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Swanfall

Tue, 02 Dec 2025 09:00:34 GMT

A thrilling new adventure story inspired by Irish folklore from Sophie Kirtley, author of The Wild Way Home .

Pip lives with Mum in their isolated cottage on the wetlands. Pip struggles to feel like he fits in at school. But at home, amongst nature, he truly feels he can be himself.

Just like every winter, Pip is waiting for the swanfall - when the flock of majestic Arctic swans return from Siberia on their annual migration. He knows every swan by their unique markings, and he loves to help Mum record the flock as they soar, shining through the sky, to their home. But this December, Pip's favourite three swans haven't appeared. Instead, Pip notices strange footprints in the snow, whispers on the wind and the sense that someone is watching him.

Something mysterious is afoot, and the adventure to discover the truth leads Pip to follow clues to an ancient curse that he had always believed was simply a fairytale.

My Thoughts

I read this the moment it was published and have only just got around to reviewing it. And so I can tell you — since I’m late to this particular party — Swanfall was flown onto bookshelves and landed with great critical acclaim.

To my mind, Swanfall is a near-perfect story, packed full of everything I love in a children’s book: nature, folklore, mystery, setting as character, weather as character — a magical middle-grade read in which Kirtley roots the narrative firmly in place. Reeds rustle, ice cracks, and the white silence of winter becomes the perfect backdrop for an unease that feels both ancient and immediate. And the magic is a whisper, threaded so deftly through the story that the reader continually senses something uncanny moving just outside Pip’s understanding, waiting for him to catch up.

One of the greatest strengths of the book is its relationships. Pip begins the story clinging to a narrow idea of belonging: he longs for the security of one “perfect” best friend and struggles with jealousy when that bond feels threatened. But as events push him further from his comfort zone, he becomes part of a wider group of children who gradually discover that their skills, instincts and courage complement one another.

Watching Pip move from a place of guarded insecurity to genuine connection is deeply satisfying. The group dynamics ring true — shy beginnings, awkward moments, and the tentative trust that grows when people face fear together. Kirtley allows these relationships to develop with gentle, believable warmth, and by the end Pip has found not just one ally but a circle of friends who share the risks and revelations of the story. It’s a subtle arc, but one that gives the novel lovely emotional depth.

Thematically, Swanfall is rich. Nature and folklore intertwine throughout: the wetlands aren’t just scenery but a living, breathing presence, and the echoes of old tales guide Pip toward understanding what is happening in his world. There are threads of courage and vulnerability, of the pull between isolation and community, and of learning that strength isn’t the absence of fear but the willingness to face it. There’s also a strong sense of belonging — to place, to people, and to the stories that shape us — that lingers long after the last page.

The recommended reading age is roughly 9+, though the story has enough atmosphere, complexity and emotional pull to captivate confident younger readers and older readers alike.

And a special mention for Swanfall’s presentation. The cover art and internal illustrations by David Dean are striking and beautifully matched to the story’s world. The icy palette, the sense of movement in the wings of the swans, and the delicate detailing all capture the mood of the novel perfectly. The artwork enhances that feeling of stepping into a place where winter has its own voice.

In all, Swanfall is a standout winter read: atmospheric, mysterious, heartfelt and grounded in the natural world. It feels like a classic in the making — the sort of book that invites rereading, not just for its plot but for the mood it creates and the quiet emotional truths it carries.

A must-read for these colder months. I loved every moment of it.

The Missing Pink Sock

Mon, 13 Oct 2025 08:02:23 GMT

Book One in the Follyford Farm Mystery Series

Pony-loving farm girl, Sophie, eight, turns detective to find her missing favourite pink fluffy sock. Mum says it's in her room somewhere, but Sophie knows something's afoot. Armed with a list of suspects and the support of her best friend George, Sophie is determined to find her sock.

Alongside her quest, Sophie notices her cat behaving strangely on the farm - what is Tom up to?

My Thoughts

Every so often, a children’s book comes along that feels like a warm hug — The Missing Pink Sock is exactly that. It’s the first in the Follyford Farm Mystery Series and it’s delightful from start to finish.

Told through the eyes of eight-year-old Sophie, a bright and sassy young farm girl, this is a story full of curiosity, mischief, and heart. Sophie’s voice sparkles with humour and authenticity as she sets out to solve the small but oh-so-important mystery of the missing sock. What follows is a delightful glimpse into the world as seen by a child who notices everything — the people, the animals, and the secrets tucked between hay bales.

Follyford Farm itself is a star of the story. Every scene bursts with life and each of the four-legged residents have a personality of their own, bringing a sense of warmth and community that makes the setting feel wonderfully alive.

The cover and interior illustrations (all created by Millie Spark - the author) are beautifully done and full of charm. I can easily imagine young readers wanting to colour them in. There’s even a short glossary at the back, just enough to gently expand young vocabularies without feeling like a lesson.

The Missing Pink Sock combines old-fashioned storytelling charm with a modern, relatable heroine. It celebrates curiosity, kindness, and the joy of everyday adventure — the perfect read for young nature-lovers (aged 7-9) and budding detectives alike.

Nature Notes:

Books like The Missing Pink Sock remind us that nature isn’t just a backdrop — it’s a character in its own right. Through Sophie’s eyes, readers see the beauty, rhythm, and quiet mysteries of life on a farm. It’s a wonderful reminder that stories rooted in the natural world help children connect more deeply to the animals, seasons, and landscapes around them.

I can’t wait to see what Sophie — and Follyford Farm — get up to next!

Ettie and the Midnight Pool

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 17:09:49 GMT

From the multiple award winning genius that is Julia Green, I am delighted to offer you her latest story, Ettie and the Midnight Pool, a haunting tale of secrets, self discovery and the spirit of the natural world.

Ettie lives with her grandma, playing in the woods and fells, swimming in the turn, listening to stories. But she's growing up fast. She needs to explore further, take more risks, discover secrets of her own. So when the mysterious Cora leads her to a hidden quarry pool - deep, cold, beautiful and dangerously inviting - Ettie is ready to jump straight in. But not everything is as it seems. The quarry has secrets too, and Ettie will have to dive deep into the darkness to uncover them.

My Thoughts

This is a gripping tale in which the wild landscape is made human - enticing and exciting, but also mercurial , dangerous, and unforgiving. Ettie's trust in it is as risky as it is captivating.

Ettie and Grandma's relationship is tender but heartbreaking, while Cora exerts a siren-like pull over our hero - malevolent, intriguing and utterly impossible to resist.

Ettie and the Midnight Pool is a perfect story for confident middle-grade readers (ages 10-13) who enjoy atmospheric, nature-centered stories with deep themes.

Bonkers About Bees?

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 29 May 2024 13:22:37 GMT

I have always wanted to understand more about bees, and earlier this year I was lucky enough to go on a 'Bee Keeping Experience' morning at Stepney City Farm , where I learnt about 'The Hummmmmmble Honey Bee, And The Incredible Job They Do.' This wonderful morning educated me and my fellow bee-lievers on the life cycle of bee, bee colonies, and the queen bee and the job she does. We also learnt about life in and around the hive, including the bee's famous 'Waggle Dance', and the reasons bees tend to swarm. Finally, our teacher told us about honey; what it is and how it's made, then we even got to taste some! But best of all - as illustrated above - we went outside in special bee keeper suits, and actually met some bees, including an appearance by Megan, Queen of the Hive!.

If you have ever been interested in finding out about bees, how these fascinating little creatures contribute so much to our environment and would like to meet them face to face, then a Bee Keeping experience might be for you. Failing that, check out some of these fabulous websites which are packed with fun and interesting facts about these incredible insects, and ways you and your friends can join the movement to protect our pollinators.

Bee Friendly Trust , where you can learn how to help create habitats for honey bees and all pollinators to thrive.

Bumblebee Conservation Trust , where you can learn how to make your space and garden more bumblebee friendly.

British Beekeepers Association , where you can learn fun ways to make your school a Bee Friendly School.

Foxlight

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 12 Oct 2023 09:07:00 GMT

From the author of October, October , winner of the Yoto Carnegie Medal, comes a heartbreaking and heart-warming story about sisterhood, found family and accepting love in the most unusual and unknown places.

Fen and Rey were found curled up small and tight in the fiery fur of the foxes at the very edge of the wildlands. Fen is loud and fierce and free. She feels a connection to foxes and a calling from the wild that she's desperate to return to. Rey is quiet and shy and an expert on nature. She reads about the birds, feeds the lands and nurtures the world around her.

They are twin sisters. Different and the same. Separate and connected. They will always have each other, even if they don't have a mother and don't know their beginning. But they do want answers. Answers to who their mother is and where she might be. What their story is and how it began. So when a fox appears late one night at the house, Fen and Rey see it as a sign - it's here to lead them to their truth, find their real family and fill the missing piece they have felt since they were born.

But the wildlands are exactly wild. They are wicked and cruel and brutal and this journey will be harder and more life changing than either Fen or Rey ever imagined ...

My Thoughts

Reading this book is like disappearing into a wonderful dream. Beautifully written in a mesmerising voice, the setting feels so real you can feel the leaves brush by you and the chill wind down your spine. The characters are skilfully drawn with both sisters telling us their story and sharing their emotional arc from the beginning to the end of their adventure with the author seamlessly and very effectively flitting between the two girl's inner life. The story itself is full of hope, and keeps the reader turning the pages to find out what happens to these two fascinating girls.

A roller coaster of a tale with heart warming and heart stopping moments, much intrigue and joy and a hugely satisfying ending.

I strongly recommend this book to readers of all ages, particularly middle grade readers with an interest in natural settings.

The Rescue of Ravenwood

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jul 2023 15:43:09 GMT

From the Costa Award winning author of Voyage of the Sparrowhawk comes an epic adventure with a call to arms: we must fight to save the most treasured things on our planet.

On the top of the hill, overlooking the sea, that's where you'll find a magical place . . .

To Bea and Raffy, Ravenwood is home. In its own way, the house rescued them, even if it did have a fallen-down tree taking up most of the kitchen. So the idea that it could be sold. Demolished even. Well, that's unthinkable. Then again, it's not like the children get a choice. But the truth is, we can all make our own choices, especially if we care enough . . .

My Thoughts

To me, this is a perfect book. A thrilling story, beautifully written, all about having the courage to hold onto what's precious, and fiercely guard the extraordinary natural world we are privileged to share.

Everything about this story will delight young readers who look for adventure and escape in their books. The author effortlessly carries us into a beautiful and eccentric world where relationships between people and nature are complicated, and very precious. With themes of grief, friendship and courage, and an ending that literally had me punching the air with delight, The Rescue of Ravenwood is simply not one to be missed.

The Earth Book

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 10:37:10 GMT

Explore the incredible place we call home! Marvel at the physical planet, learn how the weather works, meet some of the most influential people from the past and present, and much more. Examine every corner of the Earth, from outer space to underground and from the Maasai steppe to Manhattan.

My Thoughts

This gorgeous book is divided into four large sections, Physical Earth, Life on Earth, Earth Regions, and Human Planet. There are lots of colourful maps and fascinating facts about various places, species, and behaviour, showing the wonderful diversity of life on this planet and hopefully helping readers understand the need to protect it.

Where the River Takes Us

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 13:51:47 GMT

It's February 1974 and working class families have been hit hard by the three-day week. The reduced power usage means less hours for people to work, and less money to get by on. Thirteen-year-old Jason feels the struggle keenly. Ever since his parents died, it's just been him and his older brother Richie. Richie is doing his best, but since he can't make ends meet he's been doing favours for the wrong people. Every day they fear they won't have enough and will have to be separated.

One thing that helps distract Jason is the urban legend about a beast in the valleys. A wildcat that roams the forest three villages up the river from their bridge. When Jason's friends learn of a reward for proof of The Beast's existence, they convince Jason this is the answer to his and Richie's money problems. Richie can get himself out of trouble before it's too late and the brothers can stay together.

And so a quest begins ... Starting at the bridge of their village and following the river north, the four friends soon find themselves on a journey that will change each of them ... forever.

My Thoughts

Lesley Parr has the wonderful, rare, and hard-earned skill of writing sublime stories that, on the face of it, seem sensationally simple but, like an onion, reveal later after layer after layer to the reader long after the book has been put down.

Like The Valley of Lost Secrets, Where The River Takes Us is primarily about brotherhood and friendship, and beneath that there is grief, loyalty, fear, and - most importantly for young readers - a lot of food and a fabulous adventure.

The setting, Wales 1974, is sublimely drawn and the issues - poverty, strikes, social care, bullying - are as relevant today as they were fifty years ago. The characters feel alive and individual, each one representative of people we have all met along the way, and the author illustrates the deep love between them without once - as far as I can remember - actually using the L word.

Where the River Takes Us is a thought-provoking, exciting, tear-jerker of an adventure

To be enjoyed by free readers aged 8-11 and a great one to read together at bedtime.

What the World Doesn't See

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 15 Mar 2023 15:59:46 GMT

R un away from what they see. Discover who you are. Maudie and Jake's family is falling to pieces - their mum's been struggling with her grief since they lost Dad and one night she vanishes. When Jake is put into care, Maudie can't take it any more. She comes up with a wild plan to pull their family back together - by kidnapping Jake. On the run in Cornwall, Jake and Maudie each find something they hadn't expected - freedom and love. But can they find Mum and a way to heal together?A powerful and insightful novel about grief, disability and first love; a story about getting lost and finding yourself.

My Thoughts

A wonderful, heartbreaking, tender, hopeful story of grief, love, and acceptance.

What the World Doesn't see is a is all-consuming, with distinct voices that suck the reader into its vortex of emotion, grief, fear, and joy. Mel Darbon's characters are multi-dimensional and technicolor, so vivid they stay with you long, long after you finish reading the book. The story is gripping - I had to make myself slow down so that it lasted longer - and the emotional intelligence behind it all is extraordinary. If you read just one book this year, make it this one.

The Curio Collectors

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 10:58:03 GMT

Lily and Tom travel the county with Ma Hawker, enthralling crowds with their amazing collection of curios. Always on the lookout for new wonders, Lily is tricked into buying a worthless bag of rubbish. But hidden within is a special piece of scrimshaw. A young woman called Flora Meriweather is desperate to buy the scrimshaw, hoping it can help her solve a mystery surrounding her late mother. But someone else also wants to get his hands on the scrimshaw and ensure that secrets stay hidden in the past. Can the Curio Collectors help the truth come to light?

My Thoughts

This book is sublime! From the gorgeous title, cover illustrations and production quality to the absolutely delightful story, The Curio Collectors is a joy to behold.

I always enjoy Eloise Williams' novels; she is a master storyteller w ith a delightful lexicon that enriches the story and the reader, with not a word wasted. In The Curio Collectors Eloise has pulled off a blinder, creating a seemingly simple tale that is rich with history, multi dimensional characters, complex relationships (I love the dynamic between Lily and Tom), and conflict. And y ou only have to hea r the fabulous name ' Horatio Pinch ' , and g lance at Anna Shepeta's brilliant illustration, to know all you need to know about the badd y who instantly put me in mind of Ian Fleming's terrifying Child Catcher.

Barrington Stoke (the publishers) list this title as having a reading age of 8, and with a dyslexia-friendly layout, typeface and paperstock so that even more readers can enjoy it. Certainly I can imagine it appealing to younger readers as a challenge, and older readers as a relaxing, easy read. I am 203, absolutely loved it and can vividly see nine-year-old me carrying it around, stroking the cover, copying the pictures and reading and reading it again. Fantastic stuff!

The Map of Leaves

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 18:17:47 GMT

Set in a world where plants talk, friendship is hard-won and adventure is around the bend of every river ...
Orla has lived on her own since Ma died, with only her beloved garden for company. When sickness comes and nature is blamed, Orla knows she must find a cure.
Armed with her mother's book of plants and remedies, she steals away on a river boat with two other stowaways, Idris and Ariana.
Soon the trio must navigate the rapids of the Inkwater to a poisonous place from which they may never return ...

My Thought s

This is an absolute dream of a book. Yarrow Townsend is an astonishingly talented writer and in this - her first novel - she takes the reader on a twisty turney journey through the wonders of nature while cleverly weaving a complex and multi-layered story that comes to a fabulously satisfactory and unexpected conclusion.

My favourite bit is the plants, who talk to Orla all along the way, begging, cajoling, berating her with their whispered words. This conceit works fantastically, and involves the reader in the very roots of the story. I also love the start of every chapter where the plants are categorised with Latin name and folklore or healing powers.

This story really does have everything; nature, a good plot, diverse and interesting characters, twists and turns and a truly original premise. I thoroughly enjoyed it and urge all of you to read it.

A Flash of Fireflies

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 02 Mar 2023 10:18:06 GMT

Hazel’s new life in England should have been the stuff of fairy tales; after all her aunt’s cottage looked just like a gingerbread house, with a magical garden and whispering fireflies promising quests and adventures.

But as Hazel struggles to deal with the challenges of the everyday world –⁠ making friends, missing her family –⁠ she also learns that every fairy tale has a dark side. And there are terrifying creatures that lurk in the shadows . . .

A middle grade book about family, friendship and finding your place, with a delicate touch of magic. Perfect for 9-12 year olds.

My Thoughts

This enchanting quest by Aisha Bushby whisks the reader into a fairytale world while cleverly addressing the subject of mental health struggles and battling inner demons with enormous sensitivity. Readers can take the story at face value, enjoying a page-turning fantasy with all the wolves and witches we would hope for in a fairy tale, or enjoy the author's powerful metaphor for mental illness and her sensitive exploration of the debilitating effects of OCD. Readers who enjoyed The Night Animals would enjoy this story, with both books delicately dealing with really important topics and sharing the important message that asking for help can make even the bleakest situations more manageable.

The Night Animals

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 11:20:37 GMT

Nora's mum has good days and bad days, but the bad days are getting worse. It's been just the two of them for always, and they don't need anyone else. When the rainbow-shimmering ghost animals Nora used to see when she was small start to reappear, she's convinced that they hold all the answers. Along with new friend Kwame, Nora follows a glittering ghostly fox, hare, raven and otter on the adventure of a lifetime, helping her to find the strength she needs to help her family.

My Thoughts

This is a story of hope. A young girl, struggling to understand her Mum's PTSD diagnosis is guided through her journey to acceptance by a range of delightful rainbow ghost animals who only she can see. It is a wonderfully gentle introduction to discussing mental health issues, and shows the power of asking for help, and trusting others with our fragile feelings.

I loved Kwame and his grandad who brought joy to what is at times a very sad story, and the animals, which were beautifully written. I feel like this would be a particularly lovely book to read together, if talking about stuff is difficult. It would probably bring tears, and much needed conversations and that would be all to the good. But as well as the deeper themes and meanings, this is also a sweet tale that any young reader would enjoy. Highly recommended.

Fledgling

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 28 Feb 2023 18:30:02 GMT

A dark, gothic adventure set in the Bavarian forest, with angels and owls and magic and a boy who isn’t all that he seems to be…

A cherub is blown into Cassie Engel’s bedroom during a thunderstorm, triggering a series of terrifying events. Cassie must discover if its arrival was an accident or part of something more sinister.

With a self-obsessed opera singer for a mother, a strange taxidermist father, and a best friend who isn’t quite what he seems, Cassie is forced to unearth the secrets of her family’s past. As the dark forces gather around them, can Cassie protect all that she holds dear?

My Thoughts

I couldn't put this haunting book down. A fantastic blend of mythology, and mystery, the story carries you along in a trance, with no idea where you are going, but the knowledge that you must follow the fairytale type adventure through to the bitter end.

I adored Cassie's house - a character in its own right - and loved the way it played into the denouement, bringing together all the story threads and demonstrating no part was eccentric for eccentric sake, rather more everything was ingeniously plotted to create tension, atmosphere and clues.

The story is dark and mysterious, and it takes courage to go into the woods with Cassie. I would imagine readers of Skellig or The Lie Tree might enjoy this beautiful story which I urge you to read.

Aarti and the Blue Gods

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 27 Feb 2023 12:47:27 GMT

Aarti has lived nearly her whole life on the island. Orphaned as little girl, she has been taken care of by Aunt, whose temper is as stormy as the weather. Aarti’s only comforts are her pet fox, Chand, and a colourful storybook about the Hindu gods. Then one day, she finds a tatty toy rabbit hidden in a locked room and memories of another time and place start to surface. She begins to suspect that Aunt has not been truthful about who she and Aarti really are ...

My Thoughts

Jasbinder Bilan is a magical story teller with a turn of phrase that makes my spine tingle. Aarti and the Blue Gods is her third book, and as enchanting and exciting as the last two .

Aarti and the Blue Gods is set on a remote Scottish island (I do love an island), you can literally taste the sea and feel the wind whip your face as you follow the protagonist - Aarti - on her thrilling journey. Aarti is a fabulous character: resourceful, intelligent and brave. Her aunt is intriguing and complex, a beautifully drawn, multi-dimensional damaged woman who tears and tugs the heartstrings in equal measure. Aarti's friend Eamon - a welcome break from th e aunt's darknes s - is ethereal and enthralling to the very end, the author handling the tinge of sadness that surrounds him with a wonderfully light touch.

Aarti and the Blue Gods is a beautiful mix of magic and mystery, folklore and legend, seamlessly blending cultural references from the author's Indian and Scottish heritage and experiences. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. I loved every minute of it.

War of the Wind

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Oct 2022 13:58:08 GMT

On a remote Scottish island, fourteen-year-old Max’s life changes forever when he loses his hearing in a boating accident. Struggling to make sense of his new life and finding it hard to adapt in school, he begins to notice other — even stranger — changes taking place when a new wind farm appears off the island’s coast.

With the help of three school friends with additional support needs, Max discovers that a sinister scientist, Doctor Ashwood, is using wind turbines to experiment on the islanders. They must find a way to shut down the government’s secret test before it spins out of control…

My Thoughts

I love Victoria Williamson's books as you can probably tell from The Bookshelf. She writes exciting, inclusive stories that feel effortless (bet they're not!) and very 'now'.

War of the Wind is another huge triumph for the author. She has combined a diverse range of characters with the incredibly current topic of wind energy, to create a thrilling eco-adventure that had me racing through the pages until the final, heart warming, conclusion. The story is brilliantly written and for me, the fate of Twister, the dog's wonderful, wet, slobbery shaggy dog, was as much of an emotional rollercoaster as that of the main character Max and his school friends.

Setting is one of Victoria Williamson's fortes, and I could smell the sea and feel the wind on my face as I struggled across the fantastically remote Scottish island of Scragness with Max and his friends. There is also a map, one of my favourite 'extras' in a book, just in case the reader gets lost (which they won't, in the hand of this author's brilliant direction.)

And if all this is not enough to make you pop out to your local bookshop and nab yourself a copy of this superb book, remember that twenty percent of the author royalties are donated to the fabulous British Deaf Association. Reason alone to buy it I would say.

Well done Victoria Williamson.

The Thief Who Sang Storms

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 13:59:42 GMT

The Island of Morovia is shaped like a broken heart. The humans live on one side of the island, and the alkonosts - the bird-people - live on the other. But it wasn't always this way...

Linnet wishes she could sing magic, like her father, Nightingale - and bring the two sides of her island together again. For her land has been divided by a terrible tragedy, and Linnet has been banished with her father to the deepest swamps, leaving behind her best friends, Hero and Silver.

So when her father is captured, Linnet must be brave and embark on a treacherous journey. Through alligator pools and sinking sands, she finds new friends. Yet without her singing magic, Linnet discovers something even more powerful. Something that could save her father, and heal the broken heart of her island once more...

My Thoughts

Sophie Anderson has a unique way of signposting the reader so they always know where they are, where they are going and why. To do this with a light touch, and also keep us guessing until the last page, is a rare and valuable skill. In The Thief Who Sang Storms, Sophie Anderson achieves this to perfection, taking us on a long journey, with a complex cast of characters and multiple themes with a hugely satisfactory and unexpected ending.

I loved the setting, the swamps and the bird-people, who I was constantly picturing and re-picturing as the story progressed. (To me, one of the great joys of reading is that we will all have different bird people in our heads and - at the moment - no film maker telling us how to imagine them.) I understand the novel is inspired by a Russian story called The Nightingale Robber, in which a 'monster' with partial human and bird-like features, was able to fly, lived in a nest and had a human family. When Nightingale the Robber whistles, allegedly: "all the grasses and meadows become entangled, the azure flowers lose their petals, all the dark woods bend down to the earth, and all the people there lie dead!" I am now off to read that too!

Sophie Anderson's characters are richly drawn and utterly believable. I was totally invested in Linnet, who wishes she could sing magic in a land where magic is forbidden and who has been banished, with her father, to the fabulously named Mournful Swamp. It is from here that Linnet sets off on her brave pilgrimage to take on the dictatorship, re-unite her island and rescue her father.

A heartfelt book filled with adventure and stunning storytelling from one of my all time favourite children's authors.

I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Orla and the Magpie's Kiss

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 05 May 2022 09:45:53 GMT

New-found witch and eco-warrior Orla is up against some seriously dark magic in this creepy and funny adventure, the second in the series.

Orla, her brothers and Dave the dog are on holiday in Norfolk, visiting their eccentric Uncle Valentine. Orla may have recently learned she's a witch, but she's not looking for trouble. Nope. Definitely not. Unfortunately, her timing is terrible. She quickly discovers the beautiful Anna's Wood, due to be bulldozed any minute for shale gas. The locals are all convinced that GasFrac's plan is a great one. Make way for a new shopping centre and car park! But why doesn't anyone care about the destruction of the wood? Where are the protests? Orla soon begins to suspect that this isn't just indifference ... there's dark magic involved here. With the help of a magpie, she finds out who is behind GasFrac. And what he wants is worse than she could possibly have imagined.

My Thoughts

First and foremost, Orla is a fabulous character. Feisty (yes I know that word is over-used but it is also the best one for her,) funny and fabulously frustrating, she is the eco-warrior we all wish we could be. With knobs on. The other characters are great too - a quirky and eccentric cast of witches and I love her long suffering brothers. And Dave the dog. Absolutely fantastic. I have spoken to Muttley (my own head of household security and close protection specialist) and told her she needs to up her game if she wants to co-star in a brilliant book.

The world the story is set in is wonderfully drawn, the village makes a delightful, eerie setting and the author somehow allows us to take in the view while talking us on a roller-coaster of a story that barely pauses for breath. How does he do that?

The plot is fun with a mystery that unravels slowly and intriguingly in a thrilling fracking-eco-adventure that deals with important topics, (and certainly educated me,) without being preachy or sanctimonious. In fact it is really funny, but like the scenery, the comedy is woven in, so it doesn't detract from the action.

This story will delight readers who enjoyed The Bird Singers, The Tide Singer or Sisters of the Lost Marsh, and although it is the second in the series, the fact I haven't read the first one made no difference at all (although I am going to now!)

An enchanting novel with a gorgeous cover illustration by Paddy Donnelly, and the best dedication ever, this book is a delight from start to finish.

The Rewilders

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 12:06:26 GMT

Esme is annoyed and braced for boredom when she’s sent to stay with her gran for the weekend, until she discovers a terrible mistake. Cora, the abandoned kitten Gran found on the Rothiecraig Estate, is in fact a wild lynx kit and she is growing—fast!

Suddenly, Esme finds herself on a dangerous mission to rewild Cora, along with Callum Docherty for company, the school’s ‘bad boy’, and Shug, the worst guard dog in the world. The situation takes a terrifying turn when the children pitch their tents on a bleak Highland moor and hear wolves howling outside…

My Thoughts

This cracking story keeps you turning the pages while cleverly weaving in important and thought provoking issues.

The characters are brilliantly drawn. Gran and her friend Sadie are funny and full of mischief and Shug - the worst guard dog in the world - is great fun. Esme, the main character, is complex, struggling with internal and external demons in the form of shame, friendship issues, and bewilderment at the task she is faced with. The author successfully intertwines Esme's emotional and physical journey, cleverly leading her to a satisfying conclusion.

Esme and Callum have both been either involved in, or victim of, bullying, and the story invites the reader to consider this important issue from both sides, including the pressure a bully can exert over their extended, and sometimes reluctant, peers.

Cora, the Eurasion Lynx, exists in the shadows as is appropriate for a wild animal,. She is, of course, the main driver of the plot and her presence provides an opportunity to review the pros and cons of rewilding indigenous species. The author offers the reader balance, with characters considering all points of view and there is a lovely author's note at the end, providing context and factual information about this important issue.

I can imagine The Rewilders would make a good classroom read, and an excellent starting point for interesting and lively debate on many of its important themes.

The Bird Singers

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 21 Mar 2022 15:35:20 GMT

Strange things have been happening to Layah and her younger sister, Izzie, ever since their mother dragged them to a rain-soaked cottage miles from anywhere in the Lake District: there is a peculiar whistling at night, a handful of unusual feathers appear on their doorstep and there are murmurings of a shadowed woman in the forest. And their mother is behaving very oddly. Layah is mourning the loss of her dear grandmother in Poland - and can almost hear her Babcia's voice telling her the old myths and fairy tales from that magical place.

And as the holiday takes on a dark twist, Layah begins to wonder if the myths might just be real.

My Thoughts

A fantastically dark page turner bursting with folklore and history but rooted in the real world. It was a joy to watch the relationship between the two sisters - Laya and Izzie - develop through the novel and I adored the twist of the unlikely 'hero' at the end.

The setting is evocative and the writing cinematic. An incredible debut and one I urge you to read.

The Tide Singer

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 08 Mar 2022 15:44:17 GMT

Strangers, storms and whispers of legendary sea people...

In the wake of a tempest hitting her town, Morwenna is left to take care of a stranger washed ashore. The storm is just another of many that have plagued the town for years - people blame the tide singers, legendary sea people who are said to charm storms with their singing. Morwenna has never believed the tales, but when she is left alone with the stranger, she realises this is no ordinary girl. Can the stories be true? Can the girl control the tides with nothing more than her voice? Her arrival brings danger of a different kind, and Morwenna must draw on all the courage she has in order to stop a conflict that could destroy her home...

My Thoughts

I have enjoyed many of Eloise Williams' books (check them out on The Bookshelf) but this is my absolute favourite so far. The Tide Singer is a beautiful story, exquisitely told with nature, myth and legend swirling together and carrying you along on the crest of this exciting, mysterious, page turner that has the distinct feel of a classic.

The first chapter is gripping and I defy anybody to close the book without moving on to the next one. The main character, Morwenna, is beautifully drawn and the world building - Morwenna setting about her strange, beautiful, somewhat macabre daily tasks - sucks you in and sets a scene and mood the author brilliantly sustains throughout.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Sisters of the Lost Marsh

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 04 Dec 2021 15:25:32 GMT

On a poor farm surrounded by marshlands, six sisters - Grace, Willa, Freya, and triplets Deedee, Darcy, and Dolly - live in fear of their father. Their beloved grandmother tries to protect them, but the future seems bleak.

When the Full Moon Fayre makes a rare visit to Hollow-in-the-Marsh, the girls slip out to see the famous Shadow Man, an enigmatic puppeteer. Afterwards, oldest sister Grace is missing. Can Willa save her sister from one fate, and yet outrun her own?

My Thoughts

I absolutely love Lucy Strange's novels, all of which can be found on The Bookshel f , and so was super excited when Sisters of the Lost Marsh came out last month. I have waited until now to post this review as before the end of the first chapter I knew I wanted t his to be my Book of the Month for December.

As the title suggests, Sisters of the Lost Marsh is a spooky, gothic tale mired in mist and mystery. Listed by The Times as one of the best children's books of 2021, it is dark and intriguing, with lots of surprising twists and turns along the way. The setting, a farm surrounded by deadly marshland, is superbly cinematic and I could feel the bitey flies buzzing around me as I read. The characters are beautifully drawn and the dynamics between the six sisters never failed to delight me. There is a curse (always love one of them), a creepy puppeteer who reminded me of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang's dreaded Child Catcher, and a magical Full Moon Fayre into which any child reader would be thrilled to escape.

Another gem from the fabulous Lucy Strange whose other books are The Secret of Nightingale Wood , Our Castle by the Sea and T he Ghost of Gosswater .

The Challenges of Writing Historical Fiction

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 08:29:48 GMT

To celebrate the publication of her fabulous new novel, Hag Storm (find it on The Bookshelf ) Victoria Williamson talks about the challenges involved in writing historical fiction, and how she set about bringing one of her favourite poets - Robert Burns - to life in her wonderful new story.

"History was always my favourite subject in school. I loved learning about the societies and individual lives of people in the past, and the emphasis on meticulous research and accurate interpretation of events based on reliable sources was never an issue for me, until I started writing historical fiction. Researching the life of the young Robert Burns, I found books which painted his early life in broad strokes, such as Reverend James Muir’s wonderful ‘Robert Burns Till His Seventeenth Year’, but many of these seemed to leave just as many information gaps as they filled. It’s these gaps that writers of historical fiction often refer to as the ‘rabbit holes’ which they can fall down while doing their own research on the characters they’re writing about. One minute you’re writing a scene where the main character’s mother is in the kitchen preparing dairy goods from their farm to sell at market, the next you find you’ve spent a whole afternoon researching the history of cheese-making in eighteenth century Scotland, and exactly how long it takes to make Dunlop cheese. Historical accuracy matters, but while I did my very best to ensure I portrayed the details of Ayrshire life in 1771 as accurately as possible in Hag Storm, I found myself taking liberties with the some of the events in the life of the young Robert Burns, and inventing some of the characters he might have met.

Take, for example, the character of the mean-spirited factor, Angus McNab, who makes the Burns family miserable in the book with his insistence on prompt rent payments regardless of the family’s circumstances. In real life, during this time their landlord, Provost Fergusson of Doonholm, was still alive and would no doubt have been more understanding, having already agreed to lend William Burns the large sum of £100 to stock the farm at Mount Oliphant. But every hero needs to be up against a first-rate ‘baddie’ who gets his just desserts by the end of the story, and if there wasn’t a real one at the time the story is set, then a little historical fudging is sometimes required! Provost Fergusson passed away in 1776, five years after the events of Hag Storm take place, and it is only then that the Burns family are pursued by the estate executors for rent arrears. It was these events that that gave Robert Burns the model for his cruel factor described in his poem ‘Twa Dogs’:

Poor tenant bodies, scant o’ cash,

How they maun thole a factor’s snash;

He’ll stamp and threaten, curse an’ swear,

He’ll apprehend them, poind their gear;

While they maun stan’, wi’ aspect humble,

An’ hear it a’, an’ fear an’ tremble!

However, in order to give young Rab a worthy foe and to heighten the dramatic tension of his family’s difficult life on the farm, I chose to confine Provost Fergusson to his sickbed during the events of Hag Storm and to introduce a factor that would turn the financial screw on the Burns family every month. Burns purists will no doubt be horrified by this historical inaccuracy, but it’s at points like these where historical fiction must diverge from factual biography in order to produce the most exciting plot possible. After all, if readers are willing to buy into the idea of a young Robert Burns battling witches to save his family, they can hardly object to a few liberties being taken with his real-life teenage timeline!

It’s this balance between the demands of producing engaging fiction while also ensuring meticulous research is done to preserve as much real-life accuracy as possible that makes writing historical fiction so tricky, but ultimately so rewarding. It’s a genre I would encourage everyone to try, not just for the challenge, but for the unexpected joy of spending an hour or two learning about everything from the history of watermills in Scotland, to traditional cottage thatching techniques!"

Hag Storm

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 08:19:09 GMT

Twelve-year-old Rab spends all of his time doing backbreaking work on his family's farm instead of attending school, but when he finds a hag stone in one of the fields, everything changes. Looking through its circular hole, he sees witches gathering in a coming storm and they've set their sights on his family. Can Rab save his sisters from the clutches of the witches' coven before their Halloween ceremony in the old church?

My Thoughts

This perfect witchy adventure is filled with intrigue, mystery and magic, and contains just enough danger to keep child readers turning the pages without causing any sleepless nights.

Rab, the main character, is beautifully rounded and perfectly complex for the audience. Rab is kind and brave and responsible. He watches out for his siblings and tries to do right by his struggling parents. But - like all of of us - he is flawed, and Victoria Williamson weaves his vulnerabilities and gullibility into the story with devastating effect. When, at the end of the book, Rab sees the error of his ways, the reader is really gunning for him and cheering him on. A fabulous, very human character.

The witches - and there are lots of them - are brilliantly drawn with just enough information to give you the chills, but leaving space for readers to colour in the scenes as they wish. I loved their clothes 'fluttering like loose rags in the wind.' Perfect, restrained imagery.

Hag Storm is based on the life of Robert Burns, and one of his most famous and best-loved poems Tom O'Shanter. But if, like me, you are not familiar with the poem, don't let that put you off. The story stands up very well on its own, and left me wanting to know more about its inspiration.

The narrative voice - and the dialogue - is sprinkled with wonderful Scottish dialect that feeds the story and adds to the atmosphere of the tale. The publisher (Cranachan Publishing) has thoughtfully added a glossary that child readers will enjoy in its own right.

Victoria Williamson is a superb story teller who has excelled herself with this spooky, historical adventure with a supernatural twist. She has very kindly talked to me about the challenges of writing historical fiction, and you can find her article here . Victoria is passionate about books and literacy, any you may also enjoy a piece she wrote on The Importance of Libraries.

Readers who enjoy Hag Storm, can find Victoria's other books, The Fox Girl & The White Gazelle, and one of my absolute favourites, The Boy With the Butterfly Mind on The Bookshelf .

The Night My Dream Came Alive

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 10 Sep 2021 10:03:02 GMT

Every night Ollo goes to sleep willing something wonderful to happen, like flying out of the window and soaring over town, or galloping through a field of flowers on a unicorn. But nothing ever does: she can't dream.

All the other kids at school have dreams. And they're not just ordinary dreams; they're enhanced, fantastical ones with a guaranteed nightmare-free adventure every single night. That's because there's a special place in town called the Dream Store, which sells every fun dream imaginable to those who can afford it, in the form of DreamDrops.

When Ollo finally tries a DreamDrop, will she have the adventure of her life, or will things take a nightmarish turn...?

A heartwarming, heart-racing middle grade wish-fulfilment caper about a shop that sells you the night's sleep of your wildest dreams...

My Thoughts

I am a big fan of Juliette Forrest's writing (you can find Twister , and The True Colours of Coral Glen on The Bookshelf) and so was excited when this gorgeous looking book arrived on my doorstep.

Juliette Forrest is a master of 'voice', ie, the aspect of a story encompassing diction, detail, imagery, syntax, tone. This may sound obvious, but it is something many authors struggle to get right, and Juliette has achieved this - with knobs on - in all her books, including her latest, The Night my Dreams Came Alive.

The narrator, Ollo is a gritty, determined character. Her vulnerabilities are plain to see, but the reader is never really in any doubt that she will triumph, and save the day, which is reassuring for young readers, but does not detract from the, twists and turns in this compelling tale.

‘The Night My Dream Came Alive’ is a dream of a book. Easy to read, great fun and impossible to put down.

The Wild Before

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 31 Aug 2021 15:31:19 GMT

Can one hare alone change the world? The captivating animal adventure destined to be loved by readers of all ages.. One stormy, snowy night, a pure silver calf is born on an ordinary muddy farm by the light of the moon. This is the legendary Mooncalf, whose arrival has been foretold since the dawn of time. According to a dream passed down from animal to animal, if the calf dies, a great terribleness will come - rising seas, a plague, skies raining down fire, the end of all things... and Little Hare vows to persuade all the animals to protect Mooncalf, whatever the cost. But it's easier said than done, and soon Little Hare realises that he is the only one who can save the world... A stunning prequel to the award-winning, bestselling The Last Wild trilogy, touching on timely themes of climate change, friendship, and above all, hope.

My Thoughts

In the acknowledgements at the back of this book, Piers Torday says he was inspired to return to the world of the wild by Greta Thunberg, 'who has moved the dial on the global climate change conversation to another level.' The Last Wild - which is about a pandemic - was published during our own, real pandemic, all of us behind closed doors, with limited access and time in nature. If you are fortunate enough to pick up this wonderful story during this dreadful time, I hope it will - as all good stories should - carry you into a world of wonder and wilderness and help you escape the restrictions of today's covid world. I was reluctant to read The Wild Before, sure it could never live up to the brilliance of Piers Torday's Wild Trilogy, but I now can assure you, dear reader, it is even better.

The story starts with a map (I love a map). Dandelion Hill Valley featuring Miracle Moor, Bristly Hedge, Badger Beech Copse and Bull's Bellow. What could be more perfect? Then there's a fabulous and brilliantly imagined 'key' to 'Animal Time', gently settling the reader into a world governed by moons. Still the story does not begin. Once we have settled into the moon calendar, we are introduced to The Animal Tongue, a lexicon of delightful animal expressions the characters will use throughout the extraordinary story. And then we're off. Hurtling through thorns, hungry, terrified, disoriented and far, far from home.

There is heart-swelling delight, and there is boot-filling terror. There is friendship, and hope, and joy.

Buy The Wild Before now. Read it in one, wonderful sitting, or stretch it out over bedtimes, snuggling down with the wonder of Little Hare's thrilling adventures dancing through your dreams.

By Ash, Oak and Thorn

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 17 Aug 2021 12:31:04 GMT

What in the Wild World is happening?

Three little people, no bigger than your hand, wake from their winter sleep in the hollow trunk of an ash tree. Moss, Burnet and Cumulous usually love spring, but their joy turns to worry when they discover that Cumulus, the oldest, is starting to fade away.

The trio leave their beloved home in search of answers. Guided by birds, stars and wild creatures, they set out to find more of their folk. Other Hidden Folk are rumoured to live in an ancient oak on the bank of a stream, deep in the countryside. But they soon learn that they must travel much further , to a loud, busy and danger-filled place called The Hive.

My Thoughts

A delightful story that gives the reader a magical child's eye view of nature, and introduces a cast of characters so rich and real I will definitely read it again before the summer is out.

Melissa Harrison writes about nature in such a knowledgable, accessible and wondrous way, I felt she shrunk me, took me by the hand, and led me through her wonder-filled world of Hidden Folk, and what a privilege it was to walk with her through the English countryside, shining a microscope on so many tiny, over-looked and fascinating aspects of the natural world.

By Ash Oak and Thorn tells the story of a disappearing world; a vanishing way of life that echoes the impact of environmental change and a climate in crisis.

A perfect summer read and children and adults will enjoy again and again.

ps. Look at the cover. Couldn't you just spend hours gazing at this alone? I did. x

The Life and Times of Lonny Quicke

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 17 Jul 2021 11:56:22 GMT

Lonny is a lifeling. He has the power to heal any living creature and bring it back from the dead. But he pays a price for this gift – by lengthening the creature’s life, he shortens his own. So Lonny has to be careful, has to stay hidden in the forest. Because if people knew what he could do, Lonny would be left with no life at all…

My Thoughts

The premise of this novel is fantastic and fascinating ... what would happen if you could save a life with the touch of your hand -and what if it meant that you got older each time you did it? It is a 'big question' to answer, and Kirsty Applebaum has done so brilliantly.

This is a story about family secrets, unwanted power, and loss. All important themes and all handled excellently by the author. The characters leap off the pages which you keep turning and turning to find out how the storyteller is going to resolve the extraordinary situation she has put her protagonist in.

The novel takes you on twists and turns, leaps and bounds all handled skilfully by Kirsty Applebaum - an excellent wordsmith - and the ending is stunning.

This brilliant novel comes from the author of The Middler.

Nature Diary

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 23:00:00 GMT

Snippets of information about UK wildlife, flora and fauna throughout the year

Swan Song

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 04 May 2021 13:07:10 GMT

Excluded from school, Dylan is forced to move to a tiny village in Wales where his grandad lives.

With no Xbox or internet, life is looking pretty bleak, but when Grandad takes Dylan out on his boat to see the whooper swans, things begin to change.

Out on the water, free from all the pressure he's been under, Dylan begins to feel like himself again. But when the swans habitat is threatened and tragedy strikes at home, can Dylan keep going when it feels like everything is slipping out of control again?

My Thoughts

A wonderful story about the healing power of nature for the mind, body and soul.

Dylan is has been misunderstood, and unable to find his voice. The gentle lulling of the sea and watching the whooper swans , helps to still the chaos inside his head, and to work out what is important to him. Ultimately nature gives him back his voice, and so he is able to take agency over how he would like his future to pan out.

Gill Lewis writes exquisitely about nature and animals and Swan Song is no exception. This outstanding novella will soothe and calm the young reader's minds as effectively as it does the main character's. Swan Song is an outstanding read, and I urge you to give yourself a treat and get hold of a copy, either through your local library, independent bookshop of online. You will not regret it.

A Year In The Life Of A Beech Tree

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 30 Mar 2021 17:20:21 GMT

The Druids believed that The Beech Tree is a granter of wishes. It is also symbolic of education, communication, marriage, nourishment, and credibility. I think of beech trees as wishing trees.

Toad Patrol

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 30 Mar 2021 17:11:23 GMT

See how a group of volunteers in Henley help migrating toads across the road in the breeding season.

Last Bear

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 14:40:23 GMT

There are no polar bears left on Bear Island. At least, that’s what April’s father tells her when his scientific research takes them to this remote Arctic outpost for six months. But one endless summer night, April meets one. He is starving, lonely and a long way from home. Determined to save him, April begins the most important journey of her life…

My Thoughts

A book with an 'Unforgettable' testimonial from the mighty Michael Morpurgo was always going to be a winner, and The Last Bear has certainly won my heart. Not since Rosie in Rosie Loves Jack (a totally different type of book by the way) has a character got under my skin like Bear has. And I feel certain he will get under yours too.

This is a deeply moving story, and an important one too. It dramatises - without being preachy - the plight of our environment, the effects of global warming and one of my favourite Dalai Lama quotes, 'If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.'

April is a wonderful, brave, determined character who goes on a fabulous adventure with her new best friend Bear. Hannah Gold does an incredible job of introducing bring the reader close to Bear and sharing his thoughts and worries without being schmaltzy, and despite him having no dialogue to help her portray his character.

At the start of the novel all the main characters - April, Dad and Bear - are lost both physically and emotionally. In Hannah Gold's skilful hands they all find their way, through the fabulously metaphorical freezing arctic of grief and ice-olation (sorry - couldn't resist that one), to a better, safer, happier place.

Perfect for readers of 8+, and beautifully illustrated throughout by Levi Pinfold – winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal, The Last Bear is a classic in the making.

October October

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 27 Feb 2021 13:11:01 GMT

A classic in the making for anyone who ever longed to be WILD.

October and her dad live in the woods. They sleep in the house Dad built for them and eat the food they grow in the vegetable patches. They know the trees and the rocks and the lake and stars like best friends. They read the books they buy in town again and again until the pages are soft and yellow - until next year's town visit. They live in the woods and they are wild.

And that's the way it is.

Until the year October turns eleven. That's the year October rescues a baby owl. It's the year Dad falls out of the biggest tree in their woods. The year the woman who calls herself October's mother comes back. The year everything changes.

My Thoughts

I have changed my reviewing policy, and now am only posting books I adore, and books with a strong theme of nature running through them. October October meets those criteria with knobs on!

Exquisitely illustrated by Angela Harding, just allowing myself to be swallowed up by that fabulous cover is thrilling. Open the book and the words live up to every expectation set by the beautiful presentation. Katya Balen's prose is lyrical and evocative and the reader is with the protagonist, October, squelching through mud and crunching through leaf litter every step of the way.

Every good story has a theme and 'spreading your wings' is and ideal that is explored and gently woven - literally and metaphorically - through every aspect of the book.

October October is a wild, whimsical, heart wrenching and wondrous story.

Flight

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 12:44:22 GMT

Austria 1945. After losing his family, Jakob shelters with Herr Engel in a rural stable, where they hide the precious Lipizzanner stallions they know Hitler wants to steal. When a German officer comes looking for Jakob and finds the horses, Jakob and his guardian know they must get the stallions to safety, but the only way is straight through Nazi territory. Joined by Kizzy, an orphan Roma girl, the three must guide the horses across the perilous Austrian mountains. Will they reach safety? What will be waiting for them on the other side?

My Thoughts

Spoiler alert - for me this is and almost perfect story. I shall try not to let that cloud my objectivity, (but it really is practically perfect in every way!)

First of all, if you're not a fan of war novels, don't let that put you off. Flight is set at the end of the second world war, and yes, the Nazis are truly terrifying antagonists, but for me this is really a story about survival, determination, loyalty and - best and most of all - horses!

Jakob, Herr Engel and their friend Kizzy are great characters, but let's be honest, the horses, with their huge hearts and strength and courage, are the real heroes . Every animal is so perfectly drawn, each with their own personalities and quirks, I could feel their flesh quiver and smell their sweat as they undertook their mammoth journey, guided lovingly by Jakob, Kizzy and Herr Engel.

And much as the horses trust, and feel safe, with their guides, readers of Flight are super safe in the hands of expert story teller Vanessa Harbour, who cranks up the tension brilliantly then, just as the characters (and the reader!) reach breaking point, gently brings us back to the core themes of determination, loyalty and survival that carry us cheering to the very end.

And the best thing is, a little bird told me there is a sequel on the way!

The Wild Way Home

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 23 Jan 2021 17:36:04 GMT

When Charlie's longed-for brother is born with a serious heart condition, Charlie's world is turned upside down. Upset and afraid, Charlie flees the hospital and makes for the ancient forest on the edge of town. There Charlie finds a boy floating face-down in the stream, injured, but alive. But when Charlie sets off back to the hospital to fetch help, it seems the forest has changed. It's become a place as strange and wild as the boy dressed in deerskins. For Charlie has unwittingly fled into the Stone Age, with no way to help the boy or return to the present day. Or is there … ?

What follows is a wild, big-hearted adventure as Charlie and the Stone Age boy set out together to find what they have lost – their courage, their hope, their family and their way home.

My Thoughts

Nature lovers, stone age lovers, adventure lovers, story lovers of any and every creed will love this book. It is exciting, funny and deeply moving.

The protagonist, Charlie (Charlie's gender is not stated), is an intriguing and deeply likeable character with a lot to learn about life, and about themselves, which they do through dramatic adventures with their new friend Harby.

The author, Sophie Kirtley, handles deep subjects with great insight and sensitivity: loss, friendship, family and disappointment are all explored within the dances and dramas of a page turner of a story.

The Good Hawk

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 22 Jan 2021 11:22:44 GMT

Agatha is a Hawk, brave and fierce, who protects her people by patrolling the high walls of their island home. She is proud of her job, though some in her clan whisper that it is meant to keep her out of the way because of the condition she was born with.Jaime, thoughtful and anxious, is an Angler, but he hates the sea. Worse, he’s been chosen for a duty that the clan hasn’t required for generations: to marry. The elders won’t say why they have promised him to a girl in a neighboring clan, but there are rumors of approaching danger.When disaster strikes and the clan is kidnapped, it is up to Agatha and Jaime to travel across the haunted mainland of Scotia to Norveg, with help along the way from a clan of nomadic Highland bull riders and the many animals who are drawn to Agatha’s extraordinary gift of communication.

My Thoughts

This tale of courage and friendship is remarkably tender while at the same time shockingly brutal. It is told by Jaime and Agatha alternately, with Jaime as the legs of the plot and Agatha, ‘The Good Hawk’ , its heart and soul. The two characters are perfect foils for one another and make a perfect team to take on the bevy of spine chilling baddies and evil forces Joseph Elliot has treated us to.

Agatha is beautifully written, so much so she made my heart swell and my eyes sting. She is funny, brave, loyal and determined - an ideal heroine for an action packed children’s adventure story.

And the plot? Well, its a roller coaster, with a breathtaking series of twists and turns and tragedies making it that rare and wonderful thing, a genuine page turner.

The Good Hawk, the first of a trilogy, is mysterious, desperately sad, very funny and it kept me on the edge of my seat until the very last word.

I cannot wait to read the next one.

My Name is River

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 16:43:01 GMT

Dylan's mum thinks he's on the school Geography trip. Dylan's teacher thinks he's at home with the flu. In fact, he's 30,000 feet up in the air on the way to Brazil. When Dylans' farm is snatched away by a huge global company, he can't just sit back and watch. But the journey to rescue his home takes him deep into the heart of the Amazon. With Floyd, a friend he's not sure of, and Lucia, a street kid armed with a thesaurus and a Great Dane puppy, he uncovers dark and dangerous secrets which learn some surprising truths.

My Thoughts

This exciting story is about ecology and nature and how interconnected people are to each other and to our planet. It's also

about courage and friendship and determination and how we should all be prepared to do whatever it takes to protect what we love.

Dylan, the main character is beautifully drawn and multi-dimensional and his unlikely journey feels likely - maybe even inevitable - in Emma Rea's talented hands. I was bewitched by Dylan's love for his farm and his family and found myself cheering him on all the way to the Amazon and back.

Lucia, a street kid Dylan meets in Brazil, is feisty and gorgeous. I love her thesaurus and her dog and everything about her - so much so I am secretly hoping Emma Rea will write Lucia an adventure story all of her own next!

I didn't want to put this book down and nor will you.

The Ghost of Gosswater

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 11:18:41 GMT

A thrilling Gothic tale from the author of Our Castle by the Sea, shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize.

1899. The Earl of Gosswater has died, and twelve-year-old Lady Agatha has been cast out of her ancestral home - the only home she has ever known - by her cruel cousin, Clarence. In a tiny tumbledown cottage, she struggles to adjust to her new life and the stranger who claims to be her real father.

And on the shores of Gosswater Lake, the spirit of another young girl will not rest. Could the ghost of Gosswater hold the key to Aggie's true identity?

My Thoughts

Lucy Strange's first novel, The Secret of Nightingale Wood, is one of my all time favourite children's books (check it out on The Bookshelf ) so I was excited to read this one, but privately determined it would never match the brilliance of her first. I think I may just have been wrong!

The Ghost of Gosswater is a poignant tale arising from a heartbreaking history, which is told with a light touch and never holds the story back. Quite the opposite in fact. Lucy Strange weaves the past into the present like a master craftsman and I could not stop turning the pages.

The setting, The Lake District at the end of the nineteenth century, is beautifully drawn and this depiction of it will stay for ever in my mind as 'the way The Lake District is' (I have never been there.) Cousin Clarence is a FABULOUS baddie, evil, immoral, physically repugnant and so riddled with greed he will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Against this, Aggie, her father and her friend Bryn are courageous, determined and honest.

Will good overcome evil? Will the past continue to stain the present? Well I'm not telling you that, but I am telling you that if you can beg or borrow a copy of this book, you will definitely not regret it.

With themes of courage, self-belief and family, this story has something for every reader and I would recommend it for ages 9 -99.

The Girl Who Speaks Bear

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 11:17:20 GMT

Found abandoned in a bear cave as a baby, 12-year-old Yanka has always felt out of place in her small village. When she wakes up to find that her legs have become bear legs, she sets off into the forest to discover who she is, on a journey that takes her from icy rivers to smouldering mountains, with an ever-growing group of misfits alongside her... Interwoven with traditional stories of bears, princesses and dragons, Yanka's journey is a gorgeously lyrical adventure from the best-selling author of The House With Chicken Legs.

My Thoughts

Sophie Anderson weaves her words into magic carpets of adventure that never cease to delight.

After the huge success of The House With Chicken Legs (check it out back on The Bookshelf ) I was almost nervous to read this one, just in case it didn't match up. Phew. For me, The Girl Who Speaks Bear is even better. An astounding, exhilarating, exciting and wondrous adventure with its finger on the pulse of courage, self-belief and accepting ourselves for who we are.

The world Sophie Anderson has created for Yanka is vivid, dangerous and exciting and young readers will love the eclectic cast of characters (both human and animal) that help navigate her way through the forest. (My personal favourite is Mousetrap - please do send me yours.)

I would say this book is perfect for 10-11 year olds, but that younger readers will also enjoy it, perhaps as a book at bedtime or a teacher's read.

I will definitely read this book again and again. However old you are, I urge you to indulge yourself, and disappear into the forest with Yanka. You will not regret it.

Midnight Magic

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 11:15:57 GMT

In the middle of winter, three kittens are born in a barn. Two are ordinary, but the third, jet black and born on the stroke of midnight, is brimming with magic from whiskers to tail - even sparking life into a dusty old broomstick! While her siblings pounce at rats, Midnight perfects her flying skills on the broom, not noticing how her mother disapproves of her magical ways...

When Midnight finds herself abandoned, the little black kitten sets out to find a new home with only her loyal broom Twiggy at her side. The pair soon befriend a kind-hearted girl called Trixie. But how will Trixie's family react to Midnight's extraordinary powers and taste for mischief?

My Thoughts

Midnight Magic is the first in an enchanting new series for younger readers, written by the fabulous Michelle Harrison (Pinch of Magic, the 13 Treasures series) and illustrated by Elissa Elwick (Fetch and Stick series, The Princess and the Sleep Stealer). The story is beautifully written in rhyme making it perfect to read out loud, or for early readers just beginning to read chapter books, to enjoy by themselves.

The illustrations are funny and vivid and utterly magical.

I love love love this book and will definitely be taking it on my school visits where I fully expect to be asked to read it over and over again.

The Castle of Tangled Magic

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 10:19:53 GMT

Olia lives with her parents in an old crumbling castle, filled with hidden turrets and secret doorways. When she follows a mysterious cat to one of the castle's roof domes, she finds herself stepping through one such doorway into a magical land filled with wonders... But everything is not quite as it seems: the land is under threat from a scheming magician, Chernmor, and the magic is fading away.

With the help of an enchanted band of new friends, can Olia find a way to save both her own home, and the land of forbidden magic?

My Thoughts

This is a rollercoaster of an adventure, thrilling, magical, sublime storytelling from the queen of magical middle grade, the author of The House With Chicken Legs and The Girl Who Speaks Bear (Check them out on The Bookshelf ). Absolutely perfect book for a rainy day in the school holidays, to gobble up in one delicious sitting.

Reserve it at your local library or put it on your wish list. It's a gem.

Agent Zaiba Investigates

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 30 Jun 2020 16:46:14 GMT

Eleven-year-old Zaiba is obsessed with crime. Her Aunt Fouzia runs a detective agency back in Karachi and has turned Zaiba on to the brilliant Eden Lockett Mysteries. She has every book in the series – and the quilt cover, and the phone case. All she needs now is a crime to solve…

In book one, Zaiba is attending a family Mehndi party at The Grand Royal Star Hotel when she hears that the prized Italian Greyhound of a famous actress has gone missing from the star’s suite. With the help of her best friend and her little brother, the amateur sleuth manages to foil the petnapping plot and save the day

In book two , Zaiba can't wait for the school summer fair where she's going to run a detective trail to help train other potential agents! But when the head teacher is poisoned during the highly competitive cake competition, Zaiba s own skills are put to the test. With a whole host of suspects and a busy crime scene, Zaiba needs to stay focused if she s going to get to the bottom of the cake catastrophe.

My Thoughts

Amateur detectives and mystery solvers everywhere are going to adore Agent Zaiba's stories, and also the fabulous extra material at the back - detective tips, memory tests, fingerprint kit instructions, secret codes and fact files.

The stories themselves are short, the plots span a couple of days so are manageable to get your head around and the mysteries will be fun to solve. The books would work well for free readers, to read with an adult (Daniela Sosa has done some lovely illustrations to support the story and further involve the reader) or as a bedtime story, solving the mysteries together.

I very much hope there are lots more mysteries in the pipeline for Agent Zaiba to investigate.

The Apprentice Witch

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 18:34:22 GMT

Arianwyn has fluffed her witch’s evaluation test.

Awarded the dull bronze disc and continuing as an apprentice – to the glee of her arch-rival, mean girl Gimma – she’s sent to protect the remote, dreary town of Lull.

But her new life is far from boring. Turns out Gimma is the pompous mayor’s favourite niece – and worse, she opens a magical rift in the nearby Great Wood. As Arianwyn struggles with her spells, a mysterious darkness begins to haunt her – and it’s soon clear there’s much more than her pride at stake …

My Thoughts

Gangster School

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 18:33:17 GMT

'I bet no other school gives you the chance to chase super villains through hidden tunnels!’

That’s what Milly Dillane has to say about life at Blaggard’s, A.K.A Gangster School.

Milly and her new friend Charlie have just started at Blaggard’s. But what’s it like to be in a school that teaches lying, kidnapping and stealing instead of Maths and English? Their parents and teachers are master criminals and want them to follow in their footsteps … but are Milly and Charlie just too … dependable?

In this funny and exciting adventure, smart Milly and super-hacker Charlie face some of the worst villains around, including the cold-hearted Pecunia Badpenny and her sidekick: Wolf the evil electronic dog.

Can Milly and Charlie beat Badpenny and her demonic plans? And are they criminal enough to keep their place in a school they’ve come to love?

My Thoughts

Kate Wiseman’s brilliant Blaggard’s is a fantastic concept - like Hogwarts for criminal kids - and Kate Wiseman delivers on its promise in spades.

This is a fun, rollercoaster of a read with twists and turns, giggles, gadgets and gizmos a plenty. The setting is wonderful and the characters beautifully drawn.

If you like a series (and who doesn't?), there are three Gangster School books so far. Let me kn w which ones you've read and what you think of them.

A Kind of Spark

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 18:32:35 GMT

Addie knows exactly who she is. Addies knows that sharks are more interesting than dolphins, she knows her favourite words in the thesaurus and she knows that her older sisters are opposites.

But when Addie learns about the witch trials that happened in her hometown, she knows there is more to the story of these 'wicthes', just like there is more to her. As Addie tries to get her small town to make a memorial for the 'witches', can she also challenge the way they see here?

My Thoughts

I absolutely love this book! It is entertaining, thought provoking and important.

Primarily a story about friendship and courage, Addie's tale teaches us about what it means to be different, and should have all of us checking and rechecking the way we treat others and how our behaviour might be perceived by those around us.

Those of you who've seen my school workshops know I am a huge believer in gaining empathy through story telling, and A Kind of Spark will now be top of the pile of books I wave around classrooms whenever I am lucky enough to get back inside one (Corona Virus allowing!)

A Kind of Spark is written for middle grade readers, but we should all read it, adults and children alike. It has a lot to teach us and it is an absolutely delightful story too.

Thank you, and many congratulations to Elle McNicoll.

Happy Endings!

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 09:01:56 GMT

Times are tough out there, and if, like me, you need a bit of escapism then a well told story is the best place to go. I love the idea of a list of books with Happy Endings , so without re-inventing the wheel here is a link to fifteen fantastic books that will take you away from the real world, entertain you, and leave you with a smile on your face.

HAPPY ENDINGS :)

PS. Watch this space for reviews of Kate Wiseman and James Nicol's fabulous books - they've been on my pile to write up for too, too long!

Wilde

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 29 Apr 2020 09:48:41 GMT

Can she break the curse of the witch called Winter?

Being different can be dangerous. Wilde is afraid strange things are happening around her. Are the birds following her? Is she flying in her sleep? Moving to live with her aunt seems to make it all worse. Wilde is desperate to fit in at her new school, but things keep getting stranger. In a fierce heatwave, in rehearsals for a school play telling the old, local legend of a witch called Winter, ‘The Witch’ starts leaving pupils frightening letters cursing them. Can Wilde find out what’s happening before everyone blames her? Or will she always be the outcast?

My Thoughts

I have been excited about this book for months and am thrilled to bring it to you on launch week, during a time in our lives when maybe we have a little more time for reading.

You can see on The Bookshelf that I am a big fan of Eloise Williams, who was kind enough to talk to me about the launch of her last novel, Seaglass last summer (you can read that interview here ).

Williams' latest book, Wilde , is everything you could possibly want in a children's story. There are witches and curses and legends. There's lots of humour, some fabulous animal characters and a great baddy. On a deeper level, the novel addresses important themes such as self belief, the value of individuality, loss, and bullying.

The main character, Wilde, is a gutsy, brave, quirky kid who longs to be 'normal' but deep inside her knows she never will be. She struggles with the loss of her mother and is determined to understand the secrets shrouding her family history, so she can understand who she really is.

The characters and the settings are beautifully drawn, and the story is exciting, magical, wacky and weird.

The Oscar WIlde quote in the front of the book, "Be yourself; everyone else is already taken," is inspired, and this is the valuable message readers will take away from the story.

I cannot recommend Wilde highly enough.

Crater Lake

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 31 Mar 2020 13:40:10 GMT

Who is the mysterious bloodstained man who stops their coach? Why is no one around when Lance and the rest of Year Six arrive at the brand new Crater Lake activity centre? But this is just the beginning of the school trip from hell; a fight for survival that sees five pupils band together to save their classmates from an alien fate far worse than death. But whatever happens, they must Never. Ever. Fall asleep!

My Thoughts

Crater lake is about courage, and friendship, and finding strength in your vulnerabilities. But that makes it sound heavy, which it is not at all, it is one of the best spooky children's story I have ever read. A perfect blend of creepy, adventure and danger with a lovely undercurrent about facing our fears and challenges. Get hold of a copy now, you will never fall asleep reading it though!

Where The World Turns Wild

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 10 Mar 2020 17:19:34 GMT

Juniper Greene lives in a walled city from which nature has been banished, following the outbreak of a deadly man-made disease many years earlier. While most people seem content to live in such a cage, she and her little brother Bear have always known about their resistance to the disease, and dream of escaping into the wild. To the one place humans have survived outside of cities. To where their mother is.

When scientists discover that the siblings provide the key to fighting the disease, the pair must flee for their lives. As they cross the barren Buffer Zone and journey into the unknown, Juniper and Bear can only guess at the dangers that lie ahead. Nature can be cruel as well as kind... Will they ever find the home they’ve been searching for?

My Thoughts

I have been really looking forward to telling you about this book, but I had to wait until I'd reviewed it on BBC Berkshire Book Club, so am thrilled to be able to feature it now and make it my Book of The Month for March.

I think Wherre The World Turns Wild is - and I usually mock this expression - a rather important story.

Appropriate for readers about 9-12, Where The World Turns Wild is the brainchild debut of author Nicola Penfold. As you know from the synopsis above, it's set in an imagined future where, because of a deadly man-made disease, people live in cities, where no animals or trees, and barely any plants, are allowed.

The story features universal themes of belonging, family and courage and is completely gripping, b ut for me the best bits are the nature message and the nature writing. The author presents the reader with nature, and the wild, in all its rawness, with all the associated cruelty, and messiness, and struggles that entail surviving in the untamed wild. It’s not all pretty juniper trees and magical lakes, though there’s a bit of that too, a nd being a farmer’s daughter, I totally related to looking at the natural world through this very real prism.

An exciting story featuring a salient lesson about the ultimate dangers of climate change and what society might look like without nature in our lives as well as a wonderful way to extend natural knowledge and vocabulary while being thoroughly entertained at the same time,.

Books With A Nature Theme

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Do you see the magic in nature and love reading stories where nature fights back?

With the help of many Twitter friends, I've pulled together a list of children's fiction steeped in nature. You'll find a few of them on The Bookshelf, but I haven't yet read them all.

I've had a wonderful time loading these novels onto the site and finding out about their plots. I've posted them in alphabetical order (I think!) so be sure to scroll to the bottom to make sure there's nothing in the X Y's & Z's that catches your fancy.

There are lots of stories to choose from and they all have one thing in common. The magic of Mother Nature.

Please let me know how you get on, or get in touch if you have more to add.

(To be added :- Gerald Durrell, The Switching Hour, Tree Magic (Harriet Springbent)

The Boy Who Flew

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 15 Feb 2020 12:26:25 GMT

Athan Wilde dreams of flight. When his friend, Mr Chen, is murdered, Athan must rescue the flying machine they were building together and stop it falling into the wrong hands. But keeping the machine safe puts his family in terrible danger. What will Athan choose – flight or family?

My Thoughts

I loved Fleur Hitchcock's Murder In Midwinter, and came to The Boy Who Flew having heard so much about it, I was slightly worried it may not live up to the hype. I need not have been concerned.

This is another triumph from Fleur. A real cracker of a story with fabulous, dick dastardly style baddies and a tribe of delightful, Dickensian child children to beat them off.

Beautifully written, grippingly paced and exciting to the very last page. I couldn't put it down.

You can hear me talk about The Boy Who Flew and a couple of other half terms reads featured on The Bookshelf here on BBC Berkshir e. The Book CLub show starts at 1.08

Demelza and the Spectre Detectors

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 15 Feb 2020 12:12:00 GMT

Demelza loves science - she loves it so much that she's been known to stay up late to work on her peculiar inventions! But Demelza discovers she has inherited a distinctly un-scientific set of skills: Spectre Detecting. Like her grandmother, she can summon the ghosts of the dead. But when Grandma is kidnapped by a mysterious villain, she knows Spectre Detecting has something to do with it. Only Demelza and her pasty best friend, Percy, can solve the deadly mystery ...

My Thoughts

This is a fizzing, rollercoaster of a tale. It's very funny and would be enjoyed by male or female readers

Demelza is fabulously eccentric, and her grandma, Maeve and Percy are also brilliantly drawn.

Although the story is predominantly fun, page turing and entertaining, there is a serious theme of death woven into the plot and Holly Rivers handles this sensitively and age appropriately - something far harder to do than it seems.

I really hope to see Demelza on lots of award lists this year, because she deserves to be there. I also hope we will see her again - a series please Holly Rivers. The world needs heroes like Demelza.

You can hear me talk about Demelza, and a couple of other half terms reads featured on The Bookshelf, here on BBC Berkshire . The Book Club show starts at 1.08

Songbirds Featured in The Dawn Chorus

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Photo library of characters from my story The Dawn Chorus (free to download on the home page)

Nevertell

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 28 Dec 2019 18:31:31 GMT

Born in a Soviet prison camp, Lina has never seen the world outside until the night she escapes with her best friend, Bogdan. As the pair journey across a snowy wilderness, they are pursued by a vengeful sorceress and her pack of shadow wolves. The children will need every ounce of courage – and a whisper of magic – if they are to survive…

My Thoughts

An enchanting, whirlwind of an adventure. The magic builds slowly and keeps you guessing right up to the final few chapters.

The friendship between Lina and Bogdan is heart warming (and they need as much heat as they can get crossing the frozen wilds of Russia together) and I really liked their devotion to one another, even when one of them got it wrong and the pair got into even deeper trouble.

With whispering stars, freezing words and magical capes, Nevertell whips you up into a 'snowpocalypse' you are unlikely to forget.

A perfect January read - now all you need is a snow day!

PS. You can hear me talk about Nevertell, and a couple of other half terms reads featured on The Bookshelf, here on BBC Berkshire . The Book Club show starts at 1.08

Murder In Midwinter

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 01 Dec 2019 20:03:35 GMT

Sat on the top of a bus days before Christmas, Maya sees a couple arguing violently in the middle of a crowded Regent Street. They see her watching, she looks away, and the woman disappears.

Maya goes to the police, who shrug and send her away. Then a body turns up… Now convinced she is a vital witness to a crime, the police send Maya into hiding in rural Wales. She resolves to get to the bottom of the mystery. Then the snow comes and no one can get out. But what if someone can still get in?

My Thoughts

This is a great story - full of twists and turns and adventures. I was gripped from start to finish. The settings and the characters are well drawn and the story builds beautifully so your knuckles are white by the time you reach the last few scenes.

The snow scenes are so cinematic you may need an extra blanket to warm you when you read them. Then if you get scared you've got something to hide under!

Brightstorm

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 14 Nov 2019 11:09:20 GMT

Twins Arthur and Maudie receive word in Lontown that their famous explorer father died in a failed attempt to reach South Polaris. Not only that, but he has been accused of trying to steal fuel from his competitors before he died! The twins don't believe the news, and they answer an ad to help crew a new exploration attempt in the hope of learning the truth and salvaging their family's reputation. As the winged ship Aurora sets sail, the twins must keep their wits about them and prove themselves worthy of the rest of the crew. But will Arthur and Maudie find the answers they seek?

My Thoughts

Brightstorm is a perfect adventure story; exciting, funny, fast-paced, spirited, surprising - everything a children's book should be.

The two main characters would make wonderful role models; they're brave, resilient, hard working and loyal but above all they are not afraid to show tenderness and love for one another. Their relationship bought tears to my eyes at times.

I am very late reviewing this fabulous story and just squeezed in before the sequel Darkwhispers comes out in February (2020). I promise to be ahead of the game on that one and to share a super early review!

Meantime, if you haven't read Brightstorm you have a treat in store, and if you have maybe now would be a good time to re-read (do you re-read? I do but only very special books and this certainly falls into the category) to get your sky ship adventure juices flowing for the next one.

ps. I reviewed Brightstorm on BBC Radio Berkshire this week - you can listen here (at 1.30)

Eloise Undercover

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 03 Oct 2019 08:51:27 GMT

France, 1944. 12-year-old Eloise’s father has not come home in over a week, and she is getting worried that something might be badly wrong. When the Germans occupy Eloise’s town, and the Nazi Kommandant moves into Maison de la Noyer, things start falling apart.

Through a chance meeting, Eloise volunteers to join the Resistance. Suspense, secrecy and danger follow her as, inspired by her favourite detective fiction books, she tries to find her father. A hidden passage behind a tapestry, a deportation list and a race against time… Will Eloise find her father? And what other secrets will she reveal?

I am thrilled to a guest reviewer to the site. My lovely neighbour Ella, aged 10. Thank you for your great review Ella ...

Ella's Thoughts

Eloise undercover by Sarah Baker is literally THE BEST BOOK I HAVE EVER READ! It's so exciting and entertaining. It's set in the time of the war which makes it even more gripping.

Eloise is confident and definitely one to look up to. In my opinion she deserves a place in the Rebel Book of Girls. It shows pure adventure and courage as well as proving you can do pretty much ANYTHING you set your mind to! I absolutely love it! Everything is a surprise. On most pages there is an unexpected turn in the story. A great story for both girls and boys who like I'm - sitting - on - the - edge - of - my - seat books. A true heart warming story.

My Thoughts

It took me a while to get into this book, which may say more about me than the novel - I should have started it when I had a bigger chunk of time to invest but the end of the day and heavy eyelids defeated me.

BUT, once I got past the first few chapters I was totally gripped and read late into the night, finishing in a couple of blissfully indulgent, tea fuelled evenings.

Eloise is a lovely character, gutsy, flawed, conflicted and in danger. Everything you could possibly want from a protagonist. Her home situation is intriguing, I didn't work it out until the last few pages, but what I can tell you is the grandmother is a baker and the scenes where she is preparing the bread are so well drawn and soothing I could virtually smell the dough as I read.

Well written, exciting, a nice twist and an important and interesting setting. A really good read. Thank you Sarah Baker!

ps. If you enjoyed this novel and would like to read more stories set around this time, take a look at Lucy Strange's Our Castle By The Sea and Emma Carroll's Letters from the Lighthouse . You'll find them on The Bookshelf

Skycircus

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 18 Sep 2019 15:07:04 GMT

When a travelling skycircus arrives in Brackenbridge, Lily and Robert can’t wait to step aboard… But there’s something sinister about the hybrid children who appear as part of the act. And before Lily and Robert can do anything, they’re captured by shadowy figures and whisked off in the mysterious flying circus to somewhere far, far away…

Treachery, tight-ropes and trickery combine in this incredible third Cogheart adventure…

My Thoughts

If you, like me, have not read Cogheart books before, don't let that put you off starting with this one. No previous knowledge of the series is required to enjoy this exciting adventure, but it does put you at danger of wanting to go back and read the other two so make sure your library's got them in stock!

The writing is excellent, the world building (even for a Cogheart newbie) superb and the the audible version so fabulously narrated it had me on the edge of my car seat and offering to give lifts all over the county so I could find out what happened next. A real page turner.

Perfect for circus lovers and adventure seekers everywhere.

Join The Chorus - The Importance of Libraries

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 09:31:51 GMT

I am over the moon to welcome author Victoria Williamson to the site today. Victoria is author of The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle, one of my favourite books of 2019, and her new book, The Boy With the Butterfly Mind launches this week and is my Book of the Month. You can find both Victoria's books on The Bookshelf and you can hear me talking about The Boy With The Butterfly Mind on BBC Berkshire .

Victoria has taken time out of what will doubtless be a very busy launch week, to talk to us about a subject very close to my heart: The Importance of Libraries.

Over to you Victoria ...

When I was ten years old, I didn’t receive an admission letter to Hogwarts.

That wouldn’t be much of a story, except for the fact that what I got instead for my tenth birthday was a passport to an equally magical place.

My parents had been bringing me to libraries and sharing books with me for as long as I can remember. Back in the 1980s – long before the global phenomena of the internet, digital downloads and Harry Potter – our local library, the William Patrick Memorial Library, was located in Camphill House in Kirkintilloch. Purchased in 1929 by David Patrick and donated to the Town Council as a library to be named after his brother, the original building was an old Victorian house which had the adult library and reference section in its converted first floor rooms. The junior section was upstairs – reached by climbing the winding staircase up to a wonderland full of doorways to secret worlds and exciting adventures in the pages of its children’s books. The key to unlocking those worlds came in the form of a stiff paper library card – as precious to me back then as a ticket from King’s Cross platform 9 ¾.

Over the years I raced through as many books as I could lay my hands on – whole series including Nancy Drew, The Three Investigators, The Chronicles of Narnia, Mallory Towers, The Hardy Boys, and graphic novels such as Tintin and Asterix. The shelves were full of classics – Charlotte’s Web, The Wind in the Willows, The Wizard of Oz and The Railway Children – but there was lots of space for new books as they came out too: The Dragonlance series from 1984, Moondial in 1987 and Roald Dahl’s Matilda in 1988.

However, there were only so many shelves that the old house’s converted bedroom space could hold, and with my family visiting nearly every weekend, it wasn’t too long before I began to run out of books that caught my interest. But when I turned ten, although I didn’t get a letter to Hogwarts, a Golden Ticket, or a passport out of the Shire, I received a consolation prize in the form of my father offering to let me use his adult library card whenever I wanted. At first I didn’t think too much of the offer. After all, the large adult section downstairs was full of uninviting-looking, brick-like tomes with dull covers and even duller-sounding titles, and I was pretty sure there was no fantasy, magic or creative fireworks to be found anywhere in the boring old world of adult books.

I was wrong.

But it took me a good few years of occasional browsing and sampling for my forays into the grown-up world to bear fruit. As my vocabulary expanded and my confidence in exploring on my own grew, I began to understand just how far the horizons of this new world extended. I blasted off into space with Douglas Adams and Isaac Asimov, walked strange lands with Ursula K. LeGuin and Frank Herbert, and discovered the adult magic of Terry Pratchett and Terry Brooks.

During my teenage years I graduated from Watership Down to The Plague Dogs, from Goosebumps to The Rats trilogy, and from Children of the Dust to Farenheit 451. In my late teens I discovered the Classics, and Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and the Bronte sisters became my constant companions. After university, I set off on my own real-life adventures teaching abroad, but no matter where I went, I always made sure I had a library card in my pocket.

Without that passport to other worlds I’d been signed up for before I could even walk, I would never have become an author.

How important is the role of a library in inspiring the authors of the future? Given that Carnegie medal-winning author Theresa Breslin, the recipient of the Scottish Book Trust’s 2019 Outstanding Achievement Award, also has fond memories of joining the William Patrick as a child, then our town’s local library has played no small part in incubating East Dunbartonshire’s writing talent.

That’s why the number of library closures across Britain in recent years has become such a worrying trend. Between 2010 and the end of 2018, over seven hundred libraries have closed across the UK, leaving a generation of children without passports to the magical worlds of books and enhanced literary skills, and several more generations of adults without access to the life-enhancing leisure activities, community networks, and local services that libraries provide.

‘Use it or lose it’ used to be the slogan for public services, but these days, simply carrying a library card in your pocket and popping in to browse the shelves and borrow a book at the weekend is no guarantee that your local library won’t close its doors due to budget cuts. In July 2019 Essex county council was forced to drop its plans to close 25 of the county’s 74 branches, after hundreds of residents joined in protests marches, and thousands of people signed over 50 petitions against the closures

Libraries were once places where silence was considered the only acceptable behaviour. Now the only way for us to save them is to shout at the top of our voices.

Will you join in the chorus before it’s too late?

The Boy With The Butterfly Mind

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 10 Sep 2019 15:05:59 GMT

Jamie Lee wants to be normal but his ADHD isn't making it easy. Elin Watts wants to be perfect: the best student and daughter possible.

When their families blend, chaotic Jamie and ordered Elin collide. But they soon discover that they're actually more alike that they'd admit. Maybe there's no such thing as normal, or perfect. Maybe being yourself is more than enough.

My Thoughts

The Boy With The Butterfly Mind is not only a great story (I couldn't put it down - read it in one sitting) but it gives extraordinary insight into the minds to the two protagonists, Jamie and Elin. Suddenly, ADHD was less of a mystery to me and, importantly , the behaviours arising from the condition became completely understandable.

Victoria Williamson does an extraordinary job of inviting us inside the heads of her two main characters: scared, damaged, confused eleven year olds, telling us a very entertaining story while unravelling the characters' complexities and insecurities and treating us to a stonker of an ending too.

Children's story telling at its best - congratulations Victoria.

(I recently talked about The Boy with the Butterfly Mind on BBC Berkshire's Book Club - you can find it about 1:20 into the show)

The True Colours of Coral Glen

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 06 Aug 2019 15:05:15 GMT

An inventive, spooky and heartfelt story of a girl on a race-against-time, gothic-tinged treasure hunt. For fans of Neil Gaiman's THE GRAVEYARD BOOK and Helena Duggan's A PLACE CALLED PERFECT.

Coral sees the world around her through a rainbow of colours not visible to others - an afternoon of adventure is Treasure Island Gold but a morning with a maths test is Stormy Canyon Grey. When her beloved grandma dies, Coral can't find the colour to match how heartbroken she is. She makes a bargain with a ghostly boy - she'll stop an evil spirit from breaking the spell imprisoning him in a graveyard and he'll find a way for her to say goodbye properly to Grandma.

My Thoughts

Nobody does atmosphere quite like Juliette Forrest, and this book is spooky with a capital S.

Coral is a great, multi-layered character and her unique way of looking at the world is so infectious I found myself seeing a rainbow of colours I'd never before noticed, and attributing meanings and moods to them that (usually) brightened my day.

The True Colours of Coral Glen is an original, imaginative, well-paced rainbow of a story that will captivate you to the very last, (black and white) page.

The Switching Hour

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 06 Aug 2019 15:01:00 GMT

Never stay out after the Switching Hour… never let the outside in….

Amaya lives with her grandmother, her small brother Kaleb and her pet goat Tau in a land suffering a terrible drought. Every night, the doors must be locked at twilight, the Switching Hour, because the drought has awoken Badeko, a creature that snatches children away to eat their dreams.

Three days later, the memory that they existed is gone from those that knew them, and those that are left are afflicted with The Sorrow Sickness – a grief which consumes a person without them knowing why. When Kaleb is taken by Badeko, Amaya must journey into the terrifying forest to find her brother before she forgets him.

My Thoughts

If, like me, you like a lot of the natural world, a sprinkling of magic, a good dose of environmental awareness and a riveting adventure in your stories, then The Switching Hour is the one for you.

A quote from the author, Damaris Young, really struck me,

"Today's young readers face different fears than those that haunted the fairy-tales of old. The news is full of scary stories as our world goes through a time of transition, our very own Switching Hour, but despite this there is hope."

This is a story about hope, courage and the importance of family. It is a thrilling adventure and I urge you to read it.

A Word With Juliette Forrest

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 15:24:38 GMT

I am so excited to welcome the brilliant Juliette Forrest to the site today. Juliette and I met on Twitter (never thought I'd hear myself say that) and I can tell you guys she is every bit as kind and fun as you would hope a children's author would be. I was delighted when she agreed to visit the site on such a busy week for her - Juliette's new book, The True Colours of Coral Glenn launches TODAY so a HUGE round of applause for another excellent story. You can find The True Colours of Coral Glenn, and Juliette's first book Twister, reviewed on The Bookshelf.

Q. What is the name of your favourite music artist?

A. Today, it’s Hot Chip

Q. What is your favourite film?

A. After Life by Hirokazu Kore-eda

Q. If you could acquire any talent of superpower what would it be?

A. To click my heels and be transported to any place I want to be, instantly.

Q. Who is your favourite fictional hero?

A. Atticus Finch

Q. Who is your favourite fictional villain?

A. Cruella De Vil

Q. Which is your favourite character from your books?

A. I really like a worm called Skaw from The True Colours of Coral Glen. He’s ill-tempered and duplicitous yet courageous and honorable. He gave me the most laughs when I was writing his character.

Q. If you could be any fictional character which one would you choose?

A. Aslan from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for his wisdom.

Q. If you could meet any character from history, who would it be and what would you say to him or her?

A. It would have to be Romeo and I’d tell him under no circumstances to take the poison.

Q. What’s your favourite occupation when you’re not writing?

A. I have a dog who pesters me at any given opportunity for a walk. Sometimes, I get hopelessly lost when we’re in the countryside. There’s something quite exciting about not knowing where you are going, until I remember that he’s not Lassie and if something happened, he’d save himself first.

Q. What’s your fantasy profession?

A. Making up the names for paint colours. I’d have so much fun with that .

Q. If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your days what would it be?

A. Ramen noodle soup

Q. Who are your favourite children’s authors?

A. My favourite author is Katherine Rundell. I loved Willard Price when I was a kid, especially Amazon Adventure, so to revisit the jungle many years later in The Explorer was such a treat. Not only is it a brilliant story, but it’s masterclass in the way children speak to each other.

Q. Is there a book you love to reread?

A. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee and anything by Steinbeck.

Q. Do you have any advice for young writers and storytellers?

A. I wasn’t that great at exams. I left school thinking that disappointing grades in English meant I was bad at writing stories – when really, it was the exams I was hopeless at. If you want to write, don’t let anything or anyone stop you. There is no genius except for the genius of hard work.

Q. What can we look forward to from you next?

A. My third children’s novel – which I still can’t quite believe.

The Lost Words

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 14:02:59 GMT

From Acorn to Weasel, a gorgeous, hand-illustrated, large-format spellbook celebrating the magic and wonder of the natural world

All over the country, there are words disappearing from children's lives. Words like Dandelion, Otter, Bramble, Acorn and Lark represent the natural world of childhood, a rich landscape of discovery and imagination that is fading from children's minds.

The Lost Words stands against the disappearance of wild childhood. It is a joyful celebration of the poetry of nature words and the living glory of our distinctive, British countryside. With acrostic spell-poems by peerless wordsmith Robert Macfarlane and hand-painted illustrations by Jackie Morris, this enchanting book captures the irreplaceable magic of language and nature for all ages.

My Thoughts

Ten years ago the Oxford Junior Dictionary introduced new words such as “broadband” while others including acorn, adder and bluebell disappeared.Apparently the dictionary’s guidelines require that it reflect “the current frequency of words in daily language of children”

Unsurprisingly, there was a groundswell of opposition to the word cull and the result was this beautiful book. It's published by Penguin and it’s a work of art, an exquisitely beautiful celebration of the lost words including hand painted illustrations by Jackie Morris interspersed with acrostic poems by Robert MacFarlane. A real keeper for readers of all ages.

A proportion of the royalties from each copy of The Lost Words goes to Action for Conservation, a charity dedicated to inspiring your people to take action for the natural world

Sky Song

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 15:02:27 GMT

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 a cruel Ice Queen and you must stay hidden or risk becoming another of her prisoners.

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 together in search of an ancient, almost forgotten, song with the power to force the Ice Queen back.

My Thoughts

My kids tease me that three tests for books I review are:-

1) Do I pass it on to one of them to read?

2) DO I offer it to their friends to read?

3) (And this is the key one!) Do I ask for it back?

Sky Song passed all three tests and introduced a fourth one:-

4) Do I buy myself another copy JUST IN CASE the friend forgets to return it!

I loved this book. It is beautifully written, the language is enchanting and the world Abi Elphinstone has created for her characters is a bewitching. The plot is great too - a page turning fantasy adventure with fabulous characters and creatures.

This is a story of courage, hope and friendship.

Our Castle By The Sea

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 15:01:42 GMT

Growing up in a lighthouse, 11-year-old Pet's world has been one of storms, secret tunnels, and stories about sea monsters.

But now the country is at war and the clifftops are a terrifying battleground. Pet will need to muster all her bravery to uncover why her family is being torn apart.

My Thoughts

"This sort of old magic is not loyal to anyone or anything. It has its own laws. It is as cold and unknowable as an ancient god."

It's not a spoiler to tell you there is magic in this story, it says so in the blurb and it's in the prologue. There is magic in Lucy Strange's writing too. Her characters are deep and multi-layered, her settings are cinematic and her stories are truly enchanting.

With My Castle By The Sea, I was waiting on the edge of my seat for the magic to come. The tension builds, Pet, that protagonist is struggling and the reader is almost screaming for something, somebody to help her...

You will have to buy the book to find out whether and how help comes - I daren't say anymore for fear of ruining the story. Enough to say I was captivated from start to finish. It is a beautiful story with twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat to the very last page. Another triumph from Lucy Strange!

Our Castle By The Sea book will be available to beg, borrow or buy from all good bookshops, public libraries and school libraries from January 3rd. A real treat to welcome in the new year.

The Secret of Nightingale Wood

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 13:53:26 GMT

Henry has moved to the countryside with her parents and her baby sister, Piglet – all still scarred by the death of her brother.

Alone in her head, she begins to explore her surroundings, encouraged by her only friends – characters from her favourite books. Nobody much notices when she wanders into the woods at the bottom of the garden and meets Moth, a striking witch-like woman. Together they form a bond that could help Henry save her family.

My Thoughts

But back to Nightingale Wood. The author, Lucy Strange, is a talented writer and the plot and pace of The Secret of Nightingale Wood is first class. The cast of characters is superb and and I changed allegiance a dozen times, never quite sure who to trust or believe. The story is told in the first person and the author draws us into twelve year old Henrietta’s world and imagination faultlessly. We join her on the steps outside her new home on page one, explore and settle in with her and share her adventures and mysteries as she struggles to understand the secretive adult world around her and the magical other world in which she finds refuge.

The Secret of Nightingale Wood is a mesmerising novel and one that deserves to be on the shelf of every school library, bookshop and bedroom across the country. It certainly has pride of place on mine.

The Skylark's War

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 10:13:45 GMT

Clarry and her older brother Peter live for their summers in Cornwall, staying with their grandparents and running free with their charismatic cousin, Rupert. But normal life resumes each September - boarding school for Peter and Rupert, and a boring life for Clarry at home with her absent father, as the shadow of a terrible war looms ever closer. When Rupert goes off to fight at the front, Clarry feels their skylark summers are finally slipping away from them.

Can their family survive this fearful war?The Skylarks' War is a beautiful story following the loves and losses of a family growing up against the harsh backdrop of World War One, from the award-winning Hilary McKay.

The Wolf Wilder

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 09:57:33 GMT

Feodora and her mother live in the snowbound woods of Russia, in a house full of food and fireplaces.

Ten minutes away, in a ruined chapel, lives a pack of wolves. Feodora's mother is a wolf wilder, and Feo is a wolf wilder in training. A wolf wilder is the opposite of an animal tamer: it is a person who teaches tamed animals to fend for themselves, and to fight and to run, and to be wary of humans.

When the murderous hostility of the Russian Army threatens her very existence, Feo is left with no option but to go on the run. What follows is a story of revolution and adventure, about standing up for the things you love and fighting back. And, of course, wolves.

The Polar Bear Explorers Club

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 17:37:28 GMT

It sounded like a respectable and worthy enough death for an explorer - tumbling from an ice bridge to be impaled upon a mammoth tusk - but Stella really, really didn't want that to happen, just the same.

Join Stella Starflake Pearl and her three fellow explorers as they trek across the snowy Icelands and come face-to-face with frost fairies, snow queens, outlaw hideouts, unicorns, pygmy dinosaurs and carnivorous cabbages . .

When Stella and three other junior explorers get separated from their expedition can they cross the frozen wilderness and live to tell the tale?

My Thoughts

This book is simply magical. To read it is to be whisked from reality into a world of unicorns and rainbows and frost fairies and yetis!

A page turning, anytime read that I’m going to reread the next time there’s a snow day! Or take it skiing! you’ll never want to go outside.

Twister

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 15:02:15 GMT

Twister's father has gone missing and as she's searching for him she stumbles across a witch

living in the woods. She is given a magical necklace that holds the souls of living things and can turn the wearer into a wolf, or a rushing river, or a rainstorm. But there's a dark foe on the hunt for this necklace, a baddie who wears a coat crawling with creatures and who might have something to do with her father's sudden disappearance...

My Thoughts

I read this book months ago, thoroughly enjoyed it and completely forgot to post my review! Since then I must have read over a dozen other books so it speaks volumes of Twister that both the main character and the story have stayed with me.

It took me a page or two to get used Twister's accent, but I found something that worked for me (sighing with relief that I wasn't reading it out loud! I am no actress!) and didn't give it another thought. Indeed, once I got used to it, Twister's unique voice it added to the extravagance and other-worldliness of her story.

Juliette Forrest has created a wonderful, magical, spooky world. It draws you in like a twisty canyon on a foggy day. Her turn of phrase is delightful and her characters fabulous and original.

I gave the book to my daughter who was in tears at one point - there are some really sad bits - but you need the lows to enjoy the highs and although the setting is magical and fantastic there is an underlying gritty realism to the storyline that I really enjoyed.

In Darkling Wood

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 15:02:07 GMT

'You're telling me there are fairies in this wood?'

When Alice's brother gets a longed-for chance for a heart transplant, Alice is suddenly bundled off to her estranged grandmother's house. There's nothing good about staying with Nell, except for the beautiful Darkling Wood at the end of her garden - but Nell wants to have it cut down. Alice feels at home there, at peace, and even finds a friend, Flo. But Flo doesn't seem to go to the local school and no one in town has heard of a girl with that name. When Flo shows Alice the surprising secrets of Darkling Wood, Alice starts to wonder, what is real? And can she find out in time to save the wood from destruction?

My Thoughts

Spooky woods and fairies - this one is right up my street. Having loved Letters From The Lighthouse (reviewed on the bookshelf) I was longing to hear more from Emma Carroll so turned to this one, and am delighted to report it didn't disappoint.

I was intrigued how the author would introduce fairies without either infantalising the reader or being really really cheesy. The answer is, subtly, gently, cleverly, always allowing room for doubt but leaving the reader longing for the fairies to be real. I loved it. Magical realism in the hands of a master story-teller.

The Way Past Winter

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 15:01:24 GMT

Mila and her sisters live with their brother Oskar in a small forest cabin in the snow. One night, a fur-clad stranger arrives seeking shelter for himself and his men. But by the next morning, they've gone - taking Oskar with them. Fearful for his safety, Mila and her sisters set out to bring Oskar back - even it means going north, crossing frozen wild-lands to find a way past an eternal winter.

My Thoughts

Go away - I'm reading!

The Storm Keeper's Island

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 15:00:40 GMT

When Fionn Boyle sets foot on Arranmore Island, it begins to stir beneath his feet ...

Once in a generation, Arranmore Island chooses a new Storm Keeper to wield its power and keep its magic safe from enemies. The time has come for Fionn's grandfather, a secretive and eccentric old man, to step down. Soon, a new Keeper will rise.

But, deep underground, someone has been waiting for Fionn. As the battle to become the island's next champion rages, a more sinister magic is waking up, intent on rekindling an ancient war.

Asha & The Spirit Bird

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 10:16:10 GMT

Asha lives on the family farm with her mother in rural India.

Her father is away working in the city, and when the money he sends stops suddenly, a wicked aunt arrives.

She’s determined to seize the property – and the treasure rumoured to be hidden on the land. Guided by a majestic bird which Asha believes to be the spirit of her grandmother, she and her best friend Jeevan embark on a journey to the city, across the Himalayas, to find her father and save her home …

A gorgeously original magical-realist Indian adventure and the winner of the 2017 Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition.

My Thoughts

This book transported me to a world I've never before visited and one I urge you to explore.

With one foot in a deeply spiritual reality and the other in an enchanted, magical world, every page is a feast for the senses bringing smells and colours and rituals and beliefs that nourish the imagination and propel the story forward beautifully

And I have to mention the cover - look at the front, look at the back - they are a feast for the eyes and a perfect reflection of the treat that is in store for the reader within.

The Explorer

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 01 Jul 2019 18:06:27 GMT

Fred, Con, Lila, and Max are on their way back to England from Manaus when the plane they’re on crashes and the pilot dies upon landing. For days they survive alone, until Fred finds a map that leads them to a ruined city, and to a secret.

My Thoughts

The Explorer is the ultimate adventure story, Treasure Island stirred up with Swallows and Amazons and seasoned with a sprinkling of Robinson Crusoe.

Katherine Rundell’s writing is exciting and vivid and her characters beautifully drawn and charmingly flawed. In The Explorer she uses the age old story telling technique of getting the adults out of the way in scene one in order to facilitate a thrilling romp through an Amazonian rainforest that bursts off the pages in a delicious tangle of poison, prickles and problems that the children must overcome if they are to survive.

This is a simple story - those, of course, are the hardest to write - and to say more is to ruin the plot but this is a rollercoaster of an adventure that every child will adore and every adult will envy.

I listened the Audible edition narrated by Peter Noble and was totally gripped.

A Word With Eloise Williams

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 27 Jun 2019 14:24:22 GMT

What a treat to have the wonderful Eloise Williams, author of the fabulously spooky new novel Seaglass and before that Gaslight, one of my favourite books last year. Check out The Bookshelf for reviews of both books and listen carefully to Eloise's wise words below, she is a hugely gifted author and her advice to young writers is second to none, and explains a lot about why her own writing is so beautiful.

Thank you Eloise for answering our questions today.

What is the name of your favourite music artist?

Yann Tiersen is a brilliant musician and composer. I love his music and the way he plays about with instruments and layers of music is really interesting. I also really like Little Mix.

What is your favourite film?

Oh, that’s so hard. I love films! I’m caught between The Goonies and Jaws, The Princess Bride and La La Land but I could probably name another hundred or so other favourites.

Ooh ooh - I’m with you on Princess Bride. I LOVE The Fire Swamp & the rodents of unusual size! J

If you could acquire any talent of superpower what would it be?

I’d like to be able to read every book in the world. Super-fast reading would be such a brilliant superpower!

Who is your favourite fictional hero?

Edmund from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a really interesting hero. He starts off as the villain and learns from his mistakes. People who mess up but learn from it are the most heroic in my eyes.

Who is your favourite fictional villain?

Miss Havisham from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens is probably my favourite though I think she is a victim too. She is cruel and uses people terribly, but she is also sad and broken by her own experiences. She’s such a wonderful character.

Which is your favourite character from your books?

This changes often, but at the moment it is Lark, my main character in Seaglass. I put her through a lot and I think she has deep inner strength, and power, and the ability to change, which are all qualities I admire.

And I loved Nansi from Gaslight too – so gritty and determined. J

If you could be any fictional character which one would you choose?

Miss Marple! How wonderful to potter about unnoticed and knitting, while solving marvelous crimes!

If you could meet any character from history, who would it be and what would you say to him or her?

Rosa Parks. Thank you for your bravery. Thank you for the ripples you sent out into the world.

What’s your favourite occupation when you’re not writing?

I have a newfound love of gardening which is lucky as my garden had become a jungle. I like to watch all the little animals and birds scurrying and flitting about. I enjoy the changing seasons and watching how they affect nature and I like growing things. Especially things which aren’t too complicated. At the moment I am growing mint to make mint tea!

What’s your fantasy profession?

I’d like to be a marine conservationist. I’m really worried about the sea and the effect we are having on the planet. I’d like to be able to sweep up all the rubbish we’ve put into the oceans to make it safe and beautiful again for all the creatures that live in it.

If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your days what would it be?

Toast.

Do you have any advice for young writers and storytellers?

Read everything you can. Believe in your stories and stay true to your heart. If you are interested in your story and tell it passionately, other people will be interested too, and if they aren’t at least you’ll feel you did the best job you possibly could!

What can we look forward to from you next?

I’ve just started writing a book about witches. I can’t really tell you much more than that because I’m still at the imagining stage. I can tell you that it is going to be hot, and magical, and ever so slightly odd.

I can’t wait for that Eloise it sounds intriguing.

In the meantime, if you haven't done so already, check out these two wonderful novels. You have a treat in store:-

A Word With Mel Darbon

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 24 Jun 2019 14:30:52 GMT

I am over the moon to welcome Mel Darbon to the site this morning. Mel is the super talented author of August's Book Of The Month, Rosie Loves Jack. You have probably heard about Mel's wonderful debut but if you've somehow missed the hullabaloo surrounding its publication, check out my review on The Bookshelf. It's currently my #1 contender for Book Of The Year - it's a beautiful story brilliantly told and it got so far under my skin that when I reviewed it on BBC Berkshire I got a big lump in my throat and had to try very hard not to cry!

I am also absolutely delighted to be welcoming the fantastic group of Student Librarians from Wycombe High School, who got together with me to discuss Rosie Loves Jack and came up with these brilliant questions for Mel. So, without further ado, I will hand the metaphorical microphone to them:-

What motivated you to write Rosie Loves Jack - was it the story you wanted to tell or Rosie's voice you wanted to get across?

It was a combination of both, but primarily the voice I wanted to get across. This was so important to me because of my background and experience with people with Learning Disabilities.

I think it’s hugely important to have a first person narrator with impairment, as I wanted my reader to be able to view the world from the perspective of someone with Down’s syndrome, because we should never assume that someone who has difficulty communicating has nothing to say; we need to look beyond the labels and focus on ability and not disability. I wanted my reader to really feeland understand what it’s like to have assumptions made about you because of the way you look by ‘putting on Rosie’s shoes’ and walking with her on her journey. It’s a very intimate perspective that works well for a teenage /young adult reader.

How did you 'get into character' and keep Rosie's voice so clear and distinct?

I’ve discovered on my writing journey that one of the best things you can do is a very in depth character analysis for every person in your book. If you do this then it is easy to understand the way each character will respond to certain situations and then they develop organically through the story. It ‘brings them alive’ to the degree that they will take you by the hand and lead you through the story – often to places you would never have thought of by yourself! I felt Rosie was inside my head. For instance, my character Rosie has a brother called Ben. I decided that Ben broke his back as a small child, which meant that the continued focus on Rosie stopped for a period of time. This gave her a chance to make decisions for herself and be much more independent than she might have been otherwise, even though her mother and grandmother are determined that she will live as normal a life as is possible. This helps her navigate her journey to Jack more adroitly.

Doing this also helped give Rosie’s voice such clarity. After I’d mastered writing down the way she spoke – running words together at times, ‘okaythankyou’ and using her own unique way of seeing things, ‘An orange segment moon’ it was easy to keep her voice clear and distinct.

Did you seek editorial feedback from readers with Down's syndrome?

Yes! It was really important to my publishers, Usborne, that we did this and to me too. They used what is called a sensitivity reader. I wanted to give an honest and accurate portrayal of someone with Down’s syndrome, so that they instantly recognised themselves in my book. My sensitivity reader was called Rula and she wrote the most wonderful, insightful report, which concluded that Rosie was a very accurate portrayal of someone with Down’s syndrome and that at times she had felt that Rosie was her, Rula, in the book. I couldn’t have been more delighted!

How long did it take you to write the book (and how many drafts?)

Two years from when the seed of the idea came to me on my Creative Writing for Young People MA. It always takes much longer to get the first book out. My second book will have taken a year and is out in September 2019.

All together there were five drafts, but that was partly because the manuscript originally started in a dual narrative between Rosie and Jack. I hadn’t wanted to do this but my personal tutor on the MA said she didn’t think it was possible to do it all in Rosie’s voice. As soon as I handed in the final work for marking I started to write it the single narrative of Rosie’s voice. I’m so glad I did.

Did you ever suffer from writers block?

Not if I’m passionate about what I’m writing; but everyone has periods when it doesn’t flow at all. You have to push through it or give into it and walk away for a bit and ‘recharge your batteries’. For some people that means doing something completely different, for others writing something else for a bit, even if it’s just some writing exercises. The key is not to panic and accept that it is impossible to keep going relentlessly.

How many rejection letters did you get?

Five rejections. Strangely I got accepted and then rejected by three of these because they decided that they simply didn’t know how to confidently edit the voice of a girl with Down syndrome. They have since regretted this decision! One publisher didn’t take stories that went to such dark places and another publisher, ironically, was desperate for me to do it in a dual narrative with Jack, but they were the only ones. They called my agent five times trying to persuade me otherwise. Usborne ultimately won the battle of the book as I love the fact that they champion diverse books, were so passionate about Rosie and that their Fiction Director has a brother with Down’s syndrome. I knew I was in the right hands. They were really pleased to be the first to publish a YA book with a girl with Down’s syndrome.

How many times did the title change?

It didn’t! Somehow I happened on a title that stuck and seemed to work, though I expected it to change. I already know that I’ll be changing the title of the second novel.

Did you disagree with any of the editorial changes?

Surprisingly there were hardly any editorial changes. I had to develop the character of the father more and expand the ending, which I was a hundred per cent in agreement with. Apart from that it was tweaking certain scenes, which definitely needed tweaking. I think this lack of editing was luck. I was so passionate about what I was doing that it came out far more easily than some stories might. My second book is going to need a lot more editing than that!

What is your favourite part of the story?

That’s a difficult one. I think maybe my favourite part is where Rosie goes into the grooming house, though perhaps favourite isn’t quite the right word. I hate that she had to go through this, but what I loved was the understanding and love that grew between Lisette and Rosie and that their view of each other is completely changed. I found it very hard to write but very moving because I know there are so many girls like Lisette out in the real world (my daughter worked with young girls who have been groomed) who are completely misunderstood. I wanted my reader to learn to love her. I hope to write her story one day. I also wanted Rosie to see the world through different eyes and realise that she isn’t the only one who can suffer because of the way society thinks and behaves at times.

Did you have any input into the cover art?

Yes I did, which was amazing. Usborne were so determined to get the cover to perfectly reflect the content of the book. Throughout the process I was allowed to say what I felt, and why, and they always listened. I didn’t want a sugary, fluffy cover design that screamed love and romance, it had to be contemporary one with an edge, as the story does go to dark places. The final design, which was number four, was spot on and very striking. Whilst being aware that it is a love story, it is clear that it is no ordinary one and from a design point of view it is very eye-catching.

We made a list of books we could think of which broach the subject of mental illness:- Face, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, One Memory of Flora Banks, Still Alice and Wonder. Did any books influence you in the writing of Rosie Loves Jack?

I’ve read all of these books except for Still Alice, which is in my very large tbr pile, but I have seen the film - and I think they’ve probably all had a very slight influence on me. The Curious Incident because of the outstanding voice of the protagonist, Christopher; Wonder because it was so moving and uplifting; Face because of the strong voice and exceptional dialogue and The One Memory of Flora Banks because of the darker edge.

I always loved Of Mice and Men and have carried that voice of Lennie with me for many years. More recently Nathan Filer’s, Shock of the Fall had a huge impact on me as it was funny, compelling and heartrending. Finally, The Inheritors by William Golding – my book that I’d take on to my desert island. It is all voiced through Neanderthal man and I am in awe of Golding, who made it possible for me to really imagine how it felt.

There are no other YA books that are written through the voice of a girl with Down’s syndrome, so I was stepping out into new territory and doing something unique. It was exciting but terrifying, as I so wanted to get it right.

What can we expect from you next?

I don’t want to give too much away about my next book, but I can tell you it’s another love story, which touches on our drinking culture and features a severely autistic teenager – oh and a double decker bus.

Fascinating stuff and I for one can't wait for your next book. Thank you so much Mel, and thanks to the wonderful Wycombe High School Librarians for your great questions.

A Word With Jasbider Bilan

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 23 Jun 2019 14:09:12 GMT

To celebrate world book day I have an extra special guest and am thrilled to welcome the lovely Jasbinder Bilan, the 2017 winner of the prestigious Times Chicken House Prize.

Jasbinder is the author of Asha and The Spirit Bird. Check it out on The Bookshelf - it's the one with the nicest cover! (It's also my March book of the month.)

According to family stories, Jasbinder was born in a stable in the foothills of the Himalayas. Until she was a year and a half, she lived on a farm with a grumpy camel and a monkey called Oma. These days, she lives near Bath and splits her time between teaching and writing.

With all that Jasbinder has going on at the moment, we are very lucky she's found the time to join us and answer some of your fabulous questions.

Who is your favourite music artist?

I love the songs of Laura Marling. They are like lyrical stories.

What is your favourite film?

Diva directed by Jean-Jacques Beineix. I love the music from it and it was the film I used to watch with my best friend when we were students.

If you could acquire any talent of superpower what would it be?

I would give children control over sorting out big global issues – they are so fantastic at finding solutions to problems. The only thing that stands in their way are pesky adults!

(Good one Jas! I'm with you there. J)

Who is your favourite fictional hero?

At the moment it’s Mousefrom Sarah Driver’s Huntress Trilogy.

Which is your favourite character from your books?

I have to say both Asha and Jeevan. They balance each other really well. When one of them loses heart the other one pulls them forward and together they overcome so many difficulties, showing what true friendship can achieve.

If you could be any fictional character which one would you choose?

I’d love to be Susan from The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe, by CS Lewis. However, in my diverse version Susan would be from an Indian background, meaning she could appeal to a wider audience.

What’s your favourite occupation when you’re not writing?

I love walking my dog through the woods and countryside.

(The countryside around Bath is exquisite so I think I'm jealous! J)

What’s your fantasy profession?

My fantasy profession would be a children’s author!

If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your days what would it be?

Definitely cake washed down with tea!

Who are your favourite children’s authors?

I love JRR Tolkien, Joan Aitken and my favourite current author is Katherine Rundell.

(My favourite Katherine Rundell's are on The Bookshelf - check them out!)

Do you have any advice for young writers and storytellers?

Think of a story that’s special to you and that only you can tell, then write it down and finish it.

What can we look forward to from you next?

All I can say is that it’s another contemporary story set in The Himalayas with a strong thread of magic in it.

(Tantalising - can't wait. J)

You can find Jasbinder on Twitter @Jasinbath

A Word With Kate Scott

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 22 Jun 2019 14:38:39 GMT

A huge welcome and a round of applause for the very talented, and extremely patient (I've been a bit inefficient about this post - sorry Kate) KATE SCOTT who is celebrating the launch of her brilliant new book JUST JACK, reviewed on The Bookshelf today. I am amazed and super impressed that Kate has found time in such a busy week to answer all your great questions.

Thank you for joining us today Kate, let's kick off by asking about your super talents!

Q. If you could acquire any super talent what would it be?

A. For every story I write to come out on the page as diamond-like as it looked in my head.

Q. Which is your favourite character from your books?

A. Although Elise in Giant and Tyler in Just Jackare people I’d love to know and have as friends, the character I’m most fond of and feel most connected/in common with is Jack from Just Jack.

Q. If you could be any fictional character which one would you choose?

A. I’m torn between Elizabeth Bennet (for her wit and gorgeous eyes) or Pippi Longstocking (has bags of gold coins, great hair and can lift up a horse with her bare hands). What am I saying? Of course I would choose Pippi. (I am SO with you there Kate! Great choice.)

Q. What is your favourite occupation when you’re not writing?

A. Reading. I have to read every day or my skin wrinkles, my eyeballs pucker and my legs fall off. (Well, maybe not but that’s what I suspect would happen so obviously I don’t tempt fate.)

Q. What’s your fantasy profession?

A. I already do it! I’ve only ever wanted to write though I was briefly tempted by the idea of being a tap dancer, a film casting agent or a theatre producer. Luckily for the dance, film and theatre industries, I didn’t follow these thoughts up.

Q. If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your days what would it be?

A. Chocolate and pistachio gelato. Or Waldorf salad. Or risotto. Or macaroni cheese. Are you seriously making me choose ONE kind of food?

Q. Who are your favourite children’s authors?

A. Some of my favourites from childhood include: Norton Juster (The Phantom Tollbooth), Frances Hodgson Burnett (The Secret Garden), Penelope Farmer (Charlotte Sometimes), Catherine Storr (Marianne Dreams), Astrid Lindgren (Pippi Longstocking), Edith Nesbitt (The Railway Children, The Phoenix and the Carpet), Terry Nation (Rebecca’s World), Paul T. Gilbert (Bertram and his Fabulous Animals), Arnold Lobel (the Frog and Toadbooks), M. B. Goffstein (Sleepy People), Joan Aiken (The Wolves of Willoughby Chase) and Gerald Durrell (The Talking Parcel). Other favourites include anything by Diana Wynne Jones, Frank Cottrell Boyce and Frances Hardinge and I’m the Best!by Lucy Cousins (makes me laugh every time). More recently I have discovered Wed Wabbitby Lissa Evans, Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, Time Travelling with a Hamsterby Ross Welford, Wolf Hollowby Lauren Wolk, the Claude books by Alex T. Smith, The Book With No Pictures by B. J. Novakand The Secret of Nightingale Woodby Lucy Strange. Then there are the brilliant books by all my author friends – Sara Grant, Teresa Heapy, Mo O’Hara and others. (I could go on. And on.) There are some GREAT ones here - more for the reading list folks?

Q. Is there a book you love to reread?

A. I have re-read all of Anne Tyler’s and Jane Austen’s novels many times. Also Millionsand Framed by Frank Cottrell Boyce and Once There Were Giants by Martin Waddell and Michael Rosen’s Sad Book.

Q. Do you have any advice for young writers and storytellers?

A. Read every day in case your skin wrinkles, your eyeballs pucker and your legs fall off when you don’t. Seriously, why take the chance? (And the bonus is, reading every day will make you a much better storyteller.)

Q. What can we look forward to from you next?

A. I am finishing a book set in Hong Kong at the moment and then will be starting a writer-in-residence post at my local theatre where I hope to write a story inspired by my surroundings and the theatre’s previous incarnations as a cinema and dance school. I’m also playing with a new project with a very silly title involving royalty and pizza.

Ooh, silly and pizza sounds intriguing - can't wait for that one.

Kate, thank you SO much for taking time out of your busy schedule to answer our questions and the very very best of luck with the wonderful Just Jack

Enchanted Dragonflies

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 22 Jun 2019 14:20:41 GMT

I am not a superstitious person but magical thinking can be good starting point when writing stories. In my novel The Witches Punchbowl is a valley perched on the side of a hill above the Thames. It is home to hundreds, maybe thousands of enchanted purple dragonflies so imagine my delight when I came downstairs this morning to find such a creature in my kitchen.

I am deeply into omens at the moment, immersed as I am in the final draft of the story in which they play a big part. I chose to decide my visitors arrival signified good luck. That luck started when, on opening the window, the dragonfly just flew away because I am not great with flappy creatures so would have had to call in the troops to facilitate its escape otherwise. If you believe something will work you are often more inclined to make it happen. It’s called a self fulfilling prophecy. My dragonfly visitor this morning has convinced me I will finish this draft by the end of half term. Wish me luck! JT

Blue Tits

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 22 Jun 2019 14:18:27 GMT

Parus the baby blue tit is a hero in a story I wrote for one of my sons, The Dawn Chorus (downloadable below). Imagine my delight when he turned up on my friend’s doorstep the other week! You can download the story on the homepage.

I have been in my editing cave putting the final tweaks to The Witches Punchbowl this week. I’m about to do a final read through and must try and delete every single word that isn't needed - you'll be amazed how many ‘ands’ and ‘buts’ and ‘actuallys’ we can do without! Look at that last sentence - did the word single add anything?

There are new photos on the website gallery - some starting points for your own stories I hope.

That’s all for now …

A Word With Lisa Thompson

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 14:14:00 GMT

I am delighted to welcome the bestselling author of The Goldfish Boy, The Light Jar and the newly launched (but not yet reviewed - I will I promise) The Day I Was Erased. Lisa joined me on the site last summer, but since she has a lovely new book out I thought I'd run her interview again while I get on with reading her latest novel/

Thank you for joining us Lisa and congratulations on another great novel.

Q. WHAT IS THE NAME OF YOUR FAVOURITE MUSIC ARTIST?

A. This is a hard one as music is such a huge part of my life, but I think it would have to be Prince. I discovered his music as a teenager and was lucky enough to see him live a few times. He was just phenomenal.

Q. FAVOURITE FILM?

A. This is also hard! I think it would probably be The Sixth Sense. I love films/books with twists and that film just floored me. I also really wish I'd written it!

Q. WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE CHARACTER FROM YOUR BOOKS?

A.Matthew from The Goldfish Boy and Nate from The Light Jar are heroes in my eyes as they both confront their own, personal fears. However, in The Goldfish Boy there is a little girl called Casey who is so nasty that she was just a joy to write.

Q. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE OCCUPATION, WHEN YOU'RE NOT WRITING?

A. I listen to a lot of music but I also do that while I'm writing, so I'd probably say going to the cinema. We have a lovely new cinema opened near to us that has sofas and reclining seats so I find I go more and more these days!

Q. WHAT'S YOUR FANTASY PROFESSION?

A. I know it's not a fantasy now... but my fantasy always was to be a writer! I dreamt about it since I was a child but I put it to the back of my mind thinking; 'that'll never happen'. Now I write full time and wished I'd taken the plunge sooner.

Q. IF YOU COULD EAT ONLY ONE THING FOR THE REST OF YOUR DAYS, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

A. I'm partial to a bowl of granola.

Q. WHO ARE YOUR FAVOURITE CHILDREN'S AUTHORS?

A. I'm a big fan of Patrick Ness and Charlie Higson. Their writing is so gripping. I also love the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney. They are laugh out loud funny. There is a huge amount of really good quality children's books out there. I'm sure I didn't have such a brilliant choice when I was little...

Q. IS THERE A BOOK YOU LOVE TO REREAD?

A. I'm not much of a re-reader (apart from books I've had to re-read when studying) and I think I've only read two books twice. They were Charlotte's Web by EB White when I was little and Perfume by Patrick Suskind. And I'm going to read them both again soon! I also want to re-read A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving because it had a profound effect on me when I read it in my 20s.

Q. DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR YOUNG WRITERS & STORYTELLERS?

A. The biggest advice I can give is that you don't need to know the ending before you begin a story. I always thought you had to have the whole thing mapped out in your head (or on paper) before you start, but you don't. You can work things out as you go along.

Q. WHAT CAN WE LOOK FORWARD TO FROM YOU NEXT?

I am currently writing my third book which will hopefully be out in 2019!

Thank you for joining us today Lisa and I hope you have a thrilling book launch for The Light Jar - you certainly deserve it.

You can find and follow Lisa here:-

website - www.lisathompsonauthor.com

Twitter - @lthompsonwrites

facebook - https://www.facebook.com/lisathompsonwrites/

Instagram - @lisathompsonwrites

The Girl Who Drank The Moon

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 14:12:04 GMT

The novel is set in an enchanted land in the shadow of a rumbling volcano. Every year the people of The Protectorate (the neighbouring land) leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope their sacrifice will keep her from terrorising their town.

But the witch - Xan - is kind and gentle and she actually rescues the abandoned children and delivers them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing them with starlight along the way.

The story tells us what happens when one year Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling her with extraordinary magic that leads Lan to decide she must raise the child herself. She calls her Luna.

Luna lives with Xan, a swamp monster and an extremely small dragon. As her thirteenth birthday approaches her magic begins to emerge - with potentially dangerous and thrilling consequences

My Thoughts

I picked this book because of its intriguing title. It has a beautiful cover too which always helps.

I was bit worried during the first few chapters - I often am when I don’t know where a story is going and I made the fleeting mistake of thinking this was going to be a rehash of a hundred other fairy stories. I could not have been more wrong.

From the moment Xan the witch arrives on the scene, The Girl Who Drank The Moon whoops you into a whirlwind of magic and intrigue and doesn’t put you down until the last fantastic sentence. It is absolutely spell binding. Yes it is a tale of magic and enchantments, witches and dragons but the skill of the author is in making the reading experience magical too and I emerged from it completely dazed and bewitched! It is also very funny which is nice.

Kelly Barnhill says she wrote the novel with a year 5 reader in mind but I would say this would be perfect for anybody 8+. I am nearly 100 and I adored it!

The Girl who Drank The Moon is a fantastic tale of magic and enchantments, witches and dragons that put me in mind of The Lion The Witch & The Wardrobe. Great for reading aloud to younger children too.

The Goldfish Boy

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 14:08:55 GMT

Twelve-year-old Matthew is trapped in his bedroom by crippling OCD, spending most of his time staring out of his window as the inhabitants of Chestnut Close go about their business. Until the day he is the last person to see his next door neighbour's toddler, Teddy, before he goes missing. Then Matthew must confront his fears and turn detective to unravel the mystery of Teddy's disappearance.

My Thoughts

I'm a little late to this book as the author Lisa Thompson already has another novel in the offing but I am still reasonably new to this blogging business and have only just found this. As soon as I heard the title I knew I wanted to read it. When I found out it was about a boy with OCD my curiosity was piqued further as I have a particular interest in emotional health and some of you may know I visit secondary schools talking about just this subject with the fabulous Samaritans Schools Team.

The Goldfish Boy is a mystery story with heart in which the author sensitively balances the loneliness, guilt and shame of poor emotional health with the vibrancy of a page turning mystery story.

The narrative deals with several issues - isolation, OCD, bullying and more - and there are heartrendingly poignant moments - the contents of Matthew's secret box was one for me (you’ll have to read the book to find out what was in it) but the ultimate feeling for the reader is positive and life affirming.

I fear I may be making The Goldfish Boy sound like a heavy read and it isn’t. It's a fun, very interesting book; well paced and with a great cast of characters and an intriguing puzzle to solve.

The Goldfish Boy is available in paperback and kindle format. Lisa Thompson's next novel, The Light Jar, is coming out in the new year and I am looking forward to that and delighted that Lisa has agreed to come on the blog and answer a few questions then as well.

Thank you to Lisa for a wonderful story that kept me totally absorbed for a cold wet week in Cornwall, and thank you Scholastic for sending me the book to read.

The Light Jar

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 13:57:16 GMT

Nate and his mother are running away, hiding out in a tumbledown cottage in the middle of a forest. When Mum heads off for provisions, and then doesn't return, Nate is left alone and afraid, with the dark closing in all around him. But comfort can come from the most unexpected of places - a mysterious girl trying to solve the clues of a treasure hunt and the reappearance of an old friend from his past. Will Nate find the bravery needed to face the troubles of his present and ultimately illuminate the future?

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed Lisa Thompson’s first novel The Goldfish Boy and so was thrilled when her next one, The Light Jar, landed on my doorstep. Lisa has been kind enough to answer some of your questions as well, and you can find out more about this fabulous author here.

I read the Light Jar feeling sorry for myself in bed with flu on New Year’s Day while the shrieks and laughter of a lunch party I could not attend drifted up the chimney breast. The story was the perfect antidote to my wallowing and I was drawn into the mystery from page one. By chapter two I was happy to be missing the party as I set off on the roller coaster of emotions The Light Jar whirls us through; intrigue, concern, sadness, fear, fascination and lots and lots of excitement. I read it in one sitting and couldn’t put it down. Congratulations Lisa - another triumph!

The Light Jar, written In the first person, is narrated by eleven year old Nate who welcomes you into his world and takes you with him on an intriguing and heartfelt mystery. The cast of characters is vivid, the story is enticing and the setting for Nate’s extraordinary adventure cinematic. I was right there with Nate in the tumbledown cottage in the frosty wood. I dare not write much more for fear of giving something away. Order The Light Jar from your local library, implore your school to stock it or treat yourself to a copy. You won’t regret it. The Light Jar is available from January 4th in paperback.

Giant

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 13:48:53 GMT

It's hard to measure up in a family with high expectations. But it's even harder when those people sometimes use you as an arm rest. And call you 'Peanut'.

Anzo is 11 years old and very, very short. Mum, Dad and his two uncles are extremely tall but they're also high achievers, obsessed with fulfilling their lifelong ambition of opening a restaurant together. Everyone has a role - chef, DIY, marketing, accounts - but where does Anzo fit in? If only he could grow a few inches in height, then no one would be able to overlook him. Josh would stop teasing Anzo in school, he wouldn't have to play all seven dwarfs in the school play, and at home he could tell his parents about his drawing and the comic convention he's been invited to.

Then, overnight, Anzo starts to grow. Is life as a giant going to solve all his problems, or should he stop worrying and learn to just be himself?

My Thoughts

I have to confess a strong bias for Giant as it is set in the seaside town of Lyme Regis in Dorset, a stone's throw from where I was bought up and the site of many of my childhood adventures.

It's a lovely book; a heart-warming light read with a serious hidden message that doesn't swamp the plot or patronise the reader. The characters are strong and the dynamics between them are funny. Anzo's best friend, a wannabe therapist, is hysterical and my children laughed out loud when I read them the section of organisation v. spontaneity ... "no one argued with a post it note" will be my mantra from now on!

Alexandra Gunn's illustrations are spot on and add to this excellent story that will appeal to boys and girls for reading alone or to read with an adult at bedtime. Congratulations Kate and very best of luck with your next book - I look forward to welcoming you to the author Q & A spot in March so, as the cliche goes, watch this space!

Twenty Things About Pigs!

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 13:44:53 GMT

If you like pigs and you haven't red Charlotte's Web then you have a real treat in store. It's one of my all time favourite books.

Meantime, I thought this list from the fabulous Secret Life of Cows (by Rosamund Young) might be interesting for anybody wanting to feature a pig in the cast of their next story.

Pigs take life easy, like comfort and sleep a lot.

Pigs like to be waited on.

Pigs like being allowed to build nests before farrowing.

Pigs cover themselves in wet mud

... and let it dry and fall off leaving them clean.

Pigs are very particular about personal hygiene ...

... and always keep their living quarters clean ...

..and are the only domestic animal to make a lavatory outside...

Pigs 'make' their beds every day.

Mother pigs make the beds for their piglets

Pigs need clean water to drink and plenty of water to wash in.

Pig's tails are curly if they are happy ...

... and straight if they are not.

Pigs hate draughts.

Pigs can get sun-burned.

Pigs are very strong

Pigs are usually gentle and make very nice friends but ...

...pigs can be dangerous if threatened or hungry.

Pigs need a varied and interesting diet

Pigs always choose the best, most organic food, given the chance.

Wilbur, a black-faced pig, is one of the leading animal characters in The Witches' Punchbowl.

Watch out for Twenty Things You Ought To Know About Cows coming soon!

Woodlice World

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 10:36:54 GMT

Ten Things You Didn't Know About Woodlice!

Woodlice are a crustacean and have a long outer skeleton body and fourteen limbs that are jointed.
There are at least 3000 species of woodlice and some, Armadillidium, can roll into a spherical shape as a defence, though most woodlice can not do this.
Woodlice have many other names, including: armadillo bug, boat-builder, carpenter, cafner, cheeselog, cheesy bug, doodlebug, pill bug, potato bug, roly-poly, sow bug, roll up bug, chuggypig, chucky pig, slater, gramersow, butcher boy, butchy boy and wood bug. Some of these common names are specific to certain species of woodlice.
The fertilised eggs of a female woodlouse are kept in a brood pouch on the underside of its body.
Woodlice need lots of moisture to live, though most woodlouse don’t live in water
Woodlice breath through ‘lungs’ in their hind legs.
Woodlice are nocturnal and live in dark, damp areas.
Woodlice are great for compost and the garden as they feed mainly on rotted vegetation and in so doing, recycle nutrients and aerate the soil, though they can be a threat to new grown plants.
Woodlice may enter homes in search for moisture, although are considered a minor pest as they do no damage to wood.
Woodlice moult, and unlike most arthropods, shed their ‘shell’ (exoskeleton) in two halves over a couple of days.

Red Kites

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 10:24:37 GMT

I am lucky enough to live at the edge of the Chiltern Hills, an area of the UK where red kites are now commonplace , thanks to a successful re-introduction project between 1989 and 1994. There is always at least one kite hovering above the woods or swooping over the playing fields when I walk the dog in the morning.

In the novel I am working on, the red kites have telepathic powers and write messages in the sky as the weave in and out of the clouds.

These magnificent birds were virtually extinct at the end of the nineteenth century, having been hunted and persecuted by humans who considered them to be 'flying vermin'.

At the end of the twentieth century, the wonderful RSPB and Natural England imported half a dozen breeding pairs from Spain and released them into the Chilterns. There are now thousands of birds in the area, the reintroduction hahaving been so successful it's impossible to estimate the overall size of the population.

The reintroduction of red kites is considered to be one of the UK's greatest conservation success stories of the 20th century. Fingers crossed for many, many more.

A Word With Helen Dennis

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 20 Jun 2019 14:43:56 GMT

I am thrilled to welcome the lovely Helen Dennis to the site today to talk about her books and answer some of the questions you have sent in. I met Helen at a library event in Windsor and liked her instantly. Before you read further you should know, even though she has written ten fantastic books Helen is very modest. When I congratulated her on her amazing work she said, “at least it means I don’t have to get up as early as I would if I did a milk round.” I wonder what time she got up to answer our questions? I started by asking her to tell us a little about herself ...

I am the writer of the 'Secret Breakers' six book series and the 'River of Ink' quartet, both published by Hodder Children's Books in the UK. I was born in Brighton, England, and worked for twenty years as a junior school teacher. I write full time now but enjoy keeping up to date with young readers by making school visits, where I run code-cracking and creative writing sessions. I've always wanted to be a writer...and I am always making notes about the next big adventure to tackle! Luckily my family love books too. My daughter is studying for a degree in English Literature and my husband is a headteacher and we met at University when we were in the same creative writing group! I love books...but if I'm not reading or writing you are likely to find me walking along by the sea in my hometown of sunny Eastbourne.

Q. NAME OF YOUR FAVOURITE MUSIC ARTIST?

A. I had a sneaky look at Jenny Smith's answers and she was torn. But for me it's clear! Dolly Parton all the way! I've even been to Dollywood ;)

Q. FAVOURITE FILM

A. The 2001 film 'Moulin Rouge!' (I didn't add the exclamation mark for effect - it's in the title!) I love this film but only if I can stop just before the ending when everyone is happy!

Q. IF YOU COULD ACQUIRE ANY TALENT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

A. I'd love to be fluent in lots of languages. I learnt German (badly) at school and I've tried to learn Spanish as an adult - but I'm terrible at it!

Q. WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE FICTIONAL HERO?

A. I love Liesel from 'The Bookthief' by Markus Zusak. And also Matilda from 'Matilda' by Roald Dahl. Both are quite ordinary young girls who love books and who cope with terrible situations using the power of their minds and imaginations. That's my sort of hero!

Q. WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE FICTIONAL VILLAIN?

A. On screen it's Moriarty in the TV version of 'Sherlock' played by Andrew Scott. Genius! From a book it's The Man in the Yellow Suit from 'Tuck Everlasting' by Natalie Babbitt. He's so cleverly written and so terribly creepy...and we never get to know his real name!

Q. IF YOU COULD MEET ANY HISTORICAL CHARACTER, WHO WOULD IT BE AND WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO HIM OR HER?

A. Joan of Arc. I'd love to ask her if she would have spoken out and been so brave if she had known how things would have ended for her.

Q. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE OCCUPATION, WHEN YOU'RE NOT WRITING?

A. Reading! It can be fiction or non fiction. And I love watching films. So basically...I just love to be involved in some sort of story!

Q. WHAT'S YOUR FANTASY PROFESSION?

A. Working at Pixar Studios in their Story Development Department. It would be a long commute from my home in Eastbourne but I would love to work in such a creative writing environment! I'd particularly like to work on a team led by the writer and director Pete Docter. That's the ultimate dream!

Q. IF YOU COULD EAT ONLY ONE THING FOR THE REST OF YOUR DAYS, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

A. Bread. Any type. And I don't mind if there is nothing on it. Just lots of bread, hopefully fresh from the oven!

Q. WHO ARE YOUR FAVOURITE CHILDREN'S AUTHORS?

A. So many to mention! I love books by Andrew Norriss, John Boyne, Eva Ibbotson, Jenny McLachlan, David Solomons, Anthony Horowitz, Kate O'Hearn. There are so many fabulous children's authors out there!

Q. IS THERE A BOOK YOU LOVE TO REREAD?

A. 'The Unluckiest Boy in the World' by Andrew Norriss. It's a children's book which is so beautifully profound. It's my top recommendation for readers of all ages!

Q. DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR YOUNG WRITERS & STORYTELLERS?

Don't throw anything away! I mean...you can throw things like apple cores and old banana skins away. But keep everything you write. You never know when an idea you reject might suddenly reignite! No writing is ever wasted. It's all part of the process of your writing apprenticeship...which even after publishing ten books...I think I am only just beginning!

We have a fan and guest reviewer talking about your River of Ink novel Genesis over on the bookshelf, but could you tell us a little about your work before you go?

My books aim to tackle big questions...for example the 'River of Ink' series was inspired by the question: is it good to want to live forever?

As a student I worked at two schools for deaf children as well as Brighton Deaf Centre. One of the main characters in 'River of Ink' is a deaf boy who uses BSL, and it is important to me that his character is strong, funny and integral to the plot and emotional arc of the story.

I wrote 'Secret Breakers' under the name H L Dennis, and this series looks at secrets, codes and global conspiracies to protect the truth. I hope all my books are full of action and adventure and can be enjoyed by boys and girl or all ages!

Thank you so much for answering our questions today Helen. If you want to know more about Helen and her books or if you would like her to visit your school or library, you can find all her links and social media details at www.helendennisbooks.com

Stig Of The Dump

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 19:02:38 GMT

One day, Barney, a solitary little boy, falls into a chalk pit and lands in a sort of cave, where he meets 'somebody with a lot of shaggy hair and two bright black eyes' - whom he names him Stig. And together they enjoy some extraordinary adventures.

My Thoughts

Every time I am asked which childhood book had the greatest influence on me, I say Stig of the Dump or Charlotte's Web. Since it was published in 1963, Stig of the Dump book has never been out of print and has sold more than 2 million copies (about five of which I bought!)

The story tackles a wealth of issues and focuses on morality and ethics from the 60's that are still relevant to modern day children - friendship, bullying, right from wrong, stealing, lying, inventions, adventure, ingenuity, recycling, and language barriers.

It's a quick read and wonderful to read out loud.

If you haven't read it yet you have a real treat in store!

Tree Pests & Diseases

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 16:31:23 GMT

Check out the wonderful Woodland Trust's fantastic Observatree campaign. It is a tree health early warning system and harnessing the power of citizen science is critical to the project’s overall success. This is being achieved in two ways.

Firstly, the project aims to encourage tree health professionals and people actively involved with trees to look out for and report any tree pest or disease sightings at the earliest opportunity. In doing this, the chances of eliminating or controlling future outbreaks can be maximised.

Secondly, the project has established a core network of over 200 trained Observatree volunteers. Their role is to support Government tree health officers and scientists by undertaking a range of survey work and assisting with the processing and verifying of tree health reports received.

Observatree is:

Promoting increased surveillance of tree pests and diseases

Encouraging all reporting of tree health concerns via Tree Alert (TreeCheck in Northern Ireland)

Providing a UK-wide network of over 200 trained specialist volunteers

Sharing information and resources on key tree pests and diseases

Researching similar European tree health systems to share best practice

To find out more and download free toolkits to help you, visit our tree disease campaign.

Visit the Observatree website to find out more or sign up for future updates.

Fishboy

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:35 GMT

Billy is a lonely boy. He's obsessed with swimming in the sea, which is where he goes to wash his problems far, far away.

Thanks to his mum's mystery illness, his dad has been forced to work extra hours to make ends meet, so Billy locks himself away with David Attenborough films, and ponders the magic of nature. Meanwhile at school, bullies mercilessly seize on Billy's 'otherness' and make his life as miserable as possible - but then new boy Patrick Green, with "fingers like steel, strength of a bear", joins Billy's class. And when a mackerel swims up to Billy's face, blows bubbles into his Vista Clear Mask goggles and says: Fish Boy - Billy's whole world changes.

My Thoughts

When I first heard about the book about the boy who talked to mackerel, I thought this probably wasn't one for me. I could not have been more wrong. I kept hearing it recommended and I being told how well it is written so, when a particular industry expert told me I MUST read it, that's just what I did - thank goodness!

Fish Boy is a really lovely story. Original, quirky, poignant and with a very distinctive voice. The plot is unlike anything I've read before and because the main character, Billy, is so well drawn and his voice is so distinct, you hold your breath, dive in and swim the whole way with him. And it is an exhilarating journey.

My favourite line in the book - in any book I have read for a long time - is "like a cat that you've just offered a fruit pastel to." I've never offered a pastel to a cat but I know just what Chloe Daykin means.

Skellig

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:34 GMT

Unhappy about his baby sister's illness and the chaos of moving into a dilapidated old house, Michael retreats to the garage and finds a mysterious stranger who is something like a bird and something like an angel...

My Thoughts

This modern classic that somehow passed me by until recently when a friend suggested I read it. I will be eternally grateful that he did.

Skellig definitely comes into the category of books about which so much has been said by the great and the good, it feels hubristic for me to pass judgement at all, so I’ll keep it simple.

This is one of the best books I have ever read. Whether you’re nine or ninety, you MUST read it, then keep it on your shelf beside The Little Prince and never lend it to anybody in case they fail to return it.

There - got that off my chest!

Ps. If you enjoyed Skellig, try David Almond's "My Name is Mina" and please do let me know what you think.

Deep Water

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:31 GMT

When her mum vanishes, Danni moves to a tiny Cornish fishing village with Dad - where the locals treat her like a monster.

As the village's dark, disturbing past bubbles to the surface, Danni discovers that she's not who - or what - she thought she was. And the only way to save her family from a bitter curse is to embrace her incredible new gift.

My Thoughts

This novel won the MsLexia Children’s Novel Competition in 2013 (prior to its publication in 2015) and since then it's been shortlisted and praised by one and all so I thought it was about time I read it.

I gave it to my daughter first and she romped through it. For me it was more of slow burner, but I stuck with it as it came highly recommended and I’m so glad I did

It’s a hard novel to review without giving away a key plot secret so all I will say is it is a real page turner with some intriguing, beautifully drawn characters and some wonderful insights into Cornish folklore and traditions. The setting is beautiful and there's a little bit of romance too which is good for the soul.

All in all if you are, or if you have 11+ year olds I urge you to get them a copy of Deep Water. I guarantee they will dive right in and not come up for air until they've finished.

Twenty Things You Ought To Know About Cows

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:26 GMT

I thought this list from the fabulous book The Secret Life of Cows (by Rosamund Young) might be interesting for anybody wanting to feature a cow in the cast of their next story.

1. Cows love each other ... at least some do.

2. Cows babysit for each other.

3. Cows nurse grudges.

4. Cows invent games.

5. Cows take umbrage.

6. Cows can communicate with people.

7. Cows can solve problems.

8. Cows make friends for life.

9. Cows have food preferences.

10. Cows can be unpredictable.

11. Cows can be good company.

12. Cows can be boring.

13. Cows can be intelligent.

14. Cows love music.

15. Cows can be gentle.

16. Cows can be aggressive.

17. Cows can be dependable.

18. Cows can be forgiving.

19. Cows can be obstinate.

20. Cows can be wise. (How else would this one have chosen such cool sunglasses?)

Seaglass

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:20 GMT

Lark struggles when her family and friends for on holiday for the Autumn half term. Her mother is ill, her little sister has stopped speaking and she has fallen out with her best friend.

Is a girl in a green dress following her in the fog? Or is her sister playing tricks on her> When a local woman tells her 'the girl' comes to take sisters, Lark is the only one who can save her family.

My Thoughts

I picked this book because I really enjoyed the author's last book, Gaslight and Seaglass is, I think, even better.

The author does a brilliant job at portraying the inner dialogue of a confused, sometimes bolshy thirteen year old who is learning to handle complex emotions. She also treats the reader to beautiful descriptions of the Welsh coastline where the main character, Lark mooches about on the beach feeling sorry for herself until she begins to suspect somebody's following her in the fog and the whole mood changes.

Eloise Williams expertly sucks the reader into the murky shadows of this wonderful ghost story I hoped would never end.

Jack Dash & The Summer Blizzard

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:19 GMT

If you had a magic quill pen that made drawings real what would you draw?

Jack Dash's magic feather is pretty awesome but it's his first day at a new school and the head teacher is terrifying so the feather is staying at home. Or so he thinks!His friend Coco McBean has stolen it and drawn a penguin (called Pablo). And the chaos begins ... Giant Cupcakes, speedboats, and penguins aplenty - it's up to Jack to save the day again, but what will he draw? And why's it snowing in the middle of Summer? And do Penguins even eat pizza?

My Thoughts

This is the sequel to Jack Dash and The Magic Feather and I believe there’s a third one on the way which is good news, because this is great - a fantastic, fun roller coaster of a story from the very first sentence

There are some fabulously eccentric teachers - Mr Humdrum, Miss Rancid, Miss Frostbite who makes the children give her their tooth fairy money and Mr Wayward - a science teacher who claims to catch particles faster than you can say 'thermonuclear discombobulation' (which is going to be my new phrase from now on.)

To quote Jack the entire story is 24 carat crazy. Its a fun, slapstick, pizza eating penguin fiasco of a book.

There are wonderful illustrations by Judy Brown (my favourite is the penguin in Swedish National costume consisting of a brown paper bag, rubber gloves and a flower pot on his head topped off with a fluffy green Pom Pom)

Rosie Loves Jack

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:11 GMT

Rosie loves Jack. Jack loves Rosie. So when they're split up, Rosie will do anything to find the boy who makes the sun shine in her head. Even run away from home.

Even cross London and travel to Brighton alone, though the trains are cancelled and the snow is falling. Even though any girl might find that hard, let alone a girl with Down's syndrome. See the world through new eyes in this one-in-a-million story about fighting for the freedoms that we often take for granted: independence, tolerance and love.

My Thoughts

I thought I knew a little bit about teenagers with special needs but this extraordinary book has completely changed my perspective. It is an important story and Rosie's incredibly powerful voice has been echoing around my mind ever since I put the book down. I hope she stays there for many years to come - I imagine she will.

The story itself is a real edge of your seat page turner. It tackles some very dark issues, skilfully skips over a lot of sensitive matter and takes you on a tear jerking, laugh out loud funny journey to the very last page.

I believe Rosie Loves Jack is targeted at young adults, but my 13 and 14 year olds couldn't put it down, I loved it and a friend of mine gave it to his 70 (ish) year old Mum and apparently it passed her test too.

Huge congratulation are due to Mel Darbon - you deserve your book to be an enormous success.

Letters From The Lighthouse

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:09 GMT

We weren't supposed to be going to the pictures that night. We weren't even meant to be outside, not in a blackout, and definitely not when German bombs had been falling on London all month like pennies from a jar.

My Thoughts

It is always so lovely to discover a new author you like and Emma Carroll has burst into my consciousness like a firecracker! I am late to the party with this; Letters From The Lighthouse has been on my 'to be read' pile since last year. Thank goodness I eventually got around to it. It's a delightful, page turner of a story that reads like a classic and brings enlightenment and understanding to the dark days of World War Two.

If the story of Syrian refugees interested you in The Fox Girl and The White Gazelle (reviewed on The Bookshelf), take a look at Letters From The Lighthouse. The story is, as I say, set during the second world war and it considers the plight of Jewish refugees trying to reach Britain as well as the evacuation of children from the cities (1.5 million vulnerable people were evacuated to the countryside for their safety.)

This is just the sort of book I love and it is beautifully written. So much so, I went straight on to buy another of Emma Carroll's books - In Darkling Wood - which I will review shortly. I can already tell you I'm loving it though.

Teasels

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:02:02 GMT

I simply love teasels and having taken this photo last week I decided to check out if anybody has been inspired to write a poem about them and wha'd'you know! Scottish poet Andrew Young came to the rescue with:-

The Teasels

by Andrew Young

How could I feel a stranger here

Who know all changing seasons of the year

From buds that speak in hints

To frost that sets the flints

As fast as precious stones?

I know them all at once,

For when on thinning boughs the birds are dumber

My memory can make a full-leaved summer

But now today out of the trees

Flies and falls down a flock of greenfinches

And on some teasels lighting

Cling with crying and biting,

Till tugged and torn by them

Each fringed brown-headed stem

Shakes like the wand tossed by a thyrsus-bearer

And I stand looking on, a strayed wayfarer.

Want To Visit Fairyland?

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:59 GMT

Legend has it you just walk through shimmering air between hazel trees. (@TessPfeifle)

Fairy Paths are a straight line between sites of significance, like fairy forts, that fairies use. Be wary while on them.

(@TessPfeifle)

I loved these tweets from Tess Pfeifle so for those of you who are not on Twitter, I have Tess' s permission to share them here. Hope you enjoy them too. x

RSPB Nature's Voice

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:55 GMT

I'm a bit of an odd bird. I love writing about our feathered friends (I wrote an entire - unpublished - children's novel called The Songbirds of Lane End Garden), can spend hours watching them at the bird table, stopped only this morning to watch two robins squabbling over territory and frequently snapshot geese, swans and (if I'm lucky) kingfishers from my kayak. But I am absolutely petrified of birds. The smaller they are, the more terrifying I find them. I don't care if you live in a cubbyhole or a castle, if there's a bird in the building I am out of that door regardless of how many walls there are between me and it.

And now I've gone and joined the RSPB! I've avoided it for years, but my mind was changed when I saw they now position themselves, not only as a bird charity, but as ambassadors of nature in general. They have a lovely magazine called Nature's Home, which talks not only about birds but butterflies, grasshoppers, dolphins and woodland in the autumn issue alone. And, much to my delight, I received a book of garden wildlife with my membership pack. I'm not much of a gardener but I do love nature and this handbook details every species of moth, frog, bee, beetle, frog and newt you are likely to meet across you lawn. And that's before you get onto the birds and plants pages.

So there you are. I am delighted with my membership so thought I'd give them a shout out.

You can find the RSPB here where you can keep up-to-date with new research and developments, new threats and challenges, changes at their many nature reserves, events and success stories within their news section.

Free Teaching Resources From British Nature Guide

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:51 GMT

Teachers and classroom assistants. Looking for nature FREE resources to use in the classroom?

Just follow the link to access British nature Guide's dozens of free fact sheets & activity sheets aimed at 4-11 year olds.

For fun, for knowledge and for nature.

Not A Straight Tree

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:46 GMT

I so adored this post on yew trees and yew wood from Roni Roberts, and artistic woodcrafter in Wales, I thought I would share it with you. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

"Yew wood is one of the most interesting and beautiful woods, highly sought after by wood turners and furniture makers. It has a creamy coloured sapwood with much darker orange brown heartwood creating a striking contrast. The patterns created by the Yew tree as it grows tend to be very varied and ‘wild’. Yew trees also do not tend to grow smooth and round but undulating in and out.

This means that if I can make things from yew that retain the natural edge this adds an interesting feature to the piece. However, yew also tends to surface crack as it is seasoning. To create perfect pieces without cracking I would have to cut off this interesting edge. Where it doesn’t detract from the beauty or usefulness to have slight cracking I usually decide to keep the edge.

Yew trees themselves I love. They grow in wild shapes with branches coming out at all odd angles reaching far out with the first branches start a lot lower than with most trees. Quite often the trunk of the Yew tree can be several branches almost fused together rather than a solid trunk, so, not a ‘straight’ tree – very frustrating when one thinks one has a big piece to work with. The Yew tree lives to a great old age. There are some in Britain thought to be up to 5,000 years old. It tends to be very difficult to age ancient yew trees as they hollow in the middle. The hollowed middle then fills with the needles, rotting wood, bird nests, etc. (See my blog on “Milling Wood Problems”.) This mixture often rot to form a fertile compost and the tree sends growth down into this compost to become new roots. In this way the Yew tree regenerates and starts again. So it was thought to be immortal, which may be why it was held to be sacred. Often Yew trees are older than the ancient churches in which they grow. This suggests that churches were built on older sacred sites and the trees have sacred associations.

It is also true that Yew trees gave the best wood for longbows and so would safe in churchyards. The longbow played such a great part in the history of this country perhaps this is another reason why the Yew was revered and treasured."

Marine Conservation Society

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:40 GMT

"There were days when I watched from dawn, when the sea was still, misty and milky white, through the rolling blue of the morning, to the tufted waves and mackerel skies of midday. I watched the colours of the sea and the sky shifting together, like a beautiful dance of light... "

Extract from Our Castle by the Sea, Lucy Strange (Published by Chicken House, January 2019)

The sea is the backdrop to so many of my happiest memories – building sandcastles at Broadstairs, catching the cross-Channel ferry to France, body-boarding on a Cornish beach, paddling at Whitstable, swimming in Guernsey, walking along Camber Sands in the winter sunshine . . . The sea, for me, has always been associated with holidays and fun.

Over the past year while I’ve been writing my new novel - Our Castle by the Sea– I have spent time visiting different parts of the English coast, researching the history of our beaches, bays and sandbanks, our fishing villages, cliffs and lighthouses. I have learnt a great deal and I have loved every shimmering-water, vast-sky, fresh-air moment of it.

I also watched David Attenborough’s incredible series - Blue Planet II- and, like so many others, I became very concerned about the future of our precious oceans. There has been significant gathering momentum over the past year or so to reduce our plastic waste and to take better care of our oceans, but there is still so much to be done.

The Marine Conservation Society was started in a garden shed in Herefordshire in 1983. It tackled small conservation projects at first, but is now leading huge, international campaigns, and its president is HRH, the Prince of Wales. The Marine Conservation Society works on many different levels – researching, recording, political lobbying – but one of the best things about it is that they make it easy for YOU to get actively involved in their work. We feel so angry and powerless seeing all those images of beautiful sea creatures choking on plastic, but we are not powerless. We can make a difference. Take a look at the Marine Conservation Society’s website to see how you can take part in a campaign, make a donation or actually get stuck-in and join a beach clean.

https://www.mcsuk.org/

The Lost Witch

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:34 GMT

Bea has started to hear and see things that no one else can – creatures, voices, visions.

Then strangers visit Bea and tell her she is different: she has the rare powers of a witch. They warn her she is being hunted. Her parents think she is hallucinating and needs help. All Bea wants to do is get on with her life, and to get closer to Lars, the mysterious young man she has met at the skate park. But her life is in danger, and she must break free. The question is – who can she trust?

My Thoughts

I loved this book! It's a powerful, thrilling fantasy about magic, myth and following your instincts. I listened to the audio version which is fabulously performed and highly recommended for a family car journey with the following health warning:- I don't know precisely what the 'Young Adult' category is, but I would imagine this probably fits it. My thirteen year old loved it but I wouldn't have let her read it last year so if you have primary school kids in the car I wouldn't recommend it.

If your family enjoyed this one, you might like to check out Junk, the novel that won Melvin Burgess the coveted Carnegie medal in 1998 and became one of the best-known young adult books of that decade.

The Boy At The Back of the Class

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 15:01:05 GMT

There used to be an empty chair at the back of my class, but now a new boy called Ahmet is sitting in it.

He's eight years old (just like me), but he's very strange. He never talks and never smiles and doesn't like sweets - not even lemon sherbets, which are my favourite!

But the truth is, Ahmet really isn't very strange at all. He's a refugee who's run away from a War. A real one. With bombs and fires and bullies that hurt people. And the more I find out about him, the more I want to be his friend.

That's where my best friends Josie, Michael and Tom come in. Because you see, together we've come up with a plan.

My Thoughts

This gently adventurous, funny and inspiring tale will entertain while helping readers to understand the refugee crisis from a child's perspective (though I know a few adults who should read it!

A particular quote from the wise, nine year old narrator caught my eye “sometimes I think everyone likes to believe a lie even when they know it’s a lie because it’s more exciting than the truth.”

Great for adults to read aloud or for kids to read to themselves (8 -12 ish?)

The Lost Words

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 18:03:19 GMT

From Acorn to Weasel, a gorgeous, hand-illustrated, large-format spellbook celebrating the magic and wonder of the natural world

My Thoughts

A proportion of the royalties from each copy of The Lost Words goes to Action for Conservation, a charity dedicated to inspiring your people to take action for the natural world

A Skinful of Shadows

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:55:56 GMT

This is the story of a bear-hearted girl . . .

Sometimes, when a person dies, their spirit goes looking for somewhere to hide.

Some people have space within them, perfect for hiding.

Twelve-year-old Makepeace has learned to defend herself from the ghosts which try to possess her in the night, desperate for refuge, but one day a dreadful event causes her to drop her guard.

And now there's a spirit inside her.

The spirit is wild, brutish and strong, and it may be her only defence when she is sent to live with her father's rich and powerful ancestors. There is talk of civil war, and they need people like her to protect their dark and terrible family secret.

But as she plans her escape and heads out into a country torn apart by war, Makepeace must decide which is worse: possession – or death."

My Thoughts

If I had my way every child in the world would have the opportunity to read A Skinful of Shadows as well as Frances Hardinge’s earlier novel, The Lie Tree. I implore you to wrap up A Skinful of Shadows and pop it under the Christmas tree for anybody between the ages of about 12-16 or order it from the library as an absorbing fabulous holiday read for kids to curl up with over the winter holidays.

A Skinful of Shadows is a captivating story and Hardinge’s prose seethes with atmosphere. There isn’t a scene or a character that you can’t smell, hear and feel beneath your skin. An incredible achievement.

Twelve year old Makepeace is an exquisitely drawn heroine and the perfect protagonist for this challenging tale. She is feisty and strong in a quiet, realistic and reassuring sort of way and she carries the reader along with her and her ghosts like a whirlwind.

I’d heard the A Skinful of Shadows was a ghost story, a genre I’m not overly keen on, and only my huge enjoyment of the Lie Tree led me to take the leap of faith and buy it - I am very glad that I did. Yes, it is a ghost story of sorts but don’t let that put you off, it’s like nothing you’ve ever read before.

I listened to the audio book which was gripping and beautifully performed by Tuppence Middleton..

The Secret of Nightingale Wood

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:51:34 GMT

Henry has moved to the countryside with her parents and her baby sister, Piglet – all still scarred by the death of her brother. Alone in her head, she begins to explore her surroundings, encouraged by her only friends – characters from her favourite books.

Nobody much notices when Henry wanders into the woods at the bottom of the garden and meets Moth, a striking witch-like woman. Together they form a bond that could help Henry save her family.

My Thoughts

This book is a thrilling find; a gem that will sit beside the childhood classics on my bookshelf and be read over and over again. I re-read very few books and so, coming from me, this is praise indeed. The author mentions Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden in the acknowledgements. It is one of my all time favourite novels and for the very few of you who have not yet read it I urge you to do so. If you enjoy The Secret of Nightingale Wood you will love The Secret Garden. But back to Nightingale Wood. The author, Lucy Strange, is a talented writer and the plot and pace of The Secret of Nightingale Wood is first class. The cast of characters is superb and and I changed allegiance a dozen times, never quite sure who to trust or believe. The story is told in the first person and the author draws us into twelve year old Henrietta’s world and imagination faultlessly. We join her on the steps outside her new home on page one, explore and settle in with her and share her adventures and mysteries as she struggles to understand the secretive adult world around her and the magical other world in which she finds refuge. The Secret of Nightingale Wood is a mesmerising novel and one that deserves to be on the shelf of every school library, bookshop and bedroom across the country. It certainly has pride of place on mine.

The Light Jar

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:48:20 GMT

My Thoughts

The Woodland Trust

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:45:45 GMT

How I wish I'd listened to my mother! She knew the name of every tree in the woods and hedgerows. If, like, me you find yourself wishing you'd paid more attention, or you simply want to identify a tree, The Woodland Trust have the app for you. It is an interactive British tree identification app that allows you, in just a few steps, to identify native and common non-native trees in the UK, whatever the season.

A tree can play so many roles in a story. It can be a character, a setting, a home or even a weapon. It can be a life force or deadly, poisonous or provider of nourishment, noisy or silent, strong or weak.

Bring your story to life by researching it properly. The difference between ‘he climbed into the tree’ and ‘he climbed into the low hanging branches of the sycamore’ is substantial don’t you agree? With the Woodland Trust’s app you can give your tree character with the right leaf shape, bark and colour. Or you can use it as inspiration to make up your own unique tree.

The Cornish Seal Sanctuary

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:33:32 GMT

The Cornish Seal Sanctuary is set in the picturesque Helford Estuary, by the beautiful village of Gweek in Cornwall. The Seal Sanctuary is a rescue, rehabilitation, and release centre for seals, and most seasons they rescue over 50 pups

It started in the winter of 1958 when a baby seal, only a few hours old, was washed up on the beach at St Agnes. Ken Jones lived with his wife Mary just one hundred yards from the beach, he picked up the pup and took it back to his small garden. For many years he ran a rescue centre for seals and oiled birds, with just one pool, at St Agnes. The news of his work with seals spread, and he received more and more calls about injured seals. Ken realised he needed more room, as the single pool at St Agnes was just not big enough. Ken had to find a larger site to build a permanent rescue centre and was offered land by the beautiful river Helford in Gweek.

The Sanctuary moved to Gweek in 1975, and Ken slowly built up the size, and number of pools, so he could care for the increasing number of seals that were being rescued around the Cornish coast. Today there are nursery pools, convalescent and resident pools, as well as a specially designed hospital. The Sanctuary has rescued many seals over the years, and most are well enough to be released back into the wild after treatment, but some seals, for various reasons, would not survive back in the wild, so they have them as guests. In addition to the grey seals, common seals, Californian and Patagonian sea lions, the sanctuary provides haven to a variety of other animals such as otters, penguins, sheep, ponies and goats.

Occasionally the Sanctuary´s facilities and expertise are called upon to aid in the rescue of other marine creatures such as dolphins and turtles.

If you are in Cornwall, please do visit this wonderful place. You can visit their website here http://http://www.sealsanctuary.co.uk/introg.html

You can find Su on Twitter, and you can find her novel Sealskin in your local library, local bookshop or order it online

Just Jack

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:29:36 GMT

Jack knows LOTS about starting a new school. Since Dad left, he and his mum have moved house five times. He also knows all about fitting in. The trick is to act exactly like everyone else and make sure no one ever notices him.

But it's hard work trying to be something he isn't and Jack doesn't have any good friends. That is, until Tyler comes along. Tyler is funny and different and might be the key to getting Jack to realise that although he is brilliant at pretending to be other people, the very best thing he can be is . . . JUST JACK.

My Thoughts

It's not easy fitting in at a new school. It's even harder to be yourself. Just Jack is a warm, funny story with great characters and lots of layers as well as some really wacky sandwich recipes!

As with Kate Scott's previous novel Giant, there is a lot more to this little book than a fun plot. The author gently weaves sensitive subjects through the storyline such as divorce, identity, letting go, moving on and 'fitting in' leaving the reader wondering, is the safe option always the best one?

Jack, the narrator, tells us "starting a new school is like walking into a jungle with eat me on your neck". The same could be said of so many of life's challenges and while Just Jack is a story any and every child will enjoy, if you have or know one whose life has recently changed, this is an absolute must read for them.

The book is beautifully produced with some funny and some heart tugging illustrations from Alex Gunn.

All in all, a lovely read.

Gaslight

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:24:38 GMT

1899. All Nansi knows is that her mother disappeared on the day she was fished out of Cardiff docks. She can't remember anything else.

Now, with no other family to turn to, she works for Sid at the Empire Theatre, sometimes legally, sometimes thieving to order, trying to earn enough money to hire a detective to find her mother.

Everything changes when Constance and Violet join the theatre, both with their own dark secrets. Nansi is forced to be part of Violet's crooked psychic act. But it's when Constance recognises her, and realises who her mother must be, that Nansi's world is turned upside down forever. She is soon on the run for her life and she will have to risk everything if she's going to find the truth.

My Thoughts

I gave this daughter to my ten year old daughter and she curled up in a corner and didn't emerge until she'd finished. A sure test of a good story!

Nansi is a great lead character; brave, feisty, flawed and on a mission. There is a chilling baddy and the author's cinematic writing creates an authentic and vivid atmosphere for her gripping tale.

Highly recommended!

The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 17:22:52 GMT

Reema runs to remember the life she left behind in Syria. Caylin runs to find what she's lost. Under the grey Glasgow skies, twelve-year-old refugee Reema is struggling to find her place in a new country,

with a new language and without her brother. But she isn't the only one feeling lost. Her Glasgwegian neighbour Caylin is lonely and lashing out. When they discover an injured fox and her cubs hiding on their estate, the girls form a wary friendship. And they are more alike than they could have imagined: they both love to run. As Reema and Caylin learn to believe again, in themselves and in others, they find friendship, freedom and the discovery that home isn't a place, it's the people you love. Heartfelt and full of hope, The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle is an uplifting story about the power of friendship and belonging. Inspired by her work with young asylum seekers, debut novelist Victoria Williamson's stunning story of displacement and discovery will speak to anyone who has ever asked 'where do I belong?'

My Thoughts

This book hits the ground running and keeps you gripped to the last page. The characters are great - feisty and brave with valid insecurities and gruelling life experiences.

Reema gives the reader a moving insight into the life of a child refugee; I learnt things I didn't know and was forced to address a few things I just hadn't considered before. Caylin - a bully - is well drawn and complex and I enjoyed seeing her vulnerable side which was completely authentic.

The novel comes with a message - something that sometimes puts me off books - but this one is important, relevant and necessary and told within a great story.

A sometimes uncomfortable but ultimately uplifting book that anybody would enjoy and everybody should read.

My copy of The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle will now go a local school library as part of the fabulous BookBuddy initiative. If you are a teacher, or a prolific reader with books to spare, do check it out and help to share the joy of reading.

Local Library

Local Bookshop

Buy online here

ps. Since I posted this review my thirteen year old daughter has read The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle and she was gripped! She adored the story, was begging me to tell her the conclusion which - when she got there - she loved. It led to some interesting and important family conversations over supper too. What more could you ask from a children's novel? (Hence it's my May book of the month!)New Paragraph

New Paragraph

Roof Toppers

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 14:28:21 GMT

Everyone thinks that Sophie is an orphan. True, there were no other recorded female survivors from the shipwreck

which left baby Sophie floating in the English Channel in a cello case, but Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help. Her guardian tells her it is almost impossible that her mother is still alive, but that means still possible. You should never ignore a possible. So when the Welfare Agency writes to her guardian threatening to send Sophie to an orphanage, she takes matters into her own hands and flees to Paris to look for her mother, starting with the only clue she has - the address of the cello maker. Evading the French authorities, she meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers - urchins who live in the sky. Together they scour the city for Sophie's mother before she is caught and sent back to London, and most importantly before she loses hope.

My Thoughts

I loved The Explorer and Roof Toppers offers the same sense of adventure, carrying you through this beautifully written story at a great pace.

Roof Toppers has won so many awards and been praised by so many pundits it hardly needs me to add my tuppence worth.

Find out for yourself - you won’t regret it.

The State of The World's Fungi

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 10:45:53 GMT

Fungi are incredible. Whether healer or destroyer, they are vital to all life on Earth. In our ground-breaking report, Kew has brought fungi out of the shadows.

The utterly fabulous Kew Gardens has released the first ever State of the World's Fungi report, revealing how important fungi are to all life on Earth.

Over 100 scientists from over 18 countries have contributed to this work, calling for greater effort to be made to understand this forgotten kingdom.

Check out the link here:-

Explore the State of the World's fungi report and our science

(ps - I know that fungi aren't plants, and that I have tagged them incorrectly - check out the difference here:-

"A characteristic that places fungi in a different kingdom from plants, bacteria, and some protists is chitin in their cell walls. ... In the past, mycology was regarded as a branch of botany, although it is now known fungi are genetically more closely related to animals than to plants."

Bonkers Conkers

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 10:44:12 GMT

But if you do want to smash them into each other, here's a reminder of the rules:-

 1. Each player must use a new conker at the start of each game (ideally, a new lace as well). Players cannot re-use conkers from earlier games. 

2. The game begins with the toss of a coin. The winner of the toss chooses to strike or receive. 

3. A distance of no less than eight inches or 20cm of lace must be between a player’s knuckle and their conker.

 4. Each player takes three strikes at the opponent’s conker before play switched to their opponent. The opponent then takes three strikes and turns alternate in this way until the end of the game. 

5. Each strike must be clearly aimed at the nut. There can be no deliberate mis-hits. 

6. The game is decided once one of the conkers is smashed.

 7. If a conker is not completely smashed but so little of it remains that it cannot possibly mount a serious attack against its opponent, that conker is out. 

8. If both nuts smash at the same time, the match must be replayed. 

9. Any nut that is knocked from the lace but not smashed may be re-threaded and the game may be continued. 

10. Any player causing a knotting of the laces (a snag) will be noted. Three snags will lead to a disqualification 

11. If a game lasts for more than five minutes then play is halted. Each player is allowed nine further strikes at their opponent’s nut, again alternating after every three strikes. If neither conker has been smashed at the end of the nine strikes then the player who strikes the nut the most times during this period is judged the winner.

And when the games over, don't throw away your ammunition, store it in your drawers and wardrobes - experts say the old wives’ tale about conkers stopping moth caterpillars feeding on fabrics is scientifically accurate because the seeds produce a natural insecticide.

Purely Because ...

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 10:31:42 GMT

I love cows by water!

(Thank you AnnieB for the photo!)

A Year In The Life of A Rowan Tree

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 10:22:33 GMT

I was researching rowan trees for The Witches' Punchbowl (they ward off evil!) and I so loved with this short clip from the fantastic Woodland Trust, I felt compelled to share it with you.

You can find The Woodland Trust (they have masses of other great stuff) at https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk

How Wolves Change Rivers

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 10:10:31 GMT

Since reading Isabella Tree’s fantastic book Wilding I have become interested in ecosystem engineers: beavers, prairie dogs, kelp, fungi, woodpeckers ... I am discovering new ones all the time. Today’s revelation is wolves - watch this (it’s short, I promise!)

Story about Pussy WIllow

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 03 Jun 2019 14:06:11 GMT

This is a subtitle

I occasionally post tweets that have caught my eye for those who don't use Twitter or have missed a particular tweet.

If you're on Twitter and you don't follow Robert Macfarlane, check out his Twitter feed - it's wonderful.

And if you're not on Twitter, but you like the few bits and pieces of his I post, buy his books! I have envangelised about The Lost Words here and on the radio, but there are lots more to discover, most recently Underland, which I haven't read yet but is absolutely top of my "TBR" (To Be Read) pile!

A Jar Full of Angel Feathers

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sat, 01 Jun 2019 14:06:36 GMT

Alex is angry and miserable. He has lost his mum, his dad has packed him off to live in Cornwall for a year and his most treasured possession has vanished. He hates the countryside after the noise and bustle of London and there's the Gnarly Mana in Tapers Wood to worry about. Can the down to earth love of Aunt Mary, the friendship of a mysterious young girl and a little bit of magic help Alex turn his life around?

My Thoughts

My first thought about this book was what a wonderful title. Evocative, mysterious and magical. Just like the story turned out to be.

This is Susan’ Russell’s first novel and she is obviously a talented lady because she did the illustrations as well.

The story is set in the 50s and is about starting again. It is a classic plot line and in the spirit of the war time evacuation and boarding school novels the author gets the parents out of the way in order to allow the characters space for adventures.

Mallow Cottage is in the fictional village of Gunwithiel - I come from that part of the world and had to check if it existed it’s such a good name. If it did exist I would go there - it sounds beautiful.

A Jar Full of Angel Feathers is a novel with a great sense of place. There are wonderful descriptions of the area, particularly the woodland - and you are in there, among the squelchy leaves and the grasping branches with Alex

This would be a satisfying story to read out loud or together and the layout and font would make it easy for young readers to follow.

There is something of The Skull in the woods about A Jar Full of Angel Feathers. I thoroughly enjoyed this magical story in its own right but it could also be a valuable tool in helping children come to terms with the loss of a loved one.

A Pinch of Magic

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Sun, 26 May 2019 18:42:04 GMT

Three sisters trapped by an ancient curse. Three magical objects with the power to change their fate.Will they be enough to break the curse? Or will they lead the sisters even deeper into danger? ...

My Thoughts

This book brings the reader a lot more than a pinch of magic - there is enchantment, spookiness, and mystery by the bucket load. Everything about it is magical - the setting, the character, the plot and the writing.

Reading Lists

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 20 May 2019 19:54:01 GMT

Find The Magic In Nature ...

Do you support #ClimateChange? Are you worried about the extinction or species or the degradation of our countryside?

With the help of many Twitter friends, I've pulled together a list of stories steeped in nature, in which nature or the setting is a strong feature, a character sometimes.

I haven't read all of these, but they were recommended by all sorts of illustrious book-ish people on Twitter, so they've all gone onto may TBR (To Be Read) pile. You'll find a few of them already on The Bookshelf

A Girl Called Owl - AJ Wills

A Good Day For Climbing Trees – Jaco Jacobs

A Jar Full of Angel Feathers - Susan Russell

Animal Farm - George Orwell

Ariki - Nicola Davies

Asha & The Spirit Bird - Jasbinder Bilan

Aubrey & The Terrible Ladybirds - Horatio Clare

Bloom - Nicola Skinner

Blue Hare - Hugh Webster

Charlotte's Web - E.B. White

Dreaming The Bear - Mimi Thebo

Edge of the World - Julia Green

First Light - Rebecca Stead

Flight - Vanessa Harbour

How to Bee - Bren MacDibble

In Darkling Wood - Emma Carroll

Journey to the River Sea - Eva Ibbotson

Kat Wolfe Investigates - Lauren St John

Katy's Pony Series - Victoria Everleigh

Little Bird Flies - Karen McCombie

Lob - Linda Newberry

Me, All Alone, at the End of the World - M.T Anderson

Pax - Sara Pennpacker

Ring of Bright Water - Gavin Maxwell

Run Wild - Gill Lewis

Seaglass - Eloise Williams

Seal Island - Julia Green

Sky Dancer - Gill Lewis

Sky Song - Abi Elphinstone

Swallows & Amazons Series - Arthur Ransome

Tarka the Otter - Henty Williamson

The Animals of Farthing Wood - Colin Dann

The Children of Castle Rock - Natasha Farrant

The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness – Michelle Paver

The Dog Runner – Bren MacDibble

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate – Jacqueline Kelly

The Explorer - Katherine Rundell

The Garden of Lost Secrets – A.M Howell

The Girl Who Speaks Bear - Sophie Anderson

The Ice Garden - Guy Jones

The Last Wild Trilogy - Piers Torday

The Lie Tree - Frances Hardinge

The Little White Horse - Elizabeth Goudge

The Longest Night of Charlie Noon - Christopher Edge

The Lorax - Dr Seus

The Magic Faraway Tree - Enid Blyton

The Redwall Series - Brain Jacques

The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Secret of Nightingale Wood - Lucy Strange

The Skylark's War - Hilary McKay

The Terrible Yoot - Horatio Clare

The Way Past Winter - Kiran Millwood

The Wild Folk Series - Sylvia V Linsteadt

The Wilderness Wars - Barbara Henderson

Tom's Midnight Garden - Phillipa Pearce

Twister - Juliette Forrest

Watership Down - Richard Adams

When the Mountains Roared - Jess Butterworth

Where the World Ends - Geraldine McCaughrean

Wild Robot series - Peter Brown

Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

Wolf Light - Yaba Badoe

Something natural

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 20 May 2019 13:34:30 GMT

This is a subtitle

I occasionally post tweets that have caught my eye for those who don't use Twitter or have missed a particular tweet.

If you're on Twitter and you don't follow Robert Macfarlane, check out his Twitter feed - it's wonderful.

Oak Processionary Moth

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 20 May 2019 13:32:41 GMT

This is a subtitle

I occasionally post tweets that have caught my eye for those who don't use Twitter or have missed a particular tweet.

If you're on Twitter and you don't follow Robert Macfarlane, check out his Twitter feed - it's wonderful.

The Last Wild

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 15:55:09 GMT

In a world where animals no longer exist, twelve-year-old Kester Jaynes sometimes feels like he hardly exists either. Locked away in a home for troubled children, he's told there's something wrong with him. So when he meets a flock of talking pigeons and a bossy cockroach, Kester thinks he's finally gone crazy. But the animals have something to say. And they need him. The pigeons fly Kester to a wild place where the last creatures in the land have survived. A wise stag needs Kester's help, and together they must embark on a great journey, joined along the way by an overenthusiastic wolf cub, a military-trained cockroach, a mouse with a ritual for everything, and a stubborn girl named Polly. The animals saved Kester Jaynes. But can Kester save the animals?

My Thoughts

This book, which was first published in 2013, is the best children's book I have read since I started reviewing them as an adult. It is, as the cliche goes, most definitely a Future Classic. Original, funny, exciting, beautifully written, The Last Wild has absolutely everything going for it, and the concept - a world where animals no longer exist - is frightening, gripping and, if we do not get our act together and look after our planet better, terrifyingly prescient.

As a pigeon-phobic, I actually loved the talking pigeons that kick off the adventure, and indeed Mr Torday's lovely story has gone some way to calm my terror of these feathered friends (ie. they are okay outside, 6 metres away from me or more!). I love the cockroach, the stag broke my heart, and Kester's sidekick Polly fixed it again. What a journey. What a wonderful book. If you have been under a rock and not yet found this gem, then I urge you to nip to the library, or your local bookshop, and pick up a copy. You are in for a thrilling adventure.

Swan Upping

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 17 Jul 2018 14:15:42 GMT

With the annual Swan Upping on the river Thames this week, the site is about all things swan related!

There are two very special swans in my novel The Witches Punchbowl. Their names are Feather and Fortune. Feather was attacked by a dog and ends up at a swan rescue centre, Fortune has to find her.

I took the inspiration for the story from my friend who used to volunteer at Swan Lifeline, a registered charity dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of sick and injured swans in the Thames valley and surrounding areas. Kelly kindly took me and my children to visit the rescue centre, showed us the swans and explained about some of the wonderful work the rescuers do on the fabulously named Cuckoo Weir Island.

Since it’s inception in 1988 Swan Lifeline has rescued and treated over 30,000 swans. Most of them are released back into the wild with safe adoption homes found for the few who are unable to survive alone.

Swan Lifeline is run by two full time and one part time members of staff and over 20 volunteers. At this time of year they are called out on average 15 to 20 times a week. At the moment they have 60 birds being treated on Cuckoo Weir Island.

Swan Lifeline runs entirely on donations. You may like to think of some ways to raise money for them, either in your Brownie group, class group or friendship group. Send me your ideas and I’ll give you a shout out on Twitter and Instagram. Follow them on Instagram at Swan_Lifeline or post your ideas with the hashtag #CuckooWeirIslandSwans

Our ideas here on the riverbank have been:- A sponsored swim, a sponsored swan count (50 p in the pot for every swan we see), Colouring competition - 50p per entry and prize is a visit to Swan Lifeline, Selling bags of grain for swan food

If you do manage to raise a bit of money, you can either send it to Swan Lifeline or if you prefer to see what your donation bought for the centre, donate via the Swan Lifeline wish list on Amazon.