A Book of Maps for You

Before moving away, a young cartographer leaves some guidance behind about his old home for the child about to make it their new one.

What if you moved to a new place and found a hand-drawn local guidebook, left there just for you? In A Book of Maps for You, an artistic young person gives just such a gift. He's crafted and annotated maps of his neighborhood, school, and house; no slide, orange tree, or chicken coop left uncharted.

He points out the best Halloween decorations, school lunches, and local stops for baked goods, books, or art supplies. He shows the best place to put your bed upstairs, right under the skylight. Just as his family's moving truck pulls away, another pulls up, and sure enough, his book finds its way into the next child's hands.

During a big move, a child can feel a lot of pressure to open their heart to the place they're headed. But what about the roads they've been down hundreds of times? The faces they've grown up seeing? The house where they know every bang of the pipes and drip of the faucet? That history deserves care, too.

A Book of Maps for You honors the homes we leave behind and the ones we haven't met yet, reminding us that they may just be two sides of the same coin. Lourdes Heuer's achingly subtle text speaks volumes in all it pays attention to, and all it doesn't have to say. Maxwell Eaton III's signature detail-rich illustrations perfectly suggest the work of a talented child, and promise plenty of surprises to drink in and explore on each page.

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

Author: Lourdes Heuer
Publisher: Neal Porter Books
Published: 04/08/2025
Pages: 40
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.25lbs
ISBN: 9780823455706
Audience: Ages 4-8


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 01/01/2025 pg. 63
Publishers Weekly 01/20/2025

About the Author
Lourdes Heuer has written several books for young readers. She is the author of the Esme! early chapter book series, featuring art by #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator Marissa Valdez, and the picture book On This Airplane, illustrated by Pura Belpr? Award Honoree Sara Palacios. She is also a poet, translator, and college professor. She lives in South Florida with her husband, son, and many dogs.

Maxwell Eaton III is the author and illustrator of Bear Builds a House, Bear Goes Sugaring, and Looking for Peppermint, as well as the The Truth About series, Seriously Funny Facts About Your Favorite Animals. This series includes The Truth About Dolphins, The Truth About Hippos, The Truth About Elephants and The Truth About Bears, which received multiple starred reviews. He lives in the Adirondack Mountains of New York State with his partner and two children.