It's time to share my "sneak peek" list of anticipated poetry books for young people set to be published this year. MY LAST LIST! After 20 years of maintaining this blog, I'm bringing it to a close--mostly. I may post here and there, but I would LOVE for someone else to pick up the mantle and post a "sneak peek" list next year and in the future. I'm happy to share the tips I've found helpful. Just let me know!
Meanwhile, here's the list I've gathered so far-- including poetry books and novels in verse--for children and young adults. I'm sure I've missed some, so please let me know of any titles to add. (I'm not including rhyming or poetic picture books). Once again, I'm so happy to see so many goodies heading our way-- by many new names, too. Woohoo!
Sneak Peek list of Poetry for Young People 2026
- Adjoa, Delali. 2026. The Free Verse Society. Peachtree Teen.
- Alexander, Kwame. 2026. The Mighty Macy. Ill. by Kitt Thomas. Little, Brown.
- Arango, Andrea Beatriz. 2026. No Place on Earth. Random House.
- Barnes, Derrick. 2026. Do It for the People. Ill. by Gordon C. James. Versify.
- Barrow, Rebecca. 2026. Doe. Penguin/Nancy Paulsen Books.
- Bennett, Joshua. 2026. The World Is Full of Beautiful Quiet Things. Ill. by Minako Tomigahara. Little, Brown.
- Biddle, Kimberly A. Gordon. 2026. As You Are: A Hope for Black Sons. Ill. by David Wilkerson. Magination Press.
- Bigna, Sandy. 2026. Little Bones. Simon & Schuster.
- Bulion, Leslie. 2026. Nature’s Remarkable Partners: Wild Poems for Two Voices. Ill. by Robert Meganck. Margaret Quinlin Books.
- Caprara, Rebecca. 2026. Eva to the Max. Dial.
- Chapman, Ty and Tison, Ari. Eds. 2026. Witness: Poems to Address the Past, Present, and Future of Policing. Ill. Damon Davis. by Lerner/Zest.
- Classey, Paige. 2026. Anna-June and the Last Summer. Random House.
- Cole, Olivia A. 2026. Blood Lick. Labyrinth Road.
- Cronin, Mary E, 2026. Trucks, Boots, and Bells: Firehouse Poems. Ill. by Aaron Marin. Holiday House.
- Elliott, David. 2026. At the Edge: Curious Creatures of Planet Earth (Paws, Fins, Feathers, Claws). Ill. by Clover Robin. Candlewick.
- Engle, Margarita. 2026. Evamar. Atheneum.
- Engle, Margarita. 2026. Wifredo's Jungle. Abrams.
- Fischer, Max. 2026. The Unpoetic Life of August Grey. Scholastic.
- Florian, Douglas. 2026. Thank You, Sun. Beach Lane Books.
- Fogliano, Julie. 2026. Because of a Shoe. Ill. by Marla Frazee. Knopf.
- Fraillon, Zana. 2026. Song of a Thousand Seas. Simon & Schuster.
- Freeman, Megan E. 2026. The Secret of Belonging. Atheneum.
- Ghigna, Charles. 2026. The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s First Book of Poems. Ill. by Eric Carle. Random House.
- Goodwin, Idris. 2026. Don’t Drop the Mic. Ill. by Kaylani Juanita. HarperCollins.
- Heard, Georgia. Ed. 2026. Words I Might Have Eaten. Ill. by Paige Keiser. Astra/Calkins Creek.
- Henderson, Judith. 2026. Counting Poems. Reycraft Books.
- Holt, K.A. 2026. Javier and the Cone of Uncertainty. Chronicle.
- Hughes, Langston. 2026. Melodies of the Weary Blues: Classic Poems Illustrated for Young People. HarperCollins.
- Iqbal, Shagufta K. 2026. Everything in Between.
- Jett, Brianna. 2026. Under a Carnivore Sky. Page Street.
- Ko, Christine. 2026. Love Language. Sorra Books.
- Kuyatt, Meg Eden. 2026. Perfect Enough. Scholastic.
- Lamb, Simon. 2026. A Passing on of Shells. Ill. by Chris Riddell. Scallywag Press.
- Latham, Irene and Waters, Charles. 2026. For the Win: Poems About Pivotal Moments in the Lives of Phenomenal Athletes. Lerner/Carolrhoda.
- Latham, Irene. 2026. Come In! Come In! Ill. by Amy Hevron. Astra/Wordsong.
- LaTulippe, Renée. 2026. Limelight: Curtain Up on Poetry Comics! Ill. by Chuck Gonzales. Charlesbridge.
- MacCulloch, Jone Rush. 2026. Tilt: Like Climbing a Tree. River Oak Press.
- Malee, Alison. 2026. All I Can Tell You. Ill. by Chantal Horeis. Paw Prints.
- Manley, Curtis. 2026. Chasing Eruptions: How Volcanologists Maurice and Katia Krafft Helped Save 60,000 Lives—But Lost Their Own. Ill. by Katherine Roy. Clarion.
- Martin, Erica. 2026. Onward We Marched. Ill. by Alleanna Harris. Penguin/Flamingo.
- Metcalf, Lindsay H. 2026. Footeprint: Eunice Newton Foote at the Dawn of Climate Science and Women's Rights. Charlesbridge.
- Metcalf, Lindsay H., Dawson, Keila V., and Bradley, Jeanette. Eds. 2026. No Brain the Same: Neurodivergent Young Activists Shaping Our Future. Charlesbridge.
- McCullough, Joy. 2026. Kestrel Takes Flight. Atheneum.
- Mole, Simon. 2026. Poetry Pizza. Ill by. Tom McLaughlin.
- Moses, Brian. 2026. I am Ray’s Imaginary Friend. Ill. by Bethan Welby.
- Murray, Yvette R. 2026. Celebrate We Gullah Geechee. Ill. by Tonya Engel. Free Spirit.
- Newman, Lesléa. 2026. Song of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Ill. by Vesper Stamper. Enchanted Lion.
- Oliver, Mary. 2026. Goldfinches. Ill. by Melissa Sweet. Viking.
- Park, Linda Sue. 2026. Just One Gift. Ill. by Robert Sae-Heng. HarperCollins/Clarion.
- Patel, Khushboo. 2026. All That Chandni Knows. Putnam.
- Paul, Miranda. 2026. House of Joy: A Celebration of Lucille Clifton, Author and Poet. Ill. by Jerry Jordan. Henry Holt.
- Peña-Govea, René. 2026. Estela, Undrowning. HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books.
- Piercey, Rachel. 2026. Wisdom of the Woods. Ill. by Freya Hartas. Magic Cat.
- Randall, Julian. 2026. Shook. Henry Holt.
- Safadi, Shifa Saltagi. 2026. Sisters Alone. Putnam.
- Salas, Laura Purdie. 2026. Meet the Mighty Helpers. Ill. by Julia Patton. Astra Young Readers.
- Salazar, Aida. 2026. Stream. Scholastic.
- Saltzberg, Barney. 2026. You Can Count on a Cat: And Other Poems About Cats. Holiday House/Neal Porter Books.
- Santaeulàlia, J.N. 2026. Time for Haiku. Ill. by Lucian Lozano. Trans. by Lawrence Schimel. Red Comet Press.
- Seigal, Joshua. 2026. I Tell Myself I’m Awesome. Ill. by Chris Piascik. Bloomsbury.
- Singer, Marilyn. 2026. Whose Tree Is This?: Poems About the Mighty Oak and Its Companions. Ill. by Julian Plum. Millbrook Press.
- Sterer, Gideon. 2026. What Is the Wind? Ill. by Guojing. Clarion.
- Taylor, Susan Johnston. 2026. If Pets Wrote Poems: A Parody Collection. Ill. by Sandie Sonke. Gnome Road Press.
- Toalson, R. L. 2026. Love, Sivvy. Little, Brown.
- Wagamese, Richard. 2026. Canada. Ill. by Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley. Tundra/Swift Water Books.
- Wenjen, Mia. 2026. Barbed Wire Between Us. Ill. by Violeta Encarnación. Red Comet Press.
Now head on over to BookSeedStudio where Jan is hosting our Poetry Friday gathering!
15 comments:
FYI: I'm heading to the Galápagos Islands and the Amazon rainforest this weekend (woohoo!), so there will be a delay in responding or updating the list. Thanks for your patience!
Thanks, Sylvia, for sharing this beautiful batch of new books! Honored to see one of mine among them. Have fun in the Amazon! (I'll be going there too in a minute to order some of these books. ;-)
Thank you so much for twenty years of joyful anticipation, and all the woohoos!
Wow-wow! Sylvia, twenty terrific years of this nourishing blog! I feel you will find the perfect taker among the many who will be honored to inherit your considerable mantle & continue sharing the resources & tips you do.
As for this specific 2026 forecast list, it's always intriguing & fun to read your year ahead's round up & find fascinating titles & #PoetryFriday & other friends in poetry.
Many many appreciations for the Great Good you've contributed.
I know you will be one of the most observant & appreciative travelers immersed with the people, creatures, food, waterways & flora & fauna of the great Amazon jungle.
Your fan, Bookseedstudio. JGAnnino
It looks liike 2026 will be a full, rich year for children's poetry! :D
Wow what a list for this year, and beyond. Thank you for putting this together.
Hi Sylvia, I want to let you know of a couple titles I have coming next year: In February, Charlesbridge will release my debut YA novel-in-verse, FOOTEPRINT: Eunice Newton Foote at the Dawn of Climate Science and Women's Rights. Then in June, the team behind NO VOICE TOO SMALL will release a third poetry anthology, entitled NO BRAIN THE SAME: Neurodivergent Young Activists Shaping Our Future. Thank you for compiling this list, and have a wonderful trip!
Sylvia, thank you for your extensive list of books. You have held the torch high in your 20 years of dilegent work. Enjoy your travels..
Thank you for ALL you've done for children's poetry, Sylvia! I hope someone picks up where you are leaving off with the sneak peak list! Have fun in the Amazon!! WOW!
Thank you for this list, Sylvia. And enjoy your trip!
Well done, Sylvia! You (and your list) are such a gift! Enjoy your trip!
Thank you, Sylvia, for your dedication to the institution of Children's Poetry! i was just admiring your WORLD OF again this week. Please enjoy your trip (a bucket list destination for me), and I wish it could be me to carry the torch...sadly I don't think that's in the cards for me. Onward!!
Thanks so much for sharing this list. I have a 5-year-old who is very interested in rhyming words and I want to get him more into poetry. Can't wait to check out some of these books!
My novel in verse PERFECT ENOUGH comes out in June with Scholastic--could you please add? -Meg Eden Kuyatt
Thank you all for your kind words and all your support. Lindsay-- I added your two titles too. Congratulations! And to all our poets!
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