Nadya Bonten-Slenders was chosen from the more than two hundred Dutch and Belgian entries, as one of the winners of the 2021 Picture This competition. You can see her beautiful illustrations, along with the other winners here.

Picture this! is an initiative of Lemniscaat Publishers (NL) and the International Centre for the Picture Book in Society (GB). The competition is supported by Protea (ZA), Walker Books (GB), the Burg Wissem Bilderbuch Museum (DE), Kaléidoscope (FR), Lemniscaat Publishers (NL) and the International Centre for the Picture Book in Society (GB).

Congratulations Nadya!

2020 Pura Belpre Illustrator Honor book Sharuko (Lee & Low) by Monica Brown, illustrated by Elisa Chavarri has been named to Horn Book Magazine’s 2021 Summer Reading list.

See the complete list here

Get the book here

Paletero Man (HarperCollins) by Lucky Diaz, illustrated by Micah Player has received a 3rd starred review, this time from Publishers Weekly. It has also received stars from Kirkus and School Library Journal.

PW says Player adds dynamic spreads in bright hues that often illuminate the untranslated Spanish. A wonderfully executed treat of a book with a sweet community focus.

Read the full review here

Get the book here

Federico and the Wolf (HMH) by Rebecca Gomez, illustrated by Elisa Chavarri continues to receive accolades. It is on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award List for 2020-2021, as well as the Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Award List and is a Kansas National Education Association Reading Circle Recommended Title. Congratulations Elisa!

Brittany Jackson has illustrated new middle grade novel from NBA superstar and New York Times bestselling author LeBron James and Andrea Williams!

Off to the Sea (Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky) by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon is featured in a New York Times article 8 Picture Books That Celebrate the Joys of Life.

The article says: “Bath time is full of magic!” a mother coos to her daughter as she switches on a “roaring waterfall.” Zunon, who grew up on the Ivory Coast and collaborated with Grimes on “Bedtime for Sweet Creatures,” infuses this daily ritual with tropical texture. The multihued seawater of her gorgeous endpapers — undulating waves collaged from what look like patterned fabrics, mottled stone and tile — contains both earth and sky.

Read the full article here

Get the book here

Sarah Dillard’s latest picture book, BLUEBERRY CAKE, has received a glowing Starred Review from Kirkus, which calls it “a thoroughly delicious (and practically wordless) charmer.”  The reviewer writes, “Tapping into the enthusiasm of small children and infused with a laconic humor, this book is bound to prove a rollicking read-aloud for all that it has a minimal text that mostly consists of repetition of the critical words: blueberry cake and blueberries.”  BLUEBERRY CAKE will be published by Aladdin Books/Simon & Schuster on July 13th.

You can pre-order your copy here:

Barnes & Noble

Indie Bound

Bookshop

Art from Huy Voun Lee‘s new picture book Like a Dandelion (HarperCollins) is included in the Eric Carle Museum’s new exhibition Asians, Everyday. Lee is one of the 26 featured artists in the online exhibition. Curated by Grace Lin, Asians, Everyday, showcases positive Asian American stories and representation in contemporary picture books. 

Learn more about the exhibition here

Get Like a Dandelion here

Becoming Vanessa (Knopf BYFR) by Vanessa Brantley-Newton has been selected by the American Booksellers Association for the May/June 2021 Kid’s Indie Next List.

For readers of Alma and How She Got Her Name and The King of Kindergarten, this story will help kids just starting school transform from timid caterpillars into beautiful butterflies so they can love who they are. Becoming Vanessa will be released June 15, 2021.

Congratulations Vanessa!

See the full list here

Pre-order the book here

London Ladd’s mixed media piece Celestial Africanism has been selected by a nationally representative jury of distinguished designers, art directors and illustrators to appear in the Communication Arts 2021 Illustration Annual.

Congratulations London!