New titles – Page 9 – Bookmonitor – news from around the world

It’s Not Fairy

You know the favourite children’s saying, “It’s not fair!”

Well Ros Asquith has changed it into a It’s Not Fairy. She flaps around all night, she’s a fairy on a mission and you don’t want to mess with this fairy.

A picture book for all the family and across the world, there are children everywhere declaring how unfair things are.But the fairy can get tired of complaints.

‘I’m sick of your squawking,

Now give me a break.

Or I’ll bake you all

In a Fairy cake.”

Published by Frances Lincoln this is a good book to buy for the half term hols. Buy through Dolphin Booksellers to get the best price from Amazon.

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Who Ate Auntie Iris?

Time to Read series

A brand new Early Reader series from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books. The layout and size of the books is great and the balance between pictures and word will encourage reading from picture books into chapter books. Even the font style makes it easy to read and the ‘a’s are the right shape!

‘Who Ate Auntie Iris’ is one of the first four books, written by Sean Taylor and illustrated by Hannah Shaw. There are some great character pictures and Auntie Iris lives a the top of the tall block of flats with some very interesting neighbours (all with sharp teeth!).

For a set of books for ages 5/6 ‘ish these are a good buy for parents and for schools alike.

You can buy direct from Amazon by clicking on the picture. All books bought through us support our work in Nepal with Kalpana.

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best in children’s books always on line

What are you playing at? Alanna Books

What are you playing at?

A great book challenging stereotypes and play activities.

It’s produced by Marie-Sabine Roger and Anne Sol,published by Alanna Books.The format of the pages is designed so there is a hidden extra page which shows the other side to the statement.

Check out an example on www.Alannabooks.com.

The photographs are brilliant, with real live examples of boys who really do dance, of girls who really do play football and other things too!

How great to have a book that is clear and non patronising. The images around ‘ Boys don’t cry’ are fantastic, the hidden page shows a famous footballer at the end of a match, crying with emotion so raw that you all know just how he feels.

A good book from a good independent publisher.

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best in children’s books, always on line

Breaking the Spell

Stories of Magic and Mystery from Scotland.

I just love the cover of this book and illustrator Cate James has continued the magic through all the stories.

Lari Don, an acclaimed story teller, has spent most of her life in Scotland, and she has compiled these ten magical and funny stories into Breaking The Spell.

They are all stories from Scotland told to children north of the border.

And with all stories, they change ever so slightly in the telling….and Lari hopes that these stories will come alive with whoever reads them and passes them on.

Stories include; The Selkie’s Toes, The Witch of Lochlann and The King of the Black Art.

A great book from Frances Lincoln publishers, a magical present to share.

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best

in children’s books, always on line.

Two New Titles from Jane Nissen Books

These two classics are brought back to life by Jane Nissen Books, beautifully presented and a joy to read or to re read.

Bringing classic children’s books back into print is the mission for Jane Nissen Books and as Jane says,’ To enable a new generation of readers to discover for themselves high quality timeless titles that should not be lost’.

The Lost Prince is the story of two boys brought together by fate and given an enormous task of adventure to find different people across Europe. They set out with little money but high determination and courage.

King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry is the story of the Godolphin Arabian, who travelled in around 1724 from Morocco to Cambridge.

It’s a great story and more than worthy to be read.

Click on the book covers and buy both as a treat for Christmas… I bet you will find yourself reading at least one of them before you can get it wrapped!

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best in children’s books always on

Jackie Morris and Help Musicians UK in Covent Garden

card Jackie Morris was in Covent Garden on 12th September, well actually, in the beautiful Swiss Church in Endell St, Covent Garden, to show her new Christmas card design and to talk about her life in writing and illustrating.

The talk was on behalf of Help Musicians UK and proceeds from sales of Jackie’s designed card will go to support musicians of all ages and Jackie also donated prints of her work to be auctioned.

Jackie talked about how she includes all of her life into her art and writing, her walks at St David’s and into the fields and with views across the sea and hares racing across the fields.

Engaging, creative and just beautiful,and sitting in the midst of the London hubbub, it is easy to drift away into that delight of the Pembrokeshire countryside and wish you were there.

JM hare Her latest book,The Song of the Golden Hare, published by Frances Lincoln is out in print in October. It’s a must!

Follow Jackie’s work through her blog and on facebook. You can buy the cards too from Help the Musicians and you can buy her books, details on her website.

We are pleased to work with Jackie on getting her stories and books to the children, who don’t have much chance to see them.

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best in children’s books always on line

Poetry for Children

Poetry will be back in the mainstay of children’s learning at school. Frances Lincoln have just published a brilliant array of books in a series called, Poetry for Children.

Titles and authors include; Kathy Henderson with The Dragon with a Big Nose, Cheryl Moskowitz with Can it be about Me?, Brian Moses with The Monster Sale along with Roger McGough, Grace Nichols and Wes Magee.

The new Primary National Curriculum, to be introduced from September 2014, will bring a focus on poetry. The Bookseller said,

“The move could help to boost children’s poetry publishing output, support poets in schools and encourage booksellers to revitalise their limited children’s poetry offer.”

Take a look at the Frances Lincoln poetry books, and from our Dolphin site go to Anytime Book Shop and shop via Amazon. When you buy books through Dolphin we will donate 20p per book to supporting children at school in Nepal(or at least getting to school as the recent monsoons have meant a long break!).

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best in children’s books always on line

Max the Champion

Max is a small boy mad about sport, and every day Max imagines that he is the most successful sports person,taking parts in all sorts of exciting sports.

In his world, he dives into an Olympic swimming pool, he takes the lead in the bob sleigh and he scores a winning goal in an amazing football team.

His friends are there in his dreams too, and in the illustrations, which speak as much as the words, you can find many aspects of disability and inclusion. Look carefully and you will find a hearing aid and an oxygen tube, and more…

What a wealth of opportunity for all children and a book that will go down really well in the classroom as teachers can use both as a good story book and also as a real resource for inclusion and disabilities as part of everyday life.

Max the Champion, written by Sean Stockdale and Alexandra Strick and illustrated by Ros Asquith and published by Frances Lincoln. As publishers, they are amazing at delivering books that are both great reads and meet the needs of our diverse and rich culture.

You can buy this book through Dolphin Booksellers today.

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers – the best in children’s books – always on line.

Books go Walkabout – e-Print Publisher

Books Go Walkabout has just started on a new journey, into e-publishing. The project is now able to publish books for authors and creative writers around the globe.

Books go Walkabout is the e-publishing arm of SmithMartin LLP, the parent practice of Dolphinbooksellers.

An exciting new adventure and we are pleased to start our journey with the first book in series called Writing about Africa. Short stories about Africa, fiction, travel, interest and lots more to come.

The first story, The Goat That Vanished is by Ifeoma Onyefulu. A story of a goat, some elders and a wedding gift that went wrong… a story of culture, humour and family life.

Ifeoma Onyefulu - a story about a goat — The Goat That Vanished

Ifeoma writes for children and uses her captivating photos of African life as she travels across the continent.

Buy from the Amazon Kindle Store for less than the price of a cup of coffee here.

Our publications are set to grow, in conjunction with the Worldreader programme, who provide 300 stories on a Kindle free to individual children throughout Africa. Great readers!

Our publications are designed to feed into social projects supporting children and literacy in Africa, but their interest is world wide. already the story is available across the globe, in 9 different countries.

A real success for Books Go Walkabout…join us on the journey.

Books Go Walkabout – Children and authors using technology across the globe

The Frances Lincoln Diverse Voices Children’s Book Award 2013 –

Now in its fourth year, the Diverse Voices Children’s Book Award, will announce the winner on Thursday May 23rd at Seven Stories, the National Centre for Children’s Books in Newcastle upon Tyne.

The award, continues the Frances Lincoln’s tradition of promoting writing which celebrates cultural diversity and cultural and social tolerance. It provides a platform for new authors to present their work and celebrate aspects of their own culture through the world of children’s books.

The award is also supported by The Arts Council and encourages writers to have a voice and to reach out to all children, and especially for children who can find reflections of their own lives in the stories.

“Diversity in children’s books is crucial – in this ever-shrinking world we are all foreigners somewhere. I’m delighted to be part of an award recognising the importance of this element in young people’s fiction.”
Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty (The National Council for Civil Liberties)

This year the short list is

One of a Kind by Jude (Najoud) Ensaff

Samosa Girl by Swapna Haddow

You’re Not Proper by Tariq Mehmood

From dark secrets, from characters whose existence is shaped by issues of war,to children with multiple identities, these are all great books to be short listed.

Dolphin Booksellers will post the announcements.

Sue Martin – Dolphin Booksellers, best in children’s books, always on line.