Nosy Crow's Blog, page 90

Make your own Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam Christmas decorations!

Just in time for Christmas, Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam illustrator Steven Lenton has designed some wonderful Shifty and Sam Christmas decorations – complete with instructions to make them at home!

So if you’d like your own Shifty and Sam to hang from a tree, just print off these handy step-by-step guides.

Here are the instructions to make Shifty McGifty:

And here’s how to make Slippery Sam:

And we’d love to see how you get on! Tweet us pictures of your Shifty and Sam decorations to @NosyCrowBooks and we’ll give some prizes to our favourites.

If you’re new to Shifty and Sam, you can take a look inside their latest (and suitably festive!) young illustrated fiction adventures in Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: Jingle Bells! below:

Buy the book.

Evie’s Ghost has been shortlisted for the East Sussex Children’s Book Award!

The shortlist for the 2018 East Sussex Children’s Book Award has been announced, and we’re delighted to see that Evie’s Ghost by Helen Peters has been recognised!

This annual book award is presented by East Sussex Schools Library and Museum Service. Children whose schools have signed up to take part in the award have the chance to vote for their favourite fiction book from a shortlist – last year, the prize went to The Many Worlds of Albie Bright, by Christopher Edge.

Part Gosford Park, part Charlotte Sometimes, and part The Go-Between, Evie’s Ghost is an absolutely brilliant time-slip story – spine-tingling, moving, funny and heartbreaking.

Evie’s been sent to stay with her ancient grandmother in an old creaky house in the middle of nowhere. Her phone is broken and she can’t believe how hugely unfair everything is.

Then, on the first night, Evie sees a strange, ghostly figure at the window. Spooked, she flees from the room, feeling oddly disembodied as she does so.

Out in the corridor, it’s 1814 and Evie finds herself dressed as a housemaid. Little does she know that she’ll need all her cunning to fix the past and stop everything falling apart in the future…

If you’ve not yet discovered the book, here’s a preview of the opening chapters of Evie’s Ghost:

Buy the book online.

And here’s Helen reading from the book:

The winner of the award will be announced at a ceremony in June – congratulations, Helen, and good luck!

Take a look inside Press out and Colour: Christmas Decorations

This autumn we’re very pleased to have published Press Out and Colour: Christmas Decorations, illustrated by Kate McLelland – the latest book in the incredible Press Out and Colour activity series. And to show just how beautiful the new book is, we’ve made an animated trailer showing how it works – you can watch it at the top of this post.

Each press-out design is intricately decorated with foil and perfect for all ages to colour in. Featuring 20 unique designs, the press-out pieces can be slotted together to create bright and cheerful hanging ornaments. From beautiful baubles to shimmery snowflakes, these gorgeous festive decorations are perfect to hang on the Christmas tree and add sparkle to any setting.

You can buy Press Out and Colour: Christmas Decorations online 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.

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Great Black Friday offers with Nosy Crow

We’re celebrating Black Friday with a special sale – place any order on our website this weekend (excluding giclee prints) and get 15% off!

Choose from wonderfully innovative novelty and activity books, beautiful picture books, fantastically child-friendly fiction, and great gift ideas – like Pip and Posy soft toys, exclusive signed books, or even a Nosy Crow Mug. There’s something for everyone – and from now until Monday 27th, you can get 15% off when you place an order at the Nosy Crow website and use the discount code “blackfriday” at the checkout page.

There’s no minimum order quantity, and we offer worldwide shipping.

And if you’re stuck for ideas, or don’t know what sort of book or gift might be right, ask us on Twitter (at @NosyCrowBooks) and we’d be delighted to suggest something!

Happy browsing!

There’s just a week left to get Rounds: Parker Penguin for just 99p from the App Store

Last week we launched a special limited-time winter sale for one of our apps – we’ve dropped the price of our award-winning life science app Rounds: Parker Penguin until the end of November. And there’s just a week left to download the app from the App Store for just 99p/ 99¢!

This highly-acclaimed, award-winning app is the second in our fantastic Rounds series, and just like the first one, Rounds: Franklin Frog, it combines a charming and accessible story with a bold, graphic illustrative style (using only circles and components of circles), some hugely innovative interactivity, animation, voicework and original music throughout, and LOTS of fun facts – perfect for both home and the classroom.

You can help Parker do all the things that penguins do best – waddle, slide, swim, hunt, march, dance, protect their eggs, help a chick to hatch and shed its down – and then start all over again with Percy! Along the way, there’s lots to find out about penguins and the Antarctic – did you know that penguins can dive over 500 metres underwater? Or that they can hold their breath for 20 minutes when they are hunting?

The app is the winner of a 2013 FutureBook Innovation Award and was named as one of USA Today’s top 10 apps for kids for 2012.

You can download Rounds: Parker Penguin from the App Store here.

Tracey Corderoy’s children’s books of the year

Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam author Tracey Corderoy has shared her favourite children’s books of the year on the Waterstones blog – and we’re delighted to see that The Secret Diary of John Drawbridge, Medieval Knight in Training, written by Philip Ardagh and illustrated by Jamie Littler, features on Tracey’s list!

Of The Secret Diary of John Drawbridge, Tracey writes:

“This is just GREAT for anyone who wants to learn about mediaeval knights and castles but wants to do it with a huge smile on their face. There are banquets, hunting with birds of prey, archery – and *spoiler alert* they get attacked by the Welsh (I’m not going to take offence at that btw).

Philip Ardagh’s writing is immensely humorous and informative. He cleverly signposts facts within the fiction so that you learn whilst being entertained. You become aware very quickly that the author has a BIG passion for the past, and especially castles, and is very knowledgeable on the subject. This book would be a brilliant addition to the classroom library as well as the home bookshelf.  If bringing the past alive is what you’re after then this book is an absolute must!”

And if you’ve not yet discovered The Secret Diary of John Drawbridge, you can take a look inside the book below! The first book in a hilarious new ‘faction’ series published in partnership with the National Trust, and with a fantastic balance of great characters, exciting plot, and interesting, accessible historical facts woven into the story, this is PERFECT for fans of Horrible Histories.

Here’s a look inside the book:

Buy the book from Waterstones.

You can read Tracey’s full list of her books of the year on the Waterstones blog here.

Signed, limited edition art prints by Axel Scheffler

We’ve got some fantastic Christmas offers coming up on the Nosy Crow website in the next few weeks – if you’re looking for gift ideas, look no further!

For a truly unique, memorable gift, our limited edition Pip and Posy art prints are perfect. These exclusive, signed and numbered, limited edition prints are only available though the Nosy Crow website.

These beautiful Pip and Posy prints are produced at a local Southwark press – printed on A3 (29.7 x 42.0cm) heavyweight (308gsm) Hahnemuhle German Etching paper with a hand-deckled edge finish. Each print is signed and numbered by Axel Scheffler, and one of a limited run.

Here are the five pieces of Axel’s art available as limited edition prints:

Taken from Pip and Posy: The Little Puddle:

Buy this print.

Taken from Pip and Posy: The Super Scooter:

Buy this print.

Taken from Pip and Posy: The Snowy Day:

Buy this print.

Taken from Pip and Posy: The Scary Monster:

Buy this print.

Taken from Pip and Posy: The Big Balloon:

Buy this print.

You can find our full range of giclee prints here.

And as well as these limited edition prints, you can also buy Pip and Posy cuddly toys and signed hardback editions of Pip and Posy: The Super Scooter and Pip and Posy: The Little Puddle directly from the Nosy Crow website.

Signed copies of Spectre Collectors: Too Ghoul for School now available!

This September we published Spectre Collectors: Too Ghoul for School, the first book in a hilarious new series by Barry Hutchison – and signed copies are now available to buy from the Nosy Crow shop!

If you’re new to Spectre Collectors, you can read the opening chapter of Too Ghoul for School below. Funny, exciting, and action-packed, this series is PERFECT for 9+ year olds.

Denzel is having no luck with his maths homework. First, it’s too difficult, then there’s the terrifying phantom that wants to kill him, then two teenagers explode through his window holding guns and throwing magic. They are the Spectre Collectors, and spooky is their specialty.

Realising that Denzel has a special gift, they sweep him off to their headquarters, where Denzel quickly realises that he is terrible at the job. But there’s a serious problem on its way from the Spectral Realm, and Denzel is going to use all of his non-existent skills to save the day…

Here’s a look inside the book:

Buy a signed copy.

And here’s Barry introducing the book in his own words:

Here’s Barry sharing the inspiration behind the story:

And here’s Barry reading from the book:

Buy a signed copy.

There are just a few days left to bid for original, signed artwork by Axel Scheffler and help raise money for charity

Last week we announced the launch of a charity auction for some unique signed, dated, original pieces of artwork by Pip and Posy illustrator Axel Scheffler, created during a live-drawing and storytelling session at the Edinburgh Festival. There are four pieces available to bid on, featuring some of Axel’s best-known and most loved characters – including The Gruffalo and Pip and Posy – and all proceeds will go to Three Peas, a charity offering help and support to the thousands of people suffering and fleeing civil war in Syria and other war torn countries.

And there are just a few days left to bid – the auctions will end this Sunday! Here are the four pieces being auctioned:

The Gruffalo meets Pip and Posy:

Bid for this piece.

Pip and Posy on the beach:

Bid for this piece.

Pip and Posy in the rain:

Bid for this piece.

Pip and Posy on a tractor:

Bid for this piece.

Each piece of artwork is a signed and dated original – if you’ve always wanted your own original illustration of The Gruffalo or Pip and Posy, here’s your chance!

The auction will end on Sunday November 19th at 5pm.

Please do bid generously for this hugely important cause – and good luck!

Watch Tom Fletcher read from My Brother is a Superhero

Earlier this year children’s author (and McFly star!) Tom Fletcher launched a children’s book club exclusively with WH Smith – and My Brother is a Superhero by David Solomons was chosen as one of ten launch titles to feature in Tom’s first book club selection!

And today, Tom read from the book on his YouTube channel – you can watch the video at the top of this post.

If you’re new to My Brother is a Superhero, you can take a look inside the book below:

Buy the book.

You can find out more about the Tom Fletcher Book Club on the WH Smith website here.