7 of the Best New Children’s Books of November 2026

This rediscovered fable about grief from the author of Goodnight Moon was written while the love of her life was dying. Now, it’s been reissued with new illustrations and a new afterword. It follows two orphaned children who are taken in by an old man who lives on the edge of a mysterious woods. He warned them to never enter the woods, but when he falls ill, the boy disregards his advice to go looking for a cure.

This is the latest from the author-illustrator duo who brought us Don’t Trust Fish. It’s a silly guide to all the things you SHOULDN’T do when you encounter a bear: don’t make fun of its fuzzy little ears and don’t let it draw you a picture, unless you want to end up like the author.

A young girl’s sister is always good, so she must be the bad one. When they’re both given identical bears, one soon becomes Bad Bear. But her sister loves Bad Bear, too: maybe two very different bears can both be good. This story encourages kids not to compare themselves to others, especially siblings.

When Nova set out to visit her scientist mother in Antarctica, her goal was to convince her to come home. But when Nova and her best friend arrive, they learn that one of the researchers has turned up dead. Nova’s mother is the prime suspect, so Nova sets out to clear her name, alongside new and old friends.

The most anticipated new children’s book out in November is the latest in the Dog Man series! It’s hard to overstate how astronomically popular this humorous middle grade graphic novel series is. In this volume, Grampa alters the fabric of space and time.

This picture book biography follows Gladys West from her childhood growing up on a farm in Virginia to becoming a groundbreaking mathematician who helped invent GPS. The back matter includes more information, a timeline, and a section on lumpy potato science!

And here’s another must-read picture book biography out in November! Coretta Scott was a talented musician who had to fight countless barriers that racism put in her way, from public education for Black children ending at sixth grade to white neighbors burning down her father’s house and mill. When she met a minister named Martin Luther King, Jr., the two of them became leading voices in the Civil Rights Movement.