March 5th, 2026
Melissa Villaseñor Announced as Featured Speaker at ALA 2026 in Chicago!
We are excited that the American Library Association has officially announced Melissa Villaseñor as a Featured Speaker at ALA's 2026 National Conference in Chicago Illinois. She joins a star-studded line-up of speakers including Rachel Maddow, Billy Porter, Wayne Brady and more. Melissa will be speaking on Sunday, June 28th, 2026 from 1:00PM - 2:00PM CT. Get more info and details on our events page!
March 4th, 2026
Mercado-Obias, Claire. “Be Daring Through Dance.” Positively Filipino Interview with Harry Shum Jr. and Shelby Rabara
In this interview for Positively Filipino, writer Claire Mercado-Obias speaks with actors and authors Harry Shum Jr. and Shelby Rabara about the inspiration behind their children’s book Martee Dares to Dance. The conversation explores how dance helped shape their own confidence growing up and how they hope the story encourages kids to overcome embarrassment, express themselves creatively, and embrace the joy of movement while celebrating multicultural family traditions.
March 5th, 2026
Bookriot Lists A Very Asian Guide to Korean Food for Kids Who Love KPop Demon Hunters
Katie Moench writes "Food is always a delicious way to celebrate cultures, and readers of all ages will enjoy this guide to Korean food that presents information with brief text and storybook-style illustrations. KPop Demon Hunters fans can explore the featured dishes and learn how to make a delicious Korean dish for their next watch."
March 5th, 2026
The Fib is a Foreword's 2025 INDIES Finalist
We are honored to be a finalist in the Children's Picture Book category for FOREWORD's 2025 INDIES Book of the Year Awards
February 23rd, 2026
Publishers Weekly Features Gloo Books's Distributor: Stable
PW Close-Up: The Stable Book Group's Jodi Weiss on the Record.
Jodi discusses partnering with many different publishers including us at Gloo Books:
From McSweeney's to Gloo Books, The Stable partners with a broad range of publishers. What's your criteria for selecting and forming these relationships?
Selecting a new partner is a big decision for us. It’s about finding a deep alignment in values and publishing vision. It’s also a two-way street—we only move forward if we’re confident that our specific strengths will bring genuine added value to a publisher’s business.
February 23rd, 2026
Kirkus Reviews: Seen and Heard Features Cat and Lola
Villaseñor said in a statement, “It's been a constant journey to keep being true to who I am and not get tangled with comparing myself to others. With Cat and Lola, I hopefully get to make kiddos laugh and embrace their quirks. It's about finding the friends in life that rejoice in who you are, love you for you and discovering how to love yourself.
February 18th, 2026
Larchmont Buzz Features Gloo Books to Celebrate Lunar New Year
"New books arrived at Chevalier’s Books just in time..."
Editors at The Larchmont Buzz featured both What's That? and Martee Dares to Dance in their list of Lunar New Year books to feature. Additionally, they are highlighting the readings of What's That? by Karen Chan and Martee Dares to Dance by Harry Shum Jr. and Shelby Rabara. Both readings will happen at Chevaliers Books Sunday, Feb 22nd at 1pm. Learn more about the event on our Events page
February 17th, 2026
"Vigorous and heartfelt." - Kirkus Reviews
Kirks Reviews as officially reviewed A Bike Is Not Just A Bike. A salute to the bicycle as a tool of liberation for women of the past and present.
“A bike is just a bike,” Jeanneret writes, “unless you were a girl on a bike. Then it was a powerful statement.” Mixing images of modern children on wheels with historical scenes of riders briskly exchanging heavily ruffled skirts for bloomers...
"Mixing images of modern children on wheels with historical scenes of riders briskly exchanging heavily ruffled skirts for bloomers, pedaling off to work, carrying suffragist signs, and breaking athletic and other records, Pereira depicts a racially diverse cast of girls and women speeding proudly across the pages on bikes of different eras or posing with safety helmets and, sometimes, medals.
February 5th, 2026
Publisher's Weekly - Fall 2026 Preview Features Cat and Lola!
Shannon Maughan features Gloo Books' newest upcoming frontlist release Cat and Lola: School Picture Day, written by Melissa Villaseñor in their Fall 2026 Children's Sneak Previews!
January 22nd, 2026
British Science Fiction Association - Best Fiction for Younger Readers
Thank you to the British Science Fiction Association - We are honored to be nominated to the long list for Best Fiction for Young Readers for The Fib!
December 6th, 2025
NBC News Bay Area covers the 2025 Social Justice Book Fair; Karen Chan, Founder and CEO of Gloo Books, was interviewed discussing the importance of the book fair.
December 2nd, 2025
CBS News Los Angeles featuresThe Fib on their young readers gift guide for the 2025 holidays.
LAist Education Reporter Mariana Dale shares the Young Readers Gift Guide books for the holidays.
November 10th, 2025
Melissa Villaseñor Sells Rights To Graphic Novel Series, Cat And Lola
Article Summary
Melissa Villaseñor teams up with Jimena Sánchez Sarquiz for new graphic novel series, Cat and Lola
Gloo Books acquires world publishing rights; first book releases in autumn 2026
Cat and Lola celebrates friendship and differences through fun, mismatched adventures for kids
Villaseñor is known for SNL, voice acting roles, and her book Whoops... I'm Awesome
January 25th, 2025
Book Community Offers Mutual Aid, Solidarity During L.A. Fires
Read about how Gloo Books is joining forces with the L.A. book community to support wildfire relief efforts—including our pledge to help rebuild school libraries—in this new article from Publishers Weekly.
October 22nd, 2025
"A particular aspect of the illustrations that I liked, especially as a Hispanic, was the visual diversity of Pepe and his peers. Most of the picture books I read as a young girl rarely featured non-white characters, so it was heartwarming to see this detail in the story."
Abigail Ortiz, Pine Reads Review Writer and Editor
Oct 9th, 2025
A Very Asian Guide to Taiwanese Food?author Nancy Jeng and illustrator Felicia Liang featured on KRON4 News.
This children's book is a feast for the eyes and celebrates some of the most delicious Asian cuisine. For more on "A Very Asian Guide to Taiwanese Food," KRON4 News Anchor Stephanie Lin spoke with the author Nancy Jeng and the illustrator Felicia Liang.
November 1st, 2023
The Baby Go! Series is featured on Design Milk's 2023 Best Modern Gifts for Kids + Parents.
December 1st, 2025
The Almanac Writer Grace Lane, store manager of Linden Tree Books, features A Very Asian Guide to Taiwanese Food on her list:Books by Bay Area authors to add to your winter wish list
October 3rd, 2025
The Fib, by Pedro Iniguez | Book Review
"The Fib is a creative and memorable tale that teaches children about the impact of their words and the value of truth, while also celebrating the positive power of imagination."
--The Children's Book Review
October 3rd, 2025
Book Review of Baby Go! Mexico and Baby Go! France
"In these vibrant picture books, readers will embark on a delightful journey through Mexico and France, experiencing their rich culture through the eyes of a baby."
October 1st, 2025
"Proud To Be Very Asian": A Journey to Represent and Share Taiwanese Culture
For author Nancy Jeng and illustrator Felicia Liang, sharing dishes unique to Taiwan in their latest book“A Very Asian Guide to Taiwanese Food”is something they are proud of. It’s the culmination of a journey that has allowed them to explore their Taiwanese roots and culture.
October 1st, 2025
“A wise picture book about the snowballing consequences of dishonesty.”
August 28th, 2025
Taiwan's flavors get a playful new spotlight.
A new book by Bay Area natives invites Taiwanese food lovers to learn more about the history behind their favorite dishes.
Why it matters:Taiwanese food has exploded in popularity in the U.S...
June 14th, 2025
Kirkus Reviews The Fib!
"An effective and sympathetic exploration of lies—and the importance of telling the truth."
June 29th, 2025
Now Upon a Time
Today, old-fashioned stories about princesses being saved by princes are being turned on their heads as part of The Martin Agency’sNow Upon a Timeseries of fairy tale rewrites. The new storytelling platform was the brainchild of Neel Williams, group creative director at the Richmond-based agency, who was inspired to put a fresh, more modern spin on the books he reads to his two daughters
January 8th, 2025
From Landfill to ‘Composting for Community’
Growing up, Michael Martinez lived near one of the nation’s largest landfills. While this was an unpleasant experience, Martinez also witnessed how his family was able to repair and create things from everyday items that had been thrown away.
This unique online bibliography, created April 2025, features the best of new and backlist books from CBC publishers celebrating Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Gloo Books is honored to have a few of our books featured:
What's That?
A Very Asian Guide to Korean Food
A Very Asian Guide to Taiwanese Food
Martee Dares to Dance
Princess and the Pea-tition
April 26th, 2025
Photos: Speakers and authors at the 2025 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books
Harry Shum Jr. and his wife Shelby Rabara recently wrote their debut children’s book, “Martee Dares to Dance,” about a boy who loves dancing but faces a moment of self-doubt after an embarrassing experience.
March 14th, 2025
From "Bold, Brilliant, and Latine" by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris to "Crack Goes the Cascarón by Sara Fajardo", these are must reads for our niños
Karen Chan, our Founder, joins the Tremendous Talk Podcast
Karen Chan on Empathy, Diverse Storytelling, and Being Resilient With Gloo Books!
January 19th, 2025
For kids, Japanese food ‘is a doorway to exploration.
Containing just two simple recipes among its pages, it’s hard to call “A Very Asian Guide to Japanese Food” a cookbook in the traditional sense of the word.
December 10th, 2024
Little Readers Learn About Voting in This Terrific Remixed Fable. A fun and informative story about democracy and voting rights is no fairy tale in this clever picture book (Princess and the Pea-tition) for kids.
November 18th, 2024
Kids’ publishers Lil’ Libros, Bitty Bao, and Gloo Books foster an appreciation of global identities.
September 6th, 2024
SLJ Reviews Martee Dares to Dance!
VERDICT: A suggested purchase for collections seeking more books that will empower young readers.
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November 3rd, 2024
Princes and the Pea-titionauthor Kim Nguyen on Fox 7 News Austin.See Kim Nguyen's interview on Fox 7 News and learn about the book, why she wrote the story, and what it means to her to write re-telling of the classic fairytale.
October 31st, 2024
Cast Your Ballot With These 5 Children’s Books About Voting and Elections. Book Riot's list includesPrincess & the Pea-tition by Kim Nguyen & Libby VanderPloeg.
Harry Shum Jr. (Glee, Grey's Anatomy), Shelby Rabara (Steven Universe) teach dance, confidence in new children’s book ‘Martee Dares to Dance’
May 29th, 2024
We are honored to be featured as one of the 37 Asian-Owned Businesses That Might Turn Into Your Favorite Brands!
July 29th, 2024
Ty-Juana Taylor's new book "A Life of Song, the story of Ella Jenkins"
March 26th, 2024
GLOO BOOKS STRETCHES BOUNDARIES
Beginning with a picture book about appreciating global foods, an indie publisher builds a diverse catalog.
March 4th, 2024
From Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks to Congressman John Lewis, many of us know or learned in school the names of those who led the way in the civil rights movement.
February 2nd, 2024
MEET DEBUT CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHOR DR. TY-JUANA TAYLOR
A Life of Song is a picture book about the musician Ella Jenkins.
January 18th, 2024
A Stillwater children's author hopes to inspire the youngest readers through her "Baby Go!" board book series.
January 8th, 2024
FROM LANDFILL TO ‘COMPOSTING FOR COMMUNITY’.
Martinez added the role of author to his environmental work, publishing “Composting for Community,” a children’s picture book that shares the importance of reducing waste, taking care of communities and our environment.
December 12th, 2023
Pair 12 Children’s Books by Asian Authors
Asian books by Asian authors for the budding young bibliophile in your life.
December 14th, 2023
Pair text The Best New Children’s Food Books of 2023 Inspire Young Minds and Bellies.
This year served up a cornucopia of kiddie food lit, perfect to whet young appetites for cooking and reading.
November 30th, 2023
Chrissy-selected, Chrissy-approved holiday gift list.
She’s your holiday gifting guru, ready with reco’s on all things kids and kitchen (plus a few other key categories).
November 27th, 2023
For The Little In Your Life -"A Very Asian Guide to Korean Food" is a children's book written by Michelle Li. Li, a former anchor at New 3 Now, is a journalist in St. Louis who co-founded the Very Asian Foundation.
November 5th, 2025
Vy Yang of Design Milk features The A Very Asian Guide Series in a roundup of her top 2025 modern gifts for kids.
"This AAPI- and woman-founded brand has my heart. It’s part of my personal parenting mission to make sure my kids know their own heritage – but equally important is helping them understand others’. We could all use a little more inclusivity these days, and food is such a powerful window into culture. The A Very Asian Guide Series explores seven different cultures through the lens of food, sparking curiosity and connection for both kids and adults. Pair a book with dinner at a local restaurant from that culture for the perfect family night out."
June 2nd, 2023
California mom launches children’s books about Asian food to fight against ‘lunch shaming’
