Beloved fantasy author Brandon Sanderson releases children's book with Kazu Kibuishi

Brandon Sanderson may be best known for writing dense works of fantasy fiction, but the popular author of Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive is now trying his hand at something a little different: picture books.

"The Most Boring Book Ever," a collaboration between Sanderson and graphic novelist Kazu Kibuishi, is hitting bookstore shelves this week. Though Sanderson and Kibuishi are widely regarded as heavyweights in their respective disciplines, the book serves as each author's debut foray into children's picture books.

Billed by its publisher as an "imaginative picture book for the whole family," the book tells the story of a boy whose seemingly ordinary afternoon turns into an unexpected fantastical adventure.

Here's everything to know about "The Most Boring Book Ever," as well as Sanderson and Kibuishi.

What is 'The Most Boring Book Ever?'

As you may expect, the title of "The Most Boring Book Ever" is intentionally a bit of a misnomer.

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Sanderson wrote the words while Kibuishi provided the illustrations for the story, which follows a boy as he embarks for a seemingly boring day filled with math homework, chores and naps. But amid the mundane tasks, an adventure unfolds around the youngster involving pirates, dragons and more.

Sanderson recently shared an animated trailer for the picture book on his social media channels.

In an interview with Dragonsteel Books, Sanderson's publishing company, Kibuishi described taking inspiration from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and other fantasy stories from the 1970s to create illustrations with a "fusion of humor and fantasy."

When does 'The Most Boring Book Ever' release?

"The Most Boring Book Ever" went on sale Tuesday from Roaring Brook Press, an imprint of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group.

Who is Brandon Sanderson?

Since his debut novel "Elantris" hit bookshelves in 2005, Sanderson, 48, has risen to widespread acclaim and is regarded as one of the most prolific fantasy authors of his generation.

Sanderson's Mistborn original trilogy about Allomancers performing metal-based magic to overthrow an evil empire catapulted him to success when it debuted in 2006. A year later, Sanderson was selected to finish the epic "Wheel of Time" fantasy series following author Robert Jordan's death.

In the years since, Sanderson has authored a vast amount of titles that span not just fantasy fiction, but science fiction and even young adult – most of which take place in shared universe he calls the Cosmere.

Another 'Stormlight Archive' book coming this year

As it happens, "The Most Boring Book Ever" isn't even Sanderson's last book release of the year.

In December, the highly-anticipated fifth installment in his expansive Stormlight Archive series, "Wind and Truth," is due out. The series, which now includes four books surpassing 1,000 pages each, as well as two novellas, is considered by many fantasy readers to be among the best works in the genre.

A testament to his popularity, Sanderson has twice shattered Kickstarter records: First in 2022 when he raised more than $41.7 million for four secret books published through Dragonsteel, a record for the platform; and then again late last month when a tabletop game based on his books raised the most amount of any games project in the platform's history.

Who is Kazu Kibuishi?

Kibuishi, 46, is the writer and artist behind The New York Times best-selling Amulet graphic novel series, which follows a young girl who discovers a sentient magical circular amulet in her great-grandfather's house.

Kibuishi, who was born in Tokyo and immigrated to the United States as a child, is also the creator and editor of the comic anthologies Flight and Explorer.

In 2013, Kibuishi was selected to redesign covers of the Harry Potter books for the series' 15th anniversary.

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]