Nosy Crow's Blog, page 29

Four Nosy Crow books included in the 2021 Summer Reading Challenge

This year’s Summer Reading Challenge book collection has just been announced – and we’re absolutely delighted to see that four Nosy Crow books have made the list!

The Summer Reading Challenge is a Reading Agency initiative, taking place every year during the summer holidays. It encourages children aged 4 to 11 to read six library books during the long summer holiday, to keep up their reading skills and confidence, and to complete the Challenge.

Each year there is a different theme – this year’s theme is Wild World Heroes, a celebration of reading, nature and action for the environment. Developed in partnership with WWF, the world’s leading independent conservation organisation, Wild World Heroes will seek to inspire children to stand up for the future of our planet.

Here’s a closer look at the Nosy Crow books that are included in this year’s collection:

Look What I Found in the Woods, by Moira Butterfield and Jesús Verona, is a beautiful picture book that encourages children to get outside and discover all sorts of natural treasures in the woods. Find prickly pine cones and swirly snail’s shells, then learn more about the object with irresistible illustrated and informative nature notes. Packed with fascinating facts alongside a gentle rhyming narrative, this is the first book in a series of nature treasure hunt books for the whole family will treasure!

Buy the book.

Wigglesbottom Primary: Dino Chick, by Pamela Butchart and Becka Moor, is the latest instalment in this hilarious, illustrated chapter book series for readers aged 5+, with three school-based stories in each book. In Dino Chick, Year Two are chosen to look after some eggs that are about to hatch, but there’s something strange about them… What if it’s not a chick egg, but a dinosaur egg?

Buy the book.

The Boy Who Met a Whale, by Carnegie-nominated Nizrana Farook, is a thrilling escapade set in fictional Sri Lanka, jam-packed with peril, mystery and a huge blue whale. When local fisherboy, Razi, discovers a shipwreck with a mysterious strange inside, it kickstarts an exhilarating adventure filled with of sea monsters, villains and missing treasure…

Buy the book.

And finally, Earth Friends: Fair Fashion, by Holly Webb, the first in a fantastic series about four friends who want to make the world a better place, with themes of environmentalism and friendship. In this first book, Maya, while researching for a school project on Fairtrade, is appalled to find that her favourite sparkly T-shirts are made by poor children in other countries who lead very different lives from her own, privileged one. She knows she must do something about it, but how can she make a difference without revealing her pop start secret to the world?

Buy the book.

You can find out more about the Summer Reading Challenge and this year’s book collection, here.

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Take a look inside The House on the Edge

In July we’re very excited to be publishing The House on the Edge, by Alex Cotter – an unputdownable mystery filled with heart, featuring an eerie cliff top, sea ghosts, and a missing child. From a brilliant writer, this new story is perfect for fans of Emma Carroll, Fleur Hitchcock, and other spine-tingling fiction.

And today we’re delighted to share an exclusive preview – you can read the first few chapters below!

Where has Faith’s dad gone? Why has he left his family living in an old house perched on a crumbling cliff top? A crack has appeared in the cliff and Faith watches anxiously as it gets bigger and bigger each day… Her brother is obsessed with the sea ghosts he claims live in the basement, and when he disappears as well, Faith starts to believe in the ghosts too. Can she find her brother and bring her father back before everything she cares about falls into the pitiless sea below?

You can read an extract from the book below:

The House on the Edge is out on July 1st – you can pre-order your copy from Waterstones here, Bookshop.org here, and Amazon here.

Don’t forget to sign up for our books newsletter to stay up-to-date with all of our books news at this page, or with the form below, and you’ll never miss a thing.

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Otherland is now available as an audiobook

Today we’re delighted to share a brand new audiobook edition of Otherland by Louie Stowell – a darkly funny, action-packed fantasy adventure, perfect for fans of The Strangeworlds Travel Agency, Malamander, and The Land of Roar, from the author of the highly-acclaimed Dragon in the Library series.

And you can listen to a preview of the new audiobook edition of Otherland, brilliantly read by Gemma Whelan, below!

Otherland is a dangerous magical underworld – a place where appearances can be deceiving and anything can happen. A world of gods, vampires, and fairies. It’s also… horrible.

When life-long friends Myra and Rohan discover that Rohan’s baby sister Shilpa has been stolen and taken to Otherland, the only way to rescue her is by taking part in a deadly game – three impossible challenges set by the Fairy Queen of Otherland. Win the game, and Rohan and Myra can go home with Shilpa – but lose, and they’ll be trapped in Otherland forever…

You can buy the audiobook of Otherland from Audible, Amazon, and Apple now – and you can listen to a preview of the audiobook below:

Buy the audiobook.

And you can also read the opening of the book below:

You can buy the print edition of Otherland from Waterstones here, from Bookshop.org here, and from Amazon here.

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Read an exclusive preview of We Made a Movie

Next month we’re delighted to be publishing We Made a Movie, by Charlotte Lo – a funny, heartwarming sequel to the acclaimed We Won an Island, which was named one of The Telegraph’s Top 50 Books of 2019.

And today we’re excited to share an exclusive preview – you can the first two chapters of the book below!

When Luna’s family won an island, their dreams came true – Luna opened a donkey sanctuary, her sister flew a plane, and her brother won a sheep pageant. But Luna’s new donkey has a mortal fear of beaches, her mum’s goat-yoga business is on the rocks, and her brother is weirder than ever! Luna’s got a brilliant plan to solve her family’s problems – it’s time to enter the movie-making business…

From performing donkeys to goat-yoga, We Made a Movie is a laugh-out-loud story of family, fun and adventure, perfect for readers aged 9+ this summer.

Take a look inside:

We Made a Movie will be out on June 3rd – you can pre-order a copy from Waterstones here, Bookshop.org here, or from Amazon here.

If you’d like to stay up-to-date with all of our latest book news, including early previews, giveaways, and more, you can sign up to our newsletter here, and you’ll never miss a thing.

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Where’s Mrs Doctor is out today!

We’re delighted that Where’s Mrs Doctor, a brand new book in the bestselling Felt Flaps series by Ingela P Arrhenius, is out today!

Designed for little hands, with soft yet robust felt flaps, bright artwork, and a mirror ending that little ones love, these are perfect for babies and toddlers.

Take a look inside the new book:

You can buy a copy of Where’s Mrs Doctor from Waterstones here, Bookshop.org here, and Amazon here.

If you’re looking for more books for babies and toddlers, you might like the Peekaboo series, also created by Ingela P Arrhenius, with lots of sliders and that signature friendly artwork.

Don’t forget to sign up to our books newsletter on this page, or using the form at the bottom of this page, and you’ll be the first to know about all of our new books.

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The Life and Time of Lonny Quicke is Blackwell’s Children’s Book of the Month

Blackwell’s Booksellers have announced their Children’s Book of the Month for May – and we’re absolutely delighted that The Life and Time of Lonny Quicke, by Kirsty Applebaum, has been chosen!

From the highly-acclaimed author of The Middler and TrooFriend, The Life and Time of Lonny Quicke is a gripping new novel of secrets and terrible power – perfect for fans of Malorie Blackman, Meg Rosoff, and Frances Hardinge.

Lonny is a lifeling. He has the power to heal any living creature and bring it back from the dead. But he pays a price for this gift – by lengthening the creature’s life, he shortens his own. So Lonny has to be careful, has to stay hidden in the forest. Because if people knew what he could do, Lonny would be left with no life at all…

Read the first few chapters:

You can order a copy of The Life and Time of Lonny Quicke from Blackwell’s here.

Don’t forget to sign up to our books newsletter here to be the first to know about our latest news, including exclusive previews, discounts and giveaways.

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Nosy Crow is the only book publisher ever to win TWO Queen’s Awards for Enterprise for International Trade

Nosy Crow, the UK’s fastest-growing independent children’s publisher, today celebrates a second consecutive Queen’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade, the most prestigious business award in the UK.

It is the only book publisher ever to win a second award and the only publisher to have won one in the last 10 years.

Nosy Crow is one of 205 organisations nationally to be recognised with a prestigious Queen’s Award this year and, within that, one of 122 recognised for its excellence in International Trade.

Employing 56 people, Nosy Crow is a multi-award-winning publisher of child-focused, parent-friendly children’s books and ebooks for ages 0–12. It began publishing in 2011 and celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

Nosy Crow is now the 11th biggest children’s publisher in terms of UK sales to the consumer and the 6thbiggest preschool publisher (Nielsen).

In 2020, Nosy Crow’s export sales were 74% of total sales, up from 67% in 2019. Based on the Publishers Association statistics collection scheme in 2019 Nosy Crow had 2.1% of the UK children’s market, but a staggering 10.8% of UK publishers’ children’s books exports.

Adrian Soar, proud at the age of 80 to be Nosy Crow’s Commercial Director and Co-Founder, says:

“Our global success is due to the great work of our authors and illustrators, and to the achievements of the terrific team at Nosy Crow. We are delighted that for the second time this has been recognised by the accolade of a Queen’s Award, a first for the book publishing industry.”

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Take a look inside Look What I Found at the Seaside

This June we’re very excited to be publishing Look What I Found at the Seaside, written by Moira Butterfield and illustrated by Jesús Verona – the second book in this wonderful nature treasure hunt picture book series, following on from Look What I Found in the Woods, which was published last month.

And today we’re sharing an early preview of the book – you can take a look inside below!

Set off on an adventure to find treasure, from swirly seashells to mysterious mermaid’s purses, then learn more about each object with richly-illustrated and informative nature notes. Packed full of fascinating facts alongside a gentle rhyming narrative and encouraging children to get outside and explore their surroundings, this is a nature treasure hunt series for the whole family to enjoy.

Take a look inside the book:

Moira Butterfield, the author of the series, wrote a fascinating post last month about where the idea for the series came from – you can read that here.

Look What I Found at the Seaside will be published on June 3rd. You can order a copy from Waterstones here, Bookshop.org here, or Amazon here. The first book in the series, Look What I Found in the Woods, is out now – you can look inside the book and buy a copy here.

Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter to stay up-to-date with our latest book news, early previews, giveaways and more. You can sign up here or using the form at the bottom of this page.

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Sketching Ruffles and the Red, Red Coat – a guest post by David Melling

This month we’re very excited to have published Ruffles and the Red, Red Coat, by award-winning author and illustrator, David Melling – a brightly illustrated, adorable new picture book about the tricky troubles of toddler life.

And today we’re very pleased to share a guest post by David on developing the character of Ruffles, which you can read below.

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When Nosy Crow and I first began sharing story ideas I had a sketchbook with me and it was this small sketch that caught their eye.

Early sketch of Ruffles with ruff collar

I called him Ruffles on account of the ruff collar. My intention was for the story to focus on this fashion accessory only, it wasn’t as forthcoming as I’d hoped. In my sketchbook, I replaced the ruff collar with a vet’s cone and began thinking about all the different ways Ruffles could acquire spots.

Early sketch of Ruffles with vet’s cone and spots

This was better, but again, it wasn’t chiming quite right. With a bit of luck, a good feeling is felt with the initial sketches. However, on this occasion, we felt something was missing. So I reset and went back to what I normally do when I start out – I drew a lot.

This is probably my favourite part of the process. Drawing Ruffles again and again helps me settle on his overall design while at the same time, finding his character and personality. I try to do this with my pencil rather than pen. Sketching him in a range of poses, with strong body posture, with a variety of expressions and emotions. All this helps me get to know him – the tilt of the head, the shape and angle of his ears, the behaviour of his tail.

As I drew Ruffles, I asked myself questions: how old is he? Is he shy, naughty, inquisitive, bold, messy? I started adding words and phrases alongside certain drawings, but at this stage, the writing was fairly minimal. Meanwhile, the drawings continue as I set about drawing Ruffles and Ruby together. Even at this stage, the sketches I produce can contribute to the story.

Early sketches of Ruffles and Ruby playing together

As the material builds so do possible storylines. It’s around this time, I move on to an exercise that helps me to develop story ideas. It’s a drawing exercise that I read the great illustrator Maurice Sendak created for himself as a way of loosening up to explore interesting themes and ideas. His idea was to draw quickly to a set time (for him it was a piece of classical music). Using an A4 piece of paper, top left to bottom right, you draw a sequence – any sequence of images – without pausing or thinking too much ahead. In my case, I set myself ten minutes and began with Ruffles doing ‘something’ – looking grumpy, digging a hole, chasing a bird… and just see where it goes.

Early development sketches of Ruffles

This process is not always successful in producing a complete narrative. Yet almost every time I have something I can use, be it a gesture, an expression, a brief sequence. Something nearly always emerges that surprises me.

Up to this point, there’s still little writing. But now, with an idea of narrative hopefully taking hold, I’ll take these sequence drawings and begin thumbnailing a storyboard. It’s not unusual for me to draw most of the story before the writing – that’s how it works for me. I know others always write the complete story first before they even pick up a pencil. Whatever works for the individual, each to their own!

Early storyboard of Ruffles and the Red, Red Coat

Once I have one or two storyboards going, that’s when I finally put down the pencil, close the sketchbook and start writing. Often, by this time I’ll have about 80% of the narrative worked out. Once I’m happy with my first draft I file the lot – sketches, storyboards and draft – and send them to my editor with a few bullet points of my thoughts. What follows is some back and forth, some editing, more drafts, a whole lot more drawing and eventually, with a bit more luck, a clear path to a finished story.

A quick word on the final art: Ruffles is the first book I’ve worked on where I’ve moved out of my comfort zone. Throughout my career, I’ve used traditional tools – pens, brushes, paint. But with this book, I used a new tool: Photoshop. It’s not something I was naturally drawn to, as I’ve always been a bit of a technophobe, but I enjoyed the process and I’m really pleased with the fresh direction that it took my work. Nosy Crow, and in particular my wonderful designer Manda Scott, has been instrumental in helping support me with this, for which I’m extremely grateful. Thankfully, it’s been a journey worth taking and I hope you enjoy the results too.

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Thank you, David! Ruffles and the Red, Red Coat is out now – you can order a copy from Waterstones here, Bookshop.org here, or Amazon here.

Take a look inside the book below:

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Take a look inside I’m Thinking of a Pet

Last week we published I’m Thinking of a Pet, by Adam Guillain, Charlotte Guillain & Lucia Gaggiotti – an interactive, pet-themed board book for babies and toddlers! With vibrant artwork, friendly rhyming text, and fun sliders, this interactive book is great for reading aloud.

And today we’re sharing a video demonstration of the book – you can see the book in action below!

Each child is thinking of pet… What do they look like? What do they eat? And what noise do they make? Follow the simple clues, make a guess, then spot the animal hiding in the beautifully illustrated scene and pull the slider to reveal the answer.

I’m Thinking of a Pet is out now – you can buy a copy here. The first book in the series, I’m Thinking of a Farm Animal, is also available here.

If you’d like to stay up-to-date with our latest book news, as well as early previews, giveaways and more, you can sign up to our books newsletter here.

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