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The Man Who Loved Libraries- The Story of Andrew Carnegie

Scottish born Andrew Carnegie’s gift of over 650 public libraries to the UK and Ireland was an astonishing and long-lasting legacy. It has changed many cities and towns for the better.

It has given opportunities for anyone to read a wealth of books without having a wealth of money.

‘The Man Who Loved Libraries, The Story of Andrew Carnegie’,written by Andrew Larsen and illustrated by Katty Maurey is published by Pikku Publishing on 1st May 2018.

‘When you open the door to a library, a world of opportunity awaits…’

When Andrew was young, life was hard and economics meant that many families, including the Carnegie family, living in Scotland, moved to America. Andrew grew up working for his living in Pittsburgh, as a bobbin boy, and a telegram messenger. But he was always quick to learn and found many ways to create business.

Andrew believed that learning was the key to his future, and a Colonel Anderson opened the doors to his private library on Saturday afternoons. This left a lasting impression on Andrew. As well as soaking up the knowledge which enabled him to create his fortune in the Pennsylvania Railroad Company and other investments, he was determined to leave a legacy of libraries to support others.

This is a fascinating book, the style and layout create a chance to read sections of information in ‘bite size chunks’ as provided by the Canadian author Andrew Larsen.

The iluustrations, from Canadian, Katty Maurey,,are engaging and give an excellent feel to the period in history.

The publishers, Pikku Publishing, have produced a wonderful book, not only for the text and the illustrations, but in the way it will lead the reader into further discovery. For instance the pages at the end of the book provide information and ideas about Andrew Carnegie and provide all the research material used in creating the book.

We thoroughly recommend this is both as an excellent book and a great resource in schools and at home for children from 6 – 12 years.

Sue Martin

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50 Ways to Feel Happy

This is the first book from Action for Happiness, written Vanessa King and illustrated by Celeste Aires. It is packed with wonderful ideas, to feel happy and to sustain happiness.

Action for Happiness is a global, social movement to promote happiness and well-being. The Dalai Lama is patron and his book The Art of Happiness is also a great read.

The book is divided into sections including; giving,relating, awareness, exercising,resilience, emotions and acceptance. Each page is well crafted with ideas and good illustrations showing just how the ideas will work. Becoming a kindness detective for example or ‘trying a mindful moment’ will help your mind and body to relax and feel positive.

Well-being is something that we are all aware off now, and is included in PSE school curricula. 50 Ways to Feel Happy is an excellent book for schools and can be used as a tool for engaging all children , especially where children are not as positive as others. It will really help.

Vanessa King is an author and expert in positive psychology and has worked extensively on enhancing well-being and resilience. In this book she was supported by Val Payne a teacher and education consultant and Peter Harper a consultant clinical psychologist. Vanessa gives an excellent TED talk on The Ten Keys to Happier Living

Celeste Aires is an Argentinian born illustrator, her modern style uses geometric shapes and bright blocks of colours, which work really well in this book.

QuartoKids are the publishers and have a wealth of excellent non-fiction titles which are engaging and informative.

50 Ways to Feel Happy would be a great book for schools and for home, there are times for all of us when we need a little way into happiness.

Sue Martin

10 Reasons To Love A Whale and 10 Reasons To Love A Bear

10 Reasons to love a whale cover image — Buy this book here…

The whale and the bear are the latest books to join the ’10 Reasons to Love’ series. Beautiful books, in hardback with an endearing whale or bear shaped hole in the cover, just waiting to be opened.

The combination of text and illustrations works really well, providing facts and interesting features, things that you will remember.

Did you know that whales are the original globetrotters? They travel from the polar regions to the equator and on their way, eat 40 million krill every day!

10 Reasons to Love a bear cover image — Buy this book here…

Bears wiggle and dance scratching their backs against a tree and pandas even do hand stands to leave the right mark!

The books deal with environmental issues and conservation and enable the reader to understand and love more about the animal. They are a perfect match for school work or just for reading at home.

Catherine Barr is the author, and has a long running interest in environmental campaigns, working with Greenpeace and as an editor at The Natural History Museum.

Hanako Clulow, the illustrator, left Japan for Ireland in 1997 and studied visual arts and English. her art work draws on her huge interest in nature and animal kingdoms.

Lincoln Children’s Books, in conjunction with the Natural History Museum, are the publishers. The first edition came out on March 1st 2018 and we are sure it will have a huge success.

Sue Martin

KidGlovz by Julie Hunt, illustrated by Dale Newman

This is a book with a difference, it’s a graphic novel in hardback, with an incredible number of drawings, vividly brought to life in black and white to tell this amazing story of Kid, his music his kidnap and all the characters who appear on the way.

Kid Glovz is a musical genius. His gift is so precious that he’s kept under lock and key. But when a young thief helps him escape, Kid must embark on a perilous journey through which he will discover the terrifying nature of his talent. A spellbinding graphic fable about friendship and freedom.

The story is full of mystery, an adventure with real danger and otherworldliness, a gripping tug-of-war between the forces of good and evil. It is a beautifully produced graphic novel for children, and on Julie’s website you can read the background to the story.

The author, award-winning Julie Hunt has written some amazing titles, including Little Else and a Song for Scarlet Runner. She lives on a farm in Southern Tasmania, she has a love of dramatic landscapes and has used these to build stories full of imagination and intrigue.

Dale Newman’s stunning artwork is reminiscent of Shaun Tan’s The Arrival and has the same air of foreboding in many of the pictures. Kid Glovz is her first epic graphic novel and a stunning start to a career in children’s books. She lives in New South Wales, Australia and is also used to some amazing landscapes.

Allen and Unwin, Australian publishers have a star packed book list and KidGlovz is bound to be a great success. In Australia it has already won 2016 QLD Premier’s Literary Awards, Children’s Books and short-listed for 2016 CBCA Book of the Year, Crichton Award for New Illustrators

Books Go Walkabout recommend KidGlovz for children aged about 9+ and for adults too.

Sue Martin

Peter Pan and Wendy by JM Barrie and illustrated by Robert Ingpen

Peter Pan and Wendy - Palazzo Editions - cover image — Get your copy here…

All children except one grow up! Maybe there are a few more, for those who read this book will inevitably not want to grow up”

In a most beautiful new edition of Peter Pan and Wendy, from Palazzo, the story is enhanced with deeply imaginative illustrations from Robert Ingpen.

Peter Pan flies into Wendy’s bedroom window in a house in London and with John and Michael, they fly away to Never Land.

Peter is the leader of the Lost Boys and meets his nemesis Captain Hook. From there along with Fairy Tinkerbell, the story and adventure begin.

J.M. Barrie left his royalties in perpetuity to Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital and this magnificent edition was published to commemorate the centenary of first publication and to continue as a fundraiser.

Robert Ingpen, is from Australia and first attempted illustrating Peter Pan at 7 years old. In 1986 he was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for his contribution to children’s literature and he has been honoured with membership of the Order of Australia.

A world-renowned artist and author, Ingpen has designed, illustrated and written more than one hundred books, including his highly acclaimed series of illustrated Children’s Classics, which have now been published in many editions around the world.

This book is part of a wonderful series of Classic Children’s Literature from Palazzo and will provide hours of pleasure.

Sue Martin

Arthur, High King of Britain

Arthur, High King of Britain by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Michael Foreman is in a new hardback edition recently published by Palazzo.

With the best of Morpurgo’s adventure style and with the captivating illustrations from Michael Foreman, bound together in this beautiful hardback book, it is a joy to read and provides a real sense of the man in the story.

Palazzo, are a young and independent, UK publishers creating beautifully designed and illustrated books for the UK and international markets. Their books are amazing and stylish, bringing back a huge amount of joy to reading, especially for children.

The adventure starts with a young boy setting out for the day, walking between tides, from Bryher to Samson, in the Scilly Isles. He knew he could do it, but when the fog circled round he was lost and not in time to make the return journey before the high tide would trap him. There he met Arthur Pendragon, High King of Britain.

They talked as the boy recovers by the fire and Arthur tells him that he also was once a wanderer and a dreamer and as he retells the stories he talks about his first meeting with Merlin.

The chapters include Excalibur, Lancelot and Guinevere and then to the Last Days of Camelot. The whole story of Arthur unfolds with heroes, knights, chivalry, magic, evil and betrayal.

A great read and a book for keeps, text full of intrigue and description, illustrations in water-colour washes and fine detail. Good for a present, for sharing in a classroom on history and PSHE topics, and for libraries and homes.

Dip in to a chapter at a time or start at the beginning, you will feel the magic of the book drawing you in.

Sue Martin

Books Go Walkabout

A Child’s Garden of Verses

A beautifully presented hard back book of A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson and illustrated by Michael Foreman in this magical new edition from Otter-Barry Books.

The verses were first published in 1885, so reflect quite a different era. In 1985, Michael Foreman created the wonderful water-colour illustrations which bring a soft and ephemeral magic to the poems.

This latest edition published in 2017, from Otter-Barry has a foreword from Alexander McCall Smith, who begins by saying about Stevenson,” He not only knows what children like, but he likes it along with them”

McCall Smith tells of Stevenson’s childhood in a family of lighthouse engineers, but he suffered from ill-health and spent much time in his sickbed. May be that it was here that he dreamed and thought of the world beyond. It was also in the Victorian times, when travel to far away places was possible for those with money to spend.

The poems are a delight and can conjure up images of gentle childhoods, as in The Swing,

Till I look down on the garden green,

Down on the roof so brown

Up in the air I go flying again

Up in the air and down.

One of my favourite illustrations is from My Shadow, a poem that will stay with you once read.

This book will make a wonderful present and will add to any school, library and home collection. I am off to read some of the poems now, by the fireside and ready to dream!

Sue Martin

Books Go Walkabout

Mr Badger and the Magic Mirror by Leigh Hobbs

Mr Badger is a portly badger who gets into scrapes and adventures in Boubles Grand Hotel, where he works very hard.

Mr Badger and the Magic Mirror, is the fourth in the Mr Badger series from Australian Children’s Laureate, Leigh Hobbs.

One day a mirror is moved from the room of Sir Cecil Smothers-Carruthers to a place above the stairs.

But something is not quite right, Mr Badger inspects the mirror, and ends up falling straight through it, a magic mirror! The adventure has started and Mr Badger finds much more than he had bargained for!

A brilliant books with characters emerging from every page, illustrated with line drawings and bringing the book and Mr Badger to life.

Really good for children from 6 – 8 years, and for sharing with adults, who may just end up reading the book to themselves!

Leigh visits the UK regularly and we are pleased to work with Leigh for any events in the UK.

Sue Martin

The Family with Two Doors by Anna Ciddor

The Rabinovitch family lived in Lublin, Poland. There were so many of them in the family that they had two apartments with two front doors. There were nine children and they grew up in the 1920’s as a devout Jewish family, with their father as the Rabbi.

The book is an engaging read about life in the 1920’s, written by Anna Ciddor and published by Allen and Unwin.

The Rabinovitches include: mischievous Yakov, bubbly Nomi, rebellious Miriam, solemn Shlomo, and seven more! Papa is a rabbi and their days are full of intriguing rituals and adventures. But the biggest adventure of all is when big sister Adina is told she is to be married at the age of fifteen – to someone she has never met.

Although I expected the book to be about problems and issues, it wasn’t! It dealt very easily with a proposed and arranged marriage and was empathetic to a good family life. It is written carefully and with lots of fondness around the authors experience and makes an excellent read.

It is based on the author’s real family. The Rabinovitches dance, laugh and cook their way through an extraordinary life in the 1920’s. The biggest adventure is the preparation for the wedding of Adina to Mordechai, which was arranged, but nevertheless a happy affair.

At Books Go Walkabout, we are now selling books directly on-line, so just click on the link, and buy through our secure portal and we will send you a copy of The Family with Two Doors.

Sue Martin

Little People, Big Dreams from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

A brilliant series of books about the lives of women who have made a difference. Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, part of Quarto Knows, have produced eight books in this series, published in hardback, with stunning illustrations and aimed at children from around 6-9 years.

At Books Go Walkabout we know they also make excellent books for older children in schools around the world who are translating from their own language into English.

The three latest books, released in August 2017 are Rosa Parkes, Emmeline Pankhurst and Audrey Hepburn. If you would like to purchase them, we have an online purchasing system or you can contact us direct for larger quantities.

Little People Big Dreams Rosa Parks — Rosa Parks, an inspiring read…

Rosa Parks is written by Lisbeth Kaiser and illustrated by Marta Antelo.

Rosa was the ‘Mother of the Freedom Movement’ and an inspiring activist for civil rights in Alabama in the days of segregation on public transport.

Rosa refused to give her seat to a white person…read more here…

She knew that many of the rules just weren’t right and one day when travelling on a bus she refused to allow someone else to take her seat just because she was a black woman.

As a result she was taken from the bus and jailed. The rest is history! Rosa made such a difference to people’s lives. She remained a activist for the rest of her life and was an inspiration to many people.

Emmeline Pankhurst is written by Lisbeth Kaiser and illustrated by Ana Sanfelippo.

Emmeline was one of the famous suffragettes in the early 20^th Century protesting against the government for the vote for women, as up until 1918, women had no rights to vote.

‘Emmeline and her daughters became the leaders of a new group of women, a group that would stop following the rules and would fight for their rights. People called them suffragettes.’

Emmeline Pankhurst spoke to many people.

The text is appealingly written and gives a good idea of how life was in the early 20^th Century. The illustrations are delightful and add hugely to the impact of the book in portraying life at that time.

Audrey Hepburn

Isabel Sanchez Vegara (Author) and Amaia Arrazola (Illustrator)…

Audrey is an iconic figure from the 1950’s but her life started in Holland during the World War 2, she experienced hunger and became very ill. When her mother finally was able to come to England Audrey pursued her dream of acting and dancing starring in Gigi and Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

Later, when she had retired she became a Goodwill Ambassador with UNICEF and travelled the world raising awareness of children needing food and medicine, something which she had experienced first-hand.

Audrey Hepburn and UNICEF Ambassador — Audrey Hepburn UNICEF Ambassador

The text is good to read and accessible for children from around the ages of 6, and the illustrations are beautiful, bold and full of character.

Little People, Big Dreams… an apt title for this series of books which will bring to young children the lives of people who have made a huge difference. Alongside the story there is a time-line and further historical context. Great little books in the classroom and library.

Sue Martin