The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

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The Wild Robot on the Island by Peter Brown

The Wild Robot on the Island is colorfully illustrated, depicting the earth‘s seasons along with the gentle message of “helping others.” It’s an early stepping stone to the original Wild Robot Series.

The Wild Robot on the Island by Peter Brown, (List Price: $19.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780316669467, June 2025)

Reviewed by Judith Lafitte, Octavia Books in New Orleans, Louisiana

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Good Golden Sun by Brendan Wenzel

I can’t wait to share Good Golden Sun at storytime for the first days of summer or bright sunny days! Brendan Wenzel has a talent for creating new verses that roll off the tongue like classic nursery rhymes. And it’s always wonderful to have a new book full of his gorgeous illustrations to share with readers!

Good Golden Sun by Brendan Wenzel, (List Price: $19.99, Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780316512633, February 2025)

Reviewed by Johanna Albrecht, McIntyre’s Books in Pittsboro, North Carolina

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I’m Afraid, Said the Leaf by Danielle Daniel

Everything is connected, and that is a very comforting thought. This seems like a great book to get children thinking about nature and perhaps experience it in a way they hadn’t before!

I’m Afraid, Said the Leaf by Danielle Daniel, (List Price: $18.99, Tundra Books, 9781774880708, May 2024)

Reviewed by Lana Repic, E. Shaver Bookseller in Savannah, Georgia

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Finding the Way to Faraway Valley by Cecilia Heikkila

A lovely story of a grandfather and his grandson who go searching for Faraway Valley; a place that his grandfather visited when he was younger. This is a sensitive story of the connection they share in order to find this most amazing location.

Finding the Way to Faraway Valley by Cecilia Heikkila, (List Price: $17.95, Floris Books, 9781782508540, May 2024)

Reviewed by Judith Lafitte, Octavia Books in New Orleans, Louisiana

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The Wild by Yuval Zommer

This book is absolutely gorgeous. It is a gentle introduction to the concept of why conservation is important. Perfect for Earth Day readalouds.

The Wild by Yuval Zommer, (List Price: $18.99, Doubleday Books for Young Readers, 9780593708989, February 2024)

Reviewed by Jill Hendrix, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, South Carolina

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Brown Is Beautiful by Supriya Kelkar

I love the beauty of Brown is Beautiful. A young Indian American girl walks through nature with her grandparents, celebrating all the beauty of things that are brown – leaves and bears and canyons. The book transitions to houses and families and babies, all brown and beautiful. This is a story of joy and celebration!

Brown Is Beautiful by Supriya Kelkar, (List Price: $18.99, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), 9780374389529, October 2022)

Reviewed by Beth Seufer Buss, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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The Golden Swift by Lev Grossman

A middle grade fantasy novel with magical trains, a magical submarine, an apartment in the sky, a missing uncle, talking animals, endangered species and rewilding? Yes, please! This series is proof that kids can learn about current day issues in novels. Not that any of us in the industry need convincing of this, but this series does it effortlessly. Brilliant! Can’t wait for more!

The Golden Swift by Lev Grossman, (List Price: $35, Little Brown and Company, 9780316283540, May 2022)

Reviewed by Jill Naylor, Novel in Memphis, Tennessee

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The Ice House by Monica Sherwood

I was really drawn into the world of The Ice House, the perfect middle grade novel for kids to read as the pandemic drags on. The dramatic changes and adaptations to an altered world are completely relatable and will strike a chord for everyone stuck indoors with pesky siblings, remote schooling and parents changed by stress and grief. The touch of magic gives both escapism and hope for children, but the book also features relatable, realistic examples of growing up and changing friendships.

The Ice House by Monica Sherwood, (List Price: $16.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780316705349, November 2021)

Reviewed by Maggie Robe, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven by Nathaniel Ian Miller

A Fall Read This Next! Selection

I don’t know that I’ve ever come across a book more satisfying to my inner-misanthrope than The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven. Anyone who constantly longs for quiet, feels prickly in an overcrowded space, loves the idea of unfettered alone time: this book is for you. Set in the early twentieth century, The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven follows a man who literally goes to the edge of the earth and settles in the Arctic with a loyal dog as his only companion. Nathaniel Ian Miller has written a novel that, in showing us extreme isolation, reminds us how vital our bonds to this world are. I adored it.

The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven by Nathaniel Ian Miller, (List Price: 28, Little, Brown and Company, 9780316592550, October 2021)

Reviewed by Lindsay Lynch, Parnassus Books in Nashville, North Carolina


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