The September Crush Pile

Every month our mailbox delivers something worth talking about. The Crush Pile is where those books land, a quick look at what arrived, why it caught our eye, and why it might deserve a spot on your radar too.

This month’s pile brought us Time-Traveling Chickens: Bawk to the Future by Kaz Windness, out now, and we are charmed. Nugget and Tenders are super-big, super-smart, talking chickens who get trapped in a time machine by evil scientists and land in the age of the dinosaurs. Rather than panic about this, they decide to use the opportunity to change the course of chicken-kind.

Kaz Windness is a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor-winning author-illustrator and proudly neurodivergent, and her books are built specifically for kids who are ready to move past beginning readers but not quite ready for full chapter books. The Star Chapter Book format, short chapters and illustrated panels on every page, is designed to build confidence without overwhelming. This is the first book in the Time-Traveling Chickens series, which means more Nugget and Tenders are coming!

Perfect for the young reader in your life who needs a book that meets them where they are and also features chickens outwitting dinosaurs. This is sure to be a winner in my Little Free Library!

Bawk to the Future: A Star Chapter Book (Time-Traveling Chickens)

by Kaz Windness
Published by: Simon Spotlight
on 8/25/26
Genres: Kids
Bookshop
Goodreads

Star Chapter Books are the perfect bridge for kids moving beyond beginning readers but not yet ready for longer chapter books. With short chapters, bold two-color illustrations, and fast-paced, funny stories, these confidence-building books make reading fun and rewarding.

Two chicken friends accidentally time travel back to the age of the dinosaurs in this first tale in the rollicking Time-Traveling Chickens series from Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor–winning author-illustrator Kaz Windness!

Nugget and Tenders are super-big, super-smart, talking chickens. When evil scientists trap them in a time machine, they land in the age of the dinosaurs. Not ones to be easily discouraged, these adventurous avians see their chance to change the course of chicken-kind. Can they change the past and get back to their future—or is the duo doomed to be a dinosaur’s dinner?

Each Star Chapter Book is 112 pages long, divided into six to eight short chapters with illustrated panels on every page to keep kids engaged from start to finish. This highly visual early chapter book format supports the transition from leveled readers to chapter books, making Star Chapter Books a perfect fit for independent reading, classroom libraries, or shared story time.

Look for more Star Chapter Books adventures to help kids grow confident and develop a love of reading, including the chickens’ next adventure, Nugget and Tenders’s Eggcellent Adventure!