Kondo & Kezumi #1 Visit Giant Island

Ages 6 to 10, Grades 1 to 5

The launch of a full-color chapter book series featuring best friends Kondo and Kezumi who find a map that leads to the wonders of the unknown, for fans of Ivy & Bean and Mercy Watson.

Kondo is big. Kezumi is little. They lived on an island with fruit trees and berry bushes and flitter-birds and fluffle-bunnies. When a surprise bottle washes ashore, they discover a map with a mysterious message: WE ARE NOT ALONE. Kezumi wants to follow the map and explore the world. Kondo wants to stay home and pick fruit from the fruit tree and berries from the berry bushes. But once Kezumi builds the perfect boat, the best friends set sail together to see . . . well, they don't know!

So begin the adventures of Kondo and Kezumi, where islands of cheese and giant mountains await. Rising stars David Goodner and Andrea Tsurumi team up for this illustrated chapter book series filled with charming quirks and unexpected discoveries. Get ready to set foot on uncharted territory with classic themes of friendship, community, and exploration.

Kondo and Kezumi Reach Bell Bottom washes ashore on January 2021!

About the Author

David Goodner has worked at the Arlington Public Library for the last twenty-one years and counting. He is the author of Ginny Goblin Is Not Allowed To Open This Box, and its follow-up, Ginny Goblin Is Not Allowed To Have A Monster For A Pet. He lives in North Texas with his wife and two uncommonly pleasant cats.

Andrea Tsurumi is the author and illustrator of Accident! and Crab Cake, as well as numerous comics. She illustrated Not Your Nest by Gideon Sterer and Girls Who Code by Reshma Saujani. She was born and raised in New York, where she got an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, and she now lives in Philadelphia with her spouse and their dog. When she's not inventing croissant-based animals, she likes reading about ordinary and ridiculous history.