Welcome to Publisher Spotlight, your discovery spot for children’s books from international and independent publishers!
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Check It Out Now on NetGalley!
There is a unique children’s book available to you on NetGalley this week! Take the opportunity to explore WHAT MAKES A FAMILY: Celebrating the Filipino Day of the Dead by Eric Ruiz Roxas, illustrated by Aldy Aguirre, and publishing next month by Lantana Publishing. Accompany a pair of young siblings on Undas, the Filipino Day of the Dead—a day when families visit the cemetery and gather around their dead loved ones’ tombs. It is a day not of mourning but of celebration—a day in which stories are shared and lives remembered.
Read It Now: Our Latest Article
- Spotlight on Publisher Do Re Mi Books
When it comes to Japanese children’s books, one may expect them all to be cute (kawaii in Japanese). And many of them certainly are as cute as can be! But Japanese children’s books are also SO MUCH MORE, full of surprises, deep creativity, and overflowing with imagination. Just ask Do Re Mi Books’ founders and creators Sam Voulters and Anna Watanabe.
Doorway to Japanese Children’s Books—and Beyond!
Sam and Anna’s initial inspiration for starting Do Re Mi Books was a shared love of Japanese children’s books. Anna is both the co-founder of Do Re Mi Books, and a professional illustrator, drawing inspiration from her own two young children as well as from Japanese picture books. Sam, a former Penguin Classics brand director, is now both the co-founder of Do Re Mi Books, and the author of their titles Splash, illustrated by Zoey Kim, and How to be a Cat, illustrated by Yoshiko Hada. Like Anna, he is also deeply inspired by Japanese children’s books and publishing.
Their first season of titles reflected this love for not only Japanese children’s literature, but for tales far beyond Japan as well. These include the industrious The Mole Construction Company, written and illustrated by Shingo Nagasaki, translated from Japanese by Lisa Wilcut, the upcoming Dr. Dog: Snakey’s Belly Ache from England, written and illustrated by Jiro Bevis, and from South Korea, the adorably imaginative The Weather Shop, written and illustrated by Thomas Lee and translated from Korean by Deborah Smith.
Jumping into Board Books Imagination-first
In addition to their desire to showcase translated children’s books from Japan and around the world, Sam and Anna also seek to celebrate the board book format. Their 2026 list includes seven spectacular board books that celebrate their shared love of unique and quirky tales for the very young that join Do Re Mi Books’ picture books and middle grade titles–all as playful in text as they are in illustration.
Do Re Mi is headquartered in London. We can’t wait to see what surprises Do Re Mi Books has in store for us for 2027!