Stella & Marigold (Stella & Marigold #1)

by Annie Barrows (Author) Sophie Blackall (Illustrator)

Stella & Marigold (Stella & Marigold #1)
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

From the creators of the New York Times-bestselling Ivy + Bean comes a fun and funny new series about two small sisters with very big imaginations.

★ -- "Readers will long for a sibling like Marigold or Stella." -- Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

★ -- "All the heart. None of the pablum. Sisterhood at its finest and freshest." -- Kirkus, Starred Review

Generations of readers have fallen in love with Ivy + Bean, which has sold over 8 million copies and been adapted into a popular Netflix Original Film series. Now, bestselling author Annie Barrows and illustrator Sophie Blackall are back with the first book in a bright new series about a pair of sisters named Stella and Marigold.

Stella, who's seven, is kind, a good storyteller, and ponders big questions like, what do animals think of people? Marigold, at four, tells imaginative stories (her mother calls them "fibs") and likes to wear her favorite Halloween costume year-round. Stella and Marigold do all the regular things--like going to school, playing, getting sick sometimes, and visiting the zoo--but even the most regular things have a secret side.

Sure to delight fans of Ivy and Bean, these adventure tales--animated with full-color illustrations of the sisters' encounters with magical bathrooms, snow monkeys, dream lions, howling wolves, a lost Vice President, and much more--are filled with vibrant characters, creative storytelling, and a whole lot of laughs.

BELOVED CHILDREN'S BOOK CREATORS: Annie Barrows is the author of numerous award-winning and New York Times-bestselling books for children and adults, including The Magic Half, The Best of Iggy Series, and The Truth According to Us. Sophie Blackall is an award-winning illustrator of over 50 books for children, including the 2016 Caldecott Medal winner Finding Winnie and the 2019 Caldecott Medal winner Hello Lighthouse, which she also wrote.

CLASSIC / CONTEMPORARY CHARACTERS: No one creates universal yet unique characters the way Annie and Sophie do. Their distinctive combination of stories and art centered on family connection, empathy, and understanding appeal to adults, who find them lovely, and kids, who find them relatable (and laugh-out-loud funny!).

GREAT FOR NEWLY INDEPENDENT READERS: With lots of adventure, a dynamic relationship that captures an enormous range of emotions, and colorful pictures that bring the text to life, this series is perfect for emerging readers.

STRONG SIBLING RELATIONSHIP: The warm, loving relationship between Stella and Marigold is at the heart of this book. Parents looking for a positive depiction of the ups and downs of sisterhood will love this series.

Perfect for:

  • Independent readers age 6-9
  • Parents, teachers, and librarians seeking entertaining elementary school chapter books
  • Gift-givers looking for an early readers series for kids who enjoy stories full of humor and heart
  • Readers who love such bestselling book series as Ivy + Bean, Junie B. Jones, Beezus and Ramona, Dory Fantasmagory, and Princess in Black
Select format:
Hardcover
$15.99

Publishers Weekly

Starred Review

The creators of Ivy & Bean return in this delightful series kickoff for early readers that follows sisters Stella and Marigold. In a beginning flashback, three-year-old Stella's parents drop her off at her grandmother's house, where she awaits their return from the hospital with her baby sister in tow. Upon the siblings' first meeting, Stella promises to tell newborn Marigold "all the secret things I know," a vow that sets the tone for the sisters' budding relationship. After Marigold, now four, lies about having clogged the bathroom sink, her parents struggle to understand her decision-making processes. But older sister Stella, seven, "who explained the world to her," has instant compassion for Marigold and helps to restore her confidence in herself and her relationships. Marigold in turn saves the day when a new girl threatens to steal Stella's best friend. Short chapters by Barrows burst with vibrant and colorful illustrations by Blackall that bring the pale-skinned girls and their playful imaginations to life. The experience of being misunderstood by grown-ups is relatably rendered via the sisters' interactions; readers will long for a sibling like Marigold or Stella. Ages 6-9. (Oct.)

Copyright 2024 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

School Library Journal

Starred Review

Gr 1-3--Barrows and Blackall, the team behind "Ivy and Bean," debut a feisty new duo in this slim chapter book. An opening flashback introduces Stella at age three, waiting in her family's "half-house" (the lower half of a duplex) for her parents to return from the hospital with newborn Marigold. The sisters' bond is immediate, with Stella whispering promises to tell Marigold "all the secret things I know...forever and ever." By ages seven and four, the sisters follow the tradition of countless literary pairs with polite and reserved Stella serving as a foil to plucky, mischievous Marigold. Each of the seven chapters functions as a complete narrative, with no overarching plot uniting them. The common thread is the sisters' mutual devotion, with each vignette providing an opportunity for one sister to serve as heroine to the other, protecting her from embarrassment and guilt or rescuing her from loneliness and boredom. Their relationship is never a source of narrative conflict and is always essential in its resolution. As always, Barrows offers a spot-on childlike perspective that is both funny and keenly observant. Blackall's whimsical illustrations capture the sisters' individual personalities and their shared adoration. Main characters are white. VERDICT This very witty, very tender ode to sisterhood is a first purchase.--Amy Reimann

Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Kirkus

Starred Review

All the heart. None of the pablum. Sisterhood at its finest and freshest.

ALA/Booklist

Starred Review

Sweeps readers into a world of childhood misadventures and understanding family members...it's a promising start for the Stella Marigold series.

Hornbook

Barrows and Blackall walk this tightrope with skill, cheekiness, and palpable pleasure, their tightly interdependent approach to narrative mirroring the supportive and loving relationship of their two stalwart protagonists.

Annie Barrows
Annie Barrows is the bestselling author of books for both children and adults, including the Iggy series, the YA novel Nothing and the bestselling novel The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society which was made into a Netflix movie. She lives in Northern California.

Sophie Blackall has illustrated many books, including If You Come to Earth and Ruby's Wish, and has twice won the Caldecott Medal. Originally from Australia, Sophie now spends half her time in Brooklyn, New York, and half her time trying to see as much of our world as she can. Learn more about her at www.sophieblackall.com.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781797219707
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Chronicle Books
Publication date
October 01, 2024
Series
Stella and Marigold
BISAC categories
JUV039060 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Friendship
JUV051000 - Juvenile Fiction | Imagination & Play
JUV013070 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Siblings
Library of Congress categories
Picture books
Imagination
Family life
Picture books for children
Sisters

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