A heartwarming story of friendship, loss, and finding your way home fromdebut author/illustrator Mai K. Nguyen!Willow loves the woods near herhouse. They’re calm and quiet, so different from her ownturbulent emotions, which she keeps locked away. When her emotions get thebetter of her one day, she decides to run away into the woods.There, shemeets Pilu, a lost tree spirit who can’t find her way backhome—which turns out to be the magnolia groveWillow’s mom used to take her to. Willow offers to helpPilu, and the two quickly become friends.But the journey is long, andPilu isn’t sure she’s ready to returnhome yet—which infuriates Willow, who’sdetermined to make up for her own mistakes by getting Pilu back safely. As astorm rages and Willow’s emotions bubble to the surface,they suddenly take on a physical form, putting both girls indanger… and forcing Willow to confront her inner feelingsonce and for all.

5 Worlds meets Spirited Away in this graphic novel of a girl fighting to return home from the spirit world.NOMINATED FOR THE CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR ILLUSTRATION 2026Anzu has just moved to a new town during Obon, a time for families to remember and celebrate their ancestors. Ever since her grandmother Obaachan died, though, Obon has lost its magic for Anzu. She doesn't feel like celebrating.Escaping the festivities, Anzu chases after a stray dog. She slips and falls down a ridge - to find herself in the Shinto underworld known as Yomi, a place she's heard about in Obaachan's stories. The stray dog, she finds out, is actually the Gatekeeper of Yomi, and he warns her to return to the human realm before it's too late.Only, getting home is not simple. Faced with the nefarious Queen Izanami and a realm of creatures, Anzu is in a race against the clock. Can she break a curse, free the spirits of other lost children and reach the gate home before sunrise? . . . Or will she be stuck in Yomi for ever?

A heartwarming story of friendship, loss, and finding your way home fromdebut author/illustrator Mai K. Nguyen!Willow loves the woods near herhouse. They’re calm and quiet, so different from her ownturbulent emotions, which she keeps locked away. When her emotions get thebetter of her one day, she decides to run away into the woods.There, shemeets Pilu, a lost tree spirit who can’t find her way backhome—which turns out to be the magnolia groveWillow’s mom used to take her to. Willow offers to helpPilu, and the two quickly become friends.But the journey is long, andPilu isn’t sure she’s ready to returnhome yet—which infuriates Willow, who’sdetermined to make up for her own mistakes by getting Pilu back safely. As astorm rages and Willow’s emotions bubble to the surface,they suddenly take on a physical form, putting both girls indanger… and forcing Willow to confront her inner feelingsonce and for all.

5 Worlds meets Spirited Away in this graphic novel of a girl fighting to return home from the spirit world.NOMINATED FOR THE CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR ILLUSTRATION 2026Anzu has just moved to a new town during Obon, a time for families to remember and celebrate their ancestors. Ever since her grandmother Obaachan died, though, Obon has lost its magic for Anzu. She doesn't feel like celebrating.Escaping the festivities, Anzu chases after a stray dog. She slips and falls down a ridge - to find herself in the Shinto underworld known as Yomi, a place she's heard about in Obaachan's stories. The stray dog, she finds out, is actually the Gatekeeper of Yomi, and he warns her to return to the human realm before it's too late.Only, getting home is not simple. Faced with the nefarious Queen Izanami and a realm of creatures, Anzu is in a race against the clock. Can she break a curse, free the spirits of other lost children and reach the gate home before sunrise? . . . Or will she be stuck in Yomi for ever?