Wondermore Holiday Booklist 2025
Are you looking for the right book to buy for the children and teens in your life? Here is a list of some of our favorite books by authors and illustrators who partner with Wondermore
Picture books
Janet Costa Bates, illus. by AG Ford, Time for Bed, Old House
Bates’s tender story and Ford’s cozy illustrations will have families—and extended families or friends—eager to take a wise Grandpop’s cue and embrace a new nighttime tradition.
Jef Czekaj, Little Ghoul Goes to School
This is a funny and sweet story about an anxious monster’s first day of school by the popular author-illustrator of Cat Secrets.
Juana Medina, I Will and sequels
Full of affirmations that entertain while building self-esteem and improving communication skills, I Will! is the perfect read aloud for kids and adults of any age.
Oge Mora, Thank You, Omu!
In this sweet story perfect for fans of Last Stop on Market Street, a generous woman is rewarded by her community. A Spanish edition, ¡Gracias, Omu!, is also available.
Raúl the Third, ¡Vamos! Let’s Go to the Market and sequels
Think: Richard Scarry picture books set in El Paso on the U.S–Mexico border. This picture book series follow Little Lobo and his dog Bernabe as they deliver supplies to a variety of vendors, selling everything from sweets to sombreros, portraits to piñatas, carved masks to comic books! Original editions are bilingual; Spanish editions are also available.
Karla Arenas Valenti, illus. by Elisa Chavarri, Esperanza Caramelo, the Star of Nochebuena
A festive Nochebuena treat for little ones who believe in the magic of Christmas (and the deliciousness of cake!). A Spanish edition, Esperanza Caramelo, la estrella de Nochebuena is also available.
Eric Velasquez, The Polar Bear and the Ballerina
A polar bear escapes into New York City in this heartfelt, beautifully illustrated picture book, a wordless story of unlikely friendship that celebrates art and its ability to connect us. A Spanish edition, El oso polar y la bailarina, is also available.
Gwendolyn Wallace, illus. by Tonya Engel, Dancing with Water
This is an intergenerational story about a nonbinary child who learns the tradition of well digging in this picture book about community, hope, and protecting the Earth’s water.
First chapter books and early readers
Lulu Delacre, Rafi and Rosi series
For new readers just about ready for chapter books, this series follows frog siblings adventuring (and learning) all around their home island of Puerto Rico. Spanish editions of the Rafi y Rosi series are also available.
Nathan Hale, Mighty Bite series
From the creator of Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales comes a new graphic-novel series for younger readers, this one featuring prehistoric and extinct creatures in zany adventures.
Melissa Iwai, Gigi and Ojiji: Perfect Paper Cranes and others
Iwai’s sweet early reader series about Japanese Americans Ojiji and grandfather Gigi learning new things include a sprinkle of Japanese words, with glossaries appended.
Liniers, The Big Wet Balloon
In this early reader comic, Matilda’s sister, Clemmie, refuses to play in the rain, but Matilda wants to teach her the delights of a wet Saturday. Also available in Spanish as El globo grande y mojado.
Juana Medina, Juana & Lucas and companion chapter books
Hilarious, energetic, and utterly relatable, Juana will win over los corazones (hearts) of readers everywhere in these stories about her life in Bogotá, Colombia with her best amigo, the dog Lucas. Spanish editions (Juana y Lucas and others) are also available.
Susan Tan, illustrated by Dana Wolfekotte, Cilla-Lee Jenkins series
Cilla Lee-Jenkins stories burst with love and humor, as told through a bright, irresistible biracial, aspiring author who will win your heart and make you laugh.
Middle-grade fiction
Kwame Alexander and Jerry Craft, J vs. K
Co-authored by creative powerhouses and “real-life rivals,” this is a humorous story about a fifth-grade rivalry, creativity, competition, and cooperation.
Andrea Beatriz Arango, Iveliz Explains It All
In this moving novel in verse, one girl takes on seventh grade while facing mental health challenges and must find her voice to advocate for the help and understanding she deserves.
Pablo Cartaya, A Hero’s Guide to Summer Vacation
Reality proves more epic than fantasy in this family road trip story starring a reluctant young hero and his curmudgeonly grandfather.
Donna Barba Higuera, The Last Cuentista
Winner of the Newbery Medal, this is a genre-defying story about the end of Earth, space and time, storytelling, and memory; a brilliant journey through the stars, to the very heart of what makes us human.
Kwama Mbalia, Jax Freeman series
In this unique magic-school fantasy series, twelve-year-old Jax Freeman discovers a secret world where a diverse group of students with unique abilities wield magic by summoning the power of their ancestors.
Jason Reynolds, illus. by Raúl the Third, Stuntboy series
Reynolds and cartoonist Raúl the Third combine their own epic forces in this illustrated middle-grade series about a twelve-year-old boy who’s also the greatest young superhero you’ve never heard of.
Graphic novels for big kids (ages 9+)
Kwame Alexander, illus. by Dawud Anyabwil, The Crossover Graphic Novel
The graphic novel adaptation of Alexander’s Newbery Medal winning verse novel about basketball, brotherhood, and family bonds.
Ruth Chan, Uprooted
Chan’s debut graphic memoir is a joyful and tearful story about a girl being uprooted when she moves to Hong Kong, a place where her family fits in—but for her, it's nothing like home.
Jerry Craft, New Kid and sequels
Craft’s Newbery Medal–winning graphic novel is about starting over at a new school where diversity is low and the struggle to fit in is real.
Johnny Christmas, Swim Team
Cartoonist Christmas’s debut graphic novel follows young Bree who, with the help of an elderly neighbor, faces her fear of swimming head on, confronting questions of belonging, family legacy, and racial justice.
Victoria Jamieson, All’s Faire in Middle School
A heartwarming graphic novel about starting middle school, surviving your embarrassing family, and the Renaissance Faire.
George O’Connor’s Asgardians series
Following up the popular graphic novel series Olympians, O’Connor launches a new series based on Norse mythology with book one, Odin.
Jonathan Todd, Timid
Todd says of his debut graphic novel: “Timid…was inspired by my struggle to overcome shyness as a tween following my family’s move from South Florida to a Boston suburb in the 1980s.”
Books teens will love
Mike Curato, Flamer
This graphic novel tells the story of Aiden Navarro who navigates friendships, bullies, internal struggles and a growing acceptance that he might be gay while at summer camp.
Jennifer DeLeon, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From
In this powerful novel, first-generation US citizen Liliana tries to fit in at her new nearly all-white school. But when family secrets spill out and racism ramps up, she must decide what she believes in and take a stand.
Huda Fahmy, Huda F Are You? and sequels
Fahmy’s comedic graphic novels are based on her own experiences and identity struggles growing up in a Muslim family, especially after moving to Dearborn, Michigan, a small town with a big Muslim population.
Gareth Hinds, The Odyssey
With bold imagery and an ear tuned to the music of Homer’s epic poem, Gareth Hinds reinterprets the ancient classic as it’s never been told before.
Mark Oshiro, Each of Us Is a Desert
Oshiro’s latest novel is a coming-of-age fantasy about finding home and falling in love amidst the dangers of a desert where stories come to life.
Colleen AF Venable, illus. by Ellen T. Crenshaw Kiss Number 8
Venable’s YA graphic novel is a layered, funny, sharp-edged story of teen sexuality and family secrets.
Ibi Zoboi, American Street
Zoboi’s acclaimed YA novel is at once a coming-of-age story about a teenage Haitian immigrant navigating life in Detroit and a lyrical exploration of the American Dream, infused with a bit of magical realism.
Nonfiction for the whole family
Eddie Ahn, Advocate: A Graphic Memoir of Family, Community, and the Fight for Justice
A moving graphic memoir following Eddie Ahn, an environmental justice lawyer and activist striving to serve diverse communities in San Francisco amidst environmental catastrophes, an accelerating tide of racial and economic inequality, burnout, and his family’s expectations.
Cara Bean, Here I Am, I Am Me
This colorful graphic-style adventure through the brain demystifies and destigmatizes emotional and mental health for children through accessible language and lessons.
Jason Chin, Hurricane
Author-illustrator Jason Chin is a master of nonfiction picture books that are equally compelling and informative; his newest brings readers into the eye of these natural disasters.
Rajani LaRocca, illus. by Kathleen Marcote, A Vaccine Is like a Memory
This timely science picture book details the importance of vaccines and how they were developed throughout history, as well as how they work to protect your body and keep it healthy.
Carole Boston Weatherford, illus. by Eric Velasquez, Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library
In luminous paintings and arresting poems, this picture book biography tracks Harlem Renaissance–era book collector Arturo Schomburg’s quest to correct history.
James Otis Smith, Black Heroes of the Wild West: Featuring Stagecoach Mary, Bass Reeves, and Bob Lemmons
Smith celebrates the extraordinary true tales of three black heroes who took control of their destinies and stood up for their communities in the Old West.
Maris Wick, Coral Reefs [Science Comics series]
This absorbing look at ocean science covers the biology of coral reefs as well as their ecological importance. Nonfiction comics genius Maris Wicks brings to bear her signature combination of hardcore cuteness and in-depth science.
Ibi Zoboi, illus. by Loveis Wise, The People Remember
Zoboi’s debut picture book uses the principles of Kwanzaa to talk about the history of African Americans. This lyrical, powerful tribute is sumptuously illustrated by New Yorker artist Wise.