(3) K-3 Illustrated by Joey Chou. The Chinese Zodiac animals (plus Cat) join Ruby on her journey to spend Chinese New Year with her grandmother. Brightly colored digital illustrations include visual cultural markers and draw on Chinese aesthetics, elevating the festive (if somewhat predictable) narrative. The book includes directions for three related crafts and a brief description of the Chinese Zodiac legend. A welcome #OwnVoices addition to collections seeking Chinese New Year picture books. Holiday craft directions appended.

Reviewer: Amy Seto Forrester

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Joey Chou. Twelve-year-old zombie aficionado Ernestine and her stepbrother, Charleston, are trying to start the zombie apocalypse but instead become embroiled in a murder-mystery at a retirement home filled with eccentric residents. The hilarious characters stand out in this madcap horror-lite romp, but there's also a layer of poignancy in Ernestine's eventual coming-to-terms with a tragic event in her past.

Reviewer: Mariko Turk

(3) PS Illustrated by Joey Chou. In each of fourteen spreads, a monstrous parent-son pair (e.g., skeleton, ghost, yeti) whoop it up at a shared activity (baseball, instrument playing, igloo making) until it's time for bed. The rhymes are airtight, and the chunky digital illustrations in somber colors convey species-neutral love as well as delectable danger (note Red Riding Hood unknowingly walking past some tree-sitting beasts).

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Joey Chou. Freddy is nervous about the first day of school, so his mind turns to outer space: instead of putting on shoes, he puts on moon boots, and so on. His fantasy (or is it?) features flat, chunky digital art--just right for a story featuring a rocket ship, planets, and other geometric marvels. Space facts are appended. Reading list. Bib.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Joey Chou. In this fractured folktale, B. Bear and Lolly work together to build the "Porridge Perfecter" but get waylaid when the Gingerbread Man accidentally topples the invention. Illustrative elements in the digital pictures give a nod to classic fairy tales and fables. This book serves as an additional purchase for "Gingerbread Man" collections.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Joey Chou. B. Bear and Lolly are best friends. "And why not? They liked the same porridge, the same chair, and the same comfy bed." In this forced spinoff tale, the duo's first day of kindergarten approaches; B. Bear loses his school supplies, but he has "the only thing he truly needed: a friend." Attentive readers may notice other folklore cameos in the bright, welcoming digital art.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(3) PS Illustrated by Joey Chou. "When a duck says QUACK, does she really mean SNACK?" Parent-and-child animal pairs depicted in various human scenarios offer playful suggestions for what animals might be saying when they utter their familiar sounds. The short rhyming questions and an intermittent refrain of this bouncy verse are well served by the colorful pictures.

Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi