By Maryrose Wood
Illustrated by Giulia Ghigini
Union Square Kids, 2026
208 pages
978-1-4549-5348-7
Ages 7-10
Beloved badger Septimus is back for another adventure. In this sequel to Bad Badger: A Love Story, Septimus is co-parenting three downy seagull hatchlings with Gully, who is often at the seashore fishing for meals for the ever-hungry chicks. Septimus’s curated and comfortable home life is barely a memory as he busily tends the needy babies. Like many new parents, Septimus is enamored with his new charges, but he’s also overwhelmed and wondering what happened to his old life. He misses Gully and feels guilty staying at home while she works all day. Before this novel skirts too closely to adult relationship drama, a crew of seven very badger-like badgers arrives for a visit. And as Septimus quickly learns, the badger code of hospitality states, “When a badger asks a badger, a badger says yes.” The arrival of the forest badgers adds to the chaos; yet just as the tension mounts once again, the badger relatives prove to be a blessing and a boon. They relieve the harried parents of a few duties and add charm and humor to a busy, blissful summer. Perhaps most importantly, they surround Septimus with love and support, giving him space to explore what it means to be a badger while showing him how to enjoy his found family and the passage of time. ©2026 Cooperative Children’s Book Center