Maud and the Very Eventful Week (Candlewick Press, for ages 5-8, on sale 7/28/2026)
Follow an adorable little vampire named Maud through a week of ever-so-gently-spooky adventures in this charming vignette-style story—the first in a series poised to engross newly independent readers.
Who would have known on Monday that the week ahead would be such a busy one? It all starts when Maud finds a teapot that is obviously haunted (and very hungry). EEEK! The days continue with Maud’s attempt to sell spiders (and juice) from a sidewalk stand; a mega-toothy discovery; a ghost family taking over the dollhouse; and a visit to Agnes the witch, who brews up a dynamite soup. Then comes Maud’s yard sale, which is a lot of work but a great success, rounding out a very full week. But wait, could that be a teapot coming around again, on Sunday?
In this slightly gothic tour through the days of the week, the delight is in the details as illustrations portray Maud and her family and friends among the familiar objects and activities of childhood, with just enough of a quirky twist to please the young vampire lovers among us.
Lisa Anchin is an illustrator, author, and designer. She has long had a literary love of vampires and often ran around in a red cape and fangs as a child, not only on Halloween. She is the author-illustrator of the picture book The Little Green Girl, which won a Crystal Kite Award, and the illustrator of a number of other books for children. When not in her studio stringing words together and doodling, she loves meeting other kidlit folks and has long volunteered as the illustration coordinator for the Metro New York chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Lisa Anchin lives in Brooklyn with her family.
Pumpkin and Beetle: Super Secret Garden (Holiday House, for ages 7-10, on sale 9/29/2026)
Two vampire cat best friends plus a mysterious treasure—what could go wrong in this young graphic novel full of gentle spooky fun?
Pumpkin and Beetle are vampire cat best friends who sleep during the day, only eat red foods, and go to school at night! In this adventure, Beetle has found something mysterious. To Pumpkin, this treasure looks like a pile of crumbs. They decide to bury it—and soon their whole town is covered in vines. This plant is hungry! Will they be able to save their town? Will curiosity get the better of these two cats?
Pumpkin and Beetle is a delightful graphic novel series for young readers, featuring two vampire cat best friends and their hijinks around their spooky town.
Born in Hong Kong and raised in Philadelphia, Jannie Ho moved to New York to study illustration at Parsons School of Design. After working as a graphic designer and an art director at many fun places such as Nickelodeon, Scholastic, and TIME Magazine for Kids, she decided that illustration was her true calling. Jannie (also known as Chicken Girl) now specializes in illustrating for the children’s market, with her work appearing in both trade and educational books, magazines, toys, crafts, and digital media. She currently lives in Boston, MA with her husband and daughter.
Unicorn Rescuers: Adventure in Witch Land (Candlewick Press, for ages 5-7, on sale 9/8/2026)
The second in a new full-color series set in the magical Unicornia universe, featuring an exciting journey to Witch Land!
Claudia, Pippa, and Sara are off on another unicorn-rescuing mission, this time to Witch Land, where the witches are expert liars and time moves in mysterious ways. Worse still, nobody is allowed to fly! Can the Unicorn Rescuers save the day before their own unicorns fall under a spell?
Ana Punset is a best-selling author of books for children, including the other books in the Unicornia series. She lives in Barcelona and has always dreamed of flying with unicorns.
Where’s Waldo? Spooky Spot the Difference (Candlewick Press, for ages 5-9, on sale 7/7/2026)
Join Waldo on a pumpkin hunt for Halloween. With hundreds of spot-the-differences to find among zombies, ghosts, vampires, monsters, and more for children aged six and up!
Search for Waldo and the gang on the hunt for some perfect pumpkins. Watch out for hundreds of spooky differences to spot in the puzzles along the way, but beware of a host of hair-raising characters wandering in the places they visit. Spook-tacularly fun entertainment for brave young fans of Waldo and search-and-find puzzles!
