• Age: 3 to 7
• Grade: p to 2

A tender picture book about grief and the many ways to offer comfort in sad times, from Newbery Honor-winner Kyle Lukoff.

When you see someone sad, it's only natural to want to cheer them up. But how? Some people like hugs but others don't. Sometimes a joke is more comforting than a card. How can you do the just-right-thing if you don't know what it is?

With its spare, poignant text and unexpectedly levitous illustrations, Just What to Do offers an important lesson about how to offer comfort to loved ones by setting aside your assumptions and following their lead.

Kyle Lukoff is a National Book Award finalist and the Newbery and Stonewall Award-winning author of multiple books for young readers, including When Aidan Became a Brother, Call Me Max, and Too Bright to See. Kyle spent eight years as an elementary school librarian, but now he writes full time, assists in sensitivity readings and consultations, and presents on children’s and youth literature all across the country. He got hired at a bookstore when he was sixteen, which means he’s been working at the intersection of books and people for well over half his life. He lives in Philadelphia. Visit him online at kylelukoff.com.

Kyle Lukoff's profile page

Hala Tahboub started her creative journey as an architect and interior designer, before seeing a mysterious ladder that led her to explore writing and illustrating children’s books. Hala believes in kindness, coffee, chocolate, and the immense power of stories. Born in Jordan, she now lives in Montreal, Canada, with her family and many imaginary friends. This is her first picture book. Visit her at halatahboub.com.

Hala Tahboub's profile page

★ "Handling death and grief in a gentle and tender manner, Lukoff’s newest picture book explores the innate need many of us have to fix the problems of the ones we love the most...[This is] a beautiful story that should be sitting on the shelves of school counselors and child therapists everywhere." – School Library Journal, starred review

“Both Newbery Honoree Lukoff’s text and Tahboub’s illustrations convey a stillness that will make this often-difficult topic comprehensible to a young audience…This book is the perfect complement to Cori Doerrfeld’s The Rabbit Listened.” – Kirkus