The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street (Book 1)

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It’s five days before Christmas and the Vanderbeeker children — Isa, Jessie, Oliver, Hyacinth, and Laney — should be dreaming about sugar plums and presents. But when Mr. Beiderman, their seriously unpleasant landlord and third floor neighbor, says they need to leave their brownstone apartment by New Year’s, there are suddenly more pressing worries. And the Vanderbeekers aren’t the kind of kids who will sit by sucking candy canes while some grouchy old man kicks them out of the home and Harlem neighborhood they love. 

While their parents bring out the packing boxes and talk about moving to the suburbs, the kids know there must be another way — convincing their landlord to let them stay. They try everything they can think of. Breakfast delivered to his door. Handmade gifts. Blackmail. But it’s harder than they thought to win him over, and there are other distractions, too. Isa and Jessie, twelve year old twins, get into a monumental fight. Oliver, age nine and the only boy, pens and sends a letter so rude even he’s ashamed. Hyacinth, six years old and the nicest person in the world, steals a kitten. And Laney, four and three-quarters years old, keeps disappearing to the second floor with her pet bunny and handfuls of cilantro.

The day of the move approaches, and packing boxes start crowding them out of the house. The kids know they need to pull it together for Operation Beiderman, and there’s nothing they won’t do to convince their grump of a landlord to like them. It’s an operation that has to succeed.

Reviews

★  "Few [families] in children’s literature are as engaging or amusing as the Vanderbeekers."
—Booklist, starred review

★ "Glaser's pitch perfect debut set in Harlem introduces the endearing biracial Vanderbeeker family... Readers will look forward to future adventures. A highly recommended purchase for all middle grade collections.
—School Library Journal, starred review

"This is Karina Yan Glaser’s debut novel, and her contemporary family narrative preserves the winsome tone and innocence of the aforementioned classics while updating them with a rich, modern diversity of characters, settings and problems."
—The New York Times

"A heartwarming story about family and community that will appeal to readers who also enjoy an old-fashioned feel." 
—Kirkus

"With rich dialogue and detailed descriptions of the neighborhood, the text provides a humorous and heartwarming story about siblings uniting to save their home. Through the Vanderbeekers, Glaser provides a portrait of the splendors of Harlem and the sense of community that can be built among neighbors of all backgrounds. . . This will draw fans of rollicking family stories, and while it’s centered on Christmas, it would be enjoyable any time of the year." 
—Bulletin

"Readers who enjoy a cheery story that’s simultaneously old-fashioned and of the moment in its sensibility will enjoy this introduction to the Vanderbeekers and look forward to their future adventures."
—Publishers Weekly

"Glaser’s third-person narration weaves individual characters’ plot threads and a palpable sense of place through the larger family story in the tradition of Jeanne Birdsall, Sydney Taylor, Elizabeth Enright, and Hilary McKay."
—The Horn Book

"The Vanderbeekers join the Melendys, the Cassons, and the 'All of a Kind' Family on my list of favorite book-families. I'm in love with every single Vanderbeeker! Their story is utterly enchanting: I did not want it to end. More, please?"
—Linda Sue Park, Newbery Medalist

- A New York Times Notable Children's Book
- A Junior Library Guild Selection
- An American Bookseller's Association Indie's Introduce Title
- An American Bookseller's Association Kids' Indie Next List Title
- A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Children's Fiction Book
- A Southern Living Best Children's Book
- World Magazine's Children's Novel of the Year
- A Nerdy Book Club Award Winner
- Vermont's Dorothy Canfield Fisher List
- A Massachusetts Children’s Book Award Finalist
- A Georgia Children’s Book Award Finalist
- A Bank Street Children's Book of the Year Selection
- A Lectio Book Award Finalist
- A Nebraska Golden Sower Finalist
- Judy Lopez Memorial Honor Award for Children's Literature
- California Young Readers Medal Finalist
- Illinois Bluestem Award Nominee
- Booklist Editor’s Choice Top of the List for Youth Audio
- Foreign translation rights sold in twelve languages/countries (French, Turkish, Norwegian, Chinese - Simplified, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Romanian, Russian, German, Portuguese, and Dutch).

The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden (Book 2)

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The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden is set in the summer, six months after The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street. Isa is away at a sleepaway music camp, and the rest of the kids are wilting away in the New York City heat. But when catastrophe strikes their beloved neighbor, their sleepy summer transforms in an instant. To keep from being consumed by worry, they plan the best welcome home gift for their plant loving neighbors: the Vanderbeekers will convert the eyesore of 141st Street—a small piece of land that has been abandoned for decades—into a community garden. But creating a garden from scratch is not as easy as it seems, especially when there’s a giant “NO TRESPASSING” sign hung on the locked metal fence and the land itself is filled with trash and weeds. Can the Vanderbeekers grow a garden in the unlikeliest of places?  

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"Glaser tackles the tough issues of loss, serious health crises, and urban gentrification with grace and authenticity."
- School Library Journal

"Timeless."
- The Horn Book

"Perfect for individual reading while tucked away in a treehouse or as a family read-aloud." 
- Kirkus

"Throughout the book, charming black-and-white drawings decorate chapter headings and illustrate the settings and details related to the story. An amusing, heartening chapter book." 
- Booklist

- A New York Times Best Seller
- A Junior Library Guild Selection
- A New York City Book Award Winner
- An AudioFile Earphones Award Winner
- A Bank Street Children's Book of the Year Selection, 2019
- The Nature Generation’s 2019 Green Book Award Longlist

The Vanderbeekers to the Rescue (book 3)

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It’s springtime in Harlem, and the Vanderbeeker kids have one glorious week off from school. Their plans include preparing for a high stakes violin audition (Isa), working on the best science fair project ever (Jessie), building the treehouse of his dreams (Oliver), knitting a pair of house slippers for Franz (Hyacinth), and practicing flips (Laney). Their plans do notinclude single handedly destroying Mama’s baking business. While the kids race against the clock to fix their epic mistake, they realize that nothing is as easy as it seems, especially when mysterious packages arrive at their door and threaten to ruin everything. 

In this third book in the Vanderbeeker series, revisit the warmth of the brownstone on 141stStreet and watch the Vanderbeekers bring a little more joy and kindness to the neighborhood, one hilarious, impossible plan at a time.

“Like many fictional families before them, the warm, vibrant Vanderbeeker family of 141st Street has developed a devoted following. The third and newest installment of Karina Yan Glaser’s series featuring the multiracial clan that lives and works in a Harlem brownstone, The Vanderbeekers to the Rescue is almost a case study in why these kinds of series are so captivating for young readers.” 
- The New York Times Book Review

"Once again Glaser produces a charming novel reminiscent of classic and contemporary family story mainstays by Edward Eager, Jeanne Birdsall, and others, but she adds depth with racial diversity, evocative city details, and complex socio-economic issues....Satisfying as a stand-alone and a welcome return for those who consider the Vanderbeekers part of their own family." 
- Kirkus

"Glaser manages the large cast of characters with ease....A satisfying addition to the Vanderbeeker series.”
- Booklist

“Glaser ticks all the boxes of a classic middle-grade ensemble piece....funny, with character-grounded quirkiness, just enough slapstick, and no winking over kids’ heads....The whole thing is a little retro, very welcoming to the reader, and sweet to the core.”
- Horn Book

- A Junior Library Guild Selection
- A Publisher’s Weekly Bestseller
- A 2019 Nerdies Winner for Middle Grade Fiction

The Vanderbeekers Lost and Found
(Book 4)

The Vanderbeekers Make a Wish
(book 5)

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It's summer on 141st Street, and the Vanderbeekers are looking forward to Papa's surprise fortieth birthday party.

But then Papa must leave town to help his best friend and the Vanderbeeker children are surprised to find unexpected guests at their doorstep. Meanwhile, they find themselves learning more about their papa's father than ever before, and wishing they could have known him a bit better. Can they learn more about the grandfather they lost and come to appreciate the grandparents they still have while making sure their papa has the best birthday ever?

- A Junior Library Guild Selection
- A Michigan Association for Media in Education MISelf in Books Selection 2022

The Vanderbeekers on the Road (Book 6)

Signed and personalized copies available at Books of Wonder!

In this new adventure in the New York Times bestselling series, the Vanderbeekers depart Harlem to celebrate their dad’s birthday. But their surprise road trip turns rocky when the younger kids try to keep their family from ever facing change.

Our beloved Harlem family is putting the VAN in Vanderbeekers as they hit the highway to give their dad the best birthday surprise EVER! Recreating a road trip Papa never got the chance to take with his own father, the whole crew is packed and ready for a cross-country adventure.

Things get off to a rocky start when the car breaks down on their way to pick up Papa. But they really veer off course when Laney discovers that Jessie and Orlando are interviewing at a college once they get to California. How can they even think about leaving New York? Wouldn’t that change their family? And how can she and her other siblings stop them?

Exploring themes of leaving home, embracing change, and the lessons to be learned when we go to a new place, The Vanderbeekers on the Road is every bit a journey.

• A Publisher’s Weekly Bestseller!

The Vanderbeekers Ever After (Book 7)

Coming September 19, 2023!
Signed and personalized copies available at Books of Wonder!
Check out the cover reveal here!

The bestselling Vanderbeeker family finds love and hope in hard times as they face the challenge of a serious illness with the support of their Harlem community. 

The Vanderbeekers are looking forward to the wedding of two of their favorite people! But when one of the siblings receives a dire diagnosis, instead of preparing for a celebration, the family is suddenly spending their time at the hospital. And soon they are helping a newly-made and critically ill friend, even as they struggle with how their own lives have turned upside down.

In the poignant conclusion to the bestselling Vanderbeekers series, the beloved family faces their biggest challenge yet, rising to meet it with the characteristic love, warmth, and hope that has won them a lasting home in the hearts of readers everywhere.

Reviews

★  "With a lovable cast and a strong, resilient main character, the final volume in the Vanderbeeker series tells a heartening story about a family and a community that readers will long remember.."
—Booklist, starred review

- A Junior Library Guild Selection
- A Publisher’s Weekly Bestseller
- A Booklist Editors’ Choice: Books for Youth 2023