The Danger of Small Things
Will be published approx. on 24. March 2026
Book
Hardback
272 pages
978-1-6659-7751-7 (ISBN)
Description
Two starred reviews!
A teen uses her art to protest injustice and galvanize others to resist in this “suspenseful…lyrical” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) near-future dystopian novel about girls finding their voices in the darkest of times, perfect for fans of The Grace Year.
The whole world rested on a single bee’s wings…until that last honeybee died, and the balance of the universe tipped. Now, famine and war rage across the land. People are no longer allowed to read or create art. They are forbidden to believe in the existence of love.
Like every other girl, Jess has been taken from her home to live in a government dormitory, where they are forced to pollinate crops by hand with brushes. But unlike the others, Jess knows how to read and paint—and she knows that brushes aren’t meant for pollinating.
Jess is her mother’s daughter, with a strong streak of rebellion that even the harshest punishment can’t stamp out. She knows there is something horribly wrong with this system built on the hard labor of young girls, a system that forces them to marry and have children as soon as they are able. With smuggled paints and brush in hand, can Jess inspire a revolution?
A teen uses her art to protest injustice and galvanize others to resist in this “suspenseful…lyrical” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) near-future dystopian novel about girls finding their voices in the darkest of times, perfect for fans of The Grace Year.
The whole world rested on a single bee’s wings…until that last honeybee died, and the balance of the universe tipped. Now, famine and war rage across the land. People are no longer allowed to read or create art. They are forbidden to believe in the existence of love.
Like every other girl, Jess has been taken from her home to live in a government dormitory, where they are forced to pollinate crops by hand with brushes. But unlike the others, Jess knows how to read and paint—and she knows that brushes aren’t meant for pollinating.
Jess is her mother’s daughter, with a strong streak of rebellion that even the harshest punishment can’t stamp out. She knows there is something horribly wrong with this system built on the hard labor of young girls, a system that forces them to marry and have children as soon as they are able. With smuggled paints and brush in hand, can Jess inspire a revolution?
More details
Language
English
Target group
Young adult
US School Grade: Second Grade and over
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 219 mm
Width: 148 mm
Thickness: 32 mm
Weight
349 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-6659-7751-7 (9781665977517)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Caryl Lewis
The Danger of Small Things
E-Book
03/2026
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
€10.87
Available for download
Person
Caryl Lewis is an award-winning Welsh novelist, children’s writer, playwright, and screenwriter. Her breakthrough novel, Martha, Jac a Sianco, is widely regarded as a modern classic of Welsh literature and sits on the Welsh curriculum. The film adaptation (with a screenplay by Caryl) won six Welsh BAFTAs and the Spirit of the Festival Award at the Celtic Media Festival. Caryl’s other screenwriting work includes BBC/S4C thrillers Hinterland and Hidden, and she’s also the author of The Danger of Small Things. She is a visiting lecturer in creative writing at Cardiff University and lives with her family on a farm near Aberystwyth.