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  1. K

    Spring holiday fun

    Crack the Cascarón: An Eggcellent Not-Just-for-Easter Shellebration by Sara Andrea Fajardo, illustrated by Rocío Arreola Mendoza (Knopf Books for Young Readers, 40 pages, ages 4-8). Toti has declared himself the King of Cascarones and has big plans for the upcoming weekend celebration...
  2. K

    Christmas (and Halloween) in July

    Scary Shark: A Jaw-Some Halloween by Mike Lowery (Orchard Books, 32 pages, ages 4-8). Edgar the shark is too scared of everything having to do with Halloween to want to go trick-or-treating, so his friend Lotta the crab eases him into it. They start by carving pumpkins (Lotta uses claws, Edgar...
  3. K

    Which witch?

    This Year, a Witch! by Zoey Abbott (Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, 40 pages, ages 4-8). The narrator has had enough of her cute costumes of years past. No more bunny or mouse…this year, she is going to be a witch! She’s been planning this for quite a while, growing her hair, practicing spells...
  4. K

    This magic moment

    Dawn by Marc Martin (Candlewick, 48 pages, ages 4-8). Each page has just one word, starting with “Dawn” and ending with “Sun”. In between, all sorts of animals and plants can be seen in gorgeous watercolor illustrations moving, eating, waking, or making noise, all illuminated by the changing...
  5. K

    In the studio with David Barrow

    David Barrow is author and illustrator of Have You Seen Elephant? and Have You Seen Dinosaur? Come in to his studio… My studio is at the bottom of my garden. It’s built from an old outbuilding previously used by Kettering shoemakers to make shoes from home. It’s warm, has internet, and is my...
  6. K

    A story that travels across oceans and generations

    By Rachel Lawson The Fierce Little Woman and the Wicked Pirate has the kind of publishing history you find with Joy Cowley’s most enduring stories. The tale of the fierce little woman who walked up and down the jetty playing her bagpipes to the seagulls was originally published in 1984 as a...
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    Q&A with illustrator Miho Satake

    The Fierce Little Woman and the Wicked Pirate is an enduring story by Joy Cowley that was first published as a school reader in 1984. Gecko Press published a picture book edition illustrated by Sarah Davis in 2010. In 2024, Japanese publisher Tokuma Shoten commissioned Miho Satake to create...
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    Book list: The death of a bird in four picture books

    by rachel lawson, publisher-at-large One of the best books we’ve published at Gecko Press is All the Dear Little Animals by Ulf Nilsson and Eva Eriksson. Three children start a funeral business to bury the dead animals they find in their neighbourhood. This book takes me instantly to my own...
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    Q&A with Olivier Tallec about Is It Asleep?

    Olivier Tallec was born in Brittany, France. After graduating from the École Supérieure d’Arts Appliqués Duperré in Paris, he travelled extensively and now lives and works in Paris. He has illustrated over 60 books for children, along with his work as both author and illustrator. He has two...
  10. K

    Book list: Fairy tales reimagined

    By Rachel Lawson, publisher-at-large The phrase “fractured fairy tale” took a while to permeate the Gecko Press lexicon. Possibly because we saw most of these books first as funny stories. It turns out we’ve made a number of fairy tales with a difference over the years. They have familiar...
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    Book list: Gecko Press books in te reo Māori

    What a delight to receive the Picture Book Award for Titiro / Look at the New Zealand Children and Young Adult book awards ceremony this August. This board book by Gavin Bishop began life as a wordless leporello for babies and developed into a book of first words that takes te ao Māori as its...
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    Q& A with Peter Goes about Timeline

    Twenty years ago, Gecko Press published Timeline: A Visual History of Our World. It became one of our bestselling books worldwide, a staple in bookstores like the British Museum in London, and generated followup books including Timeline: Science and Technology. From the Big Bang to the present...
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    Behind the book: Enric Lax talks about Start with a Teapot

    Enric Lax studied illustration in Barcelona and later the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna. His work has been exhibited in Catalonia and Belgium. Born in Catalonia, Spain, he now lives in Brussels, where he teaches art. We asked him about the ideas and process behind his new book Start with a...
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    Q&A with Julie Völk about A Rainy Dragon Day

    Julie Völk is a celebrated illustrator from Vienna, Austria, who studied at the University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg and has illustrated many award-winning picture books. In 2018, she was named an IBBY Honored Illustrator. She is the author and illustrator of A Rainy Dragon Day, in which...
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    A couple of early chapter books

    Emma McKenna, Full Out (The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class book 1) by Kate Messner, illustrated by Kat Fajardo (Algonquin Young Readers, 128 pages, grades 1-4). Emma is excited and nervous about starting third grade at the new Curiosity Academy. Her nerves get the better of her, though, when Lucy, a...
  16. K

    A couple of courageous kids

    Monster Locker by Jorge Aguirre, illustrated by Andrés Vera Martínez (First Second, 256 pages, grades 4-7). Pablo Ortiz is as about as unlikely a hero as any sixth grader at Garfield Middle School. Basically friendless after an embarrassing incident at his ex-best friend’s house, he winds up...
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    A couple last graphic novels from 2024

    The Squad by Christina Soontornvat, illustrated by Joanna Cacao. (Graphix, 288 pages, grades 4-8). Christina continues the memoir she began in The Tryout. Now an eighth grader, she feels like her life is good, with close friends, interesting classes, and a fun group of fellow artists who are...
  18. K

    Once upon a time

    The Princess Swap: Cinderella and the Beast or Beauty and the Glass Slipper by Kim Bussing (Random House Books for Young Readers, 304 pages, grades 3-7). Ella from Cinderella and Belle from Beauty and the Beast unexpectedly switch places in this fairy tale mash-up. The bold and adventurous Belle...
  19. K

    Enchanting early chapter books

    Eliza and the Flower Fairies (Fairy Door Diaries book 1) by Megan McDonald, illustrated by Lenny Wen (Candlewick, 96 pages, grades 1-3). At the end of the school day, Eliza hurries home and retreats to the space behind her bedroom that she’s set up with as a magical retreat where she can read...
  20. K

    Creature features

    Creaky Acres by Calista Brill, illustrated by Nilah Magruder (Kokila, 272 pages, grades 3-7). Nora is happiest winning ribbons at shows with her horse Hay Fever, but when her mom gets a new job, the family moves to a small rural town where the only barn around is Creaky Acres. Filled with quirky...
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