Overview
From acclaimed middle grade author Maryrose Wood comes the heartwarming follow up to Bad Badger: A Love Story, the recipient of starred reviews from Kirkus, Booklist, and School Library Journal. As Septimus and Gully grow from friends into a family, they weather the challenges of parenting, managing unexpected guests, and navigating the parameters of friendship. To help raise a trio of gull chicks is a rare task for a badger, even a badger as unusual as Septimus. With three spotted fluff balls underfoot, hiding in his phonograph, and pecking at his seashell collection, Septimus has his hands full. To be perfectly frank about it: living with chicks is a lot to get used to. Especially when Gully is off fishing all day while Septimus-Papa Septimus-is left in charge. Just when it seems Septimus might get a bit of the bird-free, badger-only alone time he needs, a knock at the door brings a big surprise: eight visiting forest badgers! As the chicks take to burrowing underground and gobbling up worms with their new badger family, Gully worries they will never learn to take flight. Can Septimus find a way to give the chicks a proper liftoff? Or will their family fall apart instead? Thisyoung middle-grade novel is about stretching your wings and discovering what it means to be family-spots and all.
Full Product Details
Author: Maryrose Wood ,
Giulia Ghigini
Publisher: Union Square & Co.
Imprint: Union Square Kids
Dimensions:
Width: 14.00cm
, Height: 1.90cm
, Length: 21.00cm
ISBN: 9781454953487
ISBN 10: 1454953489
Pages: 208
Publication Date: 05 May 2026
Recommended Age: From 8 to 12 years
Audience:
Children/juvenile
,
Children / Juvenile
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Availability: Not yet available
This item is yet to be released. You can pre-order this item and we will dispatch it to you upon its release.
Reviews
""A warm tale of found family and frantic gulls that hits every emotional beat with aplomb."" --Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review ""Families looking for their next readaloud will likely appreciate the genuine warmth and honest acknowledgement of the loving chaos a large household can bring."" --BCCB (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books) ""Septimus and Gully stole readers' hearts in Bad Badger: A Love Story (2025), and their unconventional family grows in a variety of ways in this charming sequel."" --Booklist ""To be perfectly frank, this flock of odd ducks welcomes everyone. A quirky title recommended for fiction collections"" --School Library Journal
""A warm tale of found family and frantic gulls that hits every emotional beat with aplomb."" --Kirkus STARRED Review ""To be perfectly frank, this flock of odd ducks welcomes everyone. A quirky title recommended for fiction collections"" --School Library Journal
""A warm tale of found family and frantic gulls that hits every emotional beat with aplomb."" ----Kirkus STARRED REVEIW
Author Information
Maryrose Woodis the author of the acclaimed middle grade series The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place. She also wrote Alice's Farm: A Rabbit's Tale, which was an NCTE Charlotte Huck Recommended Book. Maryrosetaught fiction writing at NYU's Gallatin School and now mentors writers through Path of the Storyteller, her own online program. She has two grown children and splits her time between Southern California and Italy. Author Residence: Southern California and Italy Giulia Ghigini was born in a small town in the industrious and somewhat dreary north of Italy. She's always enjoyed drawing, and as she didn't particularly shine in anything else, she sensibly thought to just keep going. Giulia lives and works compulsively in Milan. Illustrator Residence: Italy
