Debbie Ridpath Ohi: Tuesday, October 1st

Alright - it is time to talk books and celebrate some of the most exciting new releases coming out today!  Before we jump in, I just want to say that when I first envisioned this show during the calmer days of summer - I had truly thought I could mention every single new release each week. Well, listeners… that has become rather difficult to take the time to do that and still have time to produce the show each week.  So we’re scaling back a bit to highlight some of the releases each week. And I am sure - there are incredible books that slip through the cracks. So - I hope that you will jump into the conversation on Twitter and let the rest of us know what books you are loving this week. Just search for #ATWThisWeek - and let us know which of today’s book caught your eye.

And Debbie - you have a picture book in the works right now with Linda Sue Park with the intriguing title of Gurple and Preen!  I know it’s still early, but is there anything you can tell us about it?

Debbie: I am SUPER-excited about this picture book! It all began when I decided to create some art using a broken crayon. I’m a bit of a pack rat so tend to keep everything, especially since I started creating art around real-life objects, and I decided to make use of a crayon that had accidentally snapped in half. At first I thought about turning the crayon into some kind of crayon creature, perhaps making the crayon itself part of the monster’s mouth, etc but then I thought HEY, what if something comes OUT of the crayon? I’ve also always loved the quote, “You never know what will come out of a broken crayon.” So I posted the image and was surprised by how much people seemed to like it.

Corrina: Yes!!  I have been following your crayon illustrations on social media - LOVE them!!  

Debbie: Thank you! I’ve really been enjoying creating these. I’ve especially enjoyed hearing from educators who have seen my broken crayon art and have been using it in their classrooms with their young readers.

For the title GURPLE & PREEN: these are the names of the two main characters in a wonderful story written by Linda Sue Park. Gurple and Preen are robots whose rocket ship has crash landed on a planet, and they need to figure out how to repair the rocket so they can continue on their adventure. 

• Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler 
• Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao by Kat Zhang and illustrated by Charlene Chua
• Little Tigers by Jo Weaver
• Encounter by Brittany Luby and illustrated by Michaela Goade. 
• Along the Tapajós by Fernando Vilela, translated by Daniel Hahn
• Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe (Betsy Bird’s review)

• The 7th Princess Pulverizer series called Gotta Warn the Unicorns.
• K.A. Holt’s follow up to House Arrest and Knockout -   Redwood and Ponytail
• Another much-awaited sequel is out today - Casssie Beasleys’ follow-up to Circus Mirandus called  The Bootlace Magician
• Julie Murphy’s middle grade debut - Dear Sweet Pea  
• Roll With It by Jamie Sumner

• The Tornado by Jake Burt
• The first book in the Alien Superstar middle grade series written by Lin Oliver and Henry Winkler, and illustrated by Ethan Nicolle, is launching from Amulet
• I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day - an #ownvoices debut novel about Native American identity featuring a girl who discovers the mystery of her mother’s heritage in a box full of letters
• Another novel-in-verse out today is Caravan to the North: Misael’s Long Walk about a Salvadoran boy whose family joins the caravan heading north to the United States and the fate that awaits him when he arrives at the border
• Barbara Dee’s new novel - Maybe He Just Likes You  

• The third in the autobiographical “Sunny” series by brother and sister duo Jennifer and Matthew Holm is out today - Sunny Rolls the Dice
• A new R.J. Palacio book is out today -a graphic novel called White Bird  This is another in the Wonder universe, but this one focuses on Julian’s grandmother’s story during World War II. 
• If you have kids who are interested in drawing and making their own comics, check out  Dog Man Guide to Creating Comics in 3-D by Dav Pilkey and Kate Howard

• The Power Book: What is it, Who Has it, and Why? by a variety of authors and a foreward by Roxane Gay answers questions like Why can some people vote for their leaders, but other people can’t? Does having lots of money  make you powerful? Why are there fewer female scientists, leaders, and artists than men in history books?  A timely and important book with lots of great illustrations
• Can You Hear The Trees Talking? Is a new nonfiction out today that looks fascinating and is about the mystery and magic that can be found in the forest.
• There’s also a new addition to the “Who Was” series available this week - Who Was Mr. Rogers?
• And we also get a gorgeous over-sized book that you’ll just want to sprawl out on the floor with and explore called Greek Myths & Mazes by Jan Bajtlik
• Another title I am eager to check out is a brightly illustrated title called Darwin’s Voyage of Discovery by Jake Williams
• And…..Sarah Albee’s North America!

Thank all of you for listening and sharing your Tuesday with us!

You can find an outline of the show and links to all the books and topics we chatted about at allthewonders.com.  If you have a question or comment, I’d love to hear from you! You can contact me at corrina@allthewonders.com or connect with me on Twitter or Instagram. And reviews on iTunes or Stitcher are always much appreciated.

The All the Wonders This Week podcast is brought to you by All The Wonders, where children's books are for everyone. Journey beyond the page with podcasts, videos, crafts, and more at allthewonders.com.

See you next week!