• Meet the Imprint

Atheneum Books for Young Readers | December 12, 2013

by Annie Nybo

Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, is known for publishing enduring literary middle grade, teen, and picture book titles. Since its foundation in 1961 by legendary editor Jean Karl, the imprint has garnered over two dozen Newbery and Caldecott Medals and honors, as well as receiving countless accolades in the form of the Coretta Scott King medals, National Book Award nominations, Pen USA Literary Awards, and the Mildred L. Batchelder Award. Their list includes elegant literary fiction, like 2013 National Book Award Finalists The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata and The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathy Appelt; heart-wrenching teen novels such as Nothing by Janne Teller; and hilarious picture books, like Kelly DiPucchio and Scott Campbell’s Zombie in Love.

One exciting new title:
The True Blue Scouts of Sugarman Swamp by Kathy Appelt
Meet Bingo and J’miah, raccoon brothers on a mission to save Sugar Man Swamp in this National Book Award Finalist, which Kirkus called “a rollicking, ripping tall tale” in a starred review.
Published July 2013.

One classic title:
Olivia by Ian Falcone
According to Hilary Knight, “Eloise has met her match” in Olivia, the precocious porcine star of Ian Falconer’s Caldecott Honor book. Now Olivia has a whole series of books, board books, early readers, and even a TV show. Her most recent escapade, Olivia and the Fairy Princesses, spent four months on the New York Times Bestseller List. 
Published October 2000.

One title you may not have heard about:
Violet Mackerel’s Brilliant Plot by Anna Branford
The seven-year-old heroine of a delightful chapter book series, Violet appreciates the little things in life, and believes that finding a tiny treasure usually leads to having a genius idea. So when she spots a small china bird that she just has to have, Violet forms an imaginative plan for getting it and her charming methods are anything but ordinary!
Published August 2012.