Bloomin’ Good Children’s Books for May

The sun’s shining, the birds are tweeting, and the only thing that could make May even better is a stack of truly excellent children’s books! Keep reading to discover an adorable picture book featuring a family made of Mexican sweets and another with a Loch Ness Monster who can’t tell fact from fiction! We’ve also included climate-focused graphic novels that will empower young readers to take action and make a difference, plus the latest instalment in the Miraculous Chibi series! Enjoy!

A delectably sweet story about the unbreakable bonds of family.

Muégano (moo – egano): Candy made with square pieces of wheat flour fried and glued together with honey. Meet the Muéganos: a family so close they’re stuck together like the traditional Mexican candy. Papa Muégano says it’s honey that holds them. Mama says it’s love. The oldest, Julia, wouldn’t have it any other way. Sure, swimming isn’t always easy, and it wouldn’t hurt to have a little privacy, but there’s always someone close by to help with homework, and there’s nothing like cuddling up with your parents. Until the day the Muéganos take a trip to the museum, and Julia’s irrepressible curiosity causes an unexpected crack… Mama wants to fix it. Papa tries to be more careful. But some things are just inevitable.

In her picture book debut, Mexican author-illustrator Jaque Jours tells a universal story about independence, growing up, and learning to let go.

New edition of the endearing story about a little girl who doesn’t think she can.

“Lou and her friends are BRAVE adventurers. They run FASTER than airplanes. They build MIGHTY fortresses. They rescue WILD animals.” But one day, when they’re looking for a ship to play pirates in, Lou’s friend has an idea: “Up there! The tree can be our ship!” “Ummm …” says Lou.

This is something new. Lou has never climbed a tree before, and she’s sure she can’t do it. So she tries to convince her friends to play a not-up-a-tree game. When that doesn’t work, she comes up with reasons for not joining them — her arm is sore, her cat needs a walk, you shouldn’t climb so soon after eating. Finally, she tells herself she doesn’t want to climb the tree. But is that true, or is this brave adventurer just too afraid to try? This delightful picture book from Ashley Spires, bestselling author of The Most Magnificent Thing, perfectly depicts what children go through when confronted with something difficult.

A brand new instalment of series based on the viral animation phenomenon, for fans of the hit TV series Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir!

Hilarious heists and hijinks will steal your heart away in this latest edition of the Miraculous Chibi graphic novel series! Evillustrator is loose in Paris! And when he sets up Ladybug and her friend Rena Rouge to take the fall for a stolen painting, the heroic pair will have to “reverse heist” their way into one of the most famous museums in the world! Then, Cat Noir recruits an army of feline sidekicks! He just has to get them to follow instructions. Cats are known for that, right? Uh-oh… All this and more in the Miraculous Ladybug graphic novel series, influenced by the award-winning TV show and with chibi art from the Youtube shorts!

A hilarious graphic novel about discerning fact from fiction — starring a truly unbelievable “expert.”

Loch Ness Monster has written a fabulous book about why certain birds have their unusual colouring. According to Ness, the stories have drama, excitement, adventure! And most important of all, scientific truths. There’s only one problem, as Puffin keeps pointing out: the “facts” in the stories aren’t true! For example, a puffin’s colourful beak isn’t the result of a sunburn, as Ness tells it. It’s how they attract a mate. And that means Ness’s book contains stories, not science. Will Ness ever understand the difference between the two — and why it matters?

Anne Appert’s early graphic novel hits all the right notes, with laugh-out-loud humour, unforgettable original characters and an important and timely message about misinformation.

From a New York Times Best Illustrated artist comes a celebration of entrances, thresholds and portals — and all the endless possibilities they can lead to!

There are so many kinds of doors: swinging doors and sliding doors, screen doors for feeling the night air, revolving doors for going around and around. Doors that open into… anything you can imagine! A birthday party, a shipwreck on the salty sea floor, a fairy’s tiny home, a slide into a room full of pillows! Or even the fantastical future ahead. Where will the doorway of this picture book lead? The only way to find out is to turn the page and go through… In a playful ode to Ruth Krauss’s A Hole Is to Dig and Remy Charlip’s essay A Page Is a Door, this imagination-sparking picture book from an award-winning duo will be welcomed by anyone who is entering a new phase of life and invites readers of all ages to embrace the marvelous possibilities that wait for them behind every new door.

An award-winning eco-focused graphic novel!

Residents of the city of Petroville are suffering through the hottest and driest summer on record. Desperate for a way to cool off, Luz and her friends head out to Spring Pond to go swimming. But when they arrive, they’re shocked to discover the pond has virtually disappeared! It turns out a multinational company has purchased the nearby land and is using the water from the spring to make their soda. Meanwhile, back in the city, the gardens in Friendship Park are withering and at risk of dying because of the lack of rain. And now the city has imposed water restrictions in order to conserve. Luz and her friends are just kids, but is there anything they can do to help save two of Luz’s favourite places?

An award-winning eco-focused graphic novel!

Change is in the air. Power outages are increasing, and gas prices are soaring. At first, 12-year-old Luz balks, hardly thrilled by the prospect of actually having to walk to the mall. But soon, this intelligent and spirited chica begins to understand that she must change with the times. As food prices rise, Luz decides to help create a more self-sustainable community by transforming a run-down city lot into a garden where she and her neighbours can grow their own fruits and vegetables. But when she solicits help from her friends — boy-crazy Anika and computer-whiz Robby — they think she’s a little loco. Luz pedals her idea on the street, but the community is equally dismissive. Can Luz pull off her plan and help change her world alone?