Booklist calls X. Fang’s TOM NANCY “a sure-fire crowd-pleaser” with “immaculately composed” spreads that “will shock and delight young readers” in starred review

★ Tom Nancy: The Sheep Who Swapped Brains with a Boy by Mac Barnett. Illus. by X. Fang.
Sept. 2026. 48p. Tundra, $19.99 (9781774885710). PreS–Gr. 3

“When Felix, a little farmboy in an oversized wool sweater, is approached by a particularly intelligent sheep called Tom Nancy, it doesn’t take long for the sly-eyed creature to convince him to swap brains for the day, using the sheep’s brain-swapping machine. Tom Nancy has a blast eating sandwiches as a boy, while Felix has a fine time munching on grass, but when it’s time to switch back, Tom Nancy refuses. “‘Have some more grass. I’m going to go eat your dessert and kiss your mother!’” Barnett’s text is tight and nicely rhythmic, with his usual sense of humor punctuating what is overall a rather sinister vibe. Fang balances out that tone with a lovely agrarian palette of greens and browns, her heavily textured drawings as vibrant as ever, her spreads immaculately composed. As Felix tries to hatch a plan to get his body back, he comes to love life among the other farm animals. So when Tom Nancy, horrified at the prospect of doing chores and homework, finally wants to switch back, he finds that Felix and the animals have destroyed the brain-swapping machine. The rather dark conclusion, with all the air of a classic fairy tale, will shock and delight young readers. A sure-fire crowd-pleaser.”

— Ronny Khuri, Booklist