Summer 2025, Greenwillow/HarperCollins, 32 pp
An extended family enjoys a day at the beach in this intergenerational tribute to family, friendship, new experiences, and summertime fun by the acclaimed author-artist Nina Crews. A fresh take on Cynthia Rylant’s classic The Relatives Came.
Every summer, Maya goes to the beach with her mom, grandma, aunts, uncles, and cousins. There are a lot of them. It’s a big family beach day! Full of sand, sun, splashing, sandwiches, swimming, and (of course) sunblock, Maya loves every moment of it.
Inspired by her own childhood and extended family reunions, Big Family Beach Day is Nina Crews celebration of summertime fun, friendship, family, and love. With her rich, multimedia art and accessible, read-aloud text, Nina Crews captures the joys of a memorable summer day with family.
March 2022, Greenwillow/HarperCollins, 32 pp
What makes you big? What makes you small? From acclaimed author-illustrator Nina Crews comes a picture book that introduces young children to the concepts of size and comparisons. A great choice for emerging readers, school classrooms, and storytime sharing.
Time to play outside! It’s easy for a young boy to feel small in a world that is made up of big, big things. But when he takes a closer look, he discovers that he is big, too. His dog is smaller than he is, and his cat is smaller than his dog. And the teeny-tiny ant crawling through the grass? Even smaller!
I’m Not Small will spark family and classroom conversations about the concepts of size and size comparisons, about growing up, about feeling seen, and about observing the world around you. Playful text and bright, detailed illustrations also make it easy to learn about comparing and categorizing objects. A must-have for fans of Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant’s You Are (Not) Small.
STARRED REVIEWS
THE HORN BOOK – “The adventure is little but the emotions loom large—and are completely relatable for all viewers, big or small.”
BOOKLIST – “Crews captures the joy of early childhood exploration in a book that adults and children can both enjoy.”
February 2018, Millbrook/Lerner, 32 pp
Richard Wright’s haiku put everyday moments – walking a dog, watching a sunset, finding a beetle – into focus. Now, more than fifty years after they were written, these poems continue to reflect kids’ everyday experiences. Paired with the photo collage artwork of Nina Crews, Seeing into Tomorrow celebrates the lives of contemporary African American boys and offers an accessible introduction to one of the most important African American writers of the twentieth century.
STARRED REVIEWS
KIRKUS – “Award-winning illustrator Crews breathes new life into the poetry of the late Wright, who found solace and wonder in the traditional Japanese haiku form before he died.”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL – “A must for all children’s collections. These verses are an introduction to haiku as well as an entry point into Wright’s work; they can be read aloud to younger children or enjoyed independently by older readers.”