NO CAT LIKE TAC

Out Now!

Disney-Hyperion

Meet Tac, an unusual cat! Her pounce shakes the house, her zoomies are a doozy, and her hairballs are . . . well, fireballs. But she’ll always be family. Right?

Perfect for fans of dragons and in the tradition of Not Quite Narwhal, this laugh-out-loud picture book shows that love can overcome even the biggest, most unlikely differences!

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Free Activity Sheet!

WE DIG FOSSILS.

Coming May 6

Step into Reading, Random House

Get out your shovels and fossil brushes for this delightful Step 2 reader following a family’s search for fossils!

Ava loves rocks! But what she really really loves are fossils! Ava and her family are on a mission to dig up some fossils. They dig in their backyard, in the park, and by the creek but still no fossils. But Ava will not give up! The family head out to the beach for one more fossil hunting adventure!

Will Ava finally be able to dig up her very own fossil?

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ART'S ART

Coming May 6

Paw Prints

Teach kids about adaptability with this humorous, empathy-building Level 2 Paw Prints Reader.

More than anything, Cam loves to create art—he paints, he draws, he builds! What’s more, his dad loves to display these creations proudly all over their walls!

It’s no surprise that, when Dad surprises Cam with a rambunctious puppy, Cam names him Art. Art loves art just as much as Cam does. But Art makes a mess!

What will Cam do?

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SCARECITED ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Coming June 3

FSG

Some feelings are so big, one word just doesn’t cut it.

It’s the first day of school for Afua! There’s no one word to name her feelings. Is she scared? Excited? Oh wait, she’s scarecited! Her own combination of both. Why should she have to choose?

Scarecited on the First Day of School is a charming picture book that reminds us all that having the courage to be our authentic self is always just enough, and you can feel more than one big emotion at the same time. But if there isn’t one word to describe those feelings . . . there’s beauty in making it yourself.

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BLEXI, PLAY!

Out Now!

Paw Prints

Dealing with a stubborn smart home speaker results in welcome lessons about patience in this Level 2 early reader. Blexi listens to Mom and Blexi listens to Dad -- but Blexi doesn't listen to Liam! Also available in Spanish.

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GREAT IDEA
MALIA!

Out Now!

Holiday House

Malia has big ideas and boundless energy for problem-solving her mom’s new job in this joyful picture book that’s perfect for young families juggling work and play.

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MEET
ALLIAH!

Mom, Author, Marketer

Featured on ESSENCE.com, TODAY, Good Housekeeping and more.

BOOKS

BIO

BIG TUNE: RISE OF THE DANCEHALL PRINCE

FSG

Junior Library Guild Gold selection!

A New York Public Library Best Book of 2023

A Chicago Public Library Best Picture + Board Book

SCBWI Book Club Selection

"An exuberant celebration of community that leaps off the page."

-Kirkus, Starred Review

"Agostini’s buoyant rhyming verse pulses with details, and Knight-Justice’s stylized illustrations layer bold patterns and textures"

-Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

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BIG TUNE FUN!

Mac n’ Please. The after picture. 👩🏾‍🍳💋. Easter is around the corner, just a reminder that The Juneteenth Cookbook has some serious winners for your holiday menu. 🫡 @cheftaffyelrod #teamnocrumbsleftbehind #soulfood

This is part of a longer video, but I had to clip this portion of it because people are still telling us congratulations on our book deal. 🤣🤣🤣😁😆 This little one was the one egging me on to do an April Fool’s prank, btw. We’re just going to have to manifest this as reality one day! 🙏🏽🙏🏽 #author #authorsofinstagram #momswhowrite #authormom #futureillustrator #aprilfoolsprank

Dear Afua,
Welcome to the shelf. You make me smile.
May you inspire readers to feel their feelings, be creative and courageous, and unafraid to take up space.
I can’t wait to share you!!
💕💕💕
Alliah

Coming June 3! #scarecited #scarecitedonthefirstdayofschool #selbooks #namebooks #firstdayofschoolbooks

It’s simple- Where there are pajamas, there will be bonnets. Tyra made sure her girl Tac’s tresses were cov 👏🏽 ered👏🏽. That’s what friends are for! It’s the little things. #representationmatters 🥰🥰 👧🏽🐱🐉 From ‘No Cat Like Tac’ written by @alliago illustrated by @charlessantoso. @disneybooks

SCARECITED on the First Day of School is on the way this June!! There are a number of things that make this book so special to me- not only is it book #10 🤯 but it gets back to the essence of one of the (unpublishable, haha) stories that made me decide to pursue this whole kidlit thing in the first place.
It is intentionally beautiful and bright, with simple, fun, and sing-songy text, but layered with themes that are timeless, complex, and deeply meaningful for children and adults, alike. I’ll share more about what makes this book so special in the coming weeks, but in the meantime, it’s available for preorder at your favorite book retailer (link in bio)! This is a perfect book for any educator or elementary school student, especially for those with “less-practiced” names. 😉 Hooray for this kind review @acaseoflala @janine614!!! #scarecited #scarecitedonthefirstdayofschool #firstdayofschoolbooks

This post IS real. ;-)

Thrilled to share this wonderful starred review from School Library Journal for my very first book with the iconic Step Into Reading line - We Dig Fossils!! This Level 2 reader is beautifully illustrated by @pannacotta_cupcake, whose illustrations can also be seen in the recent Abbott Elementary picture book.

I loved the few times I went fossil hunting when I was a kid, so it’s something I started doing with my own kids during the pandemic. It’s fun, inexpensive, educational and there are a couple of easy spots about an hour from our house.

My little guy is actually my fossil hunting partner.
He’s not pleased I made the protagonist of this one a girl, but Daphne’s our artist and I made Art’s Art about a boy, so I switched things up a little bit. Can I live? Ah well.

I hope this makes your emerging readers giggle just like it did for them - and me!

Pre-order now! Link in bio, and a link to the full @sljournal review is in my stories.
#easyreader #earlyreader

😬😬😬😬😬😬😬😬 Happy April Fool’s Day!!!! This would be amazing though. 🥰🥰🥰 I even fooled my mama. She wasn’t happy with me, though. P.S. If you use these titles or pitches sleep with one eye open. 🤪 They may not be a joke one day! #aprilfoolsday #kidlit

Edited: Happy April Fool’s Day!!!! 😁😁😁 I’ve been sitting on this one for long enough… talk about dreams coming true!! 🥹🥹🥹 I’ll have more words later, but I am UNBELIEVABLY proud to collaborate with my very talented baby girl on these two new book babies being released as part of a special bundle coming in 2027!!!!! #blackgirlmagic 😉

“Great Idea Malia” Malia’s mantras were adapted by Heritage Heights music teacher Debbie Zehler and performed by every Pre-K-2nd grade student- with sign language and vocal lyrics!! I even got a copy of the sheet music!
I don’t know who started chopping onions near me, but I was relieved there was a tissue box in reach! 🥹🥹What a wonderful school. You were right, @aliceeverafterbooks!!!! #greatideamalia #kidlit #authorsofinstagram

Omg did I feel the LOVE the previous couple of days. There’s no love like #BuffaLOVE.
More fun at Heritage Heights.🥰🥰🥰 #authorvisit 🦬❤️

Joy. Why I do what I do. I just spent two incredible days doing school visits in my HOMETOWN!!!! What a delight it was to spend No Cat Like Tac’s book birthday with the amazing kids of @tapestrycharter and Heritage Heights Elementary thanks to Meg Howe of @aliceeverafterbooks, who has been such a wonderful advocate for me and for children’s literature in the Buffalo area! Today the incredible educators and kids of Heritage Heights made feel like the Beyoncé of books- never have I ever felt so famous!! Once I get the go ahead to be able to share more, I will. They wrote me a song, y’all- a song! Tears were shed!! Don’t worry, I won’t sing it- if you check my stories and hear me singing happy birthday to Tac you’ll understand why 🤣. Feeling all the goosebumps, all the joy. 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰 #nocatliketac #bookbirthday #kidlit

While authors have the ability to consent to such a practice, I never consented to allowing my work to train Meta, or any other organization’s AI.

It is a flagrant violation of our intellectual property.

We’re a week away from dropping No Cat Like Tac so it’s time for me to share a little something in my love language- music! That’s right, the No Cat Like Tac playlist, with 45 minutes of bops about friendship! Tyra and Tac are such a loveable duo (wait until you see them with their coordinated bonnets 🥹 Thank you, @charlessantoso ! #representationmatters) so I wanted to share some vibes- with some oldies but goodies (TLC, Brandy, 702, and even Aunties Dionne & Gladys 💁🏽‍♀️) about my favorite ship… friendship. (Okay, that was very corny, but I couldn’t help myself) it’s not too late to pre-order! Check links in bio for playlist and pre-order! Woot-woot! #nocatliketac #kidLIT

The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books offered such a wonderful review of No Cat Like Tac! These are just highlights, but words cannot express how grateful I am to have my words paired with @charlessantoso’s brilliantly comedic and huggable illustrations. It’s always easy to have certain small details and ideas in mind when a project first kicks off, but it’s something different altogether to execute them- and the illustrations are simply delightful. This is such a huggable book about a sweet human-pet relationship, (and really, friendship…) but the new pet chaos part, well… we know that’s real, too. 😉 Glad to bring some humor to a not always humorous life transition. 😬 Three weeks away!!! Pre-order wherever books are sold! #nocatliketac (P.S. you know I have to make a playlist for this one- drop your favorite friend-related songs in the comments!! Had to add a little TLC to this post! 😉)

2025 marks the 7th year of our family’s Black History Month (really, year) card! This year the kids were two notable figures who share their 🇯🇲 roots, Vice President Kamala Harris and Usain Bolt! While today technically signifies the end of Black History Month, we will continue to celebrate us, our history, our present, and our future all year round. No racist legislation is going to stop us from shining the light that has always been our God-given right to shine. 🖤🖤🖤🖤 #blackhistorymonth #blackhistory365

Family Portrait, 2025. Commissioned by my favorite artist 🥰🥰🥰 Daphne, 10. Created digitally with procreate. 🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽

“An accessible tale that makes clear that anyone—even the four-legged—can be an artist.”

I will be releasing publishing twins on May 6th! Kirkus shared a lovely (and accurate!) review of one of them, ‘Art’s Art’, illustrated by @pmillustrations and published by @pawprintspublishing . What appears to be a simple story for emerging readers about an artistic little boy, his loving dad, and his loving but rambunctious new dog, incorporates elements of creativity, problem solving, friendship, and even ‘scatalogical humor’... (okay, poop jokes. 😆). 😉 Coming soon! Thank you for this kind review, @kirkus_reviews #easyreader #kidlit

Hey all! Thrilled to join the @pbrisingstars program as a mentor this year! Check my link in bio to learn more about what the other wonderful mentors and I are looking for in potential mentees. I’ve benefited immensely from mentorship and am looking forward to paying it forward through this very impactful (impeccably run 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽) program. Posted @withregram • @pbrisingstars Gather ‘round, UNAGENTED and AGENTED writers!! Today, we’re introducing you you to the illustrious @alliago, a mentor you’re going to want to get know!

Alliah has written a whole bunch of award-winning books, and joy, truth and representation are at the heart of all of them. She’s an expert and finding the truth in fiction and reflecting it on the page and making big concepts feel bite-size for little readers.

And if you’re looking for a mentor who can help you trim the fat of your story to leave more room for the illustrator, or who has the right insights when it comes to identifying catchy hooks and injecting humor into your stories, Alliah is the one you’ve been looking for!

She wants to work with a mentee who is on the path to being prolific, but who wants to do the work of prioritizing each of their manuscripts and hone them to get them to their very best. And if you are a writer who sees their work visually, creating work that sets a future illustrator up for success, even better.

And if you came to writing a little later in life and are more self-taught than formally trained, Alliah ESPECIALLY wants to see your application!

Check out her mentor page for more insights into her wish list, and be sure to register for MEET THE MENTORS at our #linkinbio!

Mood. Just a reminder. Stay stronfident, friends. ♥️ (You know I love a good portmanteau. I can’t wait for #scarecited to come out in June. It’s 🔥 @acaseoflala!)

It is such an honor to be a member of the 18th class of The Brown Bookshelf 28 Days Later honorees. The Brown Bookshelf is comprised of a group of authors who are some of the G.O.A.T.s 🙌🏽of the Black kidlit community. They have generously used their blog and influence to amplify their fellow Black kidlit creatives via this initiative each February.

This year I’m lucky to be featured alongside people who are friends and collaborators, too! (I see you, boos!! 😉)

Thank you for seeing me, @tonyaellisbooks and @brownbookshelfteam @blackstoriesamplified team!

Learn more about my kidlit journey through my interview with Tonya Ellis in the article linked in my bio.

It’s time for Barnes & Noble’s 25% pre-order sale for all B&N Rewards Members! Pre-orders are crucial for our books’ success, and NO CAT LIKE TAC, SCARECITED, ART’S ART, and WE DIG FOSSILS are all included.
From now until Friday, Feb. 7th, enter PREORDER25 at checkout and join their free rewards program to qualify. Thank you!

Happy Black History Year. I’ve been Black since the day I was born and will be until the day I die, and I am so very proud of it. We will keep writing on. ✊🏽A special thank you to the incredible @jemiscoe for sealing the deal, @quartokids for your continued commitment to telling our stories, and the talented @oliviasmithart for your partnership in bringing the under-shared origins of this important holiday to life. Coming Fall ‘25.

2020’s Peekaboo.
2020-Now they see us… 2025- now they don’t. 😔 💔💔💔

I can’t wait for you all to meet Tyra, Tac, Max and their family! No Cat Like Tac is coming March 25th- two months away!
I recently did an interview reflecting on the next books I have coming out, and I didn’t realize how appropriate this next batch would be for our current moment. They are fun, they are silly, and they center giving our kids, especially our Black babies, a sense of joy! Be radical in your pursuit of joy, friends. We can’t let the world distract us. 💕P.S. Can you guess what a FURP is??? 😬🤭#nocatliketac #bookstagram

My dad wrote this poem for me for being a ‘Keeping the Dream Alive’ award recipient in 5th grade at my beloved Alma mater, @cityhonorsschool .
I recently watched a clip (not posted) of my OWN 5th grader proudly singing a solo 🥹(!) at her school’s Martin Luther King assembly, 32 years later.
32 years, and MLK’s legacy- something already established decades before I was a 5th grader- is still as relevant as ever. As NEEDED as ever.
I don’t know what the coming days, months, or years will hold, but I implore each and every one of you to hold onto whatever ray of sunshine you need. Align yourself with goodness, hold fast to your faith, act with empathy, and don’t let the current status quo scare you away from being the change you need see.
Dad’s poem was a tall order. I’m grateful to have a family who has always believed in my potential 🥹, even when I didn’t. In ways I am still very much that chubby cheeked, stirrup pant- wearing (it was the 90s) 5th grader who always tried her best to make an impact wherever she went.
While it is tempting to stay in my corner, drink my water, and mind my 92% (IYKYK) business- it’s not in my nature- and I already know it’s not in my kids’ either. So, I will rest my fears with the only God I know and continue to believe in the power of the pen, my mind, and my heart to spread light and truth now more than ever. I implore you all to do whatever you are called to do, but most importantly, to lead your lives with a spirit of empathy and love.
xo,
Alliah
(P.S. On a MUCH lighter note, I had fun poking my dad for using the wrong ‘their’- his nickname in our house used to be ‘The critic’. I may be in publishing, but he’s the toughest editor I’ve ever had!)

So, I made my 2024 recap list. And, well… grateful is an understatement. (I still get giddy when I see those Oprah Reels, @cheftaffyelrod and @sawyercloud01 ! I also had too much fun with our family @mayasbooknook Great Idea Malia! dance-off!)

I’ve shared a lot of what’s been going on in the foreground over the year💕, and there’s more brewing in the background 😉, but I’d most love to close out the year with some thank yous.

To every collaborator who worked in front of and behind the scenes on my three 2024 releases: THE JUNETEENTH COOKBOOK, GREAT IDEA MALIA!, and BLEXI, PLAY! Thank you for lending your brilliance to breathe life into my words and ideas and to share them with children everywhere!

To every bookseller, journalist, reviewer, bookstagrammer, and podcaster who has highlighted my books- thank you for generously using your platform and influence to continue to amplify, distribute, and recommend my work. I wish I could tag all 80+ of you!!! (I actually counted!)

To every school, bookstore, museum, company, festival, and conference that has invited me to speak or table- thank you for giving this Leo a microphone, audience, and a break from writerly isolation!

To every individual who has read, purchased, borrowed, and/or recommended one of my books, come to one of my events (I’ve loved EVERY surprise reunion!), or recommended me for a speaking event or press feature- thank you.

To my family, friends, and kidlit community- thank you for your perpetual support, encouragement, wisdom, and for having faith in me to continue doing what I do.

Above all, I have to thank God for the privilege to do something that reflects the power and value of being able to authentically express myself, while also honoring the family and community who has helped make me who I am.

Remember, you all are just seeing the highlight reel of this journey. THIS IS NOT EASY. It’s filled with plenty of work and periods of doubt. But, without fail, these low moments have been met with much-needed reminders, or ‘God Winks’, to keep me on this path.
2024, thank you. Looking forward to 2025. Leggo!!!🏃🏽‍♀️💨

Forever grateful. Happy Holidays, everyone.

😆😆😆 FYI, I do enjoy a little light potty humor. 🤭🤭Merry Christmas.

We got a surprise delivery today… my very first copies of NO CAT LIKE TAC illustrated by @charlessantoso edited by @_syntactics_ and published by @disneybooks !!
By the way, clearly my children are getting very used to me bringing new book siblings home, and this little one with the Inside Out 2-level sarcasm… phew! The privilege! He’s lucky I can’t un-dedicate a book 🤪. (But I know he’s pretty excited, too.)
Anyways, this journey has continued to be such a blessing, through both the peaks AND the valleys-what a great way to end the year. Can’t wait for you all to meet Tyra, Tac, her dad, her bonus mom MOMica and her bonus kitty Max (or Maxine- as in Waters and Shaw- IYKYK) this March.
Available for pre-order now!!!
P.S. This video even had a cameo from the REAL Monica in our lives, my AUNT Monica. 🤗🤗

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MALIA!

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