In order to heal after his mother's death, thirteen-year-old Sal learns to reach into time and space to retrieve things--and people--from other universes. - (Baker & Taylor)

A teen troublemaker with a talent for sleight of hand clashes with his school's student council president when the latter accuses him of putting a raw chicken inside a friend's locker. By the author of The Assimilated Cuban's Guide to Quantum Santeria. 75,000 first printing. - (Baker & Taylor)

Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents a brilliant sci-fi romp with Cuban influence by Carlos Hernandez, winner of the 2020 Pura Belpré Award.

"I love this book in every possible universe! With a surprise on every page and two of the most cosmically awesome, vividly unique heroes I've ever read, this sweet, hilarious book made me so happy."--Tui T. Sutherland, author of the New York Times best-selling Wings of Fire series

What would you do if you had the power to reach through time and space and retrieve anything you want, including your mother, who is no longer living (in this universe, anyway)?

When Sal Vidon meets Gabi Real for the first time, it isn't under the best of circumstances. Sal is in the principal's office for the third time in three days, and it's still the first week of school. Gabi, student council president and editor of the school paper, is there to support her friend Yasmany, who just picked a fight with Sal. She is determined to prove that somehow, Sal planted a raw chicken in Yasmany's locker, even though nobody saw him do it and the bloody poultry has since mysteriously disappeared.

Sal prides himself on being an excellent magician, but for this sleight of hand, he relied on a talent no one would guess . . . except maybe Gabi, whose sharp eyes never miss a trick. When Gabi learns that he's capable of conjuring things much bigger than a chicken--including his dead mother--and she takes it all in stride, Sal knows that she is someone he can work with. There's only one slight problem: their manipulation of time and space could put the entire universe at risk.

A sassy entropy sweeper, a documentary about wedgies, a principal who wears a Venetian bauta mask, and heaping platefuls of Cuban food are just some of the delights that await in his mind-blowing novel gift-wrapped in love and laughter.

Endorsed by Rick Riordan, author of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, soon to be a series on Disney+.


- (Grand Central Pub)

Carlos Hernandez has published more than thirty works for fiction, poetry, and drama, most notably a book of short stories for adults entitled The Assimilated Cuban's Guide to Quantum Santeria. He is an English professor at City University of New York, and he loves to both play games and design them. He lives with his wife, Claire, in Queens, New York. Follow him on Twitter: @WriteTeachPlay. - (Grand Central Pub)

Booklist Reviews

*Starred Review* Ever since Salvador Vidó?n lost his mami at the age of 8, he has used sleight-of-hand magic as both a way to forget about the loss and as a way to make others happy. When Sal bumps into Yasmany Robles at school, he uses his quick thinking and his magic skills—along with a special secret—to make a chicken appear in Yasmany's locker; subsequently, he soon finds himself in a meeting with the principal and Gabrielle Reál, student council president, who begins to suspect Sal has a secret. And she's right: only Sal's physicist dad and his stepmom know that Sal can create tears in the universe and pull objects into this world from other realms; those objects include Sal's mom, whom he has brought through more than once. When Sal discovers that Gabi can see the tears he creates, Sal is relieved that he can finally share his secret, and before long, he discovers that Gabi, Yasmany, and the world around him are much more complex than he imagined. Artfully balancing comical antics with a meaningful exploration of grief, Hernandez fills his fast-paced novel with an intriguing blend of sf, folklore, and Cuban culture and populates it with delightfully well-rounded, clever, and exceptionally kind characters, all in a lively, distinctive voice. With a compelling cliff-hanger ending, this engrossing adventure is sure to leave readers excitedly anticipating the next installment. Grades 4-7. Copyright 2019 Booklist Reviews.