The World Book by Joe Fullman and Rose Blake - blog tour

A couple of months ago, I was delighted to receive a copy of The World Book by Joe Fullman (author) and Rose Blake (illustrator). It's exactly the kind of book I would have loved reading as a child, being full of fascinating facts and trivia about the 199 countries of the world. For example, did you know that Uzkebistan is double-landlocked? That means it's two countries away from the nearest coast. There's only one other double-landlocked country in the world, which is revealed at the bottom of the page (clue: it's in Europe).

Since taking The World Book into my classroom, it's barely been on the shelves during reading time and is a very popular choice with children who want to share a non-fiction text with one of their friends. It's a book that can be read from cover to cover, but it works equally as well when finding out about one specific country or continent or as a book to dip into and enjoy for a few minutes. As part of the book's blog tour, Rose Blake has written about five objects which inspire her as an illustrator.

Five objects which inspire me by Rose Blake
Speedo costume - I swim every day, and I couldn’t really go without this! The pool is a place where I can stretch my body and empty my mind, and sometimes if I’m lucky, ideas for drawings jump in.

Do!! You!!! Radio - The best morning soundtrack.

Persimmons - I like looking at them and eating them, and I hide them in my drawings too. Lots of my books have hidden persimmons in them…like a Where’s Wally? but for shiny orange fruit.

A book by Helen Garner - I’m very inspired by the way she looks at things. Light, love and friendship and the small things that make life interesting.

My Techo diary - So I know what to do with my day. I use it to write down interesting quotes and thoughts as well as my schedule. It opens flat on the table and is very satisfying to write in.

Thank you so much, Rose, I'll certainly give Do!! You!!! radio a listen. Please do follow the rest of the blog tour this week and make sure you track down a copy of The World Book. Thank you to Welbeck Publishing for inviting me to take part.

(The only other double-landlocked country in the world in Liechtenstein.)

The False Rose by Jakob Wegelius (translated by Peter Graves)

The Stone Roses released their debut album in 1989. When it first came out, I rushed to my local branch of Andy's Records to purchase a copy on cassette and, for at least three weeks, simply refused to play side two. In my opinion, there was absolutely no way that it could as mind-blowingly good as side one. It just couldn't. When I eventually did get round to listening to it, I very quickly realised that side two was equally as good, perhaps even better.

I should really have learned my lesson after that but, earlier this year, I made a very similar mistake. The Murderer's Ape by Jakob Wegelius is undoubtedly one of my top five children's books of the past few years and, a couple of months ago, I was fortunate enough to be send an advance copy of its sequel, The False Rose. It waited patiently on my pile of unread books for weeks as I was genuinely concerned that it wouldn't be a worthy follow-up. However, again, I couldn't have been more wrong. It's another absolute masterpiece.

The story itself is complex and spans many different times and locations. Without going into detail, it stars Sally Jones, a seafaring gorilla, who travels to Glasgow in order to learn more about a mysterious necklace which has recently been discovered on her boat. In a similar fashion to The Murderer's Ape, the plot unravels at a perfect pace, with increasingly dastardly characters and villainous schemes introduced regularly throughout its pages.

Sally Jones

However, as with the first book, the real triumph is the characters and the relationships which exist between them. The cast is large but each character is so richly drawn and wonderfully constructed that there's absolutely no chance of the reader becoming confused. Subtle shifts in the dynamics between them are beautifully written, with real significance given to the different motivations of the villains. Sally's steadfast and unwavering loyalty to the Henry Koskela, Signor Fidardo and Ana Molina, the other returning characters from the first book, again shines through, as does her compassion towards Bernie, a hired thug with increasing reservations about the situation that he's found himself embroiled in. I can think of very few books where the characters feel as alive as this and I'm confident that you'll end up caring deeply about what happens to them all.

Although Jakob Wegelius is the genius behind The False Rose, being both author and illustrator, a special mention must go to Peter Graves, who's done an incredible job translating the book from its original Swedish.

The False Rose is truly special. Read it soon, read The Murderer's Ape too if you haven't already, and fall in love with the characters who inhabit the unique world of Sally Jones.

A huge thank you to Pushkin Press for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

Violet's Tempest by Ian Eagleton and Clara Anganuzzi

Violet's Tempest is a beautiful picturebook collaboration between author Ian Eagleton and illustrator Clara Anganuzzi. It tells the story of Violet, a girl who needs to overcome her shyness and regain her confidence at school, and how the unconditional love and support of her family help her to do this.

Ian is rapidly developing into one of the most exciting children's authors around, subtly weaving important issues into his storylines, and Clara is clearly a talent to watch closely over the next few years. They've both been kind enough to share their favourite illustrations from the book, which is available now from independent children's bookshops. Thank you so much Ian and Clara for inviting me to be part of your blog tour, and I wish you every success with Violet's Tempest.

Clara Anganuzzi

My favourite spread in the book is the one where Nan and Violet are on the chair together with all their homey knick-knacks surrounding them. It reminds me of the comfort of family and home. I feel like it has a warm feeling to it and it really shows the support Nan gives to Violet, not only in that moment but throughout their time together (through the photos in the background and little trinkets).

Ian Eagleton

My favourite illustration is the final double page spread. Nan and Violet are holding hands and so are Uncle Sebastian and Uncle Tony. Violet’s Tempest was actually the first picture book I wrote, so having two men holding hands at the end of the story was a very important and emotional moment for me. Clara has filled the page with such warmth and magic. I also love that Violet is now leading her family home, she’s finally gained some confidence and is skipping ahead. I am very grateful to Holly Tonks and Alice Curry for their input in helping these final moments come to life and for their support when I said I’d like Uncle Tony and Uncle Sebastian to be holding hands. It feels like a magical end to the story, full of hope and happiness. 

Peanut Jones and the Illustrated City - Rob Biddulph

Rob Biddulph has illustrated some of my favourite books of the past few years, as well designing the front covers for several more. With the release of Peanut Jones and the Illustrated City, an energetic, original and highly-imaginative adventure, he's also now written one of my favourite books of the past few years.

Peanut Jones is finding it hard to adapt to all the changes that have taken place in her life. Her dad's gone missing, with no obvious clues as to his whereabouts, and she's struggling to fit in at her new school. Things take a turn for the bizarre when she finds an art pencil with mysterious powers. Suddenly, she discovers that whatever she draws on paper immediately becomes real and Peanut, along with Little Bit, her five-year-old genius of a sister, and Rockwell, her school Study Buddy (but most definitely not her friend!) gets transported to the magical world of Chroma. Also known as The City of Colour and Creativity, Chroma is made up of several different districts which include Warholia, Cubeside, Vincent Fields and Modernia. Although trying to avoid capture by the mysterious Mr White and returning home safely are Peanut's main priorities, finally finding out what actually happened to her missing father is also becoming an increasingly real possibility.

There's just so much that I love about this book. The illustrations, as you'd expect from Rob, are absolutely fantastic and the limited colour pallette, which is basically black, white and orange, works beautifully. However, my favourite thing of all is the wonderful collection of characters who appear throughout the story. Readers will be able to empathise with the central trio of Peanut, Little Bit and Rockwell, but the cameos from joyful creations such as Jonathan Higginbottom, the talking alligator with ambitions to become a nursery nurse, and Table Guy, the superhero with total command over items of furniture and who finishes every sentence with an exclamation mark, are absolutely hilarious. At almost 400 pages, it's certainly a hefty book but with short chapters and so much wonderful artwork, it's one that readers will absolutely fly through. Although the story is complete in itself, it's also sets everything up beautifully for the second part of the trilogy which is due sometime next year. I personally can't wait. 

Not only is Rob a wonderful illustrator and author, and the World Record holder for organising the biggest ever live draw-along, he's also an extremely considerate person who was kind enough to record short personal videos for each stop on the blog tour for his book. Thank you Rob, and thank you Macmillan Children's Books for inviting me to take part.

How To Be Brave - Daisy May Johnson

Pushkin Children's Books are one of the most original children’s publishers around and have released some stunningly good reads over the past few years. When I was invited to take part in the blog tour for How To Be Brave by Daisy May Johnson, I jumped at the opportunity.

Much of the story takes place in a boarding school, The School of the Good Sisters, which is run by a group of nuns with a very novel approach to teaching the curriculum. The opening few chapters explore the relationship between Elizabeth North, an orphan, and her childhood nemesis, Magda DeWitt. Without revealing too much of the plot, many of their problems are caused by the rescue of a small brown Amazonian duck.

The book then jumps forward a couple of decades, to a time when Elizabeth is single-handedly raising her young daughter, Calla. They live in considerable financial hardship, with Calla continually attempting to ground her mother, by now a world-renowned duck expert, in reality. When Elizabeth has a chance to travel to South America for a unique work opportunity, Calla is forced to attend The School of the Good Sisters. Changes in leadership at the school have turned it into a very different place, although Calla survives the hostile environment by forming close friendships with her two roommates, Edie and Hanna. After a few weeks, Calla loses contact with her mother and learns that she is missing somewhere in the Amazon. She then has to team up with her two best friends to try and work out exactly what is going on.

There is so much to love about this book. It's fun and energetic, being a wonderfully quirky updating of a traditional boarding school story, and it has a rich collection of characters. A personal favourite of mine is Gareth, a security guard who has an obsession with trying to improve the quality of his vol-au-vents. There are references to contemporary children’s literature (Robin Stevens and Eva Ibbotson both get a mention) which help give the book a modern feel. A chapter with strong similarities to the famous scene from the film Spartacus is genuinely funny, as well as delivering an important message about the importance of loyalty. The book is absolutely crammed full with amusing footnotes, which really help the reader develop a sense of empathy with the story's narrator.

Calla, Edie and Hanna

How To Be Brave touches on several important themes, including loneliness, friendship and poverty. The most powerful message for me is the way Calla learns that her mother, despite loving her daughter dearly, is not infallible, and often struggles to cope with the challenges of day-to-day life. It’s a universal message that we all ultimately learn, but it’s done with subtlety and with love.

I can see it being very popular with fans of the Murder Most Unladylike and Scarlet and Ivy series, and would be a perfect addition to a Year 5/6 class bookshelf. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from Daisy May Johnson.

How To Be Brave was released on the 1st July and is available now from all good independent bookshops. Huge thanks to Pushkin for inviting me to take part in the blog tour.

Dear Year Six

Dear Year Six,

I can’t believe that your time in Deer Class is coming to an end. It's a shame that our reading journey was interrupted several times by various lockdowns but at least we've been fortunate enough to get through some incredible books together over the past couple of years.

We started this year with The Super Miraculous Journey Of Freddie Yates (it seemed like the perfect book to welcome you back with after being absent for several months). Halloween was definitely the ideal time to read Ghost Stadium, especially on that day when there was a big thunderstorm. We then moved on to High-Rise Mystery (followed, virtually the next day, by Mic Drop…I didn’t really get much choice there). After Christmas, you all listened at home to The Beast and the Bethany (oh, some good news, a second one is coming soon) and then, after having to give up on it last year when the first lockdown happened, I finally got to read you The Light Jar. It was worth the wait, it really was. I was so pleased that you hadn’t heard The Outlaw Varjak Paw before as it meant I got to share it with you. I know Omar’s voice changed virtually every time he spoke, which several of you certainly enjoyed pointing out, but, in my defence, there's a pretty big cast of characters to keep track of. Add in all the picturebooks and poems we've enjoyed together, the non-fiction books and magazines we've explored and the graphic novels you've devoured, and I think we've had a pretty amazing year.

Sadly, we never got to enjoy The Shark Caller, Boy in the Tower or The Haunting of Aveline Jones, and I’m just as disappointed about that as you. Seek them out when you get to Year Seven, they’re all absolutely outstanding. When I bump into you in Tesco after-school (I'll be topping up on Kit Kats salad), I’m going to ask you whether you’ve read them so make sure you do. You know I’m not joking! We didn’t get to read all we wanted to, we never could, and that’s fine.

I want to say that it’s been an absolute privilege to be part of your reading journey over the past two years and I’ve loved watching you become such passionate, adventurous and open-minded readers. How do I know that you are? Well…

Because you looked forward to story time every day as much as I did. Because you wanted to talk about books with me and each other whenever there was a spare moment. Because when I brought in a bookshelf from home, you were full of great ideas about how we could use it. Because you’ve all read books by a such a wide range of authors. Because when I asked for volunteers to judge the Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize for science books, you all jumped in. Because you tuned in to story time when you were stuck at home. Because you took control of our Pupil Recommendations Shelf and ran it far better than I could. Because when there was a new book in class that everyone wanted to read, you introduced borrowing systems that actually worked. Because you constantly reminded me whenever I forgot about Poem of the Day. Because the first fifteen minutes of every Monday morning was spent telling me all about what you’d read at the weekend. Because most of you loitered around the desk whenever a brown parcel arrived, in case it was books (it was always books). Because so many of you signed up for the Summer Reading Challenge. Because you were desperate to squeeze in about four more novels during the final three weeks of term (we had a good go!). Because you understood that reading isn’t just books. Because…oh, there are so many more reasons.

I’ve spent the last few minutes thinking about each of you and I’m pretty sure I can break it down even further.

Marcus, you’re a reader because of the way that you talked with so much enthusiasm about the Planet Omar books to literally anyone who walked into the classroom. You started a trend for reading them, not just in our class but across the whole school.

Leila, you’re a reader because when it was your turn to do the Recommendations Shelf, your choices were incredible…fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels, picturebooks, poetry, you included it all.

Reuben, you’re a reader because the questions you asked Sharna Jackson about High-Rise Mystery were so perceptive. You were also the driving force behind getting me to read Mic Drop immediately afterwards.

Isla, you’re a reader because you took your role judging the science books very seriously. You read all of them, you spoke about all of them, you did an amazing job.

Zak, you’re a reader because every class needs a graphic novels expert. Thank you for being ours this year! How you knew exactly what everyone else was reading and what page they were on remains a mystery to me.

Josh, you’re a reader because you were so desperate to share the book you were reading about Ernest Shackleton with me (thank you, I loved it). The fact that you enjoy non-fiction and are prepared to show your passion for it is wonderful. I’ll never forget when you did a spontaneous talk to the class about animals being kept in captivity because a book you were reading had affected you so much.

Kaiesha, you’re a reader because you always, always wanted to read the class book again by yourself as soon as we’d finished it. I loved seeing how carefully you listened whenever we read together! You usually managed to get the biggest cushion too.

Luca, you’re a reader because after listening to Kwame Alexander talk about his books, you went and read every single one. You’re right, they are fantastic. Keep your eyes open for his next one.

Casey, you’re a reader because you invariably seemed to know who had the missing Mr Wolf’s Class and Cirque du Freak books. Thank you for keeping my books bill down!

Sophie, you’re a reader because almost every time I looked at you, you were engrossed in something by Jo Cotterill. I liked your plan of moving off-camera during assembly time (but keep it quiet).

Archie, you’re a reader because you always had something constructive to say when a child came in from another class asking to borrow a book. Year Four have a lot of respect for you and your book knowledge.

Scarlet, you’re a reader because almost every conversation we had was about books and reading. And occasionally about your favourite ice-creams.

Henry, you’re a reader because everyone in the class (including me) respected your recommendations. I don’t know how you have the time to fit in all the books you do. You read incredibly widely and you can talk about the work of so many authors.

Joseph, you’re a reader because you finally discovered that reading is for you. Seeing your confidence and enthusiasm grow over the year made me so happy. Keep going!

Alesha, you’re a reader because you seemed to know exactly where to find every Poem of the Day that we’d shared together. You kept it going and would always step in when needed.

TJ, you’re a reader because you knew more about manga than anyone else. To be honest, I only ever really understand half of what you were telling me but I loved the passion you had when you were explaining all the storylines.

I could go on Deer Class, I really could, but I'm confident that I've made my point. It’s been a joy and a privilege to work with you all this year but the summer holidays are looming and we’ve all got reading to be catching up with. There are currently 17 books on my pile at home! Please make the most of your time at secondary school. Find the library, tell the librarian about the books you love, catch up with all the books that we never got around to reading, read old books and new books, read funny books, sad books, scary books, emotional books and everything in between.

We’ve talked about why reading matters so many times over the past couple of years. You all understand why it's so important, so please share your passion with the world. I know you will.

Mr Biddle

The Astonishing Future of Alex Nobody by Kate Gilby Smith - blog tour

It's always a privilege to be invited to take part in a blog tour for a children's book, especially when it's by a new author. The Astonishing Future of Alex Nobody by Kate Gilby Smith is a wonderful debut, full of adventure, excitement and time travel. Kate has been kind enough to write a very personal letter to someone that she's known her whole life, providing important advice and guidance. I hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I did.

Dear Past Me,

I’m writing to you from the future. Not as far in the future as you might be hoping for. Only by about seven years or so. It’s no time at all, really. And before you ask, no, I don’t have any lottery numbers to share. Sorry about that.

You’ve not long turned twenty-two. You’ve spent a lot of time this year listening to the Taylor Swift song about turning exactly that age. You’ve been waiting to be able to properly relate to it and now you finally can. Taylor sings about being happy, free, confused and lonely at the same time, and she pretty much gets it spot on. (By the way, seven years on and you’re still listening to her songs, a lot).

You’re in the last year of university. You’ve no idea what you want to do with your life or who you want to be. And you’re feeling the pressure. It seems like everyone around you has a plan. It seems like they’re flying ahead in a race you didn’t know you’d entered. What you’d really like is for somebody to appear from the future and give you all the right answers. To mark out the right decisions from the wrong. Which is convenient because here I am! No… again, I’m sorry to disappoint you. I can’t help there. Because when it comes to right decisions, I still haven’t got the foggiest.

The advice you’re already getting is what you should be listening to. Keep doing what you enjoy and what you’re good at. Follow your interests. Stop caring so much about what other people are doing – life isn’t a race.

Besides, you know what you want to do, really. You want to write a book, though you’d never admit that to anyone else. So far, you’ve encountered the small problem that everything you write is utterly terrible. That’s partly because you still think that writing should be easy. That when proper writers sit down to write books the words pour out of their heads like water from a tap. More importantly, you have no idea what you should be writing about.

This is where the follow your interests advice helps. As a huge Doctor Who fan, you’ll be quick to sign up for a course on the philosophy of time travel. How could you resist? It’s then, sitting in the back of one of those seminars, that you have an idea for a book that will one day be called The Astonishing Future of Alex Nobody. You don’t know then exactly what the story will be, or even the name of the main character, but you have the kernel of an idea. And it sticks with you.

Take my advice: don’t try to tell people about the idea yet. You won’t get the reaction you hoped for and that will only put you off. I’ve discovered that it’s always much better to show rather than tell when it comes to ideas. Most sound kind of rubbish to start with anyway. But do tell people you’re writing a book. It helps you to take it seriously – and yourself as a writer, too.

Writing the book will be a slow process. You’ll learn that being a writer involves more than sitting in cafes looking wistful. You need to practice, to learn, to read, and to write many terrible drafts, including scenes and characters you’ll soon forget about. All of this has to be done. Don’t think it’s wasted time.

After university, you’ll move to London and start a job you love. It lets you spend your time around books and remarkable people (again, think back to that follow your interests thing). You’ll write the book on weekends and edit on your daily commute. You’ll have a feeling that, somehow, you’re already behind schedule. Impatience can be seen as a bad thing, but it helps you. It’s what makes you keep going.

Writing a whole book is intimidating so you aim for only the first three chapters. When you show those three chapters to your family, they ask the all-important question: so, what happens next? At this point, you’ll have no idea.

Before you can figure it out, you send your first three chapters to literary agents because, again, you’re impatient. Almost immediately, rejection emails start to arrive. You quickly get used to receiving them. Then, out of the blue, a request arrives to read more. Panic sets in because you don’t yet have more to share. But it’s the encouragement you need to spend the next year finishing the book (or what you then consider as ‘finished’).

Some time after that, you get the email you’ve been dreaming of. An agent would like to meet you. Then, things start to happen a little quicker. There’s still lots of waiting around for emails to arrive, though. A few months later, you learn that the book is going to be published. You hide in a cupboard to take the phone call, then walk home in a daze.

A couple more years pass before you can hold the book in your hands. When you do, it will feel incredible. You won’t be thinking of the confusion and loneliness that Taylor mentions in her song about being twenty-two. But those feelings will be there inside the pages of the book. They’ll be there in the story of a twelve-year-old girl – Alex Nobody – who wants to discover her destiny.

You probably want to know more about your future. I know I do. But those are all the spoilers I’m going to share. The rest is waiting for you.

See you soon,

Kate

No Country by Patrice Aggs and Joe Brady - interview with the creators

I'm absolutely thrilled to interview the creative team behind No Country, illustrator Patrice Aggs and author Joe Brady, as part of their current blog tour. No Country, which tells the story of a young family torn apart by civil war, was originally published in The Phoenix comic before being released as a graphic novel by David Fickling Books. It's only been in my classroom for a couple of weeks, but has already been read and loved by several children, and is clearly going to become one of those special books that's rarely, if ever, on the shelves.

Can you briefly sum up the story you tell in No Country for those people who haven't yet read it?

PATRICE: No Country looks at a conventional, mainstream family in the messy aftermath of a civil war. When we meet them we reckon they've learned how to cope with what's changed, but as their lives gradually become more uncomfortable and threatening we're not so sure.  All of them wind up having to make choices and sacrifices without knowing if their decisions are right.

One of the main themes of the narrative is the increasing lack of control the characters have over their situation and how hard they must fight to regain it. What do you think young readers will take away from this aspect of your work?

PATRICE: Young readers will pick up on how many aspects of daily life in an ordinary town we all take for granted! Hopefully they'll also see how easily and quickly that secure background can be snatched away.  It might make the reader think about what's really important and what doesn't matter.  And to treasure the things that do matter.  Even for thoughtful readers, the idea of 'refugees' automatically assumes a group of people we label as 'other'.  Us and Them!  But what if the tables were turned, and 'them' became 'us'?

Although the book is fiction, it's clearly been inspired by actual events. Was there a real world 'trigger' for creating the book, and did the storyline go in the direction that you first expected?

JOE: For me it was the Syrian refugee crisis and the nativism that followed. People in the UK seem to want to bend over backwards to believe we’re immune from the negative effects of fascism, war and our broken relationship to the planet. If we are going to get through this, we need to actively develop a compassion across borders that doesn’t require any justification. I hope No Country might be a small instrument of building some of that.

The story line both did and did not go in the direction I expected. I always knew Bea and her family were going to be forced to leave their home, but I naively expected it would happen in a less violent way. The reality seems to be that, to borrow a much-quoted opening from Home by Warsan Shire, 'no one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark'. Even after creating a hard life for them and a relatively easy way out, I was surprised by what it took to dislodge the characters from their home.

There are some wonderful 'pauses' in the action, such as when Bea rescues the snail, which help stop the book from becoming too dark. They show that kindness and empathy can still exist, even in the most challenging situations. How integral was empathy to your thinking while you were creating the story?

JOE: Empathy is everything for No Country. It’s at the centre of this story and behind the entire project.

Within the story, Bea’s challenge as a character is that she has a big heart in a world that rewards thick skin. This is something so many of us experience even when our societies aren’t falling apart. How do you continue to give empathy to people and creatures who have nothing to give you back? The snail moment was intended to be a ludicrous act of compassion, that readers might both appreciate and roll their eyes at. In future books, I’m hoping to test this element of Bea’s character.

Another place where empathy is at the core of the story is looking at the family. Bea and her family are a strong unit. That is to say, they look at one another and see each person with a value that goes beyond accomplishments or personality or aptitude. In other words, they love each other. This love forms a bond which is the strongest unit in the story – even when they are apart, they still define each other by this bond. Every person in the world deserves to be seen like this, and seeing others like this takes awareness, practice and work. I firmly believe that a life spent learning to truly see even only one other person fully is a life well-lived. Extending that amazing courtesy of love and empathy to people fleeing violence and oppression, is one of the foundations of creating a truly just society. It’s hard work, but essential.

Behind the project, I never intended to stand in place of the stories of real-world refugees. In fact, the opposite is true. I’ve always thought of No Country as a potential bridge between our own experience and that of a refugee. To that end, my hope is that it will help young readers will look at stories in the news and see that these are people just like them. The circumstances of the lives of a kid from England and a kid from Syria who was forced to flee violence are vastly different, but the inherent value of those kids is precisely equal. I hope after finishing No Country, readers consider the people coming here in a different way.

Mum only ever appears on an iPad screen, but is a regular presence throughout the book and helps give the family a sense of hope. Is there a message about hope that you'd like to send children?

JOE: My message would be that hope is self-fulfilling. To hope is not only to see a brighter future, but to understand that we must work for that future. One of the central messages of the book is that we can’t take what we have for granted – no matter how stable our society seems at the moment, that we have to work at extending compassion, justice, fellowship to everyone. Every right we have as humans is tied to a responsibility; we also have to ensure others have access that right. Hope is to believe rather than to know, which is to say there is an element of doubt and uncertainty. That doubt is OK; it’s more than OK, it’s good! The little bit of doubt reminds us that we have to nurture our hopes, and in doing this work we see that a better reality is not only possible, but it’s within our power. To hope isn’t just to expect a better outcome, it’s the path to empowering yourself to bring it about. Hope, truly enacted, is more than a feeling or a daydream. It’s a verb, and it asks us for action.

This isn’t an easy thing that I’m saying, and I’m far from a perfect example of it. But if we work together, the effort it will take to push our hopes over the mark is small. In the scene when Dad is talking to Bea under the stars, he talks about hope and how he’s close to giving up. But then he looks at the next generation and he believes that we’ll get to where we need to go. Like Dad in the story, I’m inspired every day by kids – in their idealism and how they put that hope into action.

Patrice and Joe, thank you so much for your time! I'm already looking forward to reading the next part of the story, as are several members of my class.

The Dragon and Her Boy by Penny Chrimes - author interview and review

I was delighted to be asked to take part in the blog tour for the release of the new book by Penny Chrimes, The Dragon and Her Boy. It was a pleasure to interview Penny and ask her about the book, as well as about her future writing plans.

How would you describe The Dragon and Her Boy to someone who hasn’t yet read it?

The Dragon and Her Boy is a magical historical adventure about Stick who works as a tumbler - or a street acrobat - with his friends Spud and Sparrow. They are entertaining the crowds at a fair one very hot day in August when the earth gives a mighty heave; by the time the dust settles, Spud and Sparrow have disappeared.

Stick spots a narrow crack in the ground and summons up all his courage to go down in search of his fellow tumblers; instead, he falls into the lair of an ancient, very touchy dragon.

At first it takes all Stick’s wits to avoid the dragon eating him, but soon he realises that she is fleeing the same evil figure that haunts his own nightmares - and who is now stalking the streets of London. 

Stick vows to save the dragon, with the help of his fellow gutterlings. But it means facing up to the secrets of his own dark past.   

The ‘time-slip’ 19^th century London setting feels essential to the book. Why did you choose to set it during this period, and what do you think it brings to the story?

I have always loved the rumbustious anarchy of the Georgians as well as the energy and drive of the Victorians, so I’m afraid I have prigged bits from both periods and invented a king to go with it - King Billy who sleeps in his feather bed at Buckanory Palace and holds his hankersniff to his face when he drives past his hungry subjects in his gold carriage.

I have lived in South London for many years and I love wandering the streets - especially the City where you can still take a detour down a narrow alley-way and find yourself two centuries back in time. I can feel stories sneaking up on me from the shadows.  

The real-life street-kids, or gutterlings, would have led miserable lives - and I never forget that in the books - but without parents to tell them to get to bed on time or to come in for their tea, it frees them up to have larks and adventures. They have to live on their wits, and that gives the books the spice of danger.

It also allows me to give my gutterlings a distinctive language of their own - I have a huge book of historical slang on my desk, as well as a wonderful book called Ware’s Dictionary of Slang and Phrase; the slang of that period is so vivid and funny, and it helps me to hear my characters talking.

At its heart, the book is about Stick, the main character, and his evolving relationship with the dragon. What do you think your readers might take away from this aspect of the book?

There are many things about that relationship - it is a complex one.

Very sensibly Stick is initially just worried about whether the dragon is going to eat him. It is not until quite far into the book that he begins to trust her. Dragons, after all, are notoriously cunning - and greedy.

And as for the dragon, she can’t get her head around the fact that Stick is being kind to her; ‘It is most irregular, all this helping one another…’ She’s more accustomed to knights trying to kill her and her kind.

So I suppose it’s partly about taking the time to find out why people (or dragons) behave in a certain way. As Stick gets to know her he begins to understand her fears, her vulnerability, and the loneliness of being the last of her kind.

Meeting the dragon - and facing his fears - turns Stick into a hero.

Being published soon after 2020’s Tiger Heart, The Dragon and Her Boy is your second book about the gutterlings, a group of young children who live on the streets of London. Although each story is fully self-contained and features a different character as the main protagonist, it feels as if there could be more stories to be written. What are your future writing plans and do they include further adventures of the gutterlings?

There is already a third one written - watch this space! - but I can’t say too much about that one at the moment I’m afraid!

As I wrote Tiger Heart and The Dragon and Her Boy the characters of the children in the gang - Fly and Stick, Tree and Cess, Squinty and Bandy - took on lives of their own, and I am always fizzing with ideas about their future adventures by the time I finish each book.

I have also been writing a book for older readers over the last few months - a kind of Regency romp crossed with Gothic mystery - which has been such fun!

I suspect that you’ve been able to do a fair bit of reading over the past year or so. Are there any children’s authors or books that you believe have had a significant influence on your writing style?

Oh the list is endless! Like so many authors, I was a passionate reader as a child, and I often re-read those books still. Joan Aiken was probably my all-time favourite - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Black Hearts in Battersea. Lots of historical authors like Leon Garfield, who is less well known now, but whose stories and use of language still send shivers down my spine.

But I have loved reading amazing authors like Frances Hardinge, Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Struan Murray, Katherine Rundell. I always try to catch up with new books when I’m between books of my own, and in the last few weeks I have really enjoyed The Valley of Lost Secrets, The Voyage of the Sparrowhawk, When Life Gives You Mangoes, Darwin’s Dragons … I’m half way through The Girl Who Speaks Bear, and The Last Bear is next on my list.

So many great books - so little time!

Review of The Dragon and Her Boy

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Tiger Heart, last year's Branford Boase Award nominated debut from Penny, I was absolutely thrilled to be sent a preview copy of The Dragon and Her Boy, which is set in the same world and features many recurring characters.

The story is set in and around 19th century London, although there's only a vague resemblance to the London that features in the history books. Stick, the main protagonist of the story, finds himself under the city streets, alongside a tired and increasingly frustrated dragon who's been trapped for several days. His options are limited, basically he either frees the dragon or ends up as her lunch. Although the two characters initially circle each other warily, they soon realise that, without trust, neither of them will escape their perilous situation.

Most of my favourite children's books focus on the importance of relationships (Varjak Paw and Edward Tulane, for example), which is one of the reasons that I found The Dragon and her Boy to be such a delightful read. Stick has to navigate his way through a wide range of relationships, including those with his fellow gutterlings (a group of children trying to survive on the harsh London streets), the villainous Sir Jasper and, most importantly, the dragon. Because he's such a kind-hearted and caring child, who shows enormous loyalty to the other gutterlings, Stick is very easy to empathise with and care about. An unexpected tragedy halfway through the book really reinforces how alone Stick and his friends are, and how every day is a literal fight for survival. The Dragon and Her Boy is a first-class adventure story that fully deserves its place in any Year 5/6 classroom library.

Bookshop Blurb by Allen Tsui

The first Bookshop Blurb of 2021 has been put together by Allen Tsui, primary and secondary computing teacher and children's book fanatic. Allen is usually to be found on Twitter (@TsuiAllen) sharing his enthusiasm and knowledge in one of the regular chats about children's books. Thank you for taking the time to write this Allen, it's hugely appreciated. If anyone else would like to write a Bookshop Blurb and help support your local independent children's bookshop, please let me know.

The Children's Bookshop

There are just some shops that don’t really grab one’s attention until becoming a teacher or parent but when they do, they make a life-long imprint. The Children’s Bookshop on Muswell Hill is just one of those stores. Filled wall to wall and floor to ceiling with a wonderful selection of the greatest children’s reads and a real treasure trove of titles for teachers of all ages.

It was on my very first in-store visit back in 2011 when I discovered my daughter was a complete Bookie Monster as the two-year-old made herself comfortable in the corner of the store, browsing the shelves of titles she was able to reach for what seemed like an eternity and carefully choosing a basket load of her favourites. The helpful and knowledgeable staff seem not only to be the most brilliant bibliophiles ever known to humankind but have the capability to obtain any title with moments of making requests. Their expertise is second to none too as I’ve experienced first-hand. Asking about an anthology of ghost stories suitable for sharing with 10 and 11-year-olds, I almost instantaneously received an e-mail reply with a range of recommendations.

Another memorable moment for me has been recommending and supplying the titles that have enabled me to make that cultural connection for my children given my own Chinese heritage. The Children’s Bookshop hasn’t sold out either, as some of their principal High Street Clone Town rivals have, filling their stores with cuddly toys to attract customers – not that there is anything wrong with having a plush mouse or Gruffalo. But for the Children’s Bookshop, it's all about the books. I'm fortunate to be within walking distance of what I think is one of Britain’s best Children’s Bookshops.

Website: www.childrensbookshoplondon.com

Twitter: @childrensbkshop