I loved this book, whilst pitched at the YA market it's definitely one of those for adults too. Magical realism is one of my favourite genres so I was probably always going to enthuse, but I really feel Laura Ruby's done a great job here. I won't be encouraging my 11 year old to read it yet though....
Wednesday, 2 May 2018
Wednesday, 25 April 2018
Dirty Bertie by Alan MacDonald and David Roberts.
If your child isn't keen on reading, the prospect of reading about pants, poo, worms, bogeys and all manner of gross stuff that kids love, might be enough to tip the balance. One of my kids didn't pick up a book for pleasure until he was seven.
It's tough for him, he lives in a house with four bibliophiles,...
Thursday, 12 April 2018
Once Upon a Star
Once Upon a Star by James Carter and Mar Hernandez calls itself 'a poetic journey through space' and I love it.
A picture book written in narrative verse, all about how the universe formed and our world came to be? Beautiful artwork and eye-pleasing graphics? The Big Bang in a book for pre-schoolers?...
Friday, 6 April 2018
'My name is Leon' by Kit de Waal
'My name is Leon' is a wonderful story about a nine year old mixed-race child in the foster care system. It should be required reading for anyone who is thinking of fostering or supporting families who foster. We enter Leon's world as he's struggling to come to terms with his identity and almost...
Wednesday, 21 March 2018
Girl on a Plane By Miriam Mos
Based on the true story of a hijacking, this YA novel describes the reactions of a fifteen year old girl travelling on her own when her flight is boarded by Palestinian guerrillas.
The book is a nice easy read for young adults. In fact, it was a set text for my eldest child at 11, which...
Saturday, 17 March 2018
Re-reading treasured favourites
We've all been there. Reading the same material over and over to obsessed children. And it's always the book that bores, us, or has rubbish illustrations, or in some way drives you up the wall. When they are young, we tolerate it but as they age there seems to be a collective disgust at children...
Tuesday, 13 March 2018
Pinterest for Writers
I thought I would post some of my favourite writing tools here. One of my top 10 is Pinterest. For the uninitiated, it's basically an online cork board where you can pin images and articles that take your fancy. You can choose if you want to share your boards with others, a select few, or keep...