Today is officially Earth Day 2021 so it only seems fitting that I share with you ‘Coyote’s Soundbite - A Poem For Our Planet’ - a very clever and funny call to action... ‘Excitement spreads like wildfire through the jungle. Earth-goddesses are planning a conference! From Australia to Antarctica, the Amazon to Africa, goddesses will … Continue reading Earth Day 2021 Spotlight: ‘Coyote’s Soundbite – A Poem for Our Planet,’ by John Agard, illustrated by Piet Grobler.
Today I’m sharing a wonderful information book inspired by the of the amazing women and men who have been honoured to be named as Nobel Prize Laureates in Physics, Chemistry and Medicine. I shall be spotlighting Mario J. Molina who’s pioneering work alerted the world to the dangers of CFCs. Winter and El Fathi have … Continue reading Blog Tour: ‘Science and Me,’ by Ali Winter, illustrated by Mickaël El Fathi.
I’m delighted to be part of Lantana Publishing’s campaign to ensure that children of colour see themselves represented in the books they receive this Christmas. To help make this happen, they’ve given me a special discount code for people to use on their website up until the 18th December. It’s: BOOKSUPERHERO15. For every book purchased, … Continue reading ‘A Story About Afiya,’ by James Berry, illustrated by Anna Cunha.
‘I am brown. I am amazing. I am you.’ Every child deserves to see their faces beaming back at them from the pages of the books they read. With 33.1% of our school children being BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic), it is vital that school book collections reflect this. Lantana Publishing are certainly flying … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘I Am Brown,’ by Ashok Banker, illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat.
This dreamy picture book is inspired by the principles of mindfulness. Lots of school practise mindfulness techniques to help their pupils reduce anxiety and stress levels. It encourages people to live in the moment and acknowledge what their senses are detecting. This poem takes readers on a journey around the world, engaging their senses in … Continue reading ‘Taking Time,’ by Jo Loring-Fisher.
Today’s my stop on the blog tour for ‘Shadow,’ Lucy’s first picture book. As well as a special about about the inspiration behind writing the story, I’ve also recorded a podcast interview with Lucy, talking in more detail about the themes and processes behind creating the book. Listen HERE. The girl and her Ma have … Continue reading ‘Shadow,’ by Lucy Christopher, illustrated by Anastasia Suvorova.
It was chatting to Karim and the team from Tiny Owl at the CLiPPA awards which gave me the inspiration for this blog post. There they were, a small award-winning independent publisher with a fantastic and diverse catalogue of titles, yet they still found it very difficult to get their books into the larger retailers. … Continue reading Support Our Small Independent and BAME Publishers – how you can help!
Making friends is a skill that takes time and practise. I find that picture books make it easy to explore new ways to initiate (and maintain) friendships, as well as allowing children to spot ineffective approaches. Bearing this in mind, I was very excited to receive a copy of ‘Oscar Seeks a Friend.’ Don’t be … Continue reading ‘Oscar Seeks a Friend,’ by Pawel Pawlak.
This blog post has a sea-faring theme with a selection of books for readers of all ages about pirates, the sea, and the creatures who live in it. ‘Lula and the Sea Monster’ by Alex Latimer (OUP) Lula lives by the beach in her beautiful family home and she loves it. She loves looking for … Continue reading Books Ahoy!
So today’s blog post is a little different as it’s not part of a blog tour, but of my very first Instagram (Bookstagram) tour which has been organised by the lovely peeps at Lantana Publishing. You can find me there as @BookSuperhero2 and enjoy all the other bookstagram posts using #OldManOfTheSea. This is a story … Continue reading Bookstagram Tour: ‘The Old Man of the Sea,’ by Stella Elia, illustrated by Weberson Santiago.
This is a post for any of you planning to mark Refugee Week 2019 by raising awareness and promoting discussion about acceptance, kindness and refugees in your schools or homes. The books I’m going to share with you should be explored all year round, but I thought a special week may be … Continue reading National Refugee Week 2019 (17th-23rd June)
Lantana Publishing are known for their wonderful collection of diverse, inclusive titles, so it’s no surprise that they’re responsible for the publishing of Maryam al Serkal’s empowering story: ‘Mira’s Curly Hair.’ I am thrilled to be part of its blog tour and to be hosting a special piece by Maryam about how her daughter helped … Continue reading ‘Mira’s Curly Hair,’ by Maryam al Serkal, illustrated by Rebeca Luciani.
Following on from the success of their first picture book collaboration, ‘You’re Safe With Me,’ Soundar and Mistry have created another beautiful title in the series. The story begins at the start of winter when two polar bear cubs are born in their icy den. Their mama bear promises to keep them warm and snug … Continue reading ‘You’re Snug With Me,’ by Chitra Soundar and Poonam Mistry.
Lantana publish a beautiful, diverse range of picture books in the belief that all children deserve to see themselves in the books they read. ‘Sing to the Moon,’ is no exception. I’m very lucky to also have a brilliant guest post by Nansubuga about the importance of viewpoint when writing. This adventurous Ugandan boy has … Continue reading ‘Sing to the Moon,’ by Nansubuga Nagadya Isdahl and Sandra Van Doorn.
This beautiful collection of illustrated biographies from Lantana Publishing is inspired by Nobel Peace Prize Laureates and endorsed by Amnesty International, and marks Lantana’s first foray into the world of non-fiction. What does peace mean to you? This illustrated collection of biographies focuses on some of the people who have had the most inspirational ideas … Continue reading ‘Peace and Me,’ by Ali Winter & Mickaël El Fathi.
This beautiful story was originally published in Syria and has been translated from Arabic by author and illustrator Nadine Kaadan. Everything around Yazan was changing. He never went to the park, he never saw his friends, his mum never painted any more. All she did was watch the news. Yazan was so bored - he … Continue reading ‘Tomorrow,’ by Nadine Kaadan.
It’s vital that children see themselves and their cultures represented in books. That is why publishers like Lantana Publishing are so important. I’m thrilled to have two of their lead Spring titles to share with you. Nimesh the Adventurer by Ranjit Singh, illustrated by Mehrdokht Amini (available April 2018) For Nimesh, even the journey home … Continue reading Lantana Publishing – Spring Titles
Library Girl and Book Boy 