Of Mice and Monsters: Mighty Max the Brave

HOW AN ADVENTUROUS BLACK CAT CLIMBED HIS WAY ONTO THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST - AND INTO TH EHEARTS OF READERS EVERYWHERE!

Last week, Max the Brave by Ed Vere debuted at #7 on the New York Times bestseller list, and this week has climbed the list to #5!

From the moment Max the Brave was launched, it was clear to all that it was VERY difficult not to fall in love with this brave little black cat. With that in mind, our goal became to make Max visible EVERYWHERE.

​Major giveaways at trade shows, including BEA and ALA, as well as special materials like hardcover ARCs, window decals, capes, and an animated trailer (view it here) helped to build early buzz within the industry…

The entire Sourcebooks team loved Max! To harness that excitement, Sourcebooks team members—armed with Max the Brave capes and their creativity—went on a mission to help our cat find his mouse, and posted the resulting images all over social media during the month of August.

And then we started to hear from reviewers…And early reviews for Max the Brave were unanimous—everyone loves this little black cat and his adventure in finding mouse:

“Max’s guileless personality and single-minded pursuit of his goal make him the perfect stand-in for toddlers, and older children will appreciate Vere’s playful wit and wish for Max’s return.”
--Shelf Awareness for Readers STARRED Review

“Minimalist illustrations and expressive fonts are set against colorful pages to sharpen the reader’s focus on Max and the other animals…Max should find himself chasing Mouse into storytimes again and again.” --Booklist

“An instant read-aloud hit…Max the Brave has it all: a bold, bumbling superhero; laugh-out-loud preschool humor; eye-catching illustrations; and a fun twist at the end. Kids will ask immediately to hear this one again.” --BookPage

“Both the punchy text and illustrations command attention, and plenty of readers will get a kick out of feeling superior to Max.” --Publishers Weekly

​“A cat-and-mouse game to be laughed at and reread. “ --Kirkus Reviews

“Full of playful humor…enhanced by the humorous text, character expressions, and a not-scary monster to boot. VERDICT: Highly recommended.” --School Library Journal

Of course, we couldn’t sell a lot of books without the support of our retail partners, so a big “THANKS” to the Independent Booksellers across the U.S. that helped put Max the Brave on the Autumn 2015 Kids’ Indie Next List! And a BIG Thank YOU to Barnes & Noble, who selected the title as their Special Offer Picture Book for the month of September—and will feature the book for a National Storytime on September 26!

​And many thanks to our red-caped bloggers who shared Max the Brave everywhere! As you can see, kids (and cats) enjoyed reading along.

And all of this led up to an extensive U.S. tour. Author and illustrator Ed Vere is on the road for two weeks visiting bookstores and schools. ​