Cover Reveal: King Coyote by Rachael MeyersJones

Today on Pop! Goes The Reader I feel lucky to have been asked to host the exclusive cover reveal for King Coyote by Rachael MeyersJones, a middle grade contemporary story set amidst the Vermont wilderness, and which is being published by North Star Editions on April 14th 2026! Don’t miss all the exciting details below!

Rachael MeyersJones

Rachael MeyersJones is a neurospicy writer and youth programs leader in Oakland, California, aka Huichin, the unceded territory of the Chochenyo-speaking Ohlone people who continue to steward and thrive on this land. Rachael grew up in both Boston, Massachusetts, and the Northeast Kingdom, Vermont. Her writing has been shaped by her experiences as a Mixed Black woman, and by the many amazing young people she’s known throughout her life and career. You can learn more about Rachael’s current work and passions on her website. King Coyote is her debut novel.

Adventure novels were a favorite genre as a kid. I loved being outside and imagining I had to survive in the wilderness against all odds! But I never read about characters who reflected my experience as an outdoorsy Mixed kid, or any examples of Black kids exploring the outdoors unless those stories were set during our enslavement or Jim Crow. I wanted to celebrate African American belonging in nature while acknowledging why we’ve been so distanced from our relationship with the woods and the wilderness, because it’s not by accident. In King Coyote, King and Nat build deep connections with nature, with each other, with their complicated families, and with their sense of self. They go through as much pain as they do wonder and play, just like any tweenager searching for their place in the world. They proudly carry the legacy of their ancestors with the infinite possibilities their futures may hold. And through it all, they find themselves on the adventure of a lifetime navigating the wilderness with nothing but their wits and a wild coyote!

There are so many details I love about how Colin represented this story in the cover art. The colors of the landscape are haunting and beautiful, and King and Nat’s mischievous smirks are priceless. But best of all, there’s something exhilarating about locking eyes with the kids and knowing something they don’t: There’s a coyote stalking through the woods right behind them! To me this brings up so many fun questions about what might happen, what danger King and Nat might be in without even knowing, and what they’ll need to do to survive.

Cover design by Karli Hughes, Cover illustration by Colin Laurel

Title King Coyote
Author Rachael MeyersJones
Target Audience Middle Grade
Publication Date April 14th 2026 by North Star Editions
Find It On North Star Editions ● Goodreads ● Amazon ● Blackwell’s ● Barnes & Noble ● IndieBound

Twelve-year-old King has been banished to the Vermont woods for the summer, and there’s nothing he can do about it. As if his parents getting divorced wasn’t bad enough, they’ve shipped him off to his aunt and uncle’s house to protect him like he’s some baby. The only bright side is being reunited with his favorite cousin, Nat, who he hasn’t seen in years.

At first, King wants nothing more than to go home to Boston. There are barely any other Black people in Vermont, the townsfolk are mean to him, and his relatives don’t even have Wi-Fi to play games! But a late-night encounter with a young coyote changes his mind. King develops a bond with the creature, who seems just as lonely and misunderstood as he is. Then King’s uncle calls the local trappers, saying the coyote is a threat to their farm, and King is forced to decide: return home to Boston, or stay and save his new friend?

With the help of Nat, a veteran wilderness explorer and walking wildlife encyclopedia, King scales mountains, faces off against skunks, and sleeps under the stars to find a new home for the coyote — and just maybe, a home for himself, too.

Inspired by her own childhood traipsing through the Vermont wilderness, debut author Rachael MeyersJones brings a fresh take to the classic wilderness survival tale.