Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Favourite Children's Book Picks - AUGUST 2026 - UK Post

 

Freddie Kölsch - SPINDLEWOOD - Published by Puffin (27 Aug. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0241753873 - Paperback - Age: 7+

Lilac Black does not believe in ghosts. So she’s rather surprised to learn she comes from a long line of gifted Seers, all of whom attended Spindlewood: a top-secret boarding school for children with the power to see, hear and communicate with spirits.

And now, Lilac has an invitation to Spindlewood herself. The only problem? There's been a huge misunderstanding. Lilac does not have the gift.

Reluctant to disappoint her proud uncles, and curious to see this mysterious school for herself, she decides to play along. But as Lilac’s web of lies becomes more tangled, one thing is clear: there is something wrong at Spindlewood. Something ancient and sinister, hidden beneath the library. Something connected to the long-ago disappearance of Lilac's parents.

  Eiko Kadono (Author), Joe Todd-Stanton (Illustrator), Emily Balistrieri (Translator) - Kiki and the New Magic - Published by Puffin (27 Aug. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0241825198 - Paperback - Age: 7+

Join Kiki, the beloved young witch, and her clever cat Jiji in the enchanting sequel to the modern classic! 

This new translation will reveal more about the story that inspired the Hiyao Miyazaki film, Kiki's Delivery Service.

It has been a year since Kiki started her new life as an honest-to-goodness witch, and the - not quite so - little courier has become a real celebrity.

But fame comes with its own set of challenges. As Kiki faces increasingly perilous tasks, her friendships with Jiji and Tombo are put to the test. Doubts creep in, leading her to question her purpose.

Danny Wallace (Author), Tor Freeman (Illustrator), - Henry Tudor: The Incredible Diaries of Me!- Published by Simon & Schuster Children's UK (27 Aug. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1398554412 - Age: 7+

Horrible Histories meets Horrid Henry meets Loki, in the laugh-out-loud funny diary adventures of a royally awful young Henry VIII. Enjoy immersive sound design, silly sound effects, and the incredible combined vocal talents of Jude Farrant and Danny Wallace in the must-listen audiobook of The Incredible Diaries of Me!

Prince Henry is eight and a half, and definitely the BEST at EVERYTHING. The best at jousting, the best at sword fighting, the best at archery and wrestling, and stealing pies from the kitchen. But after a mysterious stranger challenges Henry to a series of competitions, nothing seems to be going his way. Can Henry prove to everyone that they’re wrong, he’s right (as always), and he IS the best at everything? And just who is this mysterious stranger anyway?! 

Discover the rudest, snobbiest, most chaotic new voice in middle grade, with this hilarious, mostly historical diary series starring the famous royal that everyone loves to hate, from bestseller Danny Wallace.

Annie Graves  (Author), Glenn McElhinney (Illustrator) - The Nightmare Club: The Elsewhere Funfair - Published by LITTLE ISLAND (‎ 6 Aug. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1912417179 - Age: 7+

Welcome to the Nightmare Club, the sleepover that is definitely not for wimps. Annie Graves is your host, and she only invites guests who can tell really creepy stories.

Lynn thinks her granny is really cool, until family secrets start creeping out… Reader be warned – a trip to the funfair does not always turn out as planned!

Don’t come snivelling to Annie if you’re sorry you ever opened this book … You’ve been warned!

CAI Pictures Press: Release: The Three Hares proof-of-concept short CP

THE THREE HARES

Los Angeles – October 31, 2016, All Hallow’s Eve
Director Tony Catter and CAI Studio Pictures debut film project THE THREE HARES has completed its first step towards a feature film goal with a release of its highly anticipated lofty proof-of-concept short today, October 31 2016, All Hallow’s Eve. THE THREE HARES was filmed entirely in Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire England with all post done in Los Angeles at CAI Studio. Set in Wiltshire, England in the year 2023 and starring Oliver Park, THE THREE HARES is a dark fantasy proof-of-concept short. 

After a long absence, magic has returned to England – with dire consequences.

A new shadow department of MI5, Magical Artifact Recovery, has been tasked with tracking down all magical artifacts lost during the Great Rupture. Only a few know the true power and location of the most formidable magical artifact, the Three Hares Cameo, but their days are numbered.... THE THREE HARES is based on true untold legends of the west country of England. Many have seen the magical shape-shifting witch hares, but few have lived to tell the tales. Mystery further surrounds the revered Chinese Three Hares Insignia, found in churches across England; three hares entwined in a circle connected by their ears, whose true meaning is lost to the sands of time and the Silk Road.

The Three Hares from CAI Studio on Vimeo.

Studio Pictures
5768 WEST PICO BLVD SUITE 200
LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA 90019 P: 323.643.1685 

Interview with Gabrielle Kent - Alfie Bloom and the Secrets of Hexbridge Castle

Welcome all. Today, I am very lucky to be interviewing Gabrielle Kent, author of Alfie Bloom and the Secrets of Hexbridge Castle. This book has already been published by Scholastic Press on the 4th June 2015. I'd like to thank Gabrielle for agreeing to this interview as I have heard so many good things about Alfie Bloom. One review that I read described it as having 'lovely Potter-esque touches'. It sounds like my kind of read so I've added it to my reading list ... 

I hope that this interview inspires you to read Alfie on his first outing, I think it should. 

How would you describe your debut book Alfie Bloom and the Secrets of Hexbridge Castle to potential readers?
The book falls into the category of magical realism, which is the area that has always interested me most as a reader. I love to imagine that magical happenings are possible in our world. The story is about a young boy who inherits a castle full of wonders that has been sealed for centuries. The age range is middle grade, but I like to think that it would appeal to anyone with a love of magic and mystery.

Give us an insight into the main character. What does he do that is so special?
Alfie soon discovers that he was born in the very castle he inherits, but over six hundred years ago during a magical timeslip. There, Orin Hopcraft, the last of the great druids, hid an ancient magic inside him which others seek, but which should never be used. Alfie must learn to control the magic inside him, as well as protecting a dark secret hidden deep below the castle. Orin Hopcraft has also left Alfie a talisman with a magical lens which allows him to unlock some of the secrets of Hexbridge Castle. Apart from that, he’s a perfectly ordinary boy.
I love red hair, I have dyed mine copper since I was sixteen. There are no books I can think of with a redheaded boy as a main character and I wanted to share my love of this hair colour.

As a game development lecturer, has this role influenced any part of the story?
As a game developer I can’t help seeing my writing through those eyes. While I was writing I was imagining how the castle would work as game levels and what mysteries and puzzles players would solve. I even had ideas for potion mixing and hidden object games. Several students of mine worked on a lovely little game based on the book. Alfie falls asleep in his library and his talisman is stolen by books that have come to life. It will be up my site or Scholastic’s own soon, I’d love to know what people think.

Through organising the Animex festival I have a good insight into the worlds of animation and visual effects. While I was writing I felt as though I had a film camera on my shoulder. I was imagining how certain scenes would be shot, and even how the VFX could be achieved. The big showdown and the scene on the barn roof are my favourite visual scenes.

Are there any particular authors that have influenced your writing?
Too many to mention, but Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl always had a special place in my heart as a child, and I was surprised at how much of an influence they seemed to have on me as was writing.
I adore the work of Neil Gaiman and particularly Terry Pratchett. I would love to be able to write like them, but I think that I am starting to evolve my own style and I’m excited to see how it develops.

Did anything surprise you during the writing process?
While writing can be a really hard slog at times, it’s interesting to see how your brain sometimes throws you solutions to problems that really surprise you. It’s like having a little helper on your shoulder. I was amazed at some of the clever little ideas it gave me, they really felt as though they were coming from a different person.

The biggest surprise was when I decided to change Alfie’s best mate from a boy called Danny Chapman into a girl called Amy Siu. I pinched the name Siu from a friend and suddenly realised that she had gone from a Caucasian boy to a mixed race girl. And it changed hardly anything in the story! I’d recommend everyone try flipping the gender of their characters, it really challenges your preconceptions. I even left Madeleine’s little crush on Danny in there. It became a bit of a girl crush she has on Amy, she really wants to be just like her. And who wouldn’t?

What do you think makes a good story? 
I like stories that don’t answer all of the questions they raise and leave you wondering about characters and hints long after you have read the book. There are a few mysteries in the Secrets of Hexbridge Castle that are not answered just yet, and I love hearing people’s theories on what they think will happen. I think folks will be surprised, particularly by Ashford’s big secret, which is answered in book two! I have also planted a few seeds that probably won’t be spotted just yet, but they will definitely grow.

Are you currently involved in any writing projects that you can tell us about?
I have just finished book two in the Alfie Bloom series and am now at the planning stage for book three. When I thought Alfie might not make it to print, I started work on another project about a Mauritian girl who goes on a very strange journey. Her name is Ashwina Flynn and I hope to finish her story at some point. I also have an idea for a book for adults that is knocking on my skull, trying to get out. I really love the idea and will definitely let it out at some point, perhaps even as a short story.

Can you pass on any tips regarding the writing process to other budding writers?
Structure your book before you even start to write! When I started writing this book I had so many ideas and tried to cram everything in with only a rough idea of where the story was going. As a result it took me years to edit it into something publishable. I had some great scenes in there, but some of them just didn’t advance the plot in any way. With book two I sat down and typed up a rough summary of each chapter. Of course some of these things changed once I started writing, but it was so much easier to have the skeleton of my book sitting in front of me.

I would also tell first time writers DO NOT EDIT AS YOU WRITE! It wastes so much time. Just trust your future self to pick up errors and issues and correct them later. With book two I left myself lots of little notes such as ‘make this bit less rubbish’ and ‘more drama in this scene’.
My husband, Satish, did something very cool with an excel spreadsheet. He rated all of my chapters out of 10 for interest, intrigue and drama, then turned the figures into a graph. It was amazing to see as it highlighted the fact that the book flatlined for a little while after chapter three. Many agents and publishers had loved my writing, but had lost interest after three chapters. Now I knew why! After a couple of drastic cuts, the first publisher to see it snapped it up!

Do you think that the book cover plays an important part in the buying process?
I think it does. I started reading Terry Pratchett because of the amazing covers by Josh Kirby - I kept reading them because of the
brilliant writing. I wasn’t too sure about the suitability of the cover for Alfie Bloom when I first saw it, but the reaction from children has been amazing, they really seem to love it. It taught me to always trust my publisher’s marketing decisions!

What are your thoughts about how to encourage more children to read?
I know a lot of children who have started reading after discovering books based on their favourite games, such as Minecraft. Storytelling in games is getting much better and now spins off into tie-in books and comics. These are a great way to encourage children to discover the joy of reading. I’ve seen children read these and then discover that they want to read books of different genres.

What do you like to do when you're not writing?
Reading, making art, playing computer games, and visiting castles! I have so many castles left to visit. I’d love to explore some of the wonderful ones over in Germany.

As writing is the job I do in my spare time, much of the rest of my life is taken up with the day job, teaching computer games development to university students, and organising Animex, an international festival of computer games and animation. I love teaching, working in the games industry and writing, so I count myself very lucky that I get to do all three.

Aardman Animation’s: The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists! Movie Trailer

This film looks like a winner to me from the brilliant people who brought you Wallace and Gromit  and one my favourite films Chicken Run. Take a look on the Captain's Log Production Blog which is also great fun.
http://thepirates-movie.tumblr.com/