I was thrilled to receive a copy of ‘The Conspiracy of Magic,’ because it would give me another opportunity to dive into the magical world of Cass (whom I first met in The Company of Eight.) Things have taken an icier turn with sorcerers and magicians beginning to rebel against the ban on magic. Cass … Continue reading ‘The Conspiracy of Magic,’ by Harriet Whitehorn, cover by Maria Surducan.
Today it’s my turn to tell people all about the rather wonderful ‘Granny Magic’ and share a special post by author, Elka Evalds, about some of the wonderful books she loved in her childhood. When Will’s granny passes away, he and his mum make a start on clearing her house - which is absolutely stuffed … Continue reading ‘Granny Magic,’ by Elka Evalds, cover by Teemu Juhani.
I am a huge advocate of funny books and promoting more diverse humorous titles in school and home libraries. That’s why I was so thrilled to be asked to champion one of the titles for this year’s Lollies (The Laugh Out Loud Book Awards 2020), run by Scholastic with Michael Rosen as head judge. The … Continue reading Introducing the Laugh Out Loud Book Award nominee ‘Planet Stan’ by Elaine Wickson (illustrated by Chris Judge)
Some of you may have read Hilary McKay’s Costa Children’s Book Award for ‘The Skylarks War.’ If you did, you will be interested to know that she has new middle grade novel out called ‘The Time of Green Magic.’ It kept me engaged for a couple of what could have been very boring hours at … Continue reading ‘The Time of Green Magic,’ by Hilary McKay, cover by Dawn Cooper.
This book is just a little bit special. It beautifully melds a touching story about the struggles between a mother and a daughter who’s growing up with a strong fantasy/ gaming theme. Unlike anything I’ve read before but totally enchanting. *UPDATE* Aisha’s wonderful book has just been nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2020 - … Continue reading ‘A Pocketful Of Stars,’ by Aisha Busby.
Introducing the perfect book to snuggle up under a blanket with now that Winter is drawing nearer. Lose yourself Siberian wilderness full of wolves, ice and magic - Nevertell. Lina has only ever known life inside the dangerous prison camp she was born in. Life is hard; the rations are meagre and the guards often … Continue reading ‘Nevertell,’by Katharine Orton, cover by Sandra Dieckmann.
I have only recently discovered the joys of novels written in free-verse. Kwame Alexander and Sarah Crossan are award-winning examples of authors who do this already. The ability to tell a whole scene of a story in a few carefully chosen and placed words, and making an emotional connections with their readers is a real … Continue reading ‘In the Key Of Code,’ by Aimee Lucido, cover by Helen Crawford-White.
After reading the magical Snowglobe, I couldn’t wait to read Amy’s newest title: ‘Shadows of Winterspell,’ which I read over the summer but have had to wait until nearer its publication date to review (17th October). Finally, the wait is almost over! Winterspell Forest inhabited by the magical fae folk and haunted by the dark … Continue reading ‘Shadows Of Winterspell,’ by Amy Wilson.
It is with much excitement that I introduce you to Sally Gardner’s first middle grade title since the award-winning ‘I, Coriander,’ 14 years ago! When Celeste wakes up in a costume basket at the Royal Opera House, she hopes that her encounter with the strange man in an emerald green suit at the bottom of … Continue reading Blog Tour: ‘Invisible in a Bright Light,’ by Sally Gardner.
If you like seriously creepy tales of ghouls and ghosties mixed with an inept Nancy Drew-style lead, look no further than ‘The Ghouls Of Howlfair’! Make sure you read Nick’s spooktacular piece about how his main character Molly Thompson came about - the geeks and the weirdos will prevail! Howlfair is a town built on … Continue reading Blog Tour: ‘The Ghouls Of Howlfair,’ by Nick Tomlinson, illustrated by Kim Geyer.
Today, I’m lucky enough to have a special piece from Ben Davis about his top ten fictional dogs in honour of Gizmo, the canine star of his own book: ‘What’s That in Dog Years?’ (OUP) I’ll let Ben fill you in on the plot of this gorgeous book, but if you want my review of … Continue reading ‘What’s That in Dog Years?’ By Ben Davis, illustrated by Julia Christians.
Today’s my stop on the blog tour for ‘The Boy With the Butterfly Mind’ and I have a fascinating piece from its author about how she sets about writing a book and constructing a story - very useful to share with adults and children alike. Told as a dual narrative, we follow the lives of … Continue reading ‘The Boy With the Butterfly Mind,’ by Victoria Williamson.
I am a huge fan of Chris Ridell’s work - stories and illustrations - so imagine my excitement when I discovered he was writing a brand new magical adventure series AND that I was invited to be part of its blog tour! The Kingdom Of Thrynne is a place of ancient magic, but those seen … Continue reading “The Cloud Horse Chronicles: Guardians Of Magic,” by Chris Riddell.
“A boy. A drone. And the danger below.” Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Spylark,’ with a special piece by Danny Rurlander about the beautiful Lake District setting for his book. Since his accident, Tom’s not only struggling with the loss of his father but also loss of mobility. Retreating into the … Continue reading Blog Tour: ‘Spylark,’ by Danny Rurlander, cover by Doaly.
#BookBoy loves gaming. Luckily, he also loves reading. But titles which allow him combine these two interests are few and far between. I’ve been racking my brain for children’s books which feature computer games as a key component, and here’s what I’ve managed to come up with! ‘Glitch’ by Sarah Graley (Scholastic) has just dropped … Continue reading Game On! Level up with these books about gaming!
Today is my stop on the ‘My Family and Other Ghosts’ blog tour. I am very excited to be on board as I’ve loved all the previous books of Lou’s that I’ve read and I have a special piece from her about how the story reflected her relationship with her brother growing up. But first … Continue reading ‘My Family and Other Ghosts,’ by Lou Kuenzler, illustrated by Steve Brown.
In honour of International Dogs Day, here’s a round up of some of the fab books I’ve received featuring some of the most brilliant dogs around! ‘This is a Dog’ by Ross Collins (Nosy Crow) Uh oh! A very loveable but slightly excitable young pup has broken into a First Book of Animals and taken … Continue reading Puppy Love
Having recently heard a lot of good things about ‘Lori and Max,’ I decided to make it my next read. I am pleased to report back that I wasn’t disappointed. Lori Mason wants to be a detective, but she keeps this very quiet at school because it’s not a good idea to be different. She’d … Continue reading ‘Lori and Max,’ by Catherine O’Flynn, cover by Jennifer Hall.
This is a book for anyone who used to while away the hours as a childhood immersed in an imaginary world or playing made up games with rules nobody outside your circle of friends would understand. I had the pleasure of interviewing Jenny about these very things for my Library Girl and Book Boy podcast, … Continue reading ‘The Land of Roar,’ by Jenny McLachlan, illustrated by Ben Mantle.
Today I’m bringing you the lowdown on Scoop McLaren: Detective Editor with an exclusive Q&A with Scoop herself! Scoop is a 13-year-old reporter and investigator who runs online newspaper, Click!, so she is not pleased when Sonny Fink, evil reporter extraordinaire, starts uploading the most terrible news reports on his online newspaper at one minute … Continue reading Blog Tour: ‘Scoop McLaren: Detective Editor,’ by Helen Castles, illustrations by Beatriz Castro.
Library Girl and Book Boy 