SHELTER ISLAND: A January Hoolihan and Crisscross Adventure

Published by Fantasy Creature Books

NEW YORK, March 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Shelter Island, Jill Wisoff's debut novel, and its upcoming sequel are inspired by the lives of musicians and their families she's known, particularly musicians from the original East Village punk scene. Wisoff toured as bassist and backup singer for Johnny Thunders in his final band The Oddballs.

In Shelter Island: A January Hoolihan and Crisscross Adventure, to be released this spring, January finds herself orphaned after her punk-rock musician father overdoses. She is to be dumped on a scary old man when she's hijacked from her East Village tenement to the Island where he lives. But gal pal Crisscross, a little kid from the nabe obsessed with hounds and pirates, shadows January. And in her wake? A heap of trouble!

January scribbles about the dog days that follow in her 8th grade "What I Did Over My Summer Break" assignment.

"The often-grim narrative pulls no punches when dealing with such issues as child abuse and habitual drug use, but it hits upbeat notes, too, from various characters' warmhearted actions to touches of humor…Superlative characters headline a somber, quietly riveting story of friendship and family." - Kirkus Reviews

Encompassing the ongoing, turbulent, Tompkins Square protests of the early 1990s, Shelter Island touches on mature themes including child exploitation and neglect, AIDS, and parental drug abuse's impact on kids.

The book with a recommended reading age of 12–18, is scheduled to be released in paperback on May 4, 2026 through Fantasy Creature Books, New York, New York, at $17.99 (324 pages, ISBN 9798218925772). There will be a 100-eBook Goodreads giveaway starting April 5th. Advanced reader copies for reviewers may be requested through http://fantasycreaturebooks.com.

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SOURCE Fantasy Creature Books