Out Now: No Brain the Same, Pufflings Fly Free! plus a Cover Reveal!
Plus books on Bank Street's Best Children's Book list, upcoming releases and events.
Out Now
No Brain the Same: Neurodivergent Young Activists Shaping Our Future, edited by Lindsay H. Metcalf, Keila V. Dawson and Jeanette Bradley, illustrated by Jeanette Bradley (June 2, 2026 | Charlesbridge): Through powerful poems, this book honors neurodivergent youth activists transforming their communities and invites kids to act—continuing the spirit of No Voice Too Small and No World Too Big.
Featuring Billie Eilish, Dara McAnulty, and Ly Xīnzhèn M. Zhangsūn Brown, these fourteen poems spotlight neurodivergent activists inspiring kids ages 5 to 9 to make change.
Order this book on our Bookshop (affiliate link)
Pufflings Fly Free! A Rescue Tale from Iceland, written by Colleen Paeff and illustrated by Linda Ólafsdóttir (June 9, 2026 | Margaret K. McElderry Books): From Sibert Honoree Colleen Paeff comes a quietly powerful picture book about one young girl’s courageous mission to save a baby puffin, or puffling, with the support of her community on the Icelandic Westman Islands, exploring themes of environmental conservation, animals, family traditions, and girls in science.
Order this book on our Bookshop (affiliate link)
Cover Reveal: June’s Solar Oven and El Horno Solar De June
June’s Solar Oven and El horno solar de June written by Jen Malia, illustrated by Rachel Corcutt and Phillipa Corcutt, and translated by Anyeliz Pagan Munoz (October 13, 2026, Charlesbridge)
❤️📚❤️📚
Join June in an exploration of solar energy, engineering, and trial & error, because STEAM is everywhere and for everyone!
Part of STEAMWORKS, a series of fiction picture books for ages 4-7 that relate science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) to kids’ everyday lives.
June is determined to have the best day—building the best solar oven to cook the best pizza crackers. But when science club suddenly changes locations, June freezes. She hates new places. Still, science is her superpower, and she knows she needs to show up. With a few deep breaths and her noise-canceling headphones, she’s ready.
At the club, June and her friends troubleshoot their solar pizza oven, experimenting with the best way to layer the toppings so the sun can melt the cheese just right. Can they harness solar energy to make the perfect pizza cracker?
You can preorder June’s Solar Oven or El horno solar de June now at Bookshop. (affiliate link)
Coming Soon
One Mad Cat and the Missing Book, by Vicky Fang (July 7, 2026 | Candlewick Press):
Cat is mad – a lot (after all, she’s a cat). But when a friend needs her help to solve a mystery, she puts her irritation to the side…
Cat’s friend Hedgehog has lost his favorite book. Unfortunately for Cat, searching for her friend’s book means navigating annoying messes, smells, and crowds as she hunts for clues. When a particularly sticky clue (yuck!) leads her to the book at last (it was in Hedgehog’s locker all along?), Cat is mad, but Hedgehog is thrilled—and that’s what really matters, right? Vicky Fang, a rising talent in the kid-lit world, delivers an original take on the graphic-reader format—one whose dryly humorous storytelling and illustrative style hold appeal for both beginning and newly independent readers and adult caregivers alike.
Pre-order this book and get some fun pre-order swag!
Bank Street Books Best of 2026
We’re excited to share several of our group had titles on Best Children’s Books of the Year 2026 edition from Bank Street Children’s Book Committee!
Congratulations to:
Ava Lin: One of a Kind, written and illustrated by Vicky Fang
Nunu and the Sea written and illustrated by Isabella Kung
Some of Us: A Story of Citizenship and the United States by Rajani LaRocca, illustrated by Huy Voun Lee
Tomatoes on Trial: The Fruit v. Vegetable Showdown by Lindsay H. Metcalf, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham
Upcoming Events
Connecticut
July 21 - Valerie Bolling will be visiting bookstores to sign stock on a CT Bookstore Tour (The Hickory Stick Bookshop, Washington Depot; House of Books, Kent; The Curious Cat Bookshop, Winsted; River Bend Bookshop, Glastonbury; Wesleyan RJ Julia, Middletown)
Wed Jul 22nd 3:30pm - 4:30pm - Join Valerie Bolling for Storytime at Weston Library, Weston, CT
Illinois
Thu Jun 25th - Sun 28th - Join Valerie Bolling at the ALA Annual Conference, Chicago, IL
Minnesota
June 26, 2:30-3:30pm - Join Vicky Fang at the AAJA Annual Convention in conversation with Hachette publicist Cheryl Lew, moderated by award-winning broadcast journalist Michelle Li, for “Raising Readers: Cultivating an audience from youth to adulthood.”
Pennsylvania
Wed Jul 8th - Sun 12th - Join Valerie Bolling at Boyds Mills Summer Camp for Writers and Illustrators, Milanville, PA
Rhode Island
June 28, 11am-12pm - Join Josh Funk and Abi Cushman Storytime + Draw Along
at Barrington Books, Barrington, RI. Josh will be reading his newest book THE DINO DOOR and Abi will be reading THE QUIET OCEAN, which she most recently illustrated.
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About Soaring ‘20s
We are a diverse and award-winning group of authors and illustrators. We create books for all ages including board books, picture books, early readers, chapter books, middle grade, YA, and adult—with over 150+ books published collectively. Read more about us here.