Ladybug Nominee Profile

The Day the Books Disappeared by Joanna Ho,  Caroline Kusin Pritchard and Dan Santat (Disney Hyperions, 2025)

Arnold didn't mean for the books to disappear—not exactly. It all started because he liked his book about airplanes best. Why would anyone want to read about tomatoes or ostriches or submarines (ew, the worst!) when they could read about planes, instead?

When Arnold realizes—POOF!—he can make the other books vanish, he goes a little too far. Before he knows it, all the books are gone…including his. Can Arnold figure out how to bring them back before it’s too late?

This book about books celebrates themes of empathy, interconnectedness, and the value of diverse and differing perspectives.

About Joanna Ho

Joanna Ho is the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of many children's books, including Eyes that Kiss in the Corners, We Who Produce Pearls, and The Silence that Binds Us, her debut young adult novel, which received the Young Adult Honor for the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. She lives in the Bay Area, where she survives on homemade chocolate chip cookies, outdoor adventures, and dance parties with her kids. Her website is: https://www.joannahowrites.com/

About Caroline Kusin Pritchard

Caroline Kusin Pritchard is the author of Gitty and Kvetch and Where is Poppy, which School Library Journal called “a perfect story for all ages.” She has an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts and lives in Virginia with her family. Her website is: https://carolinekusinpritchard.com/

About Dan Santat

Dan Santat is the National Book Award-winning, Caldecott Medal–winning, and New York Times–bestselling author and illustrator of The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend and the road trip/time travel adventure Are We There Yet? His artwork is also featured in numerous picture books, chapter books, and middle-grade novels, including Dav Pilkey's Ricky Ricotta series. Dan lives in Southern California with his wife, two kids, and many, many pets. His website is: https://sites.google.com/g.risd.org/dansantat/home

Activities & Links

• Check out this Read Aloud at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ad3sUwCxxIw
• Here's an interview with Joanna Ho, one of the authors of "The Day the Books Disappeared": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5e_87sHSkII
• Reflection exercise: Have students draw or write about how the main character Arnold felt when other people's books vanished versus how he felt when his own favorite book disappeared. 
• Design a Book Cover exercise: Provide a blank book cover template for children to illustrate their own favorite topic or story, celebrating what makes their personal reading choice unique.

Suggestions for Further Reading

• Check out the other 2026 Ladybug Longlist titles featuring Books & Reading at: https://nhbookcenter.blogspot.com/2026/01/ladybug-longlist-books-reading.html
• For more books by Joanna Ho, check out Eyes That Kiss in the Corners or A Room with a View. For another book by Caroline Kusin Pritchard, check out The Keeper of Stories. 
• For more stories about books, consider All the Books by Hayley Rocco and 
  The Dictionary Story by Oliver Jeffers & Sam Winston, both 2025 Ladybug Longlist titles. 

This is one of nine titles nominated for the 2026 Ladybug Picture Book Award.
We will be posting information about a different nominee each Friday throughout the summer and will issue a pdf voters guide featuring all the titles by Labor Day.