Penguin Random House
“Minecraft: Trouble Brewing” is Out NOW!
As I mentioned in my last blog post, I recently wrote a Minecraft children’s book called Trouble Brewing. Well, I’m happy to report that Trouble Brewing was published today by Penguin Random House. It was illustrated by the amazing Alan Batson.
Here’s the official publisher description of Trouble Brewing:
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. Readers will get a great introduction to Minecraft’s mysteries and wonders when two players, Emmy and Birch—and their tame wolf Byte— find themselves trapped underground and must brew rare ingredients into powerful potions to survive the dark!
In other mining and crafting news, another Minecraft book I wrote, titled Mobs in the Mansion, was reprinted in a multi-story anthology called Minecraft: The Ultimate Collection, which also came out today.
Minecraft: The Ultimate Collection reprints five Minecraft adventures, all in one big book. The first four of those adventures were written by Nick Eliopulos, and the fifth one – Mobs in the Mansion – was penned by yours truly. All five tales were illustrated by Alan Batson.
Here’s the publisher description of Minecraft: The Ultimate Collection:
Players new and old can join Emmy, Birch, and their tame wolf Byte, as they explore mysterious biomes and encounter scary mobs in this collection of five exciting Step Into Reading Step 3 leveled readers. Features the stories:
• Survival Mode! (Minecraft)
• Mobs in the Overworld! (Minecraft)
• Escape from the Nether (Minecraft)
• The Sky’s the Limit (Minecraft)
• Mobs in the Mansion! (Minecraft)
And to see all of the books I’ve written for Penguin Random House (including these Minecraft books), click HERE.
Minecraft News!
Hey, look at what just came in the mail! These are my author copies of Trouble Brewing, a Minecraft children’s book I wrote. Trouble Brewing will be published by Penguin Random House on Tuesday September 3rd, 2024. The book was illustrated by the amazing Alan Batson. Here’s the official publisher description of Trouble Brewing:
Journey into the world of Minecraft in this Step 3 leveled Step into Reading! Learn about Minecraft biomes, potions, and more—all while learning to read! Perfect for kids who are ready to read on their own. 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. Readers will get a great introduction to Minecraft’s mysteries and wonders when two players, Emmy and Birch—and their tame wolf Byte— find themselves trapped underground and must brew rare ingredients into powerful potions to survive the dark!
And if you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that Trouble Brewing is not the first Minecraft book I’ve written. That would be Mobs in the Mansion, which came out earlier this year.
Speaking of Mobs in the Mansion, that book’s been reprinted in a multi-story anthology called Minecraft: The Ultimate Collection, which also comes out on September 3rd. As you may have discerned from the title, Minecraft: The Ultimate Collection is a (wait for it) collection of five Minecraft Step Into Reading level 3 readers, all sandwiched together in one big book. The first four of those leveled readers were written by Nick Eliopulos, and the fifth one – Mobs in the Mansion – was penned by yours truly. All five tales were illustrated by Alan Batson.
And to see all of the books I’ve written for Penguin Random House (including these Minecraft books), click HERE.
I’m in Publishers Weekly!
Okay, I probably should’ve blogged about this a while ago, because it happened a while ago. But better late than never, right? Anyway, on April 25th, Publishers Weekly ran an article by Shannon Maughan called “Children’s Publishers Embrace The Taylor Swift Factor.” As you might imagine, it was about the recent wave of children’s nonfiction titles about Taylor Swift. Now, if you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that I wrote a book called 96 Facts About Taylor Swift, which was published by Penguin Random House in September of 2023. It was the inaugural title in a series of middle grade celebrity biographies I’ve been working on for quite some time, called the “96 Facts” series. Was my Taylor Swift book mentioned in this Publishers Weekly article? Yes. Yes, it was. And just in case you don’t have a subscription to Publishers Weekly and therefore cannot read the article, here’s what Shannon had to say about my book:
“Trivia and activity books are in the mix, too. A lead title in this pack is 96 Facts About Taylor Swift by Arie Kaplan, illustrated by Risa Rodil, which was released by Grosset & Dunlap last September, as part of its middle grade 96 Facts About… series highlighting figures in the entertainment world. In addition to biographical information and quizzes, the book contains extra pages with writing prompts inviting readers to share their thoughts on such themes as ‘The Soundtrack of Your Life’ and ‘Overcoming Your Fear.’ The book has sold 95,000 copies so far this year in outlets reporting to BookScan.”
Pretty cool, eh?
And if you DO have a subscription, here’s the whole “Children’s Publishers Embrace…” article.
And just yesterday, I found this other PW article which mentions one of my upcoming “96 Facts” books. The article is called “The On-Sale Calendar: November 2024 Children’s Books,” and the
book it mentions is 96 Facts About MrBeast, which comes out on November 5, 2024. It’s a list of upcoming children’s books, so my book is just briefly name-checked. Again, if you’re shut out by the paywall, here’s the part where my book is referenced:
“96 Facts About MrBeast by Arie Kaplan, illus. by Risa Rodil (Grosset & Dunlap, $6.99 paper; ISBN 978-0-593-88899-5). 50,000 copies.”
See? Brief. Just like I told you it’d be. Not complaining, BTW. Just a statement of fact. Honestly, I’m just happy to be part of the conversation in articles like this.
And in case you DO have a PW subscription, here’s the whole “On-Sale Calendar” article.
Just FYI, 96 Facts About Taylor Swift and 96 Facts About MrBeast are both illustrated by the incomparable Risa Rodil.
If you’d like to see the cover art – and other pertinent info – for my other “96 Facts” books, click HERE.
And if you’d like to see some info on all of the books I’ve written for Penguin Random House (so far), click HERE.