The love of reading and collecting Children's Books.
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Reading, rumbling and reviewing and collecting all children's books . . . from J.K Rowling to Philip Pullman, as well as up and coming authors. This is for like-minded enthusiasts, who are as passionate about modern-day children's authors as we are. So enjoy, communicate and share the love of books with us.
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This Easter we are Running wild with Wolf Brother in a Stone Age world we all want to be a part of again. The Eight Book will paw its way into the world published by Zephyr on the 1st April 2021. This is another great book in one of the best long-running series. Torak, Renn and Wolf are back in a dangerous and magical world. A mouth-watering adventure in their beloved forest.
It has been very well researched and is packed full of fantasy and adventure. All of which, is told in rich detail that makes your heart sing and your wolf soul dance in such a way that time disappears in no time at all. A dark shadow rises to a meteorite crescendo that will have readers hooked until the very last page. I'm looking forward to possibly the last book in the series in 2022. Another brilliant read!
In the Dark Time of midwinter, disaster strikes the Forest. Chaos rules. Bears woken from their dens prowl the shadowy valleys. Desperate clans battle for survival. Only demons thrive.
With their world in turmoil, Torak, Renn and Wolf are tested as never before. And as a new evil haunts the devastated land, Torak must risk his sanity, his life and even his souls to save everything he loves...
Skin Taker carries you back to the Stone Age, to nature, drawing you deeper into an astonishing environment and adventure which began with Wolf Brother.
Enter the arena and welcome twelve-year-old Dido, who dreams of becoming the first female charioteer, at the great Circus Maximus. The book Circus Maximus: Race to the Death has already been published by Zephyr Books on 4th March 2021. It is set in Ancient Rome and has both historical and strong female character interests.
I'm delighted to have a brilliant interview with Annelise Gray below to find out more about this intriguing book. We really hope you enjoy this as much as we did and that both the book and setting come alive for you as you read this Q&A. If you have already been fortunate to have read this book then we would love to know your thoughts. Equally, please get in touch if you have any questions. Otherwise, thanks for reading and have a great day.
1.When and where did you get the idea to write Circus Maximus: Race to the Death?
The inspiration was seeded when I was a quiet child with an obsession for pony adventure stories. My favourite was Enid Bagnold’s National Velvet, which is about a girl called Velvet Brown who wins a horse in a raffle and dreams of riding him to victory at the Grand National. The idea proper for Circus Maximus: Race to the Death came to me about six years ago when I was watching a Formula One race on TV. I was thinking about the lack of female drivers and suddenly had the image of my main character Dido. I envisaged her as a cross between Velvet Brown and Lewis Hamilton – a brave, scrappy girl, living in ancient Rome and hoping to break into the all-male world of chariot racing. It took me several years to really commit to writing the book though – I was very busy with my teaching job. In the end though, Dido kept calling to me and I knew I had to go back.
2.How would you describe the story to potential readers?
An action-packed, mystery-laced historical adventure about a girl, a horse and an impossible dream…
3.Dido dreams of becoming the first female charioteer. When writing her character, how did you inject realism into it? What do you think it would be like to be a girl in Roman times?
It’s a very hard question to answer, just because we know so little, relatively speaking, about the experience of being a girl in antiquity. Women’s voices are almost entirely absent from the Roman literary record – what we know about them is framed in terms of the ideal expected from them by society. So I find it hard to say what it was like to be a girl in Roman times other than that if you were to take me back there in a time machine and ask me to live as one, I’m pretty confident I’d hate it – the lack of freedom and education for a start, as well as the expectation that you live according to the rules made by the male members of your family. One thing that might make it bearable is if you had good friends and there is some evidence for close female friendships in Roman society – something which incidentally, Dido lacks for much of the book. She is an outlier, really, able to live outside the usual societal norms for a number of reasons. The first of these is her age - she’s only twelve when we first meet her, just shy of the typical age for marriage. Another is her class - her father Antonius is a trainer and ex-charioteer, which placed him a long way down the social pecking order and the usual hierarchies might not have mattered so much in that world, which allows Dido the leeway to run wild around the stables where Antonius works at the beginning of the book. Having said that, being a charioteer was most definitely not an acceptable ambition for a girl and both Antonius and Dido know that and accept it (very reluctantly in her case).
4.What kind of research did you do to recreate ancient Roman times? How accurate have you been with the history of this time period?
I have a PhD in Classics and I used to work as a research assistant to authors and TV companies on books and dramas about the ancient world. So although I was keen to avoid the book feeling like a history lesson disguised as a novel, achieving a high standard of historical accuracy was important to me, particularly when it came to conjuring up the world of chariot racing. For that, I drew on a wide range of sources to create as authentic a portrait as possible, including accounts by Roman writers which give us a taste of what it was like to be in the crowd watching a race and the fanatical behaviour of some of the supporters. One of the latter was the Emperor Caligula, who features as a character in my book and really was an obsessive fan of the Green racing faction, as I describe him. Images from ancient art give us our best idea of how the chariots were designed and what the charioteers wore, while we also have inscriptions which tell us the names and colours of the horses and the career statistics of the best drivers. Other sources such as Roman recipe books helped to paint a picture of the sights, tastes, colours and smells of Dido’s world.
5.Are there any Roman facts that you know that people might be less familiar with?
In terms of the events described in the book, I think readers might be surprised by the echoes between modern and ancient sporting culture. The most successful charioteers were huge celebrities in Rome. People would follow them around the city and even Emperors could get obsessed – Nero is supposed to have cut his hair in the same style as his favourite racing driver. There was a healthy trade in sporting merchandise and you hear about people buying clothes for their children in the colours of their favourite team.
One of my absolute favourite morsels of evidence that I came across when researching Race to the Death was a chariot games token that was found in the grave of a young girl. It evokes such a powerful image – the idea that maybe this girl loved watching the races and her family buried it with her as a keepsake of a happy day.
6.This is your debut book, what was the writing process like for you?
Race to the Death is my first children’s novel although it’s not the first book I’ve had published. About ten years ago, I wrote a non-fiction account of the women of imperial Rome and a few years after that I wrote a crime novel set in the Roman Republic (both for the adult market and written under the name Annelise Freisenbruch). But the writing process was different for all three books. For this one, I had to learn a new craft. I took plenty of wrong turns along the way and it was a long process, but I also found it a joyful and satisfying experience overall because I finally felt as if I was writing in my true author voice after many years of trying to figure out what that really was.
7.I believe you might be writing another book connected to this one. What have you learned from writing the first book that may help you write the second?
I am indeed in the process of writing the second in the Circus Maximus series, which will cover the next chapter of Dido’s story. I didn’t really contemplate writing a sequel until I’d finished Race to the Death. Two things I’ve learned are not to include a character unless they have a job to do moving the story forward (several got cut during the edits of Race to the Death) and also to really think about the emotional journey for the characters and try to express that on the page. I didn’t include enough of Dido’s inner voice in earlier drafts of the book and my amazing editor Fiona helped me draw that out.
8.I'm a massive fan of a hardback book. What do you most appreciate about the production of the book?
My publisher, Zephyr, takes great pride in producing books that are beautiful to look at as well as read. I fell in love with the cover as soon as they showed it to me. It’s designed by Levente Szabo and I adore the sense of yearning and aspiration in the way the Dido figure is looking at the Circus in the distance, but also the atmosphere of danger and darkness in it. The little hints of gold are also exquisite, they weren’t there on the proof copy and were the most gorgeous surprise when I took delivery of the final book.
9.During this pandemic what has helped you through any difficult times?
I am incredibly lucky to live in a beautiful, rural part of England and being able to go out for big walks in the open countryside definitely helped my sanity. I’ve found writing extremely difficult at times over the last year – almost tortuous. Cooking is always therapeutic for me and I’ve blithely and willingly sacrificed my waistline for my sense of well-being. Whatever the day throws at you, it’s helpful to know there’s a nice meal, a little glass of wine and a good TV show to watch at the end of it.
10.Could you share some of the favourite books that you own?
I’ve already mentioned that the book which inspired Circus Maximus: Race to the Death more than any other is National Velvet by Enid Bagnold. I am embarrassed to confess that I removed the copy from my school library when I was about ten and I have never given it back. It’s sacred to me.
Probably my favourite fiction title of all time is I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. More than any other book I can think of, it absolutely captures the uncertainty, idealism and heartache of growing up, all of which I identify with hugely.
My desert island book though is actually How to Eat by Nigella Lawson. I bought my copy when I was at university and just learning to cook. It’s incredibly tatty now and covered in food stains. But I read it and re-read it like a novel. (Favourite recipe of many: the chocolate puddings on page 187. Eat ‘em and weep).
One of the books I have read recently is the second book by Ewa Jozefkowicz entitled Girl 38: Finding a friend. It was actually published in March 2019 by Zephyr so I am a little bit behind with this one. Ewa's debut novel The Mystery of the Colour Thief was shortlisted for the Waterstone's Children's Prize 2019. This second book builds on the same characteristics of her debut story, but with a little added extra superpower layered into the storyline. The first part of the story follows Kat, a 12-year-old girl, who loves working on her super-heroine in her Comic: Girl 38. Kat is lonely as her parents are busy working long hours and, at school, Gem is no longer her 'best friend'. This part of the plot draws out the narrative with a considerate and heartfelt approach. The second part of the story is told through the creation of Kat's inventive super-hero, a comic that she starts to write. It's a place that Kat loses herself in, an imaginary world that pulls into the contemporary thread fantastically. This helps to water down the tension, seriousness, and the dark situations that the characters face in the book. The final part of the storyline is also the most compelling. It is the real-life story told by Ania, Kat's lonely next-door neighbour. The story is set at the time of WWII in Poland retelling the encounters by Ania such as her daring leap to freedom, and her search for her lost friend, Mila. Unfortunately, she was taken away by soldiers to a 'walled village' at the outbreak of the war. This part explains the terrifying, darkest times and the emotions that Ania faced through her ordeal. It is told in snippets that all pull the story threads through a rollercoaster of events creating a magical performance. It really softens the heartstrings and makes it a joy to read. All the stories relate to unlikely friendships both new and old as well as overcoming fear in the darkest and bleakest of times. However, it also teaches us about courage, bravery, and superhero powers as Kat unravels the mystery of the girl in the painting. This is all done with an imaginative flair by a writer who understands how to keep a reader engrossed. It encompasses the darkness as well as showering the reader with light, love, and warmth told through great storytelling. This is a fantastic thought-provoking read that will be loved by everybody regardless of age. It shows both human frailties and strengths in a blink of an eye. It is a fantastic adventure from start to finish - a book to savour and reflect upon.
Viper's Daughter by Michelle Paver is out now, published by Zephyr (an imprint of Head of Zeus) priced £12.99 in hardback.
Viper's Daughteris the seventh book in the award-winning series that began withWolf Brother.
Selling over 3 million copies with a million copies sold in the UK
Published in 36 languages
Winner of The Guardian Children's Fiction Prize
WOLF BROTHER began the literature journey back in 2004 when the world was a different place for you, I and even the characters. The series continued with another five books, ending in 2009 with GHOST HUNTER. All explored the adventures and the troubles of Torak, Renn, Wolf, their friends and, of course, their enemies. I'm sure that many avid readers (like me) have held the characters in their fantasy hearts for all those years; they have lived on in spirit within us as we have not wanted them to disappear. Eleven years have now past and, finally, the characters have been brought to life once again. We have an exciting new adventure full of courage, hope and another dramatic quest to follow and indulge in. On opening VIPER'S DAUGHTER, my heart beat a little faster as I found myself at home once again. The spirits were awoken and continued to live on through another amazing adventure.
The sense of adventure and the human soul are captured with maturity. Michelle Paver's sense of adventure is an absolute joy to read; the landscape and the characters have come of age with her great passion for the outdoors and a great sense of history. The plot has a wonderful sense of drama that is captured in this new episode and could easily be read as a standalone story or as a continuation of this wonderful series. So, if you have not read any of the other books in the series then what can you expect?
A setting that is set deep in the past that will have you engrossed and intrigued;
Brilliant descriptive detail that transports you to that place and time;
Characters that are full of warmth, realistic, complex and yet still very relatable;
A plot full of action, drama and suspense.
The story is driven by morals, giving the reader a real sense of emotion and dilemma as it pulls the threads tightly through the eye of a storm. Especially, as the darker side of the story deepens and situations become more tricky to deal with. The book has been brilliantly researched - you can tell the author has visited the places depicted in the book. It really helps the readers to resonate with the setting as you visualise the places. The detail is really astounding and, at a time like this, it makes you feel as if you are outdoors in the wilderness living and breathing the story.
This is your chance to enter a world that will captivate and enthrall you with a large body of work that has already found many readers across the world. The book covers are all wonderful and look brilliant on any bookshelf! I believe another book in the series will be published midway in 2021. These are already a classic (in my opinion) but perhaps they will become even more widely known and cherished as they are being adapted for TELEVISION.
As part of this post, I have included the synopsis to give you an idea of what this book is about. There are also some YOUTUBE Videos for you to watch including an author talk and a reading by Sir Ian McKellen. Finally, I have embedded a link to obtain free readers' notes which are very useful, fun and a great tool for learning. I hope you really enjoy this post and extra materials. Please stay safe and be kind to each other.
A boy. A wolf. The legend lives on.
The world of Torak and Renn is that of six thousand years ago: after the Ice Age, but before farming spread to north-west Europe when the land was one vast Forest. The people looked like you or me, but their way of life was very different. They lived in small clans, some staying at a campsite for a few days or moons, others staying put all year round. They didn’t have writing, metals or the wheel – but they didn’t need them. They were superb survivors. They knew all about the animals, trees, plants, and rocks around them. When they wanted something they knew where to find it, or how to make it. Like the previous books in the series, Viper’s Daughter takes place in northern Scandinavia. The wildlife which Torak and Renn encounter on their adventures is appropriate ➔
And don't forget to check out the rest of the blog tour! Details are below:
Viper's Daughter Readers' Notes
Free download perfect for home learning - Download for FREE HERE
Yaba Badoe is an award-winning Ghanaian-British documentary filmmaker and writer. Her first acclaimed children's novel was A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars which was nominated for the Carnegie Medal in 2019. Wolf Light is her second children's book and will be released in paperback this Jan 2020 by Zephyr. It has an absolutely fantastic book cover which has been illustrated by Leo Nickolls. I think it is amazing and just love it. After a brief flicker and a flutter of the pages, you are instantly transported into a place of pure fantasy and magical realism. There are three sacred places of sanctuary in this book, each with its own narrative that goes straight to the human heart. It starts with three spiritual sisters: Zula, Adoma, and Linet who are connected by their destiny from the day they were born. Even though they all live in a different part of the world, they share a special spiritual connection. As a result, they have to harness the magic of the elements and protect their sacred spaces by watching over the respective lands where they live. This journey enables us to dance through the tropical forests of Ghana as well as sing with the harsh stormy moors of Cornwall. It is a very powerful story that considers the relationships we have with the world around us and the consequences of the damage we cause to this planet every day. A voice is calling on the elemental spirits and, thus, planting the seed of a plot before showering us with a beautiful and extraordinary tale. You will embark upon a brilliant story of both light and darkness which pulses with loss, love and the eternal destruction of the planet. The tale takes us on a whirlwind of an adventure as the leopard dances and leaps under the moon and a wolf howls in the distance. This poetic vision of colour rustles through the trees and shimmers on the lakeshore. This is a great topical read that is very thought-provoking. It covers some important themes such as feminism, family, relationships, and environmental damage. All of which are told as a brilliant narrative, they are certainly as good as any you will read for some time. This is a book to savour and contemplate as the earth lives and breathes around us.
Even though she's terrified of the sea, a girl who believes her mum might have been a mermaid runs away to the ocean to solve the mystery of who she really is. Stella is the odd one out. She sleepwalks, is terrified of water, yet obsessed by the ocean. Her mum who died when Stella was eight remains the biggest mystery of all. Who was she and why did she give Stella a necklace called 'the word of the sea' before she died? Nobody can give her any answers. Her father is consumed by grief and her grandmother's memories are fading with dementia.
When Stella's only friend in the world, Cam, moves house, Stella runs away. She's determined to find out who her mum was and who she is too. She ends up in the Crystal Cove, a run-down aquarium with a mermaid show. There she meets Pearl who reveals disturbing secrets. It's only by facing her fear of the ocean that Stella will truly uncover the truth.
Summer is here with a loud bang. Wimbledon and strawberries, blue sky and sun, sandy beaches and ice cream, as well as loads of great books to read. With so many books wanting and waiting to grab your attention, July is all about books that inspire the readers to escape and to enjoy the great outdoors. The first book for review is Tania Unsworth, The Girl Who Thought Her Mother Was a Mermaid, published by Zephyr on the 12th July 2018. The book cover artwork by Helen Crawford-White is absolutely brilliant and instantly makes you want to explore the story inside. All you have to do is turn the pages and dive straight into the crisp cool waters of the narrative. Once the pages are turned, you are introduced to the main character, Stella. Unfortunately, at eight years old she unexpectedly loses her mother to illness. The narrative is filled with sadness and loneliness exploring the character's grief. However, things begin to look brighter when a new neighbour, Cam, moves in next door. The story takes you on an uplifting adventure of self-discovery and friendship which washes over the reader like gigantic waves crashing against the shore. It's a story of self-discovery that will shine brighter than the sun regardless of age or gender. This is a brilliant story in which to escape to. As you dive below the sea, it gives you a whole new perspective on the world. It's a book full of wonder and mystery that leads the reader down a path full of dark magic and a heartfelt story. I loved the simplicity of the plot, which is delivered with great imagination, whilst the storyline challenges the beliefs of the reader and the characters of the book in so many ways.
I loved the conversations between Stella and her grandmother. With her loss of memory, it was very well written and incredibly endearing. It really enhanced the storyline of the plot through the poignancy and compassion shown whilst still managing to explore the reality both characters face within the story. I also loved the balance between fantasy, reality, dialogue and action. It really makes this story an amazing lazy summer afternoon read. This is a great recommended read that whets the appetite. It's about facing your fears and looking for the truth.
First the accident, then the nightmares. The shadowy thief steals all the colours from Izzy's world leaving her feeling empty and hopeless. Will her new neighbour and a nest full of cygnets save Izzy and solve the mystery of the colour thief? A heartwarming story about families, friendships, school, nature, hope and self-confidence.
After a frightening car accident, Izzy's mum is in a coma. Her family is in pieces. Her best friend at school has dumped her. And her nightmares are haunted by a shadowy man stealing all the colours from her world. She's trying so hard to be brave, but Izzy thinks everything is her fault. Then she meets her new neighbour, Toby, paralyzed after a skateboarding accident, and together they find a nest of cygnets who need rescuing. Particularly the odd one out, called Spike. Will saving Spike save Izzy? Will she and Toby solve the mystery of the colour thief and bring hope and happiness back to Izzy's life? Written with insight, compassion and empathy – an authentic story about real life and how to survive it.
What is on the review table this week?
Well, it is a brilliant debut book by Polish author, Ewa Jozefkowicz. The Mystery of the Colour Thief will hit the shops, with a resounding bundle of emotions, on 3rd May 2018. It has been published by Zephyr and is aimed at 9-12 year old readers. However, I believe that it will be especially loved by adults.
This is a very thought provoking book; deeply moving with a very tragic story which could happen to anybody in real-life. The book is emotionally and sensitively written. It shows how perspectives differ depending on the feelings of the character. The main character is a young girl called Izzy, who is trying to deal with the fact that her mother is in hospital. Unfortunately, she is in an induced coma after a car accident.
You might think this book sounds rather depressing with such a theme. However, the author has achieved an excellent balance displaying the vulnerability of the characters and actions whilst still delivering an upbeat narrative filled with a fantasy edge. Everything is told through her daily life in school, but especially through her nightmares. This creates a dramatic and inspirational story that gives the reader a shiny beacon of hope, even in the bleakest of times. I thought the situation the characters found themselves in were particularly well written. They displayed great understanding and provided a true representation of what people might be going through as part of their everyday life.
The book features two young and brilliantly written central characters that you will warm to in a big way. It was really interesting viewing the perspective through childrens' eyes and seeing the world in a fresh light. The importance of making friends in an instant and sharing what the world has to offer from an early age. I have never read a book containing two such resilient characters like Izzy and Toby. Toby is definitely an inspiration to us all. He is a wheelchair user who really shines as a character and encourages a positive outlook on life despite overcoming many difficulties. He helps Izzy to solve the puzzle in the story.
I loved the idea of Spike, a vulnerable cygnet, which tied in with the theme of the book and brought a kindred spirited feeling. It made you really think about the plot. This is a fantastic story inspired by life. It's a book that I would recommend that you read with your heart and maybe a tissue or two.
