Suzy Davies's Blog: Book News, page 4
July 2, 2022
Book Launch 18th July, 2022
So thrilled to say our book, "The Flamingos Who Painted The Sky" will be released on 18th July, 2022. You can pre-order copies from Amazon, Book Depository, Waterstones, W.H.Smith and ALL good bookshops and indie bookstores. Thanks for supporting me.
February 7, 2022
News! Book Event! New Children's Picture Book
I am delighted to announce that my new Children's read-aloud Picture Book, with uplifting colorful illustrations by gifted illustrator and artist, Shirin Massroor, "The Flamingos Who Painted The Sky," is now available from Ventorros Press, for PRE-ORDER @ Book Depository Worldwide! FREE DELIVERY OFFER!
January 19, 2022
Reading of "Luna The Moon Pig" YouTube Recording
Just to let you know that there is a video/audio recording of "Luna The Moon Pig" read-aloud children's picture book posted on this Goodreads Author Page in the Video Section. You may purchase a copy of "Luna The Moon Pig" on Amazon Worldwide to add to your home library. Enjoy!
November 18, 2021
Children's Author Interview: Luna The Moon Pig
I would like to thank my publisher, Ventorros Press, and Vince Stevenson of Boomers on Books for making my author interview possible.
I'd also like to thank Sheila Graber, illustrator for Luna The Moon Pig with whom I am sharing this wonderful journey as we create The Luna Series.
Thank you to those who watch the interview, and to all my little readers and their parents for their support.
"Luna The Moon Pig" is book 1 of our new Luna Series, and you can watch the interview here, by clicking on the video on this GoodReads Author Page. Thanks!
I'd also like to thank Sheila Graber, illustrator for Luna The Moon Pig with whom I am sharing this wonderful journey as we create The Luna Series.
Thank you to those who watch the interview, and to all my little readers and their parents for their support.
"Luna The Moon Pig" is book 1 of our new Luna Series, and you can watch the interview here, by clicking on the video on this GoodReads Author Page. Thanks!
November 5, 2021
A Good Children's Book Asks Questions, and Provides a Satisfying Ending.
If you ask me what makes a good children's book, my answer is that good kids' books are fun and educational with wonderful artwork. But, there is more!
It is my belief that good children's books arouse wonder, and thus curiosity in the reader, and just like in Alice in Wonderland, little readers become "curiouser and curiouser."
Children delight in treasure hunting, and the journey in a good book is a bit like a fabulous treasure hunt, with clues, and lots of exploration. Inevitably to find answers to the "clues" or "signposts," young readers will try to work things out for themselves, reading the story along with the illustrations that will provide a visual guide.
Along the way, readers who are supported by older siblings, parents, and significant others will ask the question, "Why?" and good books always involve engagement with others and good conversations. I always map out my books so that they pose questions to the reader.
Children's books that arouse curiosity are a good thing since scientists, artists, businesspeople and inventors of tomorrow will have curiosity in bucketloads!
Good kids' books provide a safe rehearsal for negotiating difficulties and obstacles that we all meet on the journey that is life. They instill good values in children, showing them how to make friends, and to value things that make a successful and happy life.
Social and emotional learning is valuable in books written for children since research shows that this kind of learning is just as important as other kinds. I like to foreground characters in my children's books who inspire kids and act as good role models.
The emotional atmosphere of a book is so important. A positive mood and a happy ending satisfy kids that all will be well in the end. A satisfying ending for me is one in which the characters are good and true; finding their own answers and their OWN path, and being true to themselves.
It is my belief that good children's books arouse wonder, and thus curiosity in the reader, and just like in Alice in Wonderland, little readers become "curiouser and curiouser."
Children delight in treasure hunting, and the journey in a good book is a bit like a fabulous treasure hunt, with clues, and lots of exploration. Inevitably to find answers to the "clues" or "signposts," young readers will try to work things out for themselves, reading the story along with the illustrations that will provide a visual guide.
Along the way, readers who are supported by older siblings, parents, and significant others will ask the question, "Why?" and good books always involve engagement with others and good conversations. I always map out my books so that they pose questions to the reader.
Children's books that arouse curiosity are a good thing since scientists, artists, businesspeople and inventors of tomorrow will have curiosity in bucketloads!
Good kids' books provide a safe rehearsal for negotiating difficulties and obstacles that we all meet on the journey that is life. They instill good values in children, showing them how to make friends, and to value things that make a successful and happy life.
Social and emotional learning is valuable in books written for children since research shows that this kind of learning is just as important as other kinds. I like to foreground characters in my children's books who inspire kids and act as good role models.
The emotional atmosphere of a book is so important. A positive mood and a happy ending satisfy kids that all will be well in the end. A satisfying ending for me is one in which the characters are good and true; finding their own answers and their OWN path, and being true to themselves.
October 1, 2021
A Pigtionary of Piggies by Suzy Davies Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved
There are piggies of The Woods,
there are piggies of The Sea.
Not all piggies are equal;
this is clear to me.
There are piggies who sing -
and they make a lot of noise.
There are piggies - stuffed animals;
it's clear they're simply toys.
There are piggies who are GLAM,
there are piggies who are DRAM,
there are piggies who simply are TRAGICAL.
But of all the piggies in The Piggy Universe -
Luna - The Moon Pig is most MAGICAL!
With the WIGGLIEST of tails,
and a heart that's full of LOVE,
LUNA - THE MOON PIG's
guided by the STARS above.
Yes, Luna's the piggy
with CHOCOLATE-DROP EYES,
and wherever she wanders,
there's a SHINING MOON on high!
There are piggies of a season,
when the summer is here,
there are piggies of the springtime,
when the flowers all appear,
there are piggies of the autumn,
when the tumbling leaves turn brown -
and piggies just for Christmas,
when Santa comes to town.
But, whatever the weather,
LUNA is THE ONE!
She's happy and clever,
full of OINKINESS and FUN!
So, I'd like to invite YOU,
without further ado,
to have a friend in LUNA;
she's here the whole year through!
there are piggies of The Sea.
Not all piggies are equal;
this is clear to me.
There are piggies who sing -
and they make a lot of noise.
There are piggies - stuffed animals;
it's clear they're simply toys.
There are piggies who are GLAM,
there are piggies who are DRAM,
there are piggies who simply are TRAGICAL.
But of all the piggies in The Piggy Universe -
Luna - The Moon Pig is most MAGICAL!
With the WIGGLIEST of tails,
and a heart that's full of LOVE,
LUNA - THE MOON PIG's
guided by the STARS above.
Yes, Luna's the piggy
with CHOCOLATE-DROP EYES,
and wherever she wanders,
there's a SHINING MOON on high!
There are piggies of a season,
when the summer is here,
there are piggies of the springtime,
when the flowers all appear,
there are piggies of the autumn,
when the tumbling leaves turn brown -
and piggies just for Christmas,
when Santa comes to town.
But, whatever the weather,
LUNA is THE ONE!
She's happy and clever,
full of OINKINESS and FUN!
So, I'd like to invite YOU,
without further ado,
to have a friend in LUNA;
she's here the whole year through!
September 18, 2021
Luna The Moon Pig 2021 is NOW Launched!
Delighted to say that Luna is now launched in Kindle version and paperback!
August 21, 2021
Luna is about to launch!
I can hardly contain my excitement! "Luna The Moon Pig" is released from her pen in September. The countdown begins ...
July 11, 2021
Call Yourself a Writer?
The call to write is a passion, and the pull to write, sometimes, irresistible. But who writes? Who calls himself an author? And how do they persuade their audience to buy their book? This is a question I ask myself from time to time, because the vanity press allows almost anyone to own the title. Anyone with the nerve, and the wherewithal, may lure an audience, with fancy book covers, advertising, and well-targeted spin, to reach into their pockets and buy, buy, buy, a self-styled author's work, irrespective of whether that so-called author can actually write.
Now, I wish to be clear that I am all for giving newbies a chance, and if publishing becomes fairer, allowing unheard voices to be heard, so much the better. It does need a shake-up! But it is a nightmare-in the-making if the public is duped into purchasing lacklustre trash, which is not even grammatically correct, yet somehow passes off for the real thing. I have read semi-biographical books which fall short. I have even read "children's books" which purport to "teach children," and yet the authors have not even mastered the basics themselves.
I am the kind of person who delights in congratulating my peers for their hard won achievements as authors, and long may their success continue.
However, in my search for "the real thing" among new writers, I have come across "authors" who do not know their grammar, do not know basic spelling rules, use colloquialisms inappropriately, yet, often, they are the first to sing their own praises about the "popularity" of their books, the "awards" and "badges" they have won, and so on.
We as writers should relish the journey for its own sake, and that journey should involve professional development and skills mastery. The latter involves not only one's own writing but also reading books.
Now, come on, I am in my sixtieth year, and I wasn't born yesterday. Who are these writers fooling? The public may be deceived in the short run, but some of us are in it for the long haul. We care about the quality of our work, we do not feel we are "entitled," and we continue to strive to make our work better and better!
I believe the public aspire to read the great and the good, and they deserve to be rewarded.
To anyone reading this, please look beyond the surface and look carefully at a writer's work, and then decide whether or not he deserves to call himself a writer.
Now, I wish to be clear that I am all for giving newbies a chance, and if publishing becomes fairer, allowing unheard voices to be heard, so much the better. It does need a shake-up! But it is a nightmare-in the-making if the public is duped into purchasing lacklustre trash, which is not even grammatically correct, yet somehow passes off for the real thing. I have read semi-biographical books which fall short. I have even read "children's books" which purport to "teach children," and yet the authors have not even mastered the basics themselves.
I am the kind of person who delights in congratulating my peers for their hard won achievements as authors, and long may their success continue.
However, in my search for "the real thing" among new writers, I have come across "authors" who do not know their grammar, do not know basic spelling rules, use colloquialisms inappropriately, yet, often, they are the first to sing their own praises about the "popularity" of their books, the "awards" and "badges" they have won, and so on.
We as writers should relish the journey for its own sake, and that journey should involve professional development and skills mastery. The latter involves not only one's own writing but also reading books.
Now, come on, I am in my sixtieth year, and I wasn't born yesterday. Who are these writers fooling? The public may be deceived in the short run, but some of us are in it for the long haul. We care about the quality of our work, we do not feel we are "entitled," and we continue to strive to make our work better and better!
I believe the public aspire to read the great and the good, and they deserve to be rewarded.
To anyone reading this, please look beyond the surface and look carefully at a writer's work, and then decide whether or not he deserves to call himself a writer.
June 21, 2021
The Sea
The sea is beautiful, strange, and mercurial -
tour de force of nature,
since time, immemorial.
A vast mighty ocean,
when it rises and roars,
fathom upon fathoms
down -
to the sea floor.
A friend of the fishermen,
the sea sustains us,
with great gifts from heaven,
yet, sometimes, perilous.
When storms arise,
the wall-like waves
break men, like mannequins,
and few are saved.
Yet great ocean journeys may set our minds free,
when expanding horizons
blur sky and sea.
Away from the commotion
of day to day life,
one meditates,
loses all track of the time.
Our minds
swim the ocean,
dive, and collect
the long buried treasure,
they can not forget.
They return to the surface,
and they come back,
with stories to tell,
that arise from the depths.
The nature of the ocean’s,
in the paradox,
of lives it has taken,
cast ‘gainst the rocks.
Yet through our desire
to master the sea,
man traveled the globe,
made discoveries.
The sea has some secrets
that she likes to conceal -
she speaks in a whisper
in a conch shell.
Listen to her murmur words in your ears,
and listen, most carefully,
to all that you hear.
You’ll hear stories,
and legends of the sea,
of seafaring warriors
and mysteries,
of land that was plundered,
and stolen at war
from indigenous peoples -
from countries, afar.
And sometimes, the sea,
as she heaves mighty breaths,
steals the land back,
that the victors kept.
Hostile, uninhabitable land will remain,
when the sea rises up,
to take her terrain.
Copyright Suzy Davies, 2021. All Rights Reserved.
tour de force of nature,
since time, immemorial.
A vast mighty ocean,
when it rises and roars,
fathom upon fathoms
down -
to the sea floor.
A friend of the fishermen,
the sea sustains us,
with great gifts from heaven,
yet, sometimes, perilous.
When storms arise,
the wall-like waves
break men, like mannequins,
and few are saved.
Yet great ocean journeys may set our minds free,
when expanding horizons
blur sky and sea.
Away from the commotion
of day to day life,
one meditates,
loses all track of the time.
Our minds
swim the ocean,
dive, and collect
the long buried treasure,
they can not forget.
They return to the surface,
and they come back,
with stories to tell,
that arise from the depths.
The nature of the ocean’s,
in the paradox,
of lives it has taken,
cast ‘gainst the rocks.
Yet through our desire
to master the sea,
man traveled the globe,
made discoveries.
The sea has some secrets
that she likes to conceal -
she speaks in a whisper
in a conch shell.
Listen to her murmur words in your ears,
and listen, most carefully,
to all that you hear.
You’ll hear stories,
and legends of the sea,
of seafaring warriors
and mysteries,
of land that was plundered,
and stolen at war
from indigenous peoples -
from countries, afar.
And sometimes, the sea,
as she heaves mighty breaths,
steals the land back,
that the victors kept.
Hostile, uninhabitable land will remain,
when the sea rises up,
to take her terrain.
Copyright Suzy Davies, 2021. All Rights Reserved.
Book News
"The Flamingos Who Painted The Sky," our new picture book is NOW fully available to bring in #Christmas #sunshine, #flamingo #sunsets, and #happiness #worldwide Illustrated by the talented Shirin Mass ...more
- Suzy Davies's profile
- 647 followers
