Nosy Crow's Blog, page 60

The story behind The Suitcase – a guest post by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros

This May we published The Suitcase, written and illustrated by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros – a powerful new picture book full of heart and humanity. And today we’re very pleased to share a piece by Chris on the message behind the book, which you can read below.

Whenever trying to invent new stories and characters the real world always seeps into our thoughts. And the real world is currently in a period of increasing upheaval and turbulence where many people are having to make almost impossible decisions for themselves and their families to find less precarious lives or just some peace and a sense of safety and stability. Things we are presently lucky enough to take for granted.

The Suitcase isn’t truly about migration. It isn’t about the reasons behind it or the hardships endured on the long and hazardous journey. For me, the story is simply about trust and kindness. It’s about taking someone at face value when it’s impossible to know who they really are or where they come from or even why they’re here. And it’s about recognising that when someone is in need and we are in a position to help, then that’s what we should do, even if it means overcoming the fears instilled by confronting the unknown.

I wanted The Suitcase to give voice to different reactions when encountering something unexpected and inexplicable, and to show that rarely is anyone entirely noble, honourable and strong. We all worry, we all get a little bit scared sometimes when confronting the unknown, the strange, the stranger. We’re all prone to doubt, distrust and disagreement. We make bad decisions and we sometimes get things wrong and might even make big mistakes. But if we can acknowledge our fears and reject them then maybe, with a bit of trust and cooperation, we’ll find a way forward.

And then something wonderful might happen – the unknown and mysterious other, the peculiar stranger with seemingly tall tales can enrich and enlighten our world, and hopefully we can do the same for theirs.

Finally, I hope The Suitcase is about friendship – old and new. And how it can spring up and blossom where you least expect it.

Thank you, Chris! The Suitcase is available in bookshops now, and you can take a look inside the below:

And you can watch our trailer for the book below:

Buy the book.

 

In defence of dragons (a guest post by Louie Stowell)

Today’s guest post is by Louie Stowell, author of  The Dragon in the Library – the first book in an exciting, magical and brilliantly funny new series for 7+, illustrated by Davide Ortu, with a great message about the power of books and reading.

Dragons in literature get a bad rap. Sometimes, they’re just nameless monsters, whose only role is to die at the hands of a noble knight. At best, they’re usually cunning and vicious, with greed in their hearts and destruction on their lips.

When my editor, Tom, asked me to write a post about my favourite dragons, I thought, “Easy! I love lots of stories with dragons in!” But the first one that came to mind was Beowulf… where the dragon doesn’t even get a name. Then, of course, there’s the Hobbit. Smaug is super cool… but his story is a snuff movie, in the end.

Then there’s Fafnir, my first dragon love as a kid. Not a nice dragon at all. Mind you, there is an argument that he’s not technically a dragon: a lot of the best dragons in stories are actually cursed people… see also Eustace Scrubb in Narnia.

Eustace Scrubb, endragoned

There are definitely stories of good dragons out there (Cressida Cowell, I salute you! Christopher Paolini, your service is noted!) but most of the dragon stories I grew up with were relentlessly ANTI dragon.

That never stopped me loving them, though.

When I set out to write The Dragon in the Library, I wasn’t consciously trying to do a PR story for dragons, but in my mind’s eye, they’re actually just large puppies who mean well. Sometimes, they might burn things, but they don’t mean to. Without giving too much away, the dragons in my story are more puppy than serpent. Not that there’s anything wrong with serpents…

David Tennant as the Serpent Crowley, in the recent adaptation of Good Omens

Thank you, Louie! The Dragon in the Library is out now – you can take a look inside the book below:

Buy the book.

The best new children’s books for Summer 2019, chosen by independent booksellers

Today marks the start of Independent Bookshop Week (15th to 22nd June), and to mark the occasion, The Guardian have published a guide to the best new children’s books for Summer 2019 – featuring picks by independent booksellers from around the country.

And we’re delighted to see that seven Nosy Crow titles have been selected across four age categories – the most for any publisher!

In the babies category, Animal Families: Safari, illustrated by Jane Ormes, has been featured by Carrie Morris from Booka Bookshop and Cafe in Oswestry. Carrie writes:

“Perfect for babies and little learners as they discover the roles and names within animal groups. A final double- page fold out provides a panoramic surprise of collective nouns for wild animals. The dazzling illustrations bring this simple book to life. ROAR!”

And A Book About Marley Bear at the Farm, illustrated by Melissa Crowton, has been featured by Ruth Swindon from The Bookworm Ltd in London. Ruth writes:

“With large felt flaps and mirrors, this touch-and-feel board book is a great way to introduce small children to animals, farm life and noises while supporting early speech and confidence building.”

In the 3-5 category, The Suitcase, written and illustrated by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros, has been featured by Louise Chadwick from Button and Bear in Shrewsbury. Louise writes:

“With a message of tolerance, acceptance, kindness and respect for others, this outstanding picture book has a powerful message that will stay with you long after you have read it.”

Here’s a look inside the book:

And Busy Little Bees: Sunflower Shoots and Muddy Boots, written by Katherine Halligan and illustrated by Grace Easton has been featured by Louise Haines from The Bookcase in Lowdham. Louise writes:

“From growing a garden den to sprouting baby beans in a jar, this informative book is full of ideas for green-fingered fun both outdoors and indoors.”

Here’s a look inside the book:

In the 6-8 category, An Otter Called Pebble, written by Helen Peters and illustrated by Ellie Snowdon, has been featured by Tereze Brikmane from Tales on Moon Lane in London. Tereze writes:

“Jasmine and Tom find an otter cub by the river. Following advice from the Wildlife Trust, they set out to find its family. A story packed full of otter facts; perfect for the young animal enthusiast.”

Here’s a look inside the book:

And Find Tom in Time, Ancient Egypt, illustrated by Fatti Burke, has been featured by Nicola Lee from Children’s Bookshop in Huddersfield. Nicola writes:

“Tom and his cat Digby travel back in time. Short snippets of information about various aspects of Ancient Egypt are interspersed with spotting Egyptian artefacts (and, of course, Digby) in this great interactive book.”

Here’s a look inside the book:

And in the 9+ category, No Ballet Shoes in Syria by Catherine Bruton has been featured by Sanchita Basu De Sarkar from The Children’s Bookshop, Muswell Hill in London. Sanchita writes:

“Filled with warmth and kindness, the story of Aya and her family will resonate long after the last page. Aya’s longing to join a prestigious ballet school sits alongside flashbacks to her life in Syria – and offers her the hope of rebuilding her life.”

Here’s a look inside the book:

Thank you to all of the independent bookshops and booksellers who have championed our books – we are so incredibly grateful for your support!

You can find the full guide to the best children’s books for Summer 2019 in today’s edition of The Guardian – and you can find out more about Independent Bookshop Week (along with a guide to finding your local independent bookshop) here.

Happy Independent Bookshop Week!

Take a first look inside My Cousin is a Time Traveller – the final book in the best-selling series by David Solomons

Later this month – on June 27th, to be exact – we’ll be publishing My Cousin is a Time Traveller by David Solomons: the fifth (and final!) book in the hilarious, exciting, award-winning and best-selling My Brother is a Superhero series.

And today we’re delighted to share a very first early look inside the book – you can read the opening chapter of My Cousin is a Time Traveller here.

Luke is surprised to learn that his cousin is a time traveller. He’s even more surprised when she tells him that the machines are becoming intelligent and he must help her stop them taking over the world. It couldn’t come at a worse time – Zack has decided to give up his superpowers and live life as a normal teenage nerd. So Luke must swallow his irritation and rise to the challenge yet again…

And without further ado, here’s a look inside the book:

You can pre-order My Cousin is a Time Traveller here – and if you’d like to stay up to date with all of our upcoming book news, you can sign up to our books newsletter here, or with the form below, and you’ll never miss a thing.

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I Am The Seed That Grew The Tree: A Nature Poem For Every Day Of The Year is a Big Book Award winner!

The winners of the 2019 Big Book Awards have been announced today, and we’re absolutely delighted that I Am the Seed That Grew the Tree: A Nature Poem for Every Day of the Year has won the Children’s (Illustrated) category!

Highlighting the finest emerging fiction and non-fiction titles in UK publishing, the Big Book Awards are run by magazine publisher Hearst UK, with the winners chosen by a combination of magazine editors and Hearst’s readers – you can find the full list of award winners here.

And we’re thrilled that I Am The Seed has been recognised!

Published in partnership with the National Trust, illustrated by Frann Preston-Gannon and with poetry collected by Fiona Waters, I Am the Seed That Grew the Tree is a lavishly illustrated collection of 366 nature poems – one for every day of the year. Filled with familiar favourites and new discoveries, this is a perfect book for children (and grown-ups!) to share together. And it’s also the most ambitious book that we’ve ever published at Nosy Crow: over three hundred fully-illustrated pages (the equivalent of ten picture books!) of poetry, in a beautiful and lavishly-produced hardback edition, and a stunning collection of material, spanning hundreds of years – from sonnets to haikus.

Here’s our trailer for the book:

And here’s a look inside I Am The Seed That Grew The Tree:

Buy the book.

Congratulations, Frann and Fiona!

Read for Empathy with Nosy Crow

Today is Empathy Day – founded by EmpathyLab in 2017, Empathy Day focuses on using books as tool to build more understanding between us all, encouraging everyone to read, share books, and put empathy into action. To support the project, EmpathyLab have created a series of resources, guides, and reading lists for schools, libraries and bookshops – which includes two Nosy Crow titles, Running on Empty by S. E. Durrant and Ella on the Outside by Cath Howe. You can find out more on the EmpathyLab website, here.

And to celebrate Empathy Day, we’ve asked our staff to come up with a list of some brilliant Nosy Crow books that encourage empathy!

Here are some of the Crow’s recommendations for Empathy Day reading:

Running on Empty, by S. E. Durrant.

“Running On Empty made me cry. AJ navigates life’s already difficult roads with the added pressure of worrying about his parents, who both have learning difficulties.” – Beth Gooding, Marketing Assistant

Ella on the Outside, written by Cath Howe.

“I can’t think of a book that better demonstrates empathy than Ella on the Outside. It’s such a sharply-drawn portrait of what it feels like to be somewhere new, to feel anxious and lonely, and to want to make friends.” – Tom Bonnick, Senior Commissioning Editor and Business Development Manager

When a Dragon comes to Stay, written by Caryl Hart and illustrated by Rosalind Beardshaw.

“I love the way When a Dragon Comes to Stay helps children understand that some behaviours are less acceptable than others, steering them towards kind and considerate actions without passing judgement.” – Alice Bartosinksi, Senior Commissioning Editor, Picture Books

Little Bird Flies, written by Karen McCombie.

“Little Bird Flies is a socio-historical novel that is so applicable to today’s social issues also. I was absorbed the whole way through, and Bridie is a great character who you really root for.” – Nur Ben-Hamida, Contracts Executive

Welcome to Our World: A Celebration of Children Everywhere!, written by Moira Butterfield and illustrated by Harriet Lynas.

“As a rights seller, I love learning about customs from around the world and I’m sure curious children do too. Welcome to Our World beautifully demonstrates that whilst we might all do things in a different way, we really aren’t so different from one another after all…” – Erin Murgatroyd, Rights Manager

The Middler, written by Kirsty Applebaum.

“The Middler shows that no matter what the people around you are saying about other communities, it’s vital to find things out for yourself and to be open-minded about people who are different to you.” – Fiona Scoble, Editor

The Suitcase, by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros

“The Suitcase is a play on the page, the animal’s voices telling an understated, clever, sad story of the importance of kindness to strangers with a twist of kindness at the end that gets me every time.” – Kate Wilson, Managing Director

The Velveteen Rabbit, written by Margery Williams and illustrated by Sarah Massini.

“The Velveteen Rabbit was my favourite childhood story. It taught me the great value of humility in the character of the Skin Horse, and that everybody deserves to be real.” – Sophie Emmings, Office and Operations Assistant

Leap Frog, written by Jane Clarke and illustrated by Britta Teckentrup.

“For me, Leap Frog really highlights that new experiences can cause anxiety in all of us, young or old and from all walks of life.” – Manda Scott, Senior Designer

The Phantom Lollipop Man, written by Pamela Butchart and illustrated by Thomas Flintham

“Hidden subtly behind its laugh-out-loud humour The Phantom Lollipop Man! conveys a touching and poignant message about the importance of taking the time to find out everyone’s story – even the most invisible ones.” – Catherine Stokes, Head of Sales and Marketing

This Zoo is Not For You, by Ross Collins.

“This Zoo is Not For You has such an important message about being open and welcoming to everyone; but, thanks to Ross’ mischievous sense of humour, it’s both funny AND heartfelt – and will always bring a smile to your face.” – Rebecca Mason, Senior Publicity Executive

My Cousin is a Time Traveller, by David Solomons.

“Through the humour of My Cousin is a Time Traveller, Luke learns a serious lesson: a thing he’d love (being a superhero) is a terrible burden to his brother. He doesn’t agree with Zack but he does come to empathise with him.” – Kirsty Stansfield, Head of Fiction

Anna At War, written by Helen Peters.

“Reading Anna At War made me think about what it is like to be evacuated and how brave these children have been – not knowing where they were going and whether they would ever see their families again.” – Stela Alekova, Financial Controller

The Same But Different Too, written by Karl Newson and illustrated by Kate Hindley.

“This book is all about celebrating our differences. Whether we’re big or small, quiet or loud, a goat who hates hugs or a walrus on a mobility scooter, we can all listen and be kind to one another… and we can all enjoy a bedtime story!” – Tegen Evans, Editor

No Ballet Shoes in Syria, written by Catherine Bruton.

“No Ballet Shoes in Syria is a hugely compassionate story that puts a very human perspective on a terrible conflict, but draws out hope from it too.” – Frances Sleigh, Senior Sales Manager

Splash, written by Charli Howard.

“Splash is a book that conveys a message that is very close to my heart: self-acceptance and body positivity. As the story unfolds, Molly learns that her body is not her enemy but the best ally to achieve her dreams.” – Michela Pea, Senior Rights Manager

This is a Dog, by Ross Collins.

“This is a Dog.” – Etty, Office Dog

You can find out more about Empathy Day on the EmpathyLab website, here – if you’re taking part, we’d love to hear about it!

Two Nosy Crow books featured in the 2019 EmpathyLab Reading Guides

Tomorrow, June 11, is Empathy Day: founded by EmpathyLab in 2017, Empathy Day focuses on using books as tool to build more understanding between us all, encouraging everyone to read, share books, and put empathy into action.

To support Empathy Day, EmpathyLab have created two Read for Empathy Guides (one primary-school and one secondary-school age), featuring forty-five powerful, empathy-boosting books for 4-16 year olds. And we are delighted that two Nosy Crow books have been featured in the 2019 reading guides!

Ella on the Outside by Cath Howe is the first of our two selected titles – a hugely compelling middle grade novel, with an incredibly authentic voice and hugely relatable characters. You can take a look inside the book below:

Buy the book.

And here’s a preview of the audiobook edition:

Buy the audiobook.

And Running on Empty, by S.E. Durrant, is also featured in EmpathyLab’s Read For Empathy Guide – a beautifully told story of unorthodox families, grief, adolescence and running. Here’s a look inside the book:

Buy the book.

And here’s a preview of the audiobook edition:

Buy the audiobook.

You can find out more about EmpathyDay here – and we’ll be sharing some of our own Reading for Empathy picks here on the blog tomorrow!

Q&A with The Longest Night of Charlie Noon author Christopher Edge and editor Kirsty Stansfield

Author Christopher Edge sat down with his editor Kirsty Stansfield, to discuss his latest book,  The Longest Night of Charlie Noon – a mind-bending mystery for 9+ readers combining cutting-edge science, gripping adventure and real heart. 

—

What was the inspiration behind The Longest Night of Charlie Noon?

I always find it difficult to pin down exactly where the inspiration for a story comes from as for me it’s often just the flotsam and jetsam of thoughts and ideas swirling round my head gradually coalescing into the shape of a story. I wanted to write a story about the times we are living in now. When you turn on the news it’s so easy to feel consumed by worries about the state of the world, but when I visit schools the compassion and intelligence of the young people I meet also fills me with a real sense of hope. When writing the novel I was reminded of the sense of powerlessness I felt as a child and the worries that I had back then. This might feel a world away from a story about three children getting lost in the woods, but I think The Longest Night of Charlie Noon at its heart is a hopeful story about the power that young people have to find a way out and change the world.

 

How much research did you do? And what books and or authors have influenced your work?

So, so much research! In my last novel, The Infinite Lives of Maisie Day, lots of the research is right there on the page as Maisie Day herself talks about entropy, relativity and other mind-bending scientific theories, but in The Longest Night of Charlie Noon most of my research is holding up the scenery. As well as visiting Lower Woods where the novel is set to map the story to its landscape, I immersed myself in nature writing from authors such as Robert Macfarlane, Roger Deakin and Peter Fiennes. When I’d actually completed the first draft of The Longest Night of Charlie Noon I rediscovered a novel called Brendon Chase by the author, illustrator and naturalist Denys Watkins-Pitchford, who wrote under the pen name BB, which is about three children who run away from home to live in the woods, and in the second draft of The Longest Night of Charlie Noon I actually reworked a couple of scenes to sharpen the echoes between these two stories. There are many more influences in there too, from Kate Bush to T. S. Eliot, to name but two, and I actually list many of the books and authors I read in the acknowledgements section at the end of the novel for any readers who want to go on an intertextual treasure hunt!

 

It’s hard to avoid spoilers here, but there are a couple of twists and turns in The Longest Night of Charlie Noon to surprise the reader – how much did you enjoy putting those in?

I always knew the story I wanted to tell and these twists and turns emerged naturally from this. In many ways The Longest Night of Charlie Noon is a mystery story and the clues to these twists and turns are all there on the page. I’m not trying to trick the reader, but I think the element of surprise is important in a story – it’s what makes us want to keep on reading. I’m aware too that many readers, especially younger readers, enjoy re-reading a story, so I hope these twists and turns help create a novel that rewards re-reading as the story takes on a different light when you read it for the second or even third time, with details and dialogue taking on new meaning in light of the knowledge you now have. Having said that, I have enjoyed reading the reactions of some early readers to the twists that are there!

 

You’ve written about many mind-bending scientific concepts before, all very accessibly and with great clarity, but Time feels the big one. Did you get a headache?

Yes! Time is something we innately feel we understand, but actually it’s incredibly difficult to define. Our experience of time is different from a physicist’s understanding of time, whilst for a philosopher time can be something else entirely. In a way these different views of what time might be are what fuel my fascination with this subject and influenced the story I told in The Longest Night of Charlie Noon.

 

Where do you write and do you have any quirky authorial habits?

I have an office at the bottom of my garden which is where I do most of my writing, although sometimes the most productive writing time for me is when I have a decent seat on a long train journey. I don’t know if it counts as a quirky authorial habit, but I always write the first draft of a story in longhand in notebooks, which I tend to carry around with me everywhere I go. I know this causes you some stress though, especially the thought of me losing one of these notebooks when I’m getting close to a deadline!

—

Thank you, Kirsty and Chris! You can take a look inside The Longest Night of Charlie Noon below:

Buy the book.

And if you’d like to stay up-to-date with all of our book news, you can sign up to our books newsletter at this page, or with the form below, and you’ll never miss a thing:

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New books in June!

It’s our June publication day!

We’ve got some wonderful new books out this month – from brand new lift-the-flap and board books for babies and toddlers, to beautiful new picture books and illustrated non-fiction, and incredible new fiction, there’s something for everyone!

You can watch our new books video below, showcasing all of our brand new books:

Here’s a closer look at what you can find in shops now from Nosy Crow.

Where’s Mr Narwhal, by Ingela P Arrhenius:

Buy the book.

Bizzy Bear: Happy Holiday, by Benji Davies:

Buy the book.

Bizzy Bear: Deepsea Diver, by Benji Davies:

Buy the book.

Make and Play: Space, by Joey Chou

Buy the book.

How to be an Astronaut and Other Space Jobs, written by Dr Sheila Kanani and illustrated by Sol Linero:

Buy the book.

The Princess and the Shoe, written by Caryl Hart and illustrated by Sarah Warburton:

Buy the book.

Suzy Orbit, Astronaut, written by Ruth Quayle and illustrated by Jez Tuya:

Buy the book.

Unicorn Academy: Matilda and Pearl, written by Julie Sykes and illustrated by Lucy Truman:

Buy the book.

The Dragon in the Library, written by Louie Stowell:

Buy the book.

The Longest Night of Charlie Noon, Ancient Egypt, written by Christopher Edge:

Buy the book.

Congratulations to all of today’s authors and illustrators!

Take a first look inside Anna at War

Next month we are publishing Anna at War by Helen Peters – and today we’re delighted to share a very first look inside the book!

As life for German Jews becomes increasingly perilous, Anna’s parents put her on a train leaving for England. But the war follows her to Kent, and soon Anna finds herself caught up in web of betrayal and secrecy. How can she prove whose side she’s on when she can’t tell anyone the truth? But actions speak louder than words, and Anna has a dangerous plan…

Perfect for fans of Philippa Pearce and Emma Carroll, this is a brilliant and moving wartime adventure from the highly-acclaimed author of Evie’s Ghost.

And you can read the first three chapters of Anna at War below:

You can pre-order Anna at War here – and if you’d like to stay up-to-date with all of our book news, you can sign up to our books newsletter at this page, or with the form below, and you’ll never miss a thing.

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