Sama Crushes the Code HC (2026 Candlewick) comic books

1st printing. Written by Samaira Mehta. Art and cover by Jenny Alvarado. Big-thinking Sama loves coding, but is she skilled enough to fit in at Tech Club? This is a playful and STEM-rich story inspired by the real life of its seventeen-year-old author. Sama's starting middle school! Maybe Tech Club will be a good place to fit in. She's into solving problems, building clever machines, and collecting beautiful data, plus her friend Nancy has given her a cool book on coding. But everyone at Tech Club is already so good at coding—will Sama's contributions be enough for her to be included in the Code Crusher championship? Sama proposes a project to help a stressed-out bus driver develop a time-saving route, but the club leader thinks the coding isn't complex enough. When Sama befriends new neighbor Zoe (who built her own hovercraft!), however, the two girls inspire each other, and soon Sama bounces back with a bunny-based board game that teaches kids how to code while having fun. Could this game be the key to getting to the championship? Precise coding vocabulary and examples are woven seamlessly into this lively story, based on the real-life computer science adventures of its author, young tech entrepreneur Samaira Mehta. Hardcover, 6 1/2-in. x 9-in., 160 pages, full color. Age 8-12 years Cover price $24.99.