Instant Pot fans, today is the day! THE INSTANT POT NO-PRESSURE COOKBOOK, Laurel Randolph's follow up to her runaway bestseller, The Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook , is on sale today from St. Martin's Press.

This book takes readers beyond the boring basics, providing delicious and unique recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, such as:Spiced Banana Steel-Cut OatsShakshuka with Harissa and Feta CheeseVietnamese Brisket TacosBiryani with Currants and CashewsWhatever your pleasure, this book has you covered. Pick up your copy here and here, or at your favorite cookbook retailer. Congratulations, Laurel!

I’m delighted to wish a superb book and it's author, Angie Smibert, the very happiest of book birthdays!

BONE'S GIFT is a supernatural historical mystery about twelve-year-old Bone, who possesses a Gift that allows her to see the stories in everyday objects. When she receives a note that says her mother's Gift killed her, Bone seeks to unravel the mysteries of her mother's death, the schisms in her family, and the Gifts themselves.In a southern Virginia coal-mining town in 1942, Bone Phillips has just reached the age when most members of her family discover their Gift. Bone has a Gift that disturbs her; she can sense stories when she touches an object that was important to someone. She sees both sad and happy--the death of a deer in an arrowhead, the pain of a beating in a baseball cap, and the sense of joy in a fiddle. There are also stories woven into her dead mama's butter-yellow sweater--stories Bone yearns for and fears. When Bone receives a note that says her mama's Gift is what killed her, Bone tries to uncover the truth. Could Bone's Gift do the same? This beautifully resonant coming-of-age tale is about learning to trust the power of your own story.Read on for our excellent reviews!★ “This mystical mystery makes good use of its World War II backdrop, with sure-fire markers of the times ranging from Pearl Harbor to Negro League Baseball. It also effectively evokes the Appalachian culture with written dialect and a cultural emphasis on storytelling that’ll snag even history-resistant readers...No worries about what’s to come for Bone and her family, though; Bone’s Gift is just the opening installment of the Ghosts of Ordinary Objects trilogy.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books“[Bone’s Gift] is a middle-grade book, but it has much wider appeal than that. I loved this book. When it comes out on March 20th, I highly recommend grabbing it. The setting is beautiful, the characters rich, and the plot just windy enough to keep you interested (but not confused).” — Blogger & Librarian, Rebecca Ciota"An intriguing blend of history and magic." — Kirkus Reviews"This well-researched novel has a strong sense of place...The narrative includes stories from both Appalachian and Cherokee traditions, and offers complex perspectives on child labor, duty, and the effects illness and war had on rural communities."— BooklistPlease find BONE'S GIFT at your library or local bookstore. Congrats and happiest of Pub Days to Angie — stop by her site, here and here, to say hello!

Today is the day, folks! The day that the eighth book in the marvelous, colorful, silly and happy series, SUPER HAPPY PARTY BEARS, is available -- aka your lucky day!

A group of sloths arrives at the Grumpy River for a synchronized swimming competition, and the Super Happy Party Bears are thrilled. They throw a party to celebrate their team, but the sloths just...sleep.The residents of the Grumpy Woods can't help but notice the giant pile of snoozing sloths, and Mayor Quill plots to get rid of them by shutting down the competition...until he unexpectedly gets the opportunity to show off his swimming moves.Illustrated in full color!Praise for Super Happy Party Bears: Knock Knock on Wood : "The pure delight of the story will easily draw youngsters in and probably turn a few grumpy frowns upside down." The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (BCCB)Read all the Super Happy Party Bears adventures:Super Happy Party Bears: Gnawing AroundSuper Happy Party Bears: Knock Knock on Wood Super Happy Party Bears: Staying a Hive Super Happy Party Bears: Going Nuts Super Happy Party Bears: Bat to the BoneSuper Happy Party Bears: The JitterbugSuper Happy Party Bears: Tiny PrancerCongratulations to Marcie Colleen for these wonderful books! Stop and say hi to her at her site or on twitter!

Happy book release day to Beth Hautala and her wonderful middle grade novel, THE OSTRICH AND OTHER LOST THINGS.

Eleven-year-old Olivia Grant has a knack for finding lost things. She can find lost rings, pets, and even her elderly neighbor's misplaced glasses. There's only one thing Olivia has never been able to find--her brother Jacob's toy ostrich. It wasn't until the day Jacob lost his ostrich that Olivia noticed how different he was: Jacob is autistic, and though she's his little sister, Olivia often feels like the older of the pair, his caretaker. In fact, apart from being Jacob's sister, Olivia's not really sure who she is.So when summer break begins, and the local community theater announces auditions for an all children's production of her favorite show, Peter Pan, Olivia jumps at the chance to claim something for herself. But what begins as a promising opportunity and a wonderful escape quickly becomes pure chaos.In time, and with the help of some unlikely alliances, Olivia must learn what it means to be separate from her brother and still love him, how to love herself in spite of her own flaws, and that not all lost things are meant to be found.Congratulations to Beth!Reviews:★"This is hands down the best book with an autistic character that I have ever read."--School Library Connection (starred review)"Hautala offers an emotionally adept story about love and understanding."—School Library Journal“The stresses of being a sibling of someone with autism are very real, and Hautala describes the constriction and frustration Olivia feels, artfully and authentically.”— Booklist

I’m over the moon to wish Adam Smyer's KNUCKLEHEAD a happy book birthday!In Knucklehead we meet Marcus Hayes, a black law student who struggles, sometimes unsuccessfully, with the impulse to confront everyday bad behavior with swift and antisocial action. The cause of this impulse is unknown to him.When Marcus unexpectedly becomes involved with the brilliant and kind Amalia Stewart, her love and acceptance pacify his demons. But when his demons return, he is no longer inclined to contain them.You can pick up your copy from the Akashic Books website or from Amazon.Congratulations, Adam!★“This book is bold in how it treats the reader as an insider to the reality of American blackness. It can be, in turns, lyrically poignant, cynical, hilarious, and infuriating.” —Foreword Reviews, STARRED review“In this comic debut novel, lawyer Marcus Hayes careens through the racially divisive 1990s while trying to manage his compulsive anger, chaotic love life, and economic misfortunes . . . Smyer gives Marcus a sardonic and hilarious voice reminiscent of a Paul Beatty protagonist and endows him with a troubled psychology that plumbs the nuances of black male identity.” --Kirkus“Marcus is an intelligent, acerbic, and often hilarious narrator, bringing a fresh, biting perspective to the social and racial tensions of the time that, as debut novelist Smyer makes clear, are not particularly different from today.” —Library Journal“While the provocative subject material will take readers to a sometimes-uncomfortable place, this brilliant debut is also deeply, darkly funny . . . This is one of those books that simply has to be discussed, as it managed to tackle difficult topics with unexpected humor and pathos. While Marcus is a troubled character, his journey and the choices he makes will provide rich meat for discussion about race in America and how justifiable anger can turn toxic.” —IndiePicks Magazine

I’m delighted to wish two marvelous books the very happiest of book birthdays!

A TAXONOMY OF LOVE is Rachael Allen's third YA novel. It begins with the moment Spencer meets Hope, the summer before seventh grade. It’s . . . something at first sight. He knows she’s special, possibly even magical. The pair become fast friends, climbing trees and planning world travels. After years of being outshone by his older brother and teased because of his Tourette syndrome, Spencer finally feels like he belongs. But as Hope and Spencer get older and life gets messier, the clear label of “friend” gets messier, too.Through sibling feuds and family tragedies, new relationships and broken hearts, the two grow together and apart, and Spencer, an aspiring scientist, tries to map it all out using his trusty system of taxonomy. He wants to identify and classify their relationship, but in the end, he finds that life doesn’t always fit into easy-to-manage boxes, and it’s this messy complexity that makes life so rich and beautiful.Read on for our excellent reviews!★ “Readers will be on the edge of their seats wondering what the future holds...this book is groundbreaking in its demonstration of the complexity of human emotion.” -- School Library Connection, Starred Review“Through sparkling prose (and Spencer’s clever doodles), Allen depicts how debasing unrequited love can feel, and just how consuming that connection can be when shared at long last.” -- Booklist“A multilayered and charming novel that blends humor, romance, tragedy, and other universal coming-of-age themes.” -- School Library Journal“Fans of John Corey Whaley’s Highly Illogical Behavior will appreciate the two characters’ attempts to reach each other despite everything that happens over the course of six years.” -- VOYA

Lisa Lewis Tyre's HOPE IN THE HOLLER is her second middle-grade novel: the poignant -- and funny -- story of a girl trying to be brave and find her place in the world after she's sent to live with scheming relatives.Right before Wavie's mother died, she gave Wavie a list of instructions to help her find her way in life, including this one: Be brave, Wavie B! You got as much right to a good life as anybody, so find it! But little did Wavie's mom know that events would conspire to bring Wavie back to Conley Hollow, the Appalachian hometown her mother tried to leave behind. Now Wavie's back in the Holler -- and in the clutches of her Aunt Samantha Rose. Life with the devilish Samantha Rose and her revolting cousin Hoyt is no picnic, but there's real pleasure in sleeping in her own mother's old bed, and making friends with the funny, easygoing kids her aunt calls the "neighborhood-no-accounts." With their help, Wavie just might be able to prevent her aunt from becoming her legal guardian, and find her courage and place in the world.We're getting great attention for HOPE already:Top Pick, Winter 2017-2018 Kids’ Indie Next ListAmazon’s Best Books of the Month for January★ “A moving and richly engaging tale of despair and redemption.” -- Kirkus, Starred Review“Those who read this will find hope in the most desperate times, even if it means struggling through the deepest troubles.” -- Denver PostPlease find these books at your library or local bookstore – they are both utterly delightful! Not to mention these gorgeous covers, no?Congrats and happiest of Pub Days to Rachael and Lisa -- stop by their sites to say hello. You'll find Rachael here and Lisa here.

Happy book birthday to Christina Mandelski's THE FIRST KISS HYPOTHESIS!She thinks love is a chemical reaction. He thinks her theory is unstable.Nora Reid believes scientific laws control everything, even love. With her grandparents’ epic first kiss story cemented in her brain, Nora develops a hypothesis she’s determined to prove: for each person in the world, there is exactly one other person, and at first kiss, they’ll experience an immediate and intense reaction.But after four years of zero-reaction kisses, she comes up with a new theory: maybe that pesky crush on her stunningly hot best friend Eli Costas is skewing her results.She needs to get rid of him, and fast.Eli Costas is an injury-prone lacrosse star with a problem—the one chance he had at winning over the girl next door resulted in the most epically sucktastic first kiss ever. And now she’s...trying to get rid of him? Hell no. It’s time to disprove her theory and show her exactly what she’s missing.Game. On.Congratulations to Chris! Be sure to stop by her sites to say hello! You can find her here and here and here.

I'm so happy to share that Daphne Kalmar's debut MG novel, A STITCH IN TIME, has sold to Jean Feiwel and Anna Roberto at Feiwel & Friends!

Donut is an eleven-year old geography buff who keeps her taxidermied mice hidden in her late mother’s hope chest. Her pops died eight weeks ago, leaving her an orphan. Aunt Agnes has moved in, bringing along her lumpy oatmeal, her knitting and a plan to drag Donut off to Boston forever.Donut stands to lose everything: her friends, her Vermont village, her home, the woods and walks where the memories of her pops are stored up like the bread and butter pickles in canning jars on the shelf. While Donut dodges the hurt of missing her pops, she and her best friend Tiny plan how to keep her right where she belongs. When Aunt Agnes is not persuaded, Donut paddles away in her pops’ last invention, a folding tin boat. Holed up in a cabin on Dog Pond, Donut hopes Aunt Agnes will throw in the towel and leave Vermont without her. But Donut isn’t counting on a bear, a leaky boat, or an ache that won’t go away.A STITCH IN TIME is shot through with gorgeous, evocative language, and gets right to Donut’s heart – her hurt, her strength, her struggle to make sense of loss. She’s buoyed by her sense of humor, and this is a book that made me both cry and cackle with laughter. But perhaps what I love about it most is that it’s not just about loss, it’s about renewal.You'll find it in bookstores next June -- congratulations to Daphne!

I'm thrilled to announce that Matt Myklusch's (author of the Jack Blank and Seaborne series) newest middle grade series, MAJESTIC: THE MAGICIAN'S ASSISTANT, has sold to Liesa Abrams at Aladdin. It's fun, it's fast paced, and it's about what happens when we allow ourselves to believe in the power of good old fashioned magic.

Joey Kopecky isn’t smartest 12-year-old in the state of New Jersey. But everyone thinks he is. So when Joey’s perfect test scores and ability to “see through tricks” get him out of summer school and qualify him to try out for a job at the Majestic Theater working for Redondo the Magnificent, he is thrilled.Joey wants the job, but he’s not the only one applying. He will face competition from children who come from all around the world.Joey soon learns there is more to magic than putting on a good show. Dark magicians intent on destroying Redondo and wreaking havoc on the magical world are closing in, and it’s up to Joey to save them all—if only he can find a way to truly believe.

Congratulations to Matt!

Happiest of book birthdays to Shelley Tougas's LAURA INGALLS IS RUINING MY LIFE!

A life on the prairie is not all its cracked up to be for one girl whose mom takes her love of the Little House series just a bit too far.Charlotte’s mom has just moved the family across the country to live in Walnut Grove, “childhood home of pioneer author Laura Ingalls Wilder.” Mom’s idea is that the spirit of Laura Ingalls will help her write a bestselling book. But Charlotte knows better: Walnut Grove is just another town where Mom can avoid responsibility. And this place is worse than everywhere else the family has lived―it’s freezing in the winter, it’s small with nothing to do, and the people talk about Laura Ingalls all the time. Charlotte’s convinced her family will not be able to make a life on the prairie―until the spirit of Laura Ingalls starts getting to her, too."Strong characters and fast plotting propel readers to a sweet, realistic end that provides hope and a sense of stability...Lovely." – Kirkus Reviews"This sharp and quirky story winningly portrays a girl who, in finding herself, finds family, friends, and a place to belong." – School Library JournalPlease look for this book at your library or local bookstore!Congrats and happiest of Pub Days to Shelley Tougas -- stop by her site to say hello. You'll find her here and here.