Anomalies 53: Into the Shadows

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection!

It's one thing to leave the world behind; it's another thing when you can never return.

Next door to the notorious Area 51 sits Area 53, the underground lab where the government secretly holds "the anomalies." These are the Earth-born mythical and magical creatures--fairies, wyverns, manticores, and more--that have been captured and brought in for careful study. It's also where eleven-year-old Ollie Robles and his best (and only) friend, Garen Jackson, the kids of Area 53's lead researchers, have grown up. They've lived safely within these cement-and-steel halls their whole lives . . . that is, until the day that Ollie and Garen accidentally free six anomalies: two sprites, a wyvern, a baby manticore, a llamacorn, and a golem named Henry. Now it's up to Ollie and Garen to chase down the anomalies and bring them back home.

It's a daring, high-stakes adventure into a world full of magical creatures, dark corners, and surprising revelations as told in the way only Pura Belpré Honor-winning author and master storyteller Angela Cervantes can.

Angela Cervantes is the Mexican American author of popular children's novels like Lety Out Loud, which was a 2020 Pura Belpré Honor Book. Her other books include Maritza: Lead with Your Heart (American Girls book); Me, Frida, and the Secret of the Peacock Ring; Gaby, Lost and Found; and Allie, First at Last. Angela's latest novel, The Cursed Moon, is the author's first book in the children's horror genre.

In addition to her original novels, Angela authored the junior novelizations for Disney/Pixar's animated film Coco and Disney's animated film Encanto.

Angela's short stories have been featured in Chicken Soup for the Latino Soul and the young adult anthology Living Beyond Borders: Growing Up Mexican in America.

Angela is a daughter of a retired elementary-school teacher who instilled in her a love for reading and storytelling. Angela writes from her home in Kansas City. When she's not writing, Angela enjoys reading, running, gazing up at clouds, and taking advantage of Taco Tuesdays.