Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Best Children's Book Picks October 2023

 

Here is our post introducing the enchanting world of children's literature for October 2023! Let's embark on a delightful journey through my favorite book picks, where imagination knows no bounds and adventures await at every turn of the page. From whimsical tales of magic and friendship to heartwarming stories that teach valuable lessons. 

Alex Bell (Author), Beatriz Castro (Illustrator) - The Train of Dark Wonders - Published by Rock the Boat (5 Oct. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0861545964 - Paperback - Age: 8+

Bess has always loved her grandfather’s collection of curiosities. So she’s delighted when she’s handed the keys to his Odditorium. But unless she finds a way to draw in the crowds, she’ll have to close its doors for good.

When a mysterious train pulls into town, bound for The Land of Halloween Sweets, Bess hatches a plan and sneaks onboard. She is soon discovered by Beau the puppeteer, Louis the violinist and Maria the fire witch. Eager to join their adventure, Bess sets out to search for the rarest sweet of all – the ghostly gobstopper.    But the land is ruled by the fearsome Candymaker. And beneath the sugary surface, things are more dangerous than they first appear...

Guy Bass (Author), Alessia Trunfio (Illustrated) - SCRAP|:1 - Published by Little Tiger (12 Oct. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1788955973 - Paperback - Age: 7+ 

The year was Something Something. Humans had spread like peanut butter across the galaxy, looking for new planets to call Somewhere.
One of those planets was Somewhere Five One Three.

When the humans arrive on Somewhere 513, they discover that the robots sent to prepare the planet for Humanity’s arrival have chosen to keep it for themselves. Only one robot remains loyal – K1-NG, aka King of the Robots. But even with the most powerful robot on their side, the outlawed humans don’t stand a chance.

Ten years on, Gnat and her sister Paige are the only humans left and have spent their lives hidden underground. Now they must venture out in search of the one robot that stood by the humans. There’s just one problem – the once mighty K1-NG has vowed never to help another human for as long as he lives…

Anna Kemp (Author), David Wyatt (Illustrator) - The Hollow Hills (Vol 2) - Published by Simon & Schuster Children's UK (26 Oct. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1398503892 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

Nobody knows what lies inside the Knoll nor what form the Fae have taken after all these years . . . join a quest of a lifetime to rescue Goblyn Wood from the fae, with a sequel to Into Goblyn Wood for fans of Nevermoor and Podkin One-Ear! Are you ready to enter Goblyn Wood . . . ?

When Hazel ventured into Goblyn Wood, she discovered that she was part fairy and the Fae have been hoarding magic. Now, on a mission to help the other fairies and rescue her friend Pete, she needs to travel to the Fae Dominion. No one has been inside for years but Hazel arrives there, it’s a glorious paradise and Pete is happy. Hazel is sure that something is wrong but soon begins to forget about her mission. And in the world outside, the threat to Goblyn Wood is increasing…

Can Hazel complete her mission and help bring balance back to Goblyn Wood?

Loretta Schauer - The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart - Published by Andersen Press (5 Oct. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1839133091 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

For Lil, life at the Squawking Mackerel Inn couldn’t be more miserable. She's tasked with the sloppiest, grottiest jobs and picked on at every turn. Her only friend is Augustus Scratchy, a cantankerous crow with a habit of stealing. When the dread villain Rotten Bob Hatchet and his gang of cut-throat highwaymen begin attacking travellers on the road, things get really dire.

Joining forces with a new servant boy, Ned, and armed with the contents of the inn’s lost property cupboard, a pocket full of revolting dumplings and some knicker elastic, Lil comes up with a plot to scare off Rotten Bob. And so the legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart the Demon Highwayman is born!

Dangerous highwaymen, furious crows, ludicrous underwear, and a turnip apocalypse - stand and deliver!

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Children's Middle-Grade Book Picks (9-12yrs) September 2017 - UK Post Two

Chris Riddell - Goth Girl and the Sinister Symphony - Published by Macmillan Children's Books (7 Sept. 2017) - ISBN-13: 978-1447277941

There are musical goings-on at Ghastly-Gorm Hall and another spooky mystery for Ada Goth to solve in the fourth book in the Goth Girl series by Chris Riddell, Children's Laureate 2015-2017.

Lord Goth is throwing a music festival at Ghastly-Gorm Hall, with performances from the finest composers in the land. Ada can't wait, but it's quite distracting when her grandmother is trying to find her father a fashionable new wife, there's a faun living in her wardrobe and Maltravers is up to his old tricks. Ada must make sure everything goes to plan, and luckily help is at hand from a very interesting house guest . . .

Kieran Larwood (Author) David Wyatt (Illustrator) - The Five Realms: The Gift of Dark Hollow - Published by Faber & Faber (7 Sept. 2017) - ISBN-13: 978-0571328413

 The bard tiptoes out of his room, the crow-dream still echoing in his head, making him twitch at imaginary creaks of iron wings.

The bard must leave Thornbury. It is not safe for him to stay. Rue, his new apprentice, travels with him - keen to learn his trade - and hear the next installment in the legend of Podkin One-Ear . . . 

Podkin and his fellow rabbits have been sheltering in Dark Hollow after their battle with Scramashank. Paz tends to the rabbits with sleeping sickness; Crom meets with the war council . . . Podkin has nothing to do! Frustrated, Podkin goes exploring and discovers an abandoned underground chamber! Armed with the Gift of Dark Hollow, Podkin learns to moonstride, and Paz is rewarded with a magical gift of her own . . .

Jonathan Stroud - Lockwood & Co: The Empty Grave - Published by Corgi Childrens (21 Sept. 2017) - ISBN-13: 978-0552575799

Want to hear a ghost story? That's good. I know a few . . . After their recent adventures, the Lockwood & Co team deserve a well-earned break . . . so naturally they decide to risk their lives breaking into a heavily-guarded crypt. A building full of unsettled souls, it's also the final resting place of Marissa Fittes, the legendary and (supposedly) long-dead ghost hunter - though the team have their suspicions about just how dead she might be. What they discover changes everything. Pitched into a desperate race to get to the truth behind the country's ghost epidemic, the team ignite a final, epic battle against the Fittes agency. A battle that will force them to journey to the Other Side, and face the most terrifying enemy they have ever known. Can everyone make it out alive? 

Sue Purkiss - Jack Fortune and the Search for the Hidden Valley - Alma Books (28 Sept. 2017) - ISBN-13: 978-1846884283

An orphan child full of mischief, Jack lives with his crotchety widow aunt in eighteenth-century England. His naughtiness knows no limits, and when one day he goes a step too far, Aunt Constance decides that she s had enough: from now on, his bachelor uncle can take care of him. Uncle Edmund is in no way prepared for a boy with boundless energy and an impish streak and anyway, he s off to the Himalayas to search for rare plants! But Aunt Constance is absolutely determined, and Jack's uncle has no choice he will have to take the boy with him. What follows is a terrific adventure that will see Jack and his uncle the most unlikely of all expedition teams sail to India, cross the jungle and reach their mountainous destination, before returning to London to present their findings to the Royal Society. Along the way, Jack will finally come to terms with the great loss that has blighted his childhood years and discover, quite unexpectedly, that he and his late father have much in common.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Interview with Kieran Larwood - Podkin One-Ear (Faber & Faber)

Kieran Larwood's latest book, Podkin One-Ear, is about a legend: a fearsome warrior rabbit whose reputation for cunning and triumph in battle has travelled the ages. It is a magically illustrated fantasy affair that everyone will love, regardless of age. To tempt you all to read it, I have asked the author a range of questions regarding the book and his writing career. I hope that you enjoy this interview and it will grab you enough to pick up this book and read it, unless you have already done so. 

Podkin One-Ear is out now in all good bookshops and has been published by Faber &Faber in October 2016. 

Welcome Kieran Larwood to Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books... 

Tell us a little bit about yourself perhaps something not many people know. 
I live on the Isle of Wight where, as well as writing, I still work as a primary school teacher. I have four children and, just because my life wasn’t hectic enough, have recently adopted the world’s most annoying dog. I won the Times Children’s Fiction prize in 2011 with my first novel, and my second has just been published by Faber. Most people don’t know that my writing started accidentally– I always wanted to be a comic book artist, and I only discovered, while writing the scripts, that I actually enjoyed it more than drawing. 


How would do you sum up Podkin One-Ear to potential readers? 
My favourite comparison so far is ‘Watership Down meets Game of Thrones’. It’s a children’s fantasy set in a world populated by a race of rabbits. A bard arrives at a warren in the depths of winter and begins to tell the real tale behind the legend of Podkin One-Ear: a chieftain’s son who has to fight to save his world from an evil race of armoured rabbits.


In the book Podkin One-Ear is a fearsome warrior rabbit, how did you start to bring his character to life? 
I wanted to explore how legends are made, and what the real people (or rabbits) would be like. So Podkin begins as a spoilt, lazy character who has to grow up very quickly. I also wanted children to be able to identify with him, so he often feels very frightened and vulnerable, but manages to overcome it when he needs to. 


Does your book have a lesson or a moral behind it? 
I didn’t consciously give it a lesson, as I just wanted to focus on making it an epic story, but you could probably draw quite a few morals from it. Mostly that even the smallest, most timid of us can still do amazing things if we try. That and how important your family and friends are. 


What did you edit out of this book? 
I didn’t have to remove very much at all, luckily, but I did change quite a few things from the first draft. Originally, Podkin’s magic dagger spoke (and was very sarcastic) and the Gorm were just a race of invading rabbits, a bit like the Vikings. I was worried about making the story too dark and scary, but my agent told me to go for it, so I did! 

David Wyatt has done a cracking job on the illustrations, what are your personal thoughts about these? Do you have any favourites? 
I literally could not be happier with David’s work. It’s like he has a telepathic link to the world in my head! He is such an incredible artist– it’s an honour to have him illustrating my story. 

I love all of his pictures, but I think the scene of Boneroot, the underground beggars’ city, is my favourite. Every time I look at it, I spot a new detail I haven’t seen before. 


You're hosting a literary dinner party, which authors/illustrators would you invite? 
It would have to be a fantasy-themed one. Guest of honour would be J.R.R.Tolkein, also Terry Pratchett, Arthur Rackham, George R.R.Martin, J.K.Rowling, Robin Hobb, 
Ursula Le Guin, Steph Swainston and China Mieville. I would sit in the corner, too in awe of everyone to even speak. 


Do you think that the cover plays an important part in the buying process? 
Definitely. At least for that first split second when it catches your eye and makes you pick it up. After that, you start flicking through and the writing takes over, but it’s the cover that first reels you in. 


Have you written any other books that have not been published? 
I did write one after Freaks and before Podkin that didn’t get taken up. It’s a Young Adult sci-fi novel that still needs a bit of work, but hopefully might see the light of day at some point.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Guest Post by Cecilia Busby - Deep Amber/Frogspell (David Wyatt)

The Importance of Great-Aunts…

I have a bit of a thing for great-aunts. My nan was one of three sisters, so I had two great-aunts of my own – Auntie Joan and Auntie Joyce. They were a constant of my childhood – when my sister and I went to stay with my nan, which we did frequently, the visit was never complete without an afternoon round at one or the other aunt’s house, playing cards for small change, having sweet milky cups of tea and sticky gingerbread, going for a walk down to the parade of shops to buy an ice-cream or some sweets. Or just listening to the soothing sound of my nan and her two sisters reminiscing about growing up in India or complaining about the world in general and the inadequacies of men in particular.
As a teenager, long after those visits had ceased, I discovered P.G. Wodehouse and his endless parade of great-aunts.

Bertie Wooster had two very particular ones: Aunt Agatha (always on Bertie’s case and not to be crossed at any price) and Aunt Dahlia (a little more good natured but still requiring endless running around from Bertie that inevitably got him into sticky situations). I discovered on recent re-reading that they were strictly speaking aunts, rather than great-aunts, but, perhaps because they reminded me very strongly of my own great-aunts, that’s what I remember them being.
I hadn’t realised the extent to which great-aunts were lurking in my sub-conscious till I started writing my own books. In my first series, set in Arthurian England, the plot requires that the hero, Max, be given a very special cauldron.

And who should appear in the story to give it to him but a great-aunt – in this case, Great-Aunt Wilhelmina, who is an ancient dragon with a hoard of cauldrons. (Wilhelmina was the name of my own great-aunts’ great-aunt, who helped bring their mother up when both her parents died of cholera in India.)

Great-Aunt Wilhelmina was a fabulous character to have in the story – wise, very powerful, generally helpful but not above giving my child characters a stern talking to when they needed it. She also had the privilege that vast age brings, of being able to give even the more powerful adult characters (such as Merlin) a ticking off – always good for a bit of comic light relief!

But it was when another great-aunt forced her way into my next series that I realised I was very slightly obsessed… In this case, a powerful amber jewel, left in a box in Great-Aunt Irene’s house, causes siblings Cat and Simon all sorts of trouble when they move there after their great-aunt’s death.

Small objects keep disappearing – a pair of swimming goggles, a camera, a DS – and then a rather large object suddenly appears. A shining long-sword, in the middle of the stairs. No sooner has it arrived, than trouble – in the shape of two black-suited men called Mr Smith and Mr Jones – comes to the door. Cat and Simon have to try and work out what’s going on, and why they are attracting the interest of these two rather menacing officials. At the same time, in another world – one with magic and castles – apprentice witch Dora and kitchen boy Jem are trying to work out where the plastic goggles and picture-box have appeared from. When Cat and Simon finally track down the amber jewel and open the box it’s in, they discover they have another problem to deal with – the ghost of their great-aunt, trapped in the box with the amber.

Great-Aunt Irene is sarcastic, irascible, impatient and able to make herself alternately solid enough to throw vases at people’s heads, and immaterial enough to pass through walls. She chivvies and encourages the children through the difficult and dangerous tasks they find themselves involved in, as they try to find four magical pieces of amber and, more importantly, keep them out of the hands of the dark and sinister Lord Ravenglass. She may not be able to do much directly – she’s a ghost, after all – but she keeps everyone on their toes, and never lets them despair of finally winning out.

I’ve just written the last of the trilogy, The Amber Crown. At the end, Great-Aunt Irene has done her job, and she moves on. I felt genuinely tearful as I
wrote her farewells. Just like the characters in the book, I will miss her – as I still miss my own great-aunts. But I don’t suppose she’ll be the last great-aunt that finds her way into one of my books…

Cecilia Busby writes fantasy for children aged 7-12 as C.J. Busby.
“Great fun – made me chortle” – Diana Wynne Jones on Frogspell
“A rift-hopping romp with real charm, wit and pace” – Frances Hardinge on Deep Amber www.cjbusby.co.uk
Twitter: @ceciliabusby

Author Guest Post #2: C. J. Busby - My Favourite Read - Eight Days of Luke’, by Diana Wynne Jones

                                             

Twitter: @ceciliabusby             Website: http://www.frogspell.co.uk/

‘Eight Days of Luke’, by Diana Wynne Jones

I first read Eight Days of Luke when I was about nine, not long after it had come out. It was just about the best book I had ever read, and from that point on and on the basis of that book only, Diana Wynne Jones was my favourite author. I checked every library or bookshop I entered for other books by Diana Wynne Jones. Never being quite sure whether I would find her under ‘W’ for Wynne, or ‘J’ for Jones meant that the disappointment of finding no trace of her was always delayed till I had thoroughly checked both places, as well as the letters either side in case a book had got misplaced. But although I did find Charmed Life (quickly another favourite), there was generally no sign of her. So I read Eight days of Luke again. And again. I probably got it out of our library at least ten times (why on earth didn’t my parents buy it for me? But somehow books seemed too expensive in those days to actually own!) It’s not hard, even now, to recapture that sense I had as I read it that here was something completely out of the ordinary – utterly compelling and magical. It’s the particular combination of the ordinary everyday world with the world of myth that marks out a Diana Wynne Jones book – rarely are her books completely set in a fantasy realm, and even when they are, there is a kind of matter-of-factness at the heart of what happens. 

David, the protagonist of Eight Days of Luke, is an ordinary schoolboy, in the horrible situation of being dumped with a whole bunch of rather selfish and unpleasant relatives in the school holidays because his parents are dead. One particular holiday, thoroughly miserable and angry, David decides to curse them. His curse, all made-up words and emotional release, suddenly takes on a life of its own, a combination of ‘fierce terrible words’ that ‘asked to be said’. As he finishes declaiming them, the garden wall comes crashing down around him, and a strange, red-haired boy appears in the ruins – Luke. From then on, David’s life changes, immensely for the better, although Luke gets him into all sorts of scrapes, and draws the attention of some very mysterious and powerful people: Mr Chew, Mr Wedding, Mr Fry. It soon becomes clear that David isn’t the only one with difficult relatives – these people are after Luke for something terrible he’s done, and only David can save him, by somehow finding the ‘object’ that Luke stole, without knowing what it is. 

Anyone who is familiar with the Norse legends – and when I first read the book, I had thoroughly absorbed Roger Lancelyn Green’s magnificent Myths of the Norsemen – realises quite quickly that Luke is the Norse trickster god, Loki, master of fire and mischief. It follows that Mr Chew is Tyr, Mr Wedding, Woden, and Mr Fry, Frey. Suddenly, it’s as if you are reading the book with double vision: the ordinary and the mythological, the mundane and the magical, side by side – and it’s this, I think, that makes Diana Wynne Jones’s books get under your skin in such a thorough way. It’s impossible, after that, not to have the sense that only a thin veil separates your everyday life from the world of magic and myth. Any time, any day, you might just enter an amusement arcade and find yourself in Valhalla, or cross a bridge and realise it was an echo, a ghost, of Bifrost. Unlike with Harry Potter, ordinary people are not forever walled off from the magical world as unknowing Muggles – they are always just one step away from diving into or being caught up in the magical or mythological.  The effect of this revelation at the age of nine was a completely exhilarating ‘extra sense’ of magical possibilities in the everyday world that has never left me. For me (as for Neil Gaiman) it makes Diana Wynne Jones simply the best writer of magic for children there is. And although I have now managed to find and read (and re-read, frequently!) almost everything she’s ever written, Eight Days of Luke is probably still my favourite book.

About the Author

C. J. Busby was brought up on boats and in caravans in the southeast of England and north Wales. She lived in south India for a year for her PhD, and then taught Social Anthropology at universities in Edinburgh, London and Kent. She lives in Devon and has three children and currently works on environmental issues with schools, and is a copyeditor for an academic press. Her first picture book text, The Thing, was shortlisted for the Nickelodeon Jr national Write a Bedtime Story competition. 

Artwork Collection - David Wyatt & Chris Riddell

I thought it was about time I shared some of my original artwork with you all,  as I've posted and shared some in the past with people on Facebook and Twitter!

The top drawing was done by David Wyatt, which was used in the fantastic books by Michael Malloy - (Witches series) of books. Not sure what's happened to him, his last book was published about eight years ago, an author I really miss.

The next pen and ink drawing is by the hand of Chris Riddell - The Story Giant by Brian Patten. Which I believe to be out of print, which is a shame really. I hope you enjoy this experiment post. If I get some good feedback, I will do some more in the next few months or so......

Book Plug #7 - C . J . Busby - Cauldron Spells - Illustrated by David Wyatt

                                             
Get ready for more thrills, spills and spells in 2012! We now have book two out. Published by Templar.

Max Pendragon is not looking forward to attending Morgana Le Fay’s summer Spell School. Not only is his battered cauldron producing slimy sludge instead of perfect spells, but ever since he and his sister Olivia foiled evil Morgana’s plot against King Arthur, they have been wary of her plans for revenge.

Max and Olivia soon discover that Spell School has more in store for them than they ever imagined. With the help of Merlin and a mysterious bard, Caradoc, will they be able to outwit Morgana and save Arthur for a second time?

(All Images are By David Wyatt and subject to copyright 2012).

About the Author

C. J. Busby lived on boats until she was sixteen and often moved from place to place. She remembers one terrifying crossing of the English Channel in gale-force winds, when her family’s barge nearly overturned. She spent most of her childhood with her nose in a book, even when walking along the road. Luckily she survived to grow up, but she still carried on reading whenever she could. 

After studying science at university, she lived in a South Indian fishing village and did research for her PhD. She currently lives in Devon with her three children. She borrows their books whenever they let her.

Barry Hutchison - The 13th Horseman Book Cover Revealed By David Wyatt

Recently I saw this amazing image for the forthcoming new book written by Barry Hutchison. However, we will all have to wait until March 2012 for it to be released. Although, I have a small synopsis below to tempt you into reading more . . . . . enjoy!

Drake Finn has just met the Horsemen of the Apocalypse but is that really the end of the world? Pratchett meets Python in this dark comic fantasy with plenty of action, perfect for 11+ boys
Drake is surprised to find three horsemen of the apocalypse playing snakes and ladders in his garden shed. He’s even more surprised when they insist that he is one of them. They’re missing a Horseman, having gone through several Deaths and they think that Drake is the boy for the job. At first he’s reluctant to usher in Armageddon but does being in charge of Armageddon have to spell the end of the world?
An apocalyptic blend of riotous comedy, heart-stopping action and a richly imagined fantasy adventure.

Many thanks to David who gave permission for his cover to be shared on this blog. To view other fantastic preliminary sketches for this book please click on the link below to visit Mr Wyatt's blog. http://davidwyatt.posterous.com/the-13th-horseman