Publishers announce 7 new children's books for week of May 26, 2025; titles include young adult romance, middle grade fantasy, picture books from HarperCollins, Roaring Brook, Tundra, Wednesday, Candlewick, Rocky Pond, Knopf

May 22, 2025 (Publisher's Weekly) –

Here we round up new and forthcoming children's titles including a YA romance about roommates, a middle grade fantasy about a tween being chased by evil entities, a picture book about summertime dreams, and more.

And They Were Roommates by Page Powars . Roaring Brook, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-1-250-34765-7. Academic and interpersonal pressures at a new school throw a wrench in transgender teen Charlie's plans in this clever second-chance romance from Powars.

Bashir Boutros and the Jewels of the Nile by George Jreije . HarperCollins, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-0-06-338224-4. When 11-year-old Bashir Boutros accidentally bonds with a centuries-old jinn, he becomes a target for evil entities eager to feed on his aura, opening him and his loved ones to attacks.

Bright Lights and Summer Nights by Shauntay Grant , illus. by Zach Manbeck . Tundra, $18.99 ; ISBN 978-1-77488-366-2. Crisp, rhythmic phrasing from Grant and luminous, emerald-hued artwork by Manbeck chart a child's enchanted summertime dreams. The picture book received a starred review from PW.

Come as You Are by Dahlia Adler . Wednesday, $20 ; ISBN 978-1-2508-7169-5. At her new boarding school where she's accidentally housed in the boy dorms, Evie makes a deal with her slacker dorm neighbor, Salem: she'll help him become an upstanding citizen to satisfy his parents if he teaches her how to be cool.

Costumes for Time Travelers by A.R. Capetta . Candlewick, $18.99 ; ISBN 978-1-536-233-711. Calisto crafts clothing from across the centuries for adventurers, and when she encounters Fawkes, a traveler unanchored in time, she must accompany Fawkes in his efforts to save the cosmos.

George & Lenny Are Always Together by Jon Agee . Rocky Pond , $18.99 ; ISBN 978-0-593-85773-1. Brown bear George and gray rabbit Lenny navigate how to move forward when Lenny requests some time to himself.

A Gift of Dust: How Saharan Plumes Feed the Planet by Martha Brockenbrough , illus. by Juana Martinez-Neal . Knopf, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-0-593-42842-9. Brockenbrough writes in incantatory lines about great clouds of dust from the Sahara whose westward motion delivers unexpected benefits.

The Glass Pyramid: A Story of the Louvre Museum and Architect I. M. Pei by Jeanne Walker Harvey , illus. by Khoa Le . Atheneum, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-1-6659-5333-7. In spare, rhythmic prose and digital illustrations that combine architectural elements with vector-like precision, Walker Harvey and Le weave together Pei's biography and the Louvre's creation story. The picture book received a starred review from PW.

Growing Home by Beth Ferry , illus. by Eric and Terry Fan . Simon & Schuster , $17.99 ; ISBN 978-1-665942-48-5. Cantankerous goldfish Toasty and bubbly plant Ivy welcome new guests and navigate their new powers from Toasty's magical fish tank.

The Midwatch Institute for Wayward Girls by Judith Rossell . Dial, $18.99 ; ISBN 979-8-2170-0240-5. Tween Maggie Fishbone is whisked away from Mud Harbor Orphanage to the Midwatch Institute for Orphans , Runaways, and Wayward Girls where she's soon pulled into investigations of local crimes. The middle grade book received a starred review from PW.

Randy Rainbow and the Marvelously Magical Pink Glasses by Randy Rainbow , illus. by Jaimie MacGibbon . Feiwel and Friends, $18.99 ; ISBN 978-1-2509-0077-7. When peers discourage Randy from wearing the colorful clothing he prefers, a pink, rhinestone-covered pair of cat-eye glasses in a donation box comes to the rescue, in this debut picture book by the popular creator of musical parodies and political spoofs.

Some of Us: A Story of Citizenship and the United States by Rajani LaRocca , illus. by Huy Voun Lee . Little, Brown/Ottaviano, $18.99 ; ISBN 978-0-3165-7175-3. Underlining the responsibilities and rights of citizens, this picture book is an affirming reminder that "we all deserve safety, respect, opportunity." The book received a starred review from PW.

Someone's Gonna End Up Crying by Jo Knowles , illus. by Glynnis Fawkes . Candlewick, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-1-536231-27-4. Aspiring graphic novelist Maple Owens uses her sketchbook as a private diary but agonizes about her parents' increasingly fraught relationship.

This Moth Saw Brightness by A.A. Vacharat. Dutton, $20.99 ; ISBN 978-0-593-69860-0. High schooler D is invited to participate in a clinical research study at Johns Hopkins , but as the study progresses and strange events occur, D teams up with fellow participants to uncover more about the program's purpose and origin.

Time After Time by Mikki Daughtry . Putnam, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-0-593-53382-6. Libby Monroe moves into a Victorian property she bought with her inheritance, and learns more about the house's former occupant through a diary she left behind.

Titan of the Stars by E.K. Johnston . Tundra, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-1-77488-408-9. Teens band together while on a catastrophic interplanetary cruise in this futuristic, adrenaline-fueled series launch.

These Vengeful Gods by Gabe Cole Novoa . Random House, $19.99 ; ISBN 978-0-593-89812-3. After his uncle is arrested for harboring Crow, an outlaw, Crow decides to fight in the biannual Tournament of the Gods for a chance to win his uncles' freedom.

For more children's and YA titles on sale throughout the month of May, check out PW's full On-Sale Calendar.