Publisher Preview: North South (Fall 2026)

I am happy to report that we are continuing our sneak peeks into the smaller publishers out there. This month (as well as last) we’re zeroing in on some of the Fall releases. In May we explored books from Transit Editions and a slew of little guys represented by Publishers Spotlight. Today we turn our attention to North South Books. They’re the English-language imprint of the Swiss-based NordSüd Verlag and they’ve been around for about 30 years now. Typically, they publish picture books from all over the world, and today’s selection is a marvelous example of precisely that:

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The Fantastic Floating Mr. Finnegan
Written and illustrated by Rebecca Gugger and Simon Röthlisberger
Translated from German by Tammi Reichel

ISBN: 9780735846319
On sale: September 22, 2026

The duo behind this particular book may sound vaguely familiar to you. If so, you may be familiar with their previous book A Chest Full of Words. Our hero in this latest book is Finnegan, a kid who has a tendency to float through the air. And because his friends and family and neighbors are a bit worried about his floating off, they literally weigh him down. After some time, that ability to float just sort of goes away naturally. Then, one day, a little girl floats by and helps Finnegan unlock his memories. He rediscovers his talent in his old age. Clearly, the book is about the boundaries we set for ourselves (or are set upon us). I also happen to think it’s a rather nice gift to anyone who has just retired. We have graduation picture books, right? What about retirement picture books? An excellent companion to the movie Up!

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Click! Snap! Picture That!
Written by Dieter Böge
Illustrated by Benjamin Gottwald
Translated from German by David Henry Wilson

ISBN: 9780735846388
On sale: September 8, 2026

It’s not like kids in the past didn’t have parents that snapped photos of them all the time, but I think we can all agree that it was nothing like the clicking that happens today. As such, it makes sense to have a picture book speak to this, our uniquely hyperconnected era. Sure, we ask our kids to pose for pictures constantly, but how do our kids actually want themselves to be seen? Brought to you by the guy who illustrated Buzz Boom Bang! (remember that head scratcher of a unique book?) this explores the pictures we take of ourselves and others and what those pictures say about how we represent ourselves. If you had a Frida Kahlo cockatoo on your picture book bingo card for 2026, cross it off now. Even better? There will be activity pages online (this title won’t ask kids to draw in the book) and it simultaneously publishes in Spanish!!

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My Animalitos
A Frida Kahlo Story
Written by Monica Brown
Illustrated by John Parra

ISBN:  9780735846401
On sale: September 1, 2026

And speaking of Frida Kahlo…

So last year I had the great opportunity to participate in a librarian and educator weekend at Milkwood. While there, I had the chance to listen to the people there discuss the creators and books that they use on the regular with their classes. On woman spoke at length about her love of the books of John Parra. To her mind, one can never have enough of his work. I hope she soon becomes aware of the upcoming release of this little book then. Think of it, not a sa straight biography, but more of a proto bio. My Animalitos is constructed for little ones who aren’t quite ready for a full picture book biography yet. Instead, it’s meant to immerse kids in her world early. And yes, in case you are wondering, there will most certainly be a bilingual Spanish edition simultaneously published as well.

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Fancy Dogs
Written and illustrated by Tini Malina
Translated from German by Tammi Reichel

ISBN: 9780735846272
On sale: October 6, 2026

Awww. Look at that l’il guy. That’s how you do a cover and title, folks. Now what, precisely, is it that makes a dog “fancy”? This book (one of the MANY German titles on the list today) covers dogs dressed up in everything from sequined threads (good translation) to fancy beds. That said, they’re still dogs and they’re still gonna do gross dog stuff. In a sense, the book examines how we imagine our dogs vs. how they really behave. Last year Tini Malina created a picture book called Selma about a spider that didn’t play by its everyone else’s artistic rules. This year she has this book and, in Fall of 2027, we’re gonna get a chance to see its companion book: Sassy Cats. Ah-yup! Need I even mention that this is to be simultaneously published in Spanish?

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The Night
By Mariachiara Di Giorgio 

ISBN: 9780735846289
On sale: September 15, 2026

My “Folktale” radar was ah-quivering as I looked through this one, and for good reason. Now the last time I saw the art of Mariachiara Di Giorgio  she had illustrated Gideon Sterer’s rather fantastic picture book The Midnight Fair! Now she turns her sights on this wordless story. Two children excape their somewhat witchy babysitter and run into the woods. There they meet a mysterious woman who may or may not be magical. This is a tale about how a single night can change how you see things (and maybe that babysitter isn’t so scary after all).

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A Trophy for the Jackal
Written and illustrated by Jule Wellerdiek
Translated from German by Elisabeth Lauffer

ISBN: 9780735846296
On sale: September 8, 2026

Looks like somebody’s giving coyotes everywhere a run for their money when it comes to trickster canines. Now I have a very serious question for you: If you could award yourself a trophy for anything, what would it be? In this book, Jackal really wants to win the best hairstyle competition. When he loses, he decides the best solution is to make himself an award for “Best Jackal”. Only thing is, soon everyone is awarding themselves, just like Jackal did, and he doesn’t feel special anymore. Sometimes it’s difficult to suffer a loss, but this contemporary fable takes a humorous take on sportsmanship and losing gracefully.

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Come Out and Play!
Written and illustrated by Nina Wehrle
Translated from German by Alisha Niehaus Berger

ISBN: 9780735846371
On sale: October 6, 2026

More doggos for the dog lovers out there! Three dogs find a squirrel in the forest. They urge it to come out and play… or else. Everything gets sillier with each page turn (gotta love any book that contains the term “Fart disco”). Wehrle is a debut talent in the U.S. and clearly one to watch. I mean check out that linework and how the book itself, physically, sports a really tall and skinny format to match the trees in the forest. It should display well on shelves, this one.

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Same Time, Next Week?
Written and illustrated by Marlene Droop
Translated from German by Alisha Niehaus Berger

ISBN: 9780735846302
On sale: September 15, 2026

I was just speaking yesterday with a friend about how difficult it is to come up with a good title for a book you’ve written. Clearly this isn’t a problem for Marlene Droop. The original title of this book is Nächste Woche gleiche Zeit, and even I (with my limited German) can see that it’s a straight translation. For that matter, this book also turns out to be the 2025 Winner of the Bologna Children‘s Bookfair Illustrators Exhibition. No small potatoes, that. In this tale, four friends escape the city, determined to see the stars. Alligator, giraffe, sheep, and turtle set off with nature on their minds, but a lot of things delay their trip. Fortunately they make it just in time. Clearly, it’s the journey and not the destination that’s important in this tale.

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Cinderella
Written by the Brothers Grimm
Illustrated by Bernadette Watts

ISBN:  9780735846432
On sale: September 22, 2026

A Watts take on a classic story. If you seek a Disney-esque Cinderella picture book for your children, I would tell you to eschew this particular title. Based on the original 1812 Grimm Brothers’ text, this story might be most familiar to kids obsessed with the Cinderella story they saw in Into the Woods. We’re talking gowns that come from a hazelnut tree and a good deal of foot hacking! Alas, no eyeballs get plucked out during the wedding (aw) but the title more than makes up for that with Watts’s beautiful art. This book was originally published in the 1970s and this edition was able to use all the original scans of the art for the reprint. Fascinating!

That’s all for today, but stay tuned for more previews to come. The Fall is full of surprises and this is just a taste.

Filed under: Publisher Previews