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Sky Song
In the snowy kingdom of Erkenwald, whales glide between icebergs, wolves hunt on the tundra and polar bears roam the glaciers. But the people of this land aren’t so easy to find – because Erkenwald is ruled by an evil Ice Queen and the tribes must stay hidden or risk becoming her prisoners at Winterfang Palace. Join Eska, a girl who breaks free from a cursed music box, and Flint, a boy whose inventions could change the fate of Erkenwald forever, as they journey to the Never Cliffs and beyond in search of an ancient, almost forgotten, song with the power to force the Ice Queen back. As we are currently in the season of days with cold…
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Top 10 Christmas Picture Books
Christmas is one of those wonderful seasons that has it’s own set of books – beautiful stories that capture the spirit of Christmastime with familiar faces and snowy settings. Many families create a Christmas book basket, adding to it with each returning year as they find new favourites. This is such a lovely idea and very simple to implement. It ticks a number of boxes – keeping things in one handy location to bring out each year (good for feeling organised!), making it part of your traditions in the run up to Christmas (why not pop the basket under the tree), creating the excitement of new bedtime stories and the…
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Stepping Into the Young Adult Section
“One must always be careful of books and what is inside of them, for words have the power to change us” – Cassandra Clare As a bookseller I often saw the nervousness that accompanied parents looking at the shelves in the ‘Young Adult’ section with their young tween. Many of these books are unfamiliar – there is less of the solidity of the classics that are a constant presence in the younger sections. Gone are the Pevensie children, talking spiders and chocolate factories. We are into a world of mazes and deadly games, first loves and heartbreak, murders and apocalypses, and find books that deal more explicitly with issues…
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The Song from Somewhere Else
A.F. Harrold already has a place in my heart as a special kind of writer – a writer who gets to the heart of matters in the most beautiful way. His book ‘The Imaginary’ is a gorgeous story and perfectly shows that illustration can still have a vital place in fiction for older readers. Illustration should not be confined to picture books and the delight of little ones alone! They can be evocative, powerful and provide a window to help connect the reader with the story on a much deeper level. In ‘The Imaginary’ we saw the pairing of Harrold with Emily Gravett and oh it was glorious, so I…
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The Tale of Angelino Brown
Bert and Betty Brown have got themselves a little angel. Bert found him in his top pocket when he was driving his bus. Bert and Betty’s friends think he’s lovely. So do Nancy and Jack and Alice from Class 5K. What a wonder! But Acting Head Teacher Mrs Mole is not so sure. Nor is Professor Smellie. Or the mysterious bloke in black who claims to be a School Inspector. Then there’s Basher Malone – big, lumbering Basher Malone. He REALLY doesn’t like Angelino. And it looks like he’s out to get him… Combine my favourite author with an illustrator who writes the most charming books about a little dog…