New shoes

By Sara Varon

Published by First Second

From Sara Varon (Robot Dreams, Bake Sale) comes New Shoes, a heartwarming graphic novel about a donkey on a quest to make the perfect pair of shoes.

Francis the donkey is the best shoemaker in the village. He uses only the finest materials: coconut wood for the soles, goat’s wool for the insoles, and wild tiger grass for the uppers.

One day he receives a special order from his favorite singer: Miss Manatee, the queen of calypso. But he’s all out of tiger grass! To make the perfect pair of shoes, Francis must journey deep into the jungle . . . and that means leaving his village for the first time.

In New Shoes, Sara Varon takes us on a vivid journey into the jungles of South America. From the capybara to the jaguar to the three-toed sloth, Francis meets a variety of animals outside his neighborhood. They’re not so scary when you get to know them!