Happy Sunday, kidlit friends! And happy Mother’s Day to U.S. readers! Recently Farshore and HarperCollins released a study analyzing trends in children’s reading. There are lots of interesting stuff to dig into here; I recommend reading it if you have the chance.
Here are a few highlights from the 0-12 readers studied: Child readers tend to be happier and have less anxiety. The percentage of 5-7-year-olds reading daily for fun is up from 2012. However, parents are reading to their children less, especially in the preschool population, and there’s a very strong link between being read aloud to and reading for pleasure.
In general, daily reading is lower. With the pandemic, plus political attacks on libraries and rampant book bans, 2023 was a very different year than 2012, and I can’t help but think that might be part of the reason many of these numbers are lower.
Looking for a thoughtful Mother’s Day gift? Go beyond the tried and true flowers and chocolate and give the gift of reading with Tailored Book Recommendations! Our bibliologists are standing by to help your mom find her next favorite read, delivered right to her inbox or doorstep. And with gifts starting at just $18, there’s something for any budget! Head to mytbr.co/gift to send the gift of reading to the book nerd in your life!
As for today’s book recommendations, I review manga and two excellent new releases.
Bookish Goods
Kiki’s Delivery Service Bookends by DreamCollectiveArts
I imagine there’s a lot of crossover between kids who love manga and kids who love Studio Ghibli movies. These bookends are so lovely. Kiki’s Delivery Service is my daughter’s favorite Ghibli movie. $45
New Releases
Go and Get with Rex by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka
This delightfully funny picture book is great for preschoolers and kindergartners learning their alphabet. Jack, Jill, and the pup Rex are playing a game where they go and get an item beginning with each letter of the alphabet. While Jack and Jill’s items always fit, Rex’s are a little more creative, and invariable involve a duck. As an activity to accompany reading this book, you can have kids play the game with items around the house or classroom. When my daughter was younger, I set a timer and had her gather as many items starting with the specified letter she could find.
The Secret Library by Kekla Magoon
I love a good book about libraries! In this middle grade fantasy, 11-year-old Dally, who is biracial (Black father, white mother), is still grieving her grandfather’s death when she discovers a letter he meant for her. The letter leads her to a magical library, where each book is a portal into another world. Meanwhile, at home, her single mother wants her to study hard so she can take over the family business. The magical library provides an escape for Dally, but it holds many secrets, ones that could shatter her family.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
Though I started reading manga later in my thirties, many kids love manga. Here are two children’s manga I enjoyed, plus two how-to-draw manga books for kids.
The Evil Secret Society of Cats by PANDANIA
I have read this book so many times with my daughter. We often joke around the house by saying, “We will teach humans to fear the feline race!” It’s essentially a bunch of adorable cats under the leadership of the Feline Commander trying to make humans restructure their entire lives around their needs before they take over the world. We are doomed. There are three volumes in this series.
Unico: Awakening by Osamu Tezuka, Samuel Sattin, & Gurihiru
I am cheating because this doesn’t release until August! It’s a new adventure starring the same character from the popular Unico Japanese manga and film series from the 1970s and ’80s. Unico has been expelled from the heavens for irritating the evil goddess Venus. The West Wind was supposed to place him on the Hill of Forgetfulness, but instead, feeling sad for the small unicorn, she takes him to the mortal realm, where he can be free. When Unico awakens, he finds a cat named Chloe, and the two take refuge in an elderly woman’s home. However, the more Unico comes to love others, the more he draws the attention of Venus. Fantasy readers will love this.
How to Draw Kawaii Manga Characters by Misako Misako Rocks!
If your kid loves drawing and manga, there are a lot of great manga art instruction books out there. This one, by the author and illustrator of the children’s manga Bounce Back, provides step-by-step instructions for drawing manga characters, including expressions, hairstyles, different angles, and more. Also check out her book How to Draw Kawaii Manga Fashion. It’s easy to lay these books out flat while drawing along.
Learn to Draw Manga Basics for Kids by Yuyu Kouhara
This is another great manga art instruction book for kids. It includes a story along with instructions. Lemon is a 7th grader who loves drawing. Momiji, her cousin, is an illustrator in her twenties. Their interactions, where Lemon asks Momiji to teach her how to draw manga, are written in panels. It’s a great way to incorporate art instruction with a story. This is a three-book series. The other two books are Learn to Draw Manga Poses for Kids and Learn to Draw Manga Faces for Kids.
Cicada Brood XIX has emerged here in Nashville after 13 years underground, and my daughter and I have been having fun watching them come out of their shells and listening to their song. While they’re certainly weird looking, they play an important part in the ecosystem.
If you’d like to read more of my kidlit reviews, I’m on Instagram @BabyLibrarians, Twitter @AReaderlyMom, Bluesky @AReaderlyMom.bsky.social, and blog irregularly at Baby Librarians. You can also read my Book Riot posts. If you’d like to drop me a line, my email is kingsbury.margaret@gmail.com.
All the best,
Margaret