, she goes to bake the apple ricotta cake, and lastly, everyone shares it under the lemon tree.
Sundays Under the Lemon Tree will be available from June 30, 2026.
Published by Scribble Us
Hardcover | Pages: 36
ISBN 9781964992402
Now, a different type of cookout:
At the Cookout Nadia Fisher (Author)
I truly believe familiar gatherings with lots of food and relatives should be sought out. They have benefits for all involved.
CiCi eagerly awaited the family’s first big cookout of the summer. at her Grandma’s house. Food, games, and his cousin Chase all seem promising.
When she can’t find him, all kinds of scenes unfold until she does: cousins playing Double Dutch, uncles throwing horseshoes, Grandmas cooking… but where is Chase?
At the Cookout will be available since April 07, 2026.
Published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Hardcover | Pages: 40
ISBN: 9780593860335
This one is about the steps you take to help others:
Seven Million Steps. The True Story of Dick Gregory’s Run for the Hungry by Derrick Barnes (Author), Christian Gregory (Author), Frank Morrison (Illustrated by)
The illustrations feel made in oils, all pictographic and speedy in quality, you feel this runner rushing by!
In April of 1976, Dick Gregory set off on a two-and-a-half-month run. His goal: to raise awareness about the epidemic of poverty and food insecurity in America.
He did it without a lot of nourishment, sleeping in motels and consuming nothing but fruit juices, vitamins, and water, running from Los Angeles to New York City.
He gave speeches in each city.
The book is written in the third person but directed to the second person, to you: What would you do if you had a wild idea to stand up for something you believe in?
The energy of the people running alongside him is marvelous and reminded me of Forrest Gump and his need to run, and how sometimes it only takes a spark to ignite a beautiful movement.
Seven Million Steps will be available since February 06, 2026.
Published by Amistad Books for Young Readers
Hardcover | Pages: 40
ISBN: 9780063357525
Now for a nonfiction, image-packed book about how we are all inside this beautiful Earth, together:
Together, Right Now by Olga Fadeeva (Author)
Have you ever wondered what thousands of other people are doing right now?
The stunning imagery of this book is an illustrator’s artistic lesson, right there: it says a lot more than the text explains and invites you to dive in and fish for the details.
Right now you are here . . . reading this book.
Now imagine what someone else is doing at this exact moment two blocks away.
What about someone across the country? Or an animal on the other side of our big, beautiful planet?
What else is happening round the world, right now?
Together, Right Now is available since January 27, 2026.
Publisher: Blue Dot Kids Press
Pages: 40/ Hardcover
EAN/UPC: 9798985849455
Up next, let’s follow a squirrely detective:
Squirrel Lock Holmes # 1: The Pet Rock Mystery (A Graphic Novel) by Ashley Belote (Author)
Repeat after me: kids read better, faster, and have more fun when starting with comics! Comics make everything better, even learning how to read a longer story. This is a long-held belief of mine, and these early reader graphic novels are so fun, fast-paced, and yet easy to follow!
THE CASE OF THE MISSING PET ROCK
Victim: Reggie the Rabbit’s Pet Rock, Dwayne (aka, “the Rock”)
Scene of the Crime: Pet Rock Obedience School
Suspects: Reggie’s classmates — and even his teacher!
Detective Squirrel Lock Holmes and her partner, Mole Watson, are experts in finding lost things. Will they find Reggie’s pet rock?
Squirrel Lock Holmes # 1 will be available on March 03, 2026.
Publisher: Random House Graphic
Pages: 80 Hardcover
EAN/UPC: 9780593897829
Now for some folk tales:
Celtic Folk and Fairy Tales. Magical Stories of Dragons, Fairies and Selkies from Scotland, Ireland, Wales and More by Lari Don (Author), Elise Carmichael (Illustrated by)
I love fairy tales; it was an eye-opener for me to realize not all countries tell the same ones! The illustrations felt a bit cartoony for me, though, a matter of personal taste.
Here you will find fairy folk that live below the sea and are looking to capture humans, selkies, dueling dragons, changelings, and bloodthirsty giants.
Lari Don retells classic fairy tales from the Celtic lands – Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Cornwall, the Isle of Man, and Brittany.
Celtic Folk and Fairy Tales is on sale since June 16, 2026.
Published by Floris Books
Hardcover | Pages: 144
ISBN: 9781782509622
Finally, a novel written in verse, about mermaids:
Shorelines Ruth Ennis (Author)
This novel is written in verse, and thus, the chapters go by quickly. A reimagining of the Little Mermaid, it toys with the idea of not conforming to a bodily image, as this mermaid, Muireann, is not a slender figure when she arrives on the shore.
She is, instead, fierce, curious, and proud of the body that keeps her warm beneath the waves. She is grieving her sister, dead by a drag net, and now, in this modern world, everything shifts when you go to the shore, although Human cruelty remains the same…
Shorelines is be available from June 23, 2026.
Publisher: Little Island Books
Pages: 304 Paperback
EAN/UPC: 9781915071989
