CHILDREN'S BOOKS: A royal wardrobe, countdown dogs and a Gruffalo hunt

Peep inside the Queen’s amazing wardrobe of clothes, join the Gruffalo for fun in the great outdoors, travel to the edge of the world, meet a feisty little flea determined to be heard and learn to count with ten prancing pups in a super selection of new children’s books

Age 7 plus
The Queen’s Wardrobe: The Story of Queen Elizabeth II and Her Clothes

Julia Golding and
Kate Hindley

EVEN though she’s our world-famous Queen, the monarch isn’t always clothed in majesty! Get up close and personal with the Queen’s surprisingly diverse wardrobe of clothes in a fabulously fun and fascinating picture book from Julia Golding, an award-winning author and former writer-in-residence at the Royal Institution, and star illustrator Kate Hindley.

The remarkable story of the life of Queen Elizabeth II – told through her clothes and jewellery – is both a glorious and stylish celebration of the Queen’s 95th birthday on April 21 and a gorgeous gift to treasure.

With a foreword by Michele Clapton, costume designer for series one of Netflix’s The Crown, this big, beautiful book offers curious youngsters a peek behind the scenes at an imaginative re-creation of some of the Queen’s most famous outfits.

The Queen’s Wardrobe brings to life the story of a young princess who grew into one of the world’s most famous royals, revealing details about the making of her ration-book wedding dress, splendid gowns, trusty headscarves and wellies, the Crown Jewels, the gift of a traditional Maori feather cloak, and even jumping out of a helicopter with James Bond.

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Did you know the Queen’s crown weighs as much as a bag of potatoes or that she has her own tartan nobody else is allowed to wear? And did you know that on a visit to Germany in 1965, she wore a hat that became known as the ‘yellow spaghetti hat,’ and that during the war, the Queen trained as a driver and mechanic and dressed in overalls to fix trucks?

Packed with astounding facts about our record-breaking Queen – all revealed in an engaging and accessible way for young readers – Clapton’s insight into the work and creativity behind some of the monarch’s most famous outfits, and Hindley’s richly detailed, humorous and colourful artwork, this is a right royal treat for readers of every age.
(Two Hoots, hardback, hardback, £14.99)

Age 2 plus
The Gruffalo and Friends
Outdoor Activity Book
Julia Donaldson, Little Wild Things
and Axel Scheffler

SPRING is here so grab your wellies, head off into the great outdoors and join a Gruffalo hunt! There can be no better place for children than playing and learning outside and here is the perfect activity book to lure youngsters away from screens and inspire them to find fun and creativity in the natural world.

Based on the much-loved picture books of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler – including The Gruffalo, Monkey Puzzle, Room on the Broom and Charlie Cook’s Favourite Book – and created by nature play specialists Little Wild Things, The Gruffalo and Friends Outdoor Activity Book is packed full of fun outdoor activities and ideas for things to make, do and play outside.

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Little Wild Things is a Community Interest Company whose mission is to emphasise the importance of children putting away technology and spending time with family exploring the great outdoors. With easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions, a wipe-clean format, and lots of hints and tips, the whole family can get involved. Stir up a magic mud potion, grow an oak tree, play nutty hide and seek, build a butterfly feeder, make a parrot kite, or go on an exciting Gruffalo hunt. So what are you waiting for? Rainy days, sunny days, family walks, playing in the garden, or having a party… there’s fun to be found everywhere in nature when you peep between the pages of this inspirational book!
(Macmillan Children’s Books, hardback, £10.99)

Age 8 plus
Georgia and the Edge of the World
Robin Boyden 

IF life seems a little dull during those ‘down’ days of the pandemic, sail away to the edge of the world for a fantastical, thrill-filled adventure! Georgia and the Edge of the World – a gloriously fun, frantic and colourful graphic novel – comes from the pen of author and illustrator Robin Boyden, and is another title in the increasingly successful The Phoenix Presents series, published by David Fickling in partnership with The Phoenix comic.

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Georgia has grown up loving stories of adventure but she’s never allowed to have one of her own. Her adoptive father won’t even let her leave the city of Angleston. So Georgia creates inventions with her donkey friend, Ponky, waiting for the day she will finally be able to see the world outside. But then everything changes. A strange bottle washes up on the shore of Angleston, promising an adventure that Georgia can’t resist. It will take her on a journey to the edge of the world...

Boyden’s epic tale is delivered in a rainbow-wrapped package of vibrant colour, breathtaking action sequences and fantastical landscapes as the gregarious Georgia and her adorable travelling companion Ponky (a cross between a pony and a donkey!) race through a totally global adventure. Brimming with imagination and exciting storytelling, this trip to the edge of the world is not to be missed!
(David Fickling Books, paperback, £8.99)

Age 8 plus
Living the Confidence Code
Katty Kay, Claire Shipman and JillEllyn Riley

‘Being confident means believing that anything is possible.’

GIRLS the world over are urged to listen to the ‘little voice’ inside their heads that tells them to keep going and chase their dreams in an inspirational new book from the three authors of the bestselling phenomenon The Confidence Code for Girls.

Katty Kay, Claire Shipman, and JillEllyn Riley say the best way to understand confidence is to see it in action and have teamed up again to put together thirty true stories of real girls, pursuing their passions, struggling and stumbling, but along the way figuring out how to build their own special brand of confidence. From Bali to Brazil, South Africa to Seattle, Australia to Afghanistan, these girls took risks, doubted themselves, and sometimes failed but they also hung in there when things got hard. And along the way they discovered what really matters to them… everything from protesting about contaminated water and championing inclusive books to the accessibility of girls’ basketball shoes and so much more.

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Read the inspirational words of gold-medal-winning Olympic gymnast and author Laurie Hernandez, and meet Amika George, the British activist who campaigns against period poverty, and Clara-Beth Griffin, an autism rights activist from Ireland. And now even more youngsters are urged to join this growing global community of powerful girls and imagine what they would like to do once they have tapped into their confidence.

This motivational book shows us different goals, different stories and different personalities, but all illustrate the multitude of ways to be confident in the world. Packed with photos, graphic novel strips, and engaging interviews, Living the Confidence Code proves that no matter who you are, or how old you are, nothing is out of reach when you decide to try. Confidence is your fuel for life… so go out and live it!
(Harper Collins, hardback, £10.99)

Age 5 plus
Madam Squeaker
Pip Jones and Paula Bowles

GREEDY rats get their comeuppance thanks to a small but mightily courageous mouse in a terrific ‘tail’ from Pip Jones, the award-winning author of Izzy Gizzmo. The ingeniously-named Madam Squeaker is the latest super-readable Little Gem from innovative publisher Barrington Stoke… and it comes from the top team of Jones and talented illustrator Paula Bowles.

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A touching, heartfelt and funny story about making yourself heard, no matter how small your squeak is, the undoubted star player is a little mouse determined to save her home… and find her voice. Crumbs on the counter, morsels on the floor... there should be plenty of food for all the creatures in Hollyhock House to eat. But the Ruling Rats are running rampage every night, taking the best of everything for themselves. Minetta the mouse has decided enough is enough; it’s time the rats learned to share. But Minetta is so small and her voice is but a squeak ... how will she ever make them listen?

The Little Gems series brings together leading authors and illustrators, and a host of clever design and finishing techniques, like dyslexia-friendly fonts, to create easy-to-read, first chapter books in a chunky format ideal for little hands, and with some extra reading, jokes and activity fun inside the covers. And this heartwarming, inspirational adventure – brimming with Jones’ enchanting storytelling and Bowles’ vibrant illustrations – is a tasty treat for all the family.
(Barrington Stoke, paperback, £6.99)

Age 3 plus
What About Me? Said the Flea
Lily Murray and Richard Merritt

SMALL is super-strong in a gorgeous picture book that is destined to be a top pick with fun-loving tots. What About Me? Said the Flea – an empowering story full of imagination, determination and comedy – comes from the exciting pairing of fiction and non-fiction author Lily Murray and talented illustrator Richard Merritt.

The smallest of creatures takes the starring role in this rollicking rhyming story which gives voice to those whose size means they often struggle to be heard, and which will certainly strike a chord with your own little pre-schoolers.

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When a little girl sits down at her desk one day to write a story, she finds it hard to know just what to write about. Luckily for her, there’s a whole host of potential picture-book characters who want to be the star of her story… and make their cases convincingly! There’s the magical, proud unicorn with sparkly hooves and a glittery horn, there are the big, burly bears hosting a picnic, the lovable llamas in pyjamas, the stylish sloth, the lion, the penguins, and even a roar-some, claw-some dinosaur .

But, unnoticed by the little girl, a teeny-tiny flea is hopping and jumping around, hoping to be the one she chooses to write a story about. ‘What about me?’ it cries. With all the big characters and commotion, will the feisty flea ever be noticed? Set in fun, rhyming couplets, What About Me? Said the Flea delivers reassuring and funny messages about good things coming in small packages. Add on Merritt’s richly detailed and energetic artwork to bring the story to life, and this joyous, playful book gives everyone the chance to shine!  
(Buster Books, paperback, £6.99)

Age 3 plus
The Duck Who Didn’t Like Water
Steve Small

YOU might have thought that a duck and a frog would have one thing in common… water! In his debut picture book as both author and illustrator, Steve Small makes a splash with his wise, wonderful and witty tale about a duck who DOESN’T like water… until a new friendship forces him to face his fears.

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Duck is not like other ducks. Duck doesn’t like water and is perfectly fine alone, thank you very much. But then, one dark and stormy night, an outgoing, water-loving, and very lost Frog turns up at Duck’s door. Can this odd couple find Frog’s home? And will they find friendship along the way?

The joys of unlikely friendships and the rewards that come from conquering your fears are all gently and cleverly explored in this endearing and beautifully illustrated story which youngsters will take to like ducks (well, some ducks!) to water.
(Simon & Schuster, hardback, £12.99)

Age 2 plus
Ten Little Dogs
Ruth Brown

ON the count of ten… Teach your little ones how to count down with this enchanting, visually stunning picture book which comes packed full of canine capers, furry fun and prancing pups.

‘Ten little dogs, sitting in a line, One chased a butterfly And then there were…. nine’ 

Count down through eight, seven and then onwards to only one remaining dog as award-winning author and illustrator Ruth Brown takes tiny tots on a playful mathematical journey. Brown’s clever use of rhyme and page-turn helps children guess and then learn which number comes next… and each page is also a spot-the-difference as we look to see which dog is no longer there.

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Ten Little Dogs – featuring a gorgeous gallery of irresistible pups – is a picture perfect, and simple but ingenious, introduction to the basic skills of counting and subtraction, helping to make learning fun. And with an unexpected and exuberant twist in its tail, Ten Little Dogs is guaranteed to bring a smile to everybody’s face!
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £12.99)

Age 2 plus
All Aboard the Colours Train
Illustrated by Sean Sims

YOU don’t need a ticket to ride when you hit the rails on a first-class journey of learning! Oxford University Press are ready and waiting at the station with a brilliant series which introduces key early learning concepts through beautifully illustrated and engaging stories which explore colours, numbers, space and so much more.

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So hop aboard this thrill-filled train and enjoy a fun-filled lesson with a gang of playful youngsters… and a menagerie of amazing animals. In All Aboard the Colours Train, youngsters are off to explore colours on a wild and wonderful journey meeting creatures of all different shapes and sizes, learning about all the amazing colours of the rainbow as they go, and discovering lots to spot, remember and talk about on every page. With Sean Sims’ vibrant, colourful illustrations perfectly pitched for pre-schoolers, and discovery and fun on every page, this unmissable series offers fast-track learning all the way!
(Oxford University Press, paperback, £6.99)

From birth
Crab
Patricia Hegarty and Fhiona Galloway

DISCOVER a world of undersea creatures in a playful board book full of rhyme and colour! Turn the pages and watch learning spring to life in this charming and innovative book that was just made for reading, sharing and enjoying.

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As part of the My Little World series, this sturdy book’s appealing die-cut finger holes will have little ones learning their colours, and snapping along with glee as they join a little red crab on an underwater journey of discovery. Fhiona Galloway’s bold, bright artwork in a rainbow of colours brings to life Patricia Hegarty’s jaunty rhyming text while the claw-shaped finger holes let your little ones get hands-on with the action. Learning all wrapped up in one clever, colourful book!
(Little Tiger, board book, £5.99)

The Strawberry Thief

Joanne Harris

THERE'S an ill wind blowing through the picturesque French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes… and it means someone will be dead by dawn.

If your sweet tooth is crying out for more Chocolat, then indulge yourself in a truly tasty return to the enchanting world created by Joanne Harris in her multi-million-copy series which won hearts and minds, and was adapted into an Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp.

Lyrical writing, a unique brand of magical realism, stunning atmospherics, and a cast of sparkling characters who could charm the birds out of the trees are the hallmarks of these enthralling novels, and The Strawberry Thief – the fourth in the series and a tale in which the wind shapes destinies – delivers that same heady mix. At the heart of these captivating stories is Vianne Rocher, the chocolatier who we first met in 1999 when she arrived as a single mother in Lansquenet at the beginning of Lent with her six-year-old daughter, Anouk, and after initially being rejected, cast a spell over the village with her instinctive gift for matching sweets to her customers.

Five years later, it’s Lent again and Vianne is happily settled in Lansquenet where she runs her chocolate shop and is part of the community. The quiet village that once rejected her has finally become her home and she likes the thought of being ‘rooted’ in one place, ‘never to be blown away.’

But one person who has gone with the wind is her eldest daughter, Anouk, now aged 21 and the ‘summer child’ who she always knew was ‘on loan’ and, much to Vianne’s sadness, is now living with her boyfriend in Paris, ‘returned to the world, to grow and to learn to fall in love.’

Still with Vianne is 15-year-old Rosette, her youngest child, who doesn’t like to talk, much preferring to sit quietly with her button box or draw animals. While her mother ‘sees’ her customers’ favourite kind of chocolate, Rosette ‘sees’ people as different kinds of animals. On a day of rare snowfall, Rosette hears the song of the wind which she knows is a portent of death and sure enough, Narcisse, the florist, is found dead in his chair the following day. 

Old and gruff, Narcisse was fiercely fond of Rosette, the wild girl he once found gorging on strawberries in the woodland he owned next to his farm. And, to the amazement of Narcisse’s own angry daughter and the residents of Lansquenet, the old florist has left that same parcel of valuable land to Rosette, and a written confession to local priest Francis Reynaud, throwing the life of the sleepy village into total disarray.

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But there is more unsettling news for Vianne when the enigmatic Morgane Dubois opens her mysterious new shop at the former florist’s… one that mirrors the ethos of the chocolaterie, and

A Sister’s Wish

Donna Douglas

STILL haunted by a bomb that killed her young daughter and her much-loved best friend, Iris Fletcher returns to the Blitz-hit town of Hull unsure about how she is going to cope. After months in a convalescent hospital recovering from serious injuries she suffered that night, Iris cannot face the guilt that in some way or another, she has ‘broken’ her family.

Welcome to the second book in a drama-packed Yorkshire Blitz Trilogy from Donna Douglas (pictured below), the York-based author whose popular Nightingale series brought a London pre-war hospital vividly to life, and won her an army of fans.

This exciting saga series is based on Douglas’s research into the stories of Hull residents who lived through the Second World War. Using diaries, letters and the heartbreaking accounts of those who endured the Blitz, her aim is to ‘convey some of their fighting spirit.’ And writing this new chapter about families struggling to survive and facing the fear of death, says Douglas in her author’s note, put the current pandemic into a relatable focus.

In the spring of 1941, the families of Jubilee Row are organising a party for the return home of Iris Fletcher – who lost her three-year-old daughter Lucy, and her sister-in-law and friend Dolly Maguire ­– in a bombing three months ago.

Meanwhile, the Blitz on Hull intensifies with the daily fears of wailing air raid sirens, engines droning, and swooping enemy planes ‘raining down their death and destruction,’ making it seem almost inevitable that there will be more tragedies to come.

Iris has no time to mourn properly because her other children, Archie and Kitty, are also devastated by the loss of their sister and desperately need their mother.

Also on Jubilee Row is 20-year-old Edie Copeland, a widow whose husband was killed at Dunkirk and who is now caring for her baby son, Bobby. Being a single mother is hard but Edie finds support from Jack Maguire who was married to bombing victim Dolly and who, like Edie, is now raising his two sons alone. As she and Jack grow closer, Edie begins to wonder whether they could ever be anything more than friends. And it’s capable mum, 42-year-old Ruby Maguire, who takes charge as usual, bolstering spirits and lending a hand, as well as trying to keep her flighty sister Pearl Tyson – whose husband Frank is always on the run from the police – on the straight and narrow.

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But, as the town prepares for more Blitz misery – it’s the unexpected appearance of a face from her past which threatens Ruby’s future far more than Hitler’s bombs.

Once again Douglas brings us a vibrant cast of characters… from the double act of irrepressible Big May Maguire and her decidedly smaller but equally indomitable friend Beattie Scuttle, to a

Scar Tissue

Ollie Ollerton

BATTLE-HARDENED war veteran and ex-Special Forces soldier Alex Abbott left the Middle East under a cloud and now he has a new foe to conquer… the booze. Welcome to the dangerous world of mercenaries, murderous villains and a flawed and fascinating hero in the first explosive adventure in a debut thriller series from Ollie Ollerton, the former Royal Marine Commando and Special Boat Service team leader who magically morphed into the bestselling author of Break Point and Battle Ready.

Ollerton (pictured below), who was also one of the founding Directing Staff on Channel 4’s hit show SAS: Who Dares Wins, reveals he is using his post-military life to help others and, tired of reading about ‘heroes who never put a foot wrong,’ he brings us instead an all-too-human guy that we can all relate to.

So meet the formidable Alex Abbott, a troubled veteran of war zones who is estranged from his family, making a living as a hired gun, and is far from perfect. A once-promising student, he drinks too much, can’t hold together relationships with women, and makes big mistakes, but he’s also a man with heart and decency, always ready to risk his life for those he loves and make sure that justice is done.

With years of service in the Middle East behind him, Abbott is still living with the haunting memories of his experiences there and existing hand-to-mouth in Singapore. He scrapes by as a gun for hire but out of touch with his family, including his teenage son Nathan, Abbott drinks to dull the pain and ‘take a holiday’ from himself.

It’s a tough way to earn a living but there is one upside… at least he’s not in Baghdad any more. But that is about to change. When a job goes badly wrong, Abbott lands in hot water with dangerous men.

Next he learns that his soldier son, Nathan, is missing in Iraq. Abbott fell out with Nathan when he learned the boy was joining the army against his wishes but knowing instinctively something is wrong and needing to find his son and desperate for redemption, Abbott has no choice but to go back. On his return to Iraq, Abbott begins searching for Nathan and meets up again with old military acquaintances who are cleaning up in the ‘security game’ and cashing in on the ‘spoils of war.’ Abbott gets a job as a security consultant for a convoy to Baghdad but there’s danger ahead and the body count rises as old wounds open up and he struggles to confront his demons. His answer is to self-medicate with booze… it’s the only way he knows how.

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But when one of his old crew turns up dead in mysterious circumstances and the link with Nathan is clear, Abbott begins to suspect a trap. Who is the hunter and who is the hunted?

Ollerton sets off at breakneck speed in this adrenalin-fuelled and terrifyingly authentic trip to some of the darkest corners of the world and, in true commando style, he holds us prisoner in his

CHILDREN'S BOOKS: A techno blackout, saving the planet and daffy detectives

Imagine a world where all technology has suddenly stopped, find out how you can do your bit to save the planet, enjoy chaos, comedy and calamities with two sewer sleuths, and travel the oceans with a singing whale in a beautiful collection of new children’s books

Age 9 plus
The Day the Screens Went Blank
Danny Wallace and Gemma Correll

CAN you imagine a world with no screens? How would you manage if all the technology in the world suddenly just… STOPPED! After twelve months of pandemic, imagining a world without a lot of things we all took for granted will certainly hit the spot with many youngsters… and comedy king, author and presenter Danny Wallace’s hilarious no-tech tale is guaranteed to tickle a few funny bones.

So meet two plucky children as they set off on a madcap cross-country rescue mission without the aid of any screen technology, and discover that maybe living without the latest tech isn’t such a dreadful thing after all.

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When ten-year-old Stella wakes up to discover a world full of blank screens, her family, town, and in fact the whole world seems to have been thrown into chaos. And what about poor Grandma who is stranded at the other end of the country? Cue a rollicking madcap road trip, full of driving disasters and family fall-outs as they set off on a rescue mission. And the strange thing is that despite all the mishaps and misunderstandings, the family find that being away from screens means that even though they might not be able to rely on technology any more, they can always rely on each other.

Wallace’s brilliant new ‘what-if’ adventure – brought to life by the perfectly matched anarchic illustrations of Gemma Correll – is packed full of his trademark laugh-out-loud comedy but also contains uplifting and timely messages about the insubstantial nature of technology, and the importance of real human communication. Waking up to the unimaginable with a smile on your face!
(Simon & Schuster, paperback, £7.99)

Age 8 plus
Activists Assemble: Save Your Planet
Ben Hoare

THE world can sometimes seem a scary place to live… Forests are being burnt to the ground, the oceans are filling up with plastic, so much of the air we breathe is polluted, habitats and wildlife are under threat, and ice on mountains is melting in the Arctic and Antarctic.

Worries and fears about our planet, and the impact of human behaviour, are widely discussed today and many wonder how we can cut down on waste and pollution, and live our lives without harming the planet. But in a call to arms by award-winning journalist Ben Hoare, children can now seek out an understanding of these important issues and motivate themselves to become champions of our precious and fragile planet.

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Activists Assemble: Save Your Planet – packed with colourful, detailed and lively illustrations by Jade Orlando – contains everything a young activist needs to know about major current environmental issues, why they occur, and how they can be resolved. Discover how and why the world is getting hotter, the consequences of deforestation, and the impact of too many vehicles. Become a real-life super hero and help to protect the environment… from quick and easy fixes to changes that could have a long-term global effect.

From David Attenborough and 15-year-old Kabir Kaul to Greta Thunberg and Bella Lack, meet the famous faces leading the way in the worldwide crusade to be more environmentally friendly and take the quiz to find out just how green you truly are... and could be.

And there is the added bonus of an activity section giving readers details of how to further explore environmentalism, test their eco-hero knowledge, start important conversations using ‘discussion time’ questions, and even a space to write down their own thoughts and observations. The perfect introduction to environmentalism for home or school… and an inspirational guide for a new generation of eco-warriors.
(Macmillan Children’s Books, paperback, £8.99)

Age 7 plus
InvestiGators: Take the Plunge
John Patrick Green

IF corny one-liners, chaos, comedy and calamities are your child’s idea of reading heaven, introduce them to the deliciously daffy detective duo… the InvestiGators! Written and illustrated by John Patrick Green – whose impressive CV includes work with Disney, Nickelodeon, Dreamworks, Scholastic and DC Comics – this full-colour, laugh-out-loud graphic series is ideal for reluctant readers.

Brimming over with glorious puns, lashings of toilet humour, and plenty of references to pop culture, Green’s high-energy, snap, crackle and pop story will have youngsters snorting and sniggering from the first appearance of the alligator investigators right through to their final frenetic flourish.

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Mango and Brash are the InvestiGators… sewer-loving agents of S.U.I.T. (Special Undercover Investigation Teams) and the scourge of supervillains everywhere! In their new adventure, S.U.I.T. headquarters is under attack, and Mango and Brash are going undercover and underground disguised as city sewer workers to unclog a sticky situation. But when their search for the criminal Crackerdile backfires, the toilets they travel through back up – and the InvestiGators take the blame for it! Can Mango and Brash restore their good name and put the real culprit behind bars before the whole city is in deep water?

With sewers as their preferred travel route, expect lots of U-turns and U-bends when these two super-spies fight crime, armed only with groan-worthy puns and gigglesome gags. Simply bursting with youthful energy, crazy comedy, vibrant artwork and breathtaking creativity, InvestiGators is a visual and verbal delight… and guaranteed to please even the most reluctant reader!
(Macmillan Children’s Books, hardback, £9.99)

Age 9 plus
Kat Wolfe on Thin Ice
Lauren St John

IF the thought of an icy mystery sends shivers of joy up your spine, then join a daring detective duo on a perilous mission in the wilds of the Adirondacks in America. Kat Wolfe on Thin Ice is the third book in passionate conservationist Lauren St John’s thrilling Wolfe and Lamb Mysteries Series starring intrepid pet-sitter and amateur detective extraordinaire Kat Wolfe and her best friend Harper Lamb.

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Here we find the two girls eager to join their parents on a winter vacation in a mountain cabin in the USA. But a series of misadventures result in them being in the wrong place at the wrong time… alone. And when Kat discovers that an argument she witnessed in New York City holds the key to a major crime, she’s certain that it’s only a matter of time until the culprits come looking for her. With a snow storm moving in and no way out, all that stands between the girls and disaster are a team of eight huskies and one impossible raccoon. Can Kat and Harper save the day… and themselves?

Get ready to share the winter holiday of a lifetime as Kat and Harper fall helter-skelter into an enthralling, environmentally friendly mystery full of intrigue, danger, snow and huskies. An inspirational and addictive adventure from a master storyteller!
(Macmillan, Children’s Books, paperback, £7.99)

Age 8 plus
Walker: The Mystery of the Missing Millions
Shoo Rayner

THE dog detective team are back and they’re on the scent of a gang of cunning crooks! If you haven’t already met Walker, the boy detective with a Dr Dolittle ability to talk to animals, then join him on his latest case as he follows his nose and his ‘leads’ alongside a canny crew of canine sleuths.

All ten-year-old Walker wants is a dog, but his mother is allergic. So he has set up his own business walking everyone else’s dogs. And it works better than he could have imagined when he finds he can talk to dogs and understand what they say to him! Soon he is getting drawn into mysteries that only the dogs can solve.

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When crooked billionaire, Arlington Wherewithal goes to prison, his wife, Jazaminta, asks Walker to look after his dogs. But then Walker finds out that a gang is trying to make Jazaminta tell them the hiding place of Arlington’s missing millions. Walker tries to help, but when he gets too close he gets kidnapped! Can Walker, his friend Anje, and the dogs save themselves, stop the crooks and solve the clues to finding the missing millions?

The fur certainly flies in this fast-paced adventure as author and illustrator Shoo Rayner delivers dog-flavoured fun and frantic antics on the road to collaring the thuggish thieves. And with the bonus of a special art lesson at the end of the book, Walker’s adventures look set to run and run.
(Firefly Press, paperback, £6.99)

Age 4 plus
The Tale of the Whale
Karen Swann and Padmacandra

DANCE with the dolphins and sing with a whale in a lyrical and lovely picture book of soaring imagination from the inspired debut pairing of author Karen Swann and poet and artist Padmacandra.

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Brimming with visual and verbal beauty, and featuring a fantastical adventure that takes readers on a thrilling voyage across the world’s oceans, The Tale of the Whale is – at its warm heart – a call to action to save our seas from the blight of plastic pollution.

‘Where land becomes sky and the sky becomes sea,
I first saw the whale, and the whale first saw me.
And high on the breeze came his sweet-sounding song
I’ve so much to show you, if you’ll come along.’

Swann’s magical and mesmerising journey of wonder and discovery, from misty seaside shorelines to ice-capped seas, is not just a joyful tale about the friendship between a child and a whale but also a story that speaks loudly about our responsibilities towards the environment and a heartfelt plea to end plastic pollution. With Padmacandra’s stunning and atmospheric maritime illustrations, specially created in an eye-catching palette of colours, this empowering book is a must for bookshelves both at home and at school.
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £12.99)

Age 4 plus
Loud!
Rose Robbins

CONCENTRATING in class isn’t always easy and that’s when trouble starts! Author and illustrator Rose Robbins, who has an autistic brother, teaches autistic young people, and is a young ambassador for Inclusive Minds, is on a mission to help children understand what it means to have special needs. And after two sensitively created picture books about living with an autistic sibling – Talking is Not My Thing and Me and My Sister – the talented author and illustrator has turned her imaginative focus on youngsters with ADHD.

And taking centre stage is restless, disruptive Abigail who is frustrated because she can’t concentrate in class. Abigail can’t focus on writing, gets bored and does naughty things so she is sent to the cooling down room. Next we see her at a music class but she can’t make any of the instruments work. And just when things are about to go wrong yet again, the teacher discovers exactly what to do to win her attention. Abigail can sing very loudly and she ends up finding a special voice of her very own!

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With its gentle, explanatory story, packed with adorable animal characters and lively, expressive illustrations, Loud! sends out clear messages about the importance of understanding special needs, particularly the challenges of ADHD, and proves that everyone can triumph whatever their problem might be. This poignant and moving story – enhanced by Robbins’ light touch and use of humour – is the perfect way to start conversations about neurodiversity and how children work better when engaged with a subject they enjoy. A revealing and gentle story with an upbeat and uplifting message for both children and parents…
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £12.99)

Age 3 plus
Love Our Earth
Jane Cabrera

HEAD off a thrilling global adventure and discover all the wonders of planet Earth! It’s never too early to get to know our magnificent natural world and this youthful, joyful and celebratory picture book about caring for the planet comes with lots to look out for, and a fold-out surprise at the end.

Meet planet Earth as you travel across mountains, rivers, jungles and oceans. Spot and count the host of friendly and fascinating animals along the way, and say hello to the smiling flowers, trees and hills.

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Created in collaboration with EarthDay.org, Love Our Earth springs to colourful life with warm, playful illustrations from Jane Cabrera and a gentle read-aloud text. And with it super-surprise fold-out ending, and simple tips on how to look after our amazing planet, this is the perfect introduction to the wonders of life on Earth for pre-schoolers.
(Macmillan Children’s Books, paperback, £7.99)

The Split

Laura Kay

THE break-up of a long-term relationship might feel like a time to look back and regret what has been lost. But sometimes, an ending can be a beginning... the start of a journey of self-discovery where the possibilities of change are endless and the future might actually look fresh and exciting.

If your despondent heart needs a jolt back into action after a year of pandemic torpor, steep yourself in Laura Kay’s funny, uplifting and intensely human rom-com which has a refreshingly warm and wonderful gay love story at its core. Frustrated at the lack of representation of ‘queer love’ in rom-coms and how LGBTQ+ characters in romance stories are often presented as caricatures and tokens, Kay (pictured below) set out to write a novel of love, heartache, friendship and family underpinned by gay people who are palpably real.

The result is The Split, a smart, contemporary tale which follows the fortunes and misfortunes of overweight, out-of-sorts Alexandra (Ally) Waters who, aged twenty-nine, is left homeless, jobless and alone after she is dumped by her girlfriend of seven years.

When her girlfriend Emily reveals she has been seeing another woman, Ally feels wounded and betrayed. Emily reckons they aren’t ‘right together’ any more and complains that Ally has been too passive, making it hard for Emily to be ‘the energy for two people.’

There’s only one place Ally can flee to… back home to Sheffield to stay with her widower dad who is ‘the physical embodiment of a lifeboat.’ Ally doesn’t pack much when she leaves but she does take the one thing that might soothe her pain and force her ex to speak to her again… Emily’s beloved cat, Malcolm.

Back home, Ally indulges herself in her other love… baking and eating cakes. But her dad is determined to take her in hand and forces Ally into a ‘date’ with neighbour’s son Jeremy who went to school with Ally and recently broke up with his boyfriend Ben. And after wanting to be alone with her sorrows, Ally starts to enjoy spending time with Jeremy who has come up with a ridiculous plan to win back their former loves by running in a half-marathon to prove their commitment, self-worth and their fitness.

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Given that neither of them can even run round the block, they enlist the support of athletic, not to mention beautiful, personal trainer Jo. Will she have them running for the hills... or will their

CHILDREN'S BOOKS: Leap into action with Macmillan’s line-up of Easter treats

Little ones can join in the fun of Easter with a sparkling selection of hands-on activity books from Macmillan Children’s Books

Age 3 plus
Little Bunny’s Easter Surprise
Lily Murray and Julia Woolf

LITTLE Bunny isn’t the only one in a flap in this big, bright and beautiful book full of Easter surprises! Open the pages, lift the flaps and join a wild and wonderful woodland full of food, laughter and friendship in this rhyming, rip-roaring romp from picture book duo Lily Murray and Julia Woolf.

It’s Easter Day and the woods are buzzing with excitement when Little Bunny sends out his invitations for a scrumptious Easter picnic. He wants the picnic to be perfect, collecting all the best things for to share with friends… fruit, toffees and delicious chocolate treats. But… oops! Has Little Bunny made a blunder that could ruin the day?

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Murray provides the bouncy, addictive rhyme and Woolf weaves her creative, colourful magic on a gallery of gorgeous illustrations in this busy, interactive book which includes the fun of searching and finding hidden Easter eggs and Little Bunny’s cast of furry friends. Perfect for reading aloud… and keeping little hands busy over Easter!
(Macmillan Children’s Books, paperback, £6.99)

Age 3 plus
My Magical Easter Bunny:
Sparkly Sticker Activity Book
Illustrated by Yujin Shin

PUT some springtime sparkle in your little ones’ Easter with this glittery and gorgeous sticker activity book. My Magical Easter Bunny is the perfect first sticker book for youngsters who love bunnies, all the fun of Easter… and chocolate eggs!

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As they hop off on an egg-hunting adventure with the sparkly Easter Bunny, they will discover an exciting activity book simply bulging with colouring-in fun, mazes to complete, differences to spot and much more. With over 400 stickers, including a page of shiny stickers, to create the different scenes, and Yujin Shin’s quirky, colourful illustrations to bring the activities to life, this joyful, jam-packed book has plenty to keep your little ones entertained.
(Campbell Books, paperback, £6.99)

Age one plus
Busy Easter
Illustrated by Jill Howarth

EASTER is here and one busy family can’t wait to join their friends and celebrate! Easter wouldn’t be Easter without an inventive board book to let the youngest family members get in on the fun, so let them push, pull and slide the tabs in this gorgeous interactive board book.

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Bake delicious hot cross buns, follow the Easter bunny in an egg hunt on the farm, and then enjoy a picnic and celebrate with all your friends to end a perfect day. Children will love playing with the easy-to-handle mechanisms as they follow the gentle, rhyming story, and have fun spotting lots of animal characters in four bright and busy Easter scenes brought to life by Jill Howarth’s beautifully coloured illustrations. Perfect for little hands and with plenty to talk about on every page, Busy Easter provides enchanting early learning and a warm and playful introduction to Easter.
(Campbell Books, board book, £5.99)

Age one plus
Lizzy the Lamb
Axel Scheffler

WATCH your little ones leap into action when they get their hands on this fun-filled, action-packed board book from the award-winning illustrator of The Gruffalo, Axel Scheffler. Lizzy the Lamb is jumping for joy and youngsters can join in all that galloping and gambolling by pulling out the sliders, pushing up the tabs and making lots of noise down in the fields!

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Follow Lizzy as she leaps, bounces and baas all the day long in a gentle, rhyming story and stop off on every page to study the lively, colourful illustrations and get hands-on with playtime. An animal adventure just made for Easter!
(Campbell Books, board book, £6.99)

Age one plus
Fluffy Chick
Rod Campbell

MEET all your favourite springtime farm animals in Fluffy Chick, a fun touch-and-feel book from Rod Campbell, creator of the bestselling preschool classic, Dear Zoo. Follow Fluffy Chick around the farm and meet all her adorable animal friends… stroke the woolly lamb, feel the cow’s smooth horns and then lift the flap at the end to find out who is hiding under mother hen’s wing!

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Campbell uses simple, easy-to-follow sentences and bright, bold, appealing artwork to bring to life the fun of Easter, and this chunky board book edition, with its sturdy pages ideal for little hands, touch-and-feel textural delights, and surprise ending, is the perfect gift to share and enjoy with your toddlers. A hands-on winner!
(Macmillan Children’s Books, board book, £5.99)

The Hiding Place

Jenny Quintana

WITH its crumbling cornices and cracked stained glass, the large, double-fronted house in a corner of Streatham looks like many other faded Victorian villas in London. But behind the shabby walls of 24 Harrington Gardens are dark secrets and old lies… and Marina Alexander is determined to uncover the truth about her birth and the parents she never knew.

Jenny Quintana, author of stunning thrillers, The Missing Girl and Our Dark Secret, is back with another haunting, mind-teasing mystery which this time explores the human need for a sense of identity, and the hard choices we make that will echo down the years.

Brimming with the atmosphere, suspense and finesse that we have come to expect from this accomplished author, The Hiding Place is set over two timelines – the Sixties and the early Nineties – and is both a compelling tale of domestic upheaval and an astute psychological meditation on belonging, betrayal and love.

Abandoned as a baby in the hallway of a shared house in London, 27-year-old Marina Alexander from Wiltshire has never known her parents, and the circumstances of her birth still remain a mystery. Marina was adopted by a loving couple and enjoyed a happy childhood but has never been able to settle into adult life. She left her job teaching languages, is dissatisfied with her current editing job, and seems to be ‘lurching from one decision to the next.’

She knows she was left wrapped in a bright blue shawl in the hallway of the detached house in Harrington Gardens and has gathered information about the layout of the house and even the tenants who lived there in 1964 when she was born. And when one of the flats at the house becomes vacant, Marina snaps up the rental, determined to find out who she really is.

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Twenty-seven years earlier, 17-year-old Connie Littleton is still reeling from the premature death of her beloved mother a year ago. Connie has an ambition to be a writer, and encouraged by her mother, she dreams of being able to ‘let her thoughts run and slide on every page.’

But she must support her bereaved bookseller father Thomas through his terrible grief and now she fears that she is pregnant to a boy she might never see again. Connie knows her options are limited and time is running out.

In 1991, Marina discovers that the walls of the house hold more than memories, and her reappearance hasn’t gone unnoticed by the other tenants. Someone is watching Marina… someone who knows the truth.

Quintana (pictured above), whose interest is in real life stories and the way ordinary people cope with terrible events, delivers a slow-burn and penetrating study of two generations of women, cleverly navigating readers through a complex and compelling layer of disturbing truths and revelations.

As the past unravels, we learn about Connie’s plight as a pregnant, unmarried teenager in the Sixties, the gap in the understanding of her birth which has blighted Marina’s life almost thirty years later, and the corrosive effects of damaged family lives. Standing square – if not fair – at the centre of the story is 24 Harrington Gardens, the place where some residents would prefer secrets to remain buried and where a creeping sense of unease grows as Marina digs deeper into the past.

With a cast of fascinating characters, a gripping, emotion-packed mystery rolling out across two timelines, and written with an insightful and languorous elegance, this absorbing, heartbreaking drama sees Quintana at her storytelling best.
(Mantle, hardback, £14.99)

The Little Man from Archangel

Georges Simenon

ONE small lie – told to protect his young and flighty wife – becomes a lie that threatens everything a middle-aged bookseller holds dear in a profound and moving novel from one of the most feted European authors of the 20th century.

Georges Simenon, creator of the world renowned Inspector Maigret detective series, is one of the most translated French speaking authors and the second most translated author of all time in Italy after Shakespeare.

A prolific author, Simenon (pictured below) who died in 1989 aged 86, could write sixty to eighty pages per day and his work includes nearly 200 novels, over 150 novellas, several autobiographical works, numerous articles, and scores of pulp novels written under more than two dozen pseudonyms.

The Little Man from Archangel, first published in in 1957 and flawlessly translated by Sian Reynolds in this new edition, is a harrowing, haunting tale of exclusion, paranoia and loneliness, and one of a selection of Simenon’s celebrated standalone novels being published by Penguin.

At the heart of the story is Jonas Milk, a timid man of Russian-Jewish descent, who lives quietly above his second-hand bookshop in a small French town. He feels at home there until he marries his maid Gina, a woman with a bad reputation who proves to be neither a good housekeeper nor a faithful wife.

Jonas is used to Gina disappearing… everyone in town knows that she goes off with other men but she always returns soon afterwards. ‘She was beautiful, full of vitality, and he was sixteen years older, a dusty, lonely bookseller whose only passion in life was collecting stamps.’

Then one day Gina disappears and this time she takes her husband’s valuable stamp collection as well. Jonas is embarrassed and tells a small lie to protect her, saying Gina is visiting a school friend, but it eats into him like an illness. As the days pass and Gina doesn’t come back, his lies are believed by fewer and fewer neighbours, provoking hostility and resentment of this timid little bookseller who always thought he had been accepted. And then somebody informs the police and as suspicion mounts, Jonas’s true and terrifying isolation is revealed…

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Simenon delivers a masterclass in character study and storytelling as readers witness Jonas’s life spiralling out of control and a once-friendly community turn on the man who, despite the appearance that he had been accepted, was always considered to be the outsider.

Emotional instability, trust and alienation are brilliantly explored in The Little Man from Archangel… as Jonas is shunned by his neighbours, he cannot but recall the events of the Russian revolution which split his family and scarred his early years, and so the cruelty of the community becomes a universal and timely reminder of the plight of immigrants in all timelines. Insightful, resonant and bleak, this is Simenon at his unique and powerful best.
(Penguin Classics, paperback, £8.99)