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Brume, Volume 3

Brume, Volume 3

Jérôme Pélissier; Illustrated by Carine Hinder
The President Is Ailing

The President Is Ailing

Gail Jarrow
Draekora

Draekora

Lynette Noni
William Carney Carries the Flag

William Carney Carries the Flag

Gary Golio; Illustrated by E. B. Lewis
A Heart on Fire

A Heart on Fire

Jan Lower; Illustrated by Carlyn Beccia
My Word, Theodore!

My Word, Theodore!

Kate Hannigan; Illustrated by Stacy Innerst
Raelia

Raelia

Lynette Noni
Splish

Splish

DK Ryland
Bill the Dog

Bill the Dog

Chris Britt
What Shall We Tell You?

What Shall We Tell You?

Wade Hudson; Illustrated by Tonya Engel
Pepper

Pepper

Karl Stevens
Look and Cook Fresh

Look and Cook Fresh

Valorie Fisher
The Patriots and the Pox

The Patriots and the Pox

Beth Anderson; Illustrated by Ashley Benham-Yazdani
Akarnae

Akarnae

Lynette Noni
The Very Unusual Pumpkin

The Very Unusual Pumpkin

Marilyn Singer; Illustrated by Maya Shleifer
Home Builder Hazel

Home Builder Hazel

Linda Ashman; Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter
Blues with a Butter Knife

Blues with a Butter Knife

Jason Peterson; Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
A Not-So-Scary Story

A Not-So-Scary Story

Barney Saltzberg
Dog Days

Dog Days

Claudia Boldt
Dog Days

Dog Days

Claudia Boldt

Astra Young Readers

Shipwrecked!

Shipwrecked!

Martin W. Sandler
Bread Days

Bread Days

Hannah Chung
The Strangest Fish

The Strangest Fish

Katherine Arden; Illustrated by Zahra Marwan
Look and Cook Snacks

Look and Cook Snacks

Valorie Fisher
This Hair Belongs

This Hair Belongs

JaNay Brown-Wood; Illustrated by Erin K. Robinson

Calkins Creek

American Spirits

American Spirits

Barb Rosenstock
White House Secrets

White House Secrets

Gail Jarrow
¡Viva Valenzuela!

¡Viva Valenzuela!

Nathalie Alonso; Illustrated by John Parra
The Fabulous Fannie Farmer

The Fabulous Fannie Farmer

Emma Bland Smith; Illustrated by Susan Reagan

Hippo Park

Itty Bitty Betty Blob

Itty Bitty Betty Blob

Constance Lombardo; Illustrated by Micah Player
Be My Yummy ABC

Be My Yummy ABC

Joyce Wan
Brume, Volume 1

Brume, Volume 1

Jérôme Pélissier
Her Muddy Majesty of Muck

Her Muddy Majesty of Muck

Beatrice Alemagna
The Love Report

The Love Report

BeKa

Toon

We Are for the Dark

We Are for the Dark

Gretchen McNeil
Pencil

Pencil

Hye-eun Kim
Calamity Before Jane

Calamity Before Jane

Noah Van Sciver
The Selfish Sister

The Selfish Sister

David Sedaris; Illustrated by Bob Staake
Jake Spooky And the Wolves Within Him

Jake Spooky And the Wolves Within Him

Mike Grover
View All Books

Meet the Team

Susan Dobinick

Associate Publisher

Carolyn Yoder

Editorial Director

Deborah Sloan

Marketing Consultant

Kerry McManus

Marketing Director

Addie Marin

Marketing Assistant

Paul Reyes

Retail Marketing Manager

Thalia Leaf

Associate Editor

Millie von Platen

Assistant Editor
Susan Dobinick

Associate Publisher

Susan Dobinick

Susan Dobinick is the associate publisher for Astra Books for Young Readers, where she oversees the full children’s publishing program and edits a select number of titles. Some of the books she’s edited at ABFYR include the USA Today bestsellerZohran Walks New York by Millie von Platen, YALSA Nonfiction finalist Shackled by Candy J. Cooper, Sibert Honor Shipwrecked by Martin W. Sandler, and the Look and Cook series by Valorie Fisher. Before Astra Susan worked at Bloomsbury Children’s Books, where she oversaw their nonfiction program, and FSG Books for Young Readers.

Carolyn Yoder

Editorial Director

Carolyn Yoder

Carolyn P. Yoder is the founding editor and currently the editorial director of Calkins Creek Books, U.S. history imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers. Carolyn’s passion for the past is obvious in all the positions she has held since graduating from the University of Iowa with a MA in English Literature: editor-in-chief and publisher of Cobblestone Publishing; senior editor of history of Highlights Magazine; director of the New Hampshire Antiquarian Society; and a writer and editor for the NJ Historical Society. She is also the author of George Washington, the Writer; John Adams, the Writer; and three books in the We Are America series published by Heinemann.

Deborah Sloan, Marketing Consultant

Marketing Consultant

Deborah Sloan

With over 30 years experience in the kidlit space, Deborah Sloan works as a publicity and marketing consultant and is proud to have led campaigns for David Sedaris and Ian Falconer’s award-winning picture book, Pretty Ugly; Pulitzer Prize winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Simone; the starred-reviewed Pushing Hope, a YA illustrated memoir by Raymond Santana. A trusted source of insight and information on children’s publishing, Deborah is thrilled to make her career in publishing, and children’s publishing in particular. After her family, there’s nothing she cares so much about as a good book and the person who created it and ferreting out new ways to reach the kids/teens it’s written for.

Kerry McManus

Marketing Director

Kerry McManus

Kerry McManus is the Marketing Director of Astra Books for Young Readers. With more than 25 years of experience in the children’s publishing industry, she has held senior marketing roles at Random House and Highlights for Children. Throughout her career, Kerry has collaborated closely with authors and illustrators including Philip Pullman, Mary Pope Osborne, Faith Ringgold, Nikki Grimes, Gail Jarrow, and Barb Rosenstock, among many others. She is especially passionate about shepherding a book from launch to publication, ensuring that each title finds its audience through imaginative and creative marketing. Kerry serves on the board of the Children’s Book Council, where she also participates in the organization’s mentorship program, as well as on the board of the High School Scholarship Foundation of Fairfield, Connecticut. A graduate of Providence College, she is the mother of three adult daughters and lives in Connecticut with her husband, Brian.

Addie Marin

Marketing Assistant

Addie Marin

Addie Marin is the Marketing Assistant for Astra Books for Young Readers where she assists with marketing and publicity for titles across all of ABFYR’s imprints. Prior to Astra, she was an intern at Seven Stories Press and Dystel, Goderich & Bourret, LLC. She is a 2024 graduate of Brown University with a degree in English Literature on the Nonfiction Writing Track.

Paul Reyes

Retail Marketing Manager

Paul Reyes

Paul Reyes is the Retail Marketing Manager at Astra Books for Young Readers and has spent his entire career in publishing. Prior to joining Astra Publishing House, he held analyst roles at Penguin Young Readers and Dorling Kindersley (DK), served as a Key Accounts Manager at Bloomsbury, and worked in marketing across academic and science, technical, and medical publishing for Routledge and Humana Press.

Thalia Leaf

Associate Editor

Thalia Leaf

Thalia Leaf is the associate editor at Calkins Creek, the U.S. history imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers. She works on picture books to longer fiction and nonfiction for older kids and teens and is passionate about publishing books on the triumphs and tragedies of this country’s history, books that are touching, inspiring, and fun. Prior to joining Astra, Thalia taught English as a foreign language and worked in academic publishing. Agents may send submissions to .

Millie von Platen

Assistant Editor

Millie von Platen

Millie von Platen is an associate editor at Astra Young Readers and TOON Books. At Astra, she has worked on titles including The Dangerous Alphabet Book by DK Ryland, Simone by Viet Thanh Nguyen and Minnie Phan, and Pepper by Karl Stevens. An illustrator as well as an editor, Millie’s work has appeared in The New York Times and The New Yorker. Her debut picture book, Zohran Walks New York, was published by Calkins Creek in 2025.