Archives par étiquette : Writers House

BATPIG de Rob Harrell

A supremely hilarious graphic novel series featuring an unstoppable, super-swine hero who boldly fights for justice. . . in between taking mud baths and eating tasty sandwiches.

BATPIG SERIES
by Rob Harrell
‎ Dial Books
(via Writers House)

BATPIG: WHEN PIGS FLY (Book 1, November 2021)

Ordinary pig, Gary Yorkshire, has his entire life turned upside down when a bite on the nose from a radioactive bat turns him into . . . BATPIG. With the support of his best friends, Brooklyn the bat and Carl the fish, he finally feels like he’s getting a handle on this whole superhero business. That is, until he faces a battle against time itself, when an underappreciated janitor slows down the clock so much that a math class never ever ends (the horror!). Can Batpig save the class from never-ending fractions?

This is an absolute must-read for fans of Dav Pilkey’s Dog Man series. Readers will go hog wild for this lovable hero. » –Kirkus, starred review

BATPIG: TOO PIG TO FAIL (Book 2, June 2022)

In this hilarious, hijinks-filled graphic novel super-swine Batpig is ready to face even bigger bullies, harder fights, and scariest of all—meeting his superhero idol.
Ordinary pig, Gary Yorkshire, has his entire life turned upside down when a bite on the nose from a radioactive bat turns him into . . . BATPIG. With the support of his best friends, Brooklyn the bat and Carl the fish, he finally feels like he’s getting a handle on this whole superhero business. That is, until he faces a battle against time itself, when an underappreciated janitor slows down the clock so much that a math class never ever ends (the horror!). Can Batpig save the class from never-ending fractions?

Rob Harrell is the author/illustrator of Wink, created the Life of Zarf series, the graphic novel Monster on the Hill, and also writes and draws the long-running daily comic strip Adam@Home, which appears in more than 140 papers worldwide. He created and drew the internationally syndicated comic strip Big Top until 2007. He lives with his wife in Indiana.

A SMART, SMART SCHOOL de Sharon Creech & Anait Semirdzhyan

Newbery Medal winner Sharon Creech delivers A SMART, SMART SCHOOL, the follow-up to the bestselling and perennial favorite A FINE, FINE SCHOOL. This special companion picture book will welcome Creech fans and new readers alike into to that world.

A SMART, SMART SCHOOL
by Sharon Creech
illustrated by Anait Semirdzhyan
‎ HarperCollins, June 2023
(via Writers House)

A SMART, SMART SCHOOL delivers a timely message about the importance of creativity and artistic ex­pression in education. In this picture book, the principal, Mr. Keene, runs a fine, fine school. He en­courages his students to express themselves through the creative arts: drawing, painting, reading and singing. Then, Mr. Keene’s appendix bursts, and he is rushed to the hospital.
A new principal named Mr. Tatters arrives to take his place, and he is a serious man. He does not smile, he does not laugh, disapproves of their creative methods of learning, and immediately imple­ments a policy of daily tests, banning songs, flowers, and fun! Soon the students tire of constant test-taking, and the teachers grow too fatigued to grade any more tests. Thankfully, Mr. Keene heals and when he returns, he encourages his students to balance their creativity with their learning. At the end of the story he places a banner outside of the school that reads: A SMART, SMART SCHOOL.

Sharon Creech has written twenty-one books for young people and is published in over twenty languages. She received the Newbery Medal for Walk Two Moons, the Newbery Honor for The Wanderer, and Great Britain’s Carnegie Medal for Ruby Holler.

LEAVE IT TO PLUM! de Matt Phelan

When a small mammal with an oversized ego tries to take over the zoo, just leave it to the big-hearted peacock Plum to save the day! Award-winning author Matt Phelan delivers a highly illustrated young middle-grade duology about a young peacock with a big heart, a small mammal with a big ego, and the busy zoo they both live in. A must-have for fans of The Princess in Black and Mercy Watson series!

LEAVE IT TO PLUM!
by Matt Phelan
Greenwillow/HarperCollins, June 2022
(via Writers House)

Young Plum is one of the peacock ambassadors for the Athensville Zoo. Every day the peacocks are allowed to wander freely among the zoo’s visitors, delighting and guiding kids and grown-ups alike. The peacocks are very proud of their responsibility; none so much as kind, curious Plum.
But Itch the ningbing—a type of very small marsupial—doesn’t understand why those birdbrains should get so much freedom while he’s all cooped up. So he plots and plots, sure that he will escape and become the zoo ambassador!

With short chapters and energetic black-and-white illustrations, award-winning author Matt Phelan’s LEAVE IT TO PLUM! is a highly illustrated young middle grade novel full of warmth and humor. The first hilarious story in a duology.

Matt Phelan is the creator of the graphic novels The Storm in the Barn (winner of a Scott O’Dell Award); Around the World; Bluffton; and the New York Times bestseller Snow White. He is also the author of Knights vs. Dinosaurs, Knights vs. Monsters, and Knights vs. the End (of Everything). Matt Phelan lives in Ardmore, Pennsylvania.

THE STARS DID WANDER DARKLING de Colin Meloy

A suspenseful and atmospheric horror set in 1980s Oregon, perfect for fans of Stranger Things, Neil Gaiman, and Margaret Peterson Haddix, from New York Times bestselling author and the Decemberists’ lead singer/songwriter Colin Meloy.

THE STARS DID WANDER DARKLING
by Colin Meloy
‎ Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins, September 2022
(via Writers House)

Maybe Archie Coomes has been watching too many horror movies. All of a sudden, the most ordinary things have taken on a sinister edge: a penny on a doormat. A man in a brown suit under a streetlamp. The persistent sound of an axe chopping in the middle of the night. He keeps telling himself that this is Seaham, a sleepy seaside town where nothing ever happens. Or at least nothing did, until his dad’s construction company opened up the cliff beneath the old—some say cursed—Langdon place.
Soon, though, he and his friends can’t deny it: more and more of the adults in town are acting strangely. An ancient, long-buried evil has been unleashed upon the community, and it’s up to the kids to stop it before it’s too late. . .

Colin Meloy is the author of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid and the New York Times bestselling Wildwood Chronicles, which is currently being adapted for film by the studio behind Coraline. He is also the singer and songwriter for the indie rock band the Decemberists. Colin lives in Oregon with his wife and frequent collaborator, illustrator Carson Ellis, and their sons.

QUEST KIDS AND THE DRAGON PANTS OF GOLD de Mark Leiknes

Comics artist Mark Leiknes delivers a laugh-out-loud story set in a fantastic world of dragons, rock creatures, and golden loungewear. This first book in a trilogy is A Series of Unfortunate Events meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid—introducing readers to a (mostly) fearless fellowship of adventurers, the Quest Kids!

QUEST KIDS AND THE DRAGON PANTS OF GOLD
by Mark Leiknes
Union Square Kids/Sterling, September 2022
(via Writers House)

Okay, QUEST KIDS, you’re hired, but if I don’t have my super-soft zip-up golden track jacket in one year’s time, this town is toast. DRAGON OUT!
The Quest Kids are ready for their first real quest. This time, they won’t oversleep, they won’t be put off by a little rain, and they won’t accidentally burn down the village that hired them. All they have to do is find the Golden-Fleeced Rage Beast, shave it, and make a really nice golden track suit to appease a furious dragon. Simple, right? I mean, check out their crew: Gil, a wizard (well, wizard in training. . . the beard isn’t his); Terra, a 700-year old elf kid; Boulder, a rock troll who, okay, is more of a cook than a fighter; Ace, a flatulent pig-dog-maybe-lizard hybrid; and Ned—their intrepid and overly optimistic leader with his own personal quest: to solve the mystery of his missing parents.
With humor, magic, mystery, and at least one acid swamp filled with skeletal alligators, QUEST KIDS AND THE DRAGON PANTS OF GOLD is a richly illustrated saga of fantasy friendship that’s sure to thrill and crack up readers from all kingdoms! Mark already has the next titles lined up, too –
Quest Kids and the Dark Prophecy of Doug (2023), and Quest Kids and the Mystery of the Goblin Gazebo (2024).

Mark Leiknes lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, with his wife and three kids. He produced a nationally syndicated comic strip (Cow & Boy) for eight years and now he writes and illustrates books for kids. Mark studied graphic design in college and honed his comedic chops studying improv and sketch comedy at the acclaimed Groundlings School. Visit him online at markleiknes.com.