The Night Box

   You can tell I'm excited about this book, because I didn't procrastinate writing this blog post and, instead, procrastinated other important things such as drying my hair and applying for jobs. So, another blog post this week, you lucky people. In all seriousness though, I'm really enjoying reading and writing about children's books, and this really reflects in how dedicated I am becoming with this blog. I just think that I know this dedication could pay off and land me my dream job in children's publishing, so it has that extra pressure that a hobby doesn't necessarily have, and I work well with that pressure.

   The Night Box, by Louise Greig and illustrated, beautifully, by Ashling Lindsay was rightfully shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2018 in the Illustrated Books category. I had seen this book in my local Waterstones once or twice before picking it up and I'll be honest, I did what you're told to never do: I judged a book by it's cover. GASP. I know that children are much more advanced than being easily distracted by bright colours, but if you can't use bright and wonderful colours in children's books, when can you? So when I saw the beige that dominates the front cover, I wasn't convinced. As a uncultured swine when it comes to art, I can't really comment on such things, but I do have my own particular taste in what I like stylistically in illustrations. I'll be honest, Ashling Lindsay's style did not, at first glance, seem like my kind of thing. HOWEVER, the nomination (and the fact that I recently applied for an Egmont job) led me to pick it up, take it home, and give it a chance. 

Check the lil sticker.

Fantastically Great Women Who Made History!

   Hello!

   Whenever I'm feeling low or down, I buy a book as an instant and guaranteed pick-me-up. After a bit of a crap week, I did just that: three-fold (yes, this week was that bad). I bought Louise Greig's gorgeous The Night Box, (which has been shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2018, in the Illustarted Book category), A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (because Oprah, Reese Witherspoon and Mindy Kahling are in the film adaptation out later this year and it is RIGHT up my street) and the highly anticipated Fantastically Great Women Who Made History by Kate Pankhurst (which you would have known if you had read the title...). VERY pleased with my purchases so I came straight home to begin reading. The other two books will be reviewed in good time. Well, not good time, but time. They will be reviewed in time.

Loving the blue cover. And my nail polish. 

It's Official: I am a Blogger. Capital B.

Hi, this will only be brief because I am shooooooook.

I tweeted my blog post to Twitter because why not. Then I discovered that Laura Ellen Anderson DOES have Twitter, so I tagged her. Right. RIGHT? Ok, so when I woke up the next day, the following two things happened in Real Life:

Amelia Fang: My New BFFL

Two in one week, aren't you lucky?

   Today, I am here to talk about my new Best Friend For Life: Amelia Fang. Detailed in Laura Ellen Anderson's Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball, Amelia's life seems hella exciting and to be perfectly honest, I am jealous of this small, fictional vampire.
   Right from the off, we are informed that these vampires do not eat/drink blood, so as adult reading that to a child, you can let out a sigh of relief, and save the 'some mythical creatures eat humans, it's kind of like cannibalism, because they look like humans, but they're dead or whatever' conversation for another time.

I got this image from Google, please don't sue me. Also just look at Squashy. Aw.

Celebrity Children's Book Authors: for Parents or for Kids?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
   First blog post of 2018 is actually in January! A miracle!
   Blogging more is one of my resolutions, and this specific post has been on my to-do list since the day after my last blog post, so I think I'm doing well.

Winnie the Witch: A Feminist Icon?

     I recently treated myself to the collection of Winnie the Witch books, (by the fabulous Valerie Thomas, illustrated by Korky Paul, published by Oxford University Press) because I deserve nice things and there was a sale on. The 10-book collection included At the Seaside, The Flying Carpet, and The Amazing Pumpkin.

'You Can Never Go Back: On Loving Children's Books as an Adult' review

Hello,

Shock-horror, I didn't keep this regular blog-thing up. No one is surprised so let us just swiftly move past it.

So I read an article today, in amongst applying for jobs in publishing/sobbing. Please read it before continuing because I'm gonna talk about it. Go. Come back in five and I shall muse about it.