Tie-In Books
Enjoy the Spring Semester with Spidey and Stitch!
Recently, I wrote a Spidey and His Amazing Friends board book titled Search for the Missing Teddy Bear. And I wrote a Lilo & Stitch activity book called Scratch and Sketch with Stitch! Both books are out NOW from Scholastic, just in time for the spring 2024 semester!
(Of school. The spring 2024 semester…of school. Because these are books for very young children. Who are in school. Just wanted to clarify that, in case you thought that these books were for college students or something, as colleges have semesters too. But the fact that one of these books is a board book probably tells you that it’s not for college-age people, right? Hmm. I think I’m doing that thing I sometimes do, where I overexplain stuff way too much. Like, WAYYYY too much. Moving on…)
Here’s Scholastic’s official description of Search for the Missing Teddy Bear:
Missing teddy? Never fear! Team Spidey is here to save the day! In this fun board book, Spidey’s head is a tactile, slow-rise squishy built into the back cover and pops through die cuts on every page! Swing through various locations with Spidey to find the missing teddy!
I just want to emphasize something the above ad copy mentioned: In this book, Spidey’s head is a tactile, slow-rise squishy! Isn’t that adorable? (Yes. Yes, it is.)
And here’s the official publisher description of Scratch and Sketch with Stitch:
Scratch to reveal cosmic colors and supercool patterns as you go on adventures with Stitch, the little blue alien with a big heart!
BTW, many of the aforementioned “adventures” in this Stitch book are games, puzzles, and activities. And one of the activities involves candy
hearts, the kind you give and receive on Valentine’s Day. Which of course is quite fitting, since Valentine’s Day is just a few short weeks away!
And just in case you’re interested, the back cover copy for Scratch and Sketch with Stitch tells you a little more about what you can expect from that book:
This Stitch-tastic activity book is brimming with intergalactic illustrations! Scratch away to reveal what outfit Stitch wears on an outer space trip, complete a maze to help him get through a space nebula, draw a new musical instrument for him, and a whole lot more!
The book includes a wooden stylus (for the whole “scratch away” part), 20 scratch-off pages, and 20 notebook pages. Pretty cool, eh?
I should also mention that both of these books are only available for distribution through the school market. In other words, they’re exclusively available through Scholastic Reading Events, so you won’t be able to find them on Amazon.
Last but definitely not least, if you’d like to see some of the other books I’ve written for Scholastic over the years, you can click HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.
“Minecraft: Mobs in the Mansion” is out NOW!
Time is a construct. However, it’s OUR construct. (“Ours” as a society, I mean.) So as we use this imperfect system called a “calendar” to mark our time here on this tainted blue orb we call Earth, I wanted to wish all of you a Happy New Year!
And not to turn these totally warm and earnest new year wishes into a blatant narcissistic plug for a new project, BUT – how to say this non-narcissistically? – I have some news to share:
I wrote a Minecraft children’s book called Mobs in the Mansion, which was published today by Penguin Random House. It was illustrated by the amazing Alan Batson. Here’s the official publisher description of the book:
Journey into the world of Minecraft in this Step 3 Step into Reading, the only official leveled reader series based on Minecraft, one of the world’s best-selling video games!
Minecraft® is one of the best-selling video games of all time! And now learning to read has never been more fun for players of the game ages 4 to 7. They’ll get a great introduction to the game’s most mysterious biomes when two players, Emmy and Birch–and their tame wolf Byte–set out on an epic adventure to explore a dark Minecraft mansion!
And if you want to know more:
Check out the book’s page on the Penguin Random House site.
Check out the Amazon page for the book.
Last but definitely not least, feel free to check out some of the other books I’ve written for Penguin Random House.
The Nightmare Before Christmas Paper Models Book is out NOW!
Some time ago, I was approached by the folks at Thunder Bay Press and Judy O Productions. They were putting together a Nightmare Before Christmas Paper Models kit, and they wanted me to write the keepsake book that came with it. (Together, the kit and the book are called The Nightmare Before Christmas Paper Models Book.) Why am I mentioning this? Specifically, why am I mentioning this now? Because The Nightmare Before Christmas Paper Models Book came out TODAY from Thunder Bay Press!
The keepsake book is filled with behind-the-scenes information about the making of the classic 1993 movie The Nightmare Before Christmas. * When I was writing this book, I went through every scene in the movie and pointed out obscure background details, Easter eggs, and trivia facts.
I think fans of the movie will really like this book. And I also wrote all of the trivia facts which appear on the trading cards that accompany the kit and book.
Here’s the official publisher’s description of The Nightmare Before Christmas Paper Models Book:
Build 29 detailed replica models of favorite locations and characters from Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. Also includes a keepsake book with background information about the movie.
Build a magnificent diorama of Halloween Town and other iconic locations from Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. This two-in-one kit includes a 56-page model book with punch-out pieces and step-by-step instructions to make 29 detailed paper models such as Spiral Hill, the Mayor’s car, Jack’s house, Oogie Boogie’s lair—and more! Along with these fun paper models is a collection of punch-out trading cards with fascinating film facts, plus a 32-page keepsake book featuring iconic frames from the movie and detailed information about the dual-holiday movie that has captured the hearts of millions of fans around the world.
And if you want to know more:
Check out the book’s page on the Thunder Bay Press site.
You can also check out the book’s page on Amazon.
One more thing: If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you’ll know that this isn’t the first Nightmare Before Christmas book I’ve written. I also wrote The Nightmare Before Christmas Sticker Art Puzzles Book, which was published in 2021 by Thunder Bay Press. The entire book is one huge rhyming poem recounting the plot of The Nightmare Before Christmas. I talked about that book in this blog post, but you can also find out more about it HERE, HERE, and HERE.
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* Yup, The Nightmare Before Christmas originally came out in 1993. And if you’re good at math, you know that 2023 is the 30th anniversary of the film. Which is why The Nightmare Before Christmas Paper Models Book was published in the first place!