Joana Pastro

2023 Gift Guide

One of the best things about being part of a group of picture book creators is celebrating each other’s books. In past gift guides, where we recommended holiday gifts that paired well with our own books, we decided to change things up a bit this year! Below, you’ll find not one, but two sets of gift ideas for each book— each created by a different Soaring 20s member!

We hope you find something fun and unique for the children in your life. Happy holidays!


Alphabot by Vicky Fang 


Bisa’s Carnaval by Joana Pastro, illustrated by Carolina Coroa


Eavesdropping on Elephants by Patricia Newman

Kirsten W. Larson’s picks:

3D Elephant Puzzle 

Schleich Wild Life Starter-Set 

Save the Elephants tee (benefitting Save the Elephants)


Fire of Stars by Kirsten W. Larson, illustrated by Katherine Roy


Hooked on Books by Margaret Chiu Greanias, illustrated by Kristyna Litten


How This Book Got Red by Margaret Chiu Greanias, illustrated by Melissa Iwai

Angela Burke Kunkel’s picks:

Red Panda Earrings

Kids’ Personalized Journal (available in red!)

Red Panda Pencil Case


Hurry, Little Tortoise, Time for School by Carrie Finison, illustrated by Erin Kraan

Margaret Chiu Greanias’s picks:

Sloth Bento Box

Plush Tortoise

Tortoise water bottle


Mabel’s Topsy-Turvy Homes by Candy Wellins, illustrated by Jess Rose



No World Too Big by Lindsay Metcalf, Keila V. Dawson, and Jeanette Bradley 


Battle of the Books by Melanie Ellsworth, illustrated by James Rey Sanchez 



One Wish by M. O. Yuksel, illustrated by Mariam Quraishi


One Turtle’s Last Straw: The Real-Life Rescue That Sparked a Sea Change by Elisa Boxer, illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns

20 Questions: Get to Know Soaring '20s Authors

Welcome back to our series, 20 QUESTIONS!,

where we answer questions about writing, reading, and author life.

This month’s question:

What’s one random fact that people might not know about you?

Candy Wellins

“I went to high school in a castle!”

—Candy Wellins, author of THE STARS BECKONED: Edward White’s Amazing Walk in Space, illus. Courtney Dawson (Philomel, 2021)


Joana Pastro

“I played the foreign character in a community theater production of Chicago a few years ago. Instead of being Hungarian, my character was Brazilian and was called Brazuca. I loved it!”

—Joana Pastro, author of BISA’S CARNAVAL, illus. Carolina Coroa (Orchard Books, 2021)


M. O. Yuksel

“I helped build the first church in Nueva Rosita, a small village in Mexico on a college volunteer program.”

—M. O. Yuksel, author of ONE WISH: Fatima Al-Fihri and the World’s Oldest University, illus. Mariam Quraishi (HarperCollins, 2022)


Anna Crowley Redding

“There are THREE lighthouses in my town!”

—Anna Crowley Redding (COURAGE LIKE KATE: The True Story of a Girl Lighthouse Keeper, illus. Emily Sutton, Random House Studio, August 2022)

Picture Books Are for Gifting!

Books make magical gifts.

Check out the new Soaring ‘20s video to kick off holiday gift-shopping, and be sure share it on TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Find the featured books and more on the Soaring 20s Bookshop page. Remember to order early to avoid worldwide supply chain issues!

Creators and their books, in order of appearance:

Margaret Chiu Greanias

  • MAXIMILLIAN VILLAINOUS, illus. by Lesley Breen Withrow

  • AMAH FARAWAY, illus. by Tracy Subisak (coming January 2022, available for pre-order)

Darshana Khiani

  • HOW TO WEAR A SARI, illus. by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff

Abi Cushman

  • SOAKED!

  • ANIMALS GO VROOM!

Kirsten W. Larson

  • A TRUE WONDER: The Comic Book Hero Who Changed Everything, illus. by Katy Wu

Vicky Fang

  • INVENT-A-PET, illus. by Tidawan Thaipinnarong

  • LAYLA AND THE BOTS: Cupcake Fix, illus. by Christine Nishiyama

  • FRIENDBOTS: Blink and Block Make a Wish

Lindsay H. Metcalf

  • NO VOICE TOO SMALL: Fourteen Young Americans Making History, edited by Lindsay H. Metcalf, Keila Dawson, and Jeanette Bradley; illus. by Jeanette Bradley

  • FARMERS UNITE! Planting a Protest for Fair Prices

  • BEATRIX POTTER, SCIENTIST, illus. by Junyi Wu

Isabella Kung

  • NO FUZZBALL!

  • ABC CATS: An Alpha-Cat Book and 123 CATS: A Cat Counting Book, both written by Lesléa Newman and illus. by Isabella Kung

Melanie Ellsworth

  • CLARINET & TRUMPET, illus. by John Herzog

  • HIP, HIP … BERET! illus. by Morena Forza

Joana Pastro

  • BISA’S CARNAVAL, illus. by Caroline Coroa (coming December, available for pre-order)

  • LILLYBELLE: A Damsel Not in Distress, illus. by Jhon Ortiz 

Candy Wellins

  • THE STARS BECKONED: Edward White's Amazing Walk in Space, illus. by Courtney Dawson

  • SATURDAYS ARE FOR STELLA, illus. by Charlie Eve Ryan

Carrie Finison

  • DOZENS OF DOUGHNUTS, illus. by Brianne Farley

Colleen Paeff

  • THE GREAT STINK: How Joseph Bazalgette Solved London's Poop Pollution Problem, illus. by Nancy Carpenter

Happy holidays from the Soaring ‘20s!