Coming Soon

The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class: Thunder Nelson Does the Impossumble

By Martha Brockenbrough

Illustrated by Kat Fajardo

Introduction by Kate Messner

On Sale: Nov 4, 2025
Page Count: 144 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN-13: 9781523532971

$6.99

$9.99 CAD

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Meet the kids in Mrs. Z’s wacky and wonderful third grade class! When Mrs. Z’s class is looking for an animal to “adopt,” Thunder Nelson knows just the critter—the baby possum she just saved. But Thunder isn’t ready for what happens when a wild animal goes to school!

Mrs. Z’s class is voting on a small class mascot, since big animals tend to get all the attention. But Thunder hates voting—it’s like sports but less fun. Everyone is nominating tardigrades, while Thunder is hoping for something fuzzy, like a hamster.

Then she finds an abandoned baby possum and has a brilliant idea. She’ll bring the possum to school and convince the class it should be their mascot! How could they resist picking a real, live animal? But when Thunder’s plan goes off the rails, the possum—and the class—may end up in danger if Thunder can’t find a way to fix her mistakes.

Both sweetly poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, with black-and-white illustrations by Pura Belpré Honor artist Kat Fajardo, Thunder’s story invites readers into Mrs. Z’s class where friendship and fun rule the school.

Perfect for!
★ My Weirdtastic School fans
★ Reluctant readers
★ Classroom read-alouds
★ Andrew Clements fans
★ Animal lovers!
★ Anyone who’s had to fix a mistake

Read them all! The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class have plenty of stories to share!
Emma McKenna, Full out (#1)
Rohan Murthy Has a Plan (#2)
Poppy Song Bakes a Way (#3)
The Legend of Memo Castillo (#4)
Wyatt Hill Brings a Lizard to School (#5)
Ayana Ndoum Takes the Stage (#6)
Olive Little Gets Crafty (#7)
Synclaire Fields Knows the Score (#8)
Theo Chang is Not a Cat (#9) — available for preorder now!
Sebastian Metzger Solves a Sticky Situation (#11) — available for preorder now!
Fia Hosein Finds Her Beat (#12) — available for preorder now!

*The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class is an innovative series where every book is written by a different all-star author and features a different kid in the same third-grade class. They can be read in any order!

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The Kids in Mrs. Z's Class

Praise for the Kids in Mrs. Z's Class Series
"Uplifting and encouraging."
Kirkus Reviews
“Buy the book and the series. Kids need access to this diverse classroom of students who face everyday crises with their supportive friends, and this gentle read shows the goodness in the world without being overly sappy.”
SLJ
"Believable characters experiencing age-appropriate challenges: making new friends, navigating social groups, overcoming shyness, and dealing with embarrassment.... Share with fans of Annie Barrows' Ivy and Bean books or Sara Pennypacker's Clementine series."
Booklist
“[A] wholesome read…buoyant."
Publishers Weekly
"This new series is giving [Polk Street School] vibes. I absolutely love that each book is written by a different author and I love how diverse the classroom is. . . The great thing about [these] books is they showcase kids working together and supporting each other."
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Martha Brockenbrough

About the Author

Martha Brockenbrough is the author of more than twenty books for young readers and is the program director at the University of San Francisco’s MFA in Writing for Young Readers. She founded National Grammar Day (March 4), has written game questions for Cranium and Trivial Pursuit, and is the author of the Frank and the Puppy series, This Old Dog, and To Catch a Thief, which won the Sid Fleischman Humor Award. Martha lives in Seattle with her family. She invites you to visit her online at marthabrockenbrough.com.

Kat Fajardo (they/she) received a Pura Belpré Honor for Illustration for their first graphic novel, Miss Quinces (published in Spanish as Srta. Quinces). Born and raised in New York City, Kat now lives in Austin, Texas, with their pups, Mac and Roni. They invite you to visit them at katfajardo.com.

Learn more about this author

Kat Fajardo

About the Illustrator

Kat Fajardo is an award-winning comic artist and illustrator based in NYC. A graduate of The School of Visual Arts, she’s editor of La Raza Anthology and creator of Bandida Comics series. She’s made work for Penguin Random House on The First Rule of Punk (written by Celia C. Pérez), CollegeHumor, and several anthologies. You can find her working at her Brooklyn studio creating playful and colorful work about self-acceptance and Latinx culture. Or drooling over puppies at a cafe.

Learn more about this illustrator