In the latest middle grade speculative novel from Spontaneous author Aaron Starmer, Roman follows the twisted threads of bizarre family legends and magical secrets to write his own chapter in his peculiar family narrative.

YOU ARE NOW OLD ENOUGH TO HEAR THIS
by Aaron Starmer
Penguin Workshop, March 2026
(via Dystel, Goderich & Bourret)

There’s always more to the story.

The Toe Beast looms large in the Barnes family lore—a tale concocted by twelve-year-old Roman’s grandpa to explain his missing toe. But Roman has never actually heard the full story, and after his grandpa dies suddenly, it seems like he never will.

That is, until Roman is tasked with clearing out his grandpa’s house, and stumbles upon some strange things. An old mason jar full of formaldehyde, a mysterious handwritten book about a girl and a pack of dogs, a rusty metal bucket with peculiar abilities. And they all tie back to extraordinary secrets from the distant past.

By unraveling even more unbelievable stories that have been hidden from him, Roman is forced to rethink how he fits into his family’s history. Now it’s up to him to see his own story through to the end. Because the Toe Beast was only the beginning . . .

« A triumph of imaginative storytelling… »—Booklist, starred review

« Roman’s curiosity about his family and his place within it propels him on an unsettlingly strange and seemingly disjointed journey that Starmer cleverly conjures into a cohesive, genuinely touching narrative. »—Publishers Weekly, starred review

« Starmer’s latest calls to mind Rebecca Stead’s When You Reach Me in the way the intricate plot similarly—and bafflingly—comes together with surprising twists… Intriguingly bizarre and wholly original. »—Kirkus

« Starmer (Night Swimming) combines magic, whimsy, and the unexpected in this exploration of one family’s history. »—School Library Journal

Aaron Starmer is the author of more than a dozen novels for young readers, including Night Swimming, A Million Views, Spontaneous, The Only Ones, and the Locker 37 series. He lives in Vermont with his wife and two children.