Anita Loughrey's blog. This is my journal about my experiences and thoughts on writing. As well as news about me and my books, it includes writing tips, book reviews, author interviews and blog tours.
For more information about me and my books see my website: www.anitaloughrey.com. Follow me on Twitter @amloughrey, Facebook @anitaloughrey.author and on Instagram @anitaloughrey
Something I particularly enjoy is writing plays. I think it comes quite naturally to me as I am a very visual writer. During my career as a teacher and as a writer I have written a wide variety of plays for primary school. Many of these were for school Christmas productions when I was teaching. I have also had several plays published. I am particularly proud of Quick and Easy Plays for Primary School, which is a teacher resource of twenty-seven plays compiled into a folder.
Title: Quick and Easy Plays for Primary School
Written by: Anita Loughrey
Illustrated by: Catherine Ward
Published by: Hopscotch Educational
This lever arch folder, published by Hopscotch Educational, a division of the Mark Allen Publishing Group, contains twenty-seven differentiated and cross-curricular Quick and Easy Plays for Primary School with teacher notes and suggestions for making props and costumes.
The plays were written to be versatile, so they could be used for guided reading as well as being performed on stage. I have used this resource during school visits to encourage students to create and write their own plays. The handy ring-binder format allows the teacher to add their own notes, which is always useful in a teaching environment.
This folder contains plays themed around the following topics:
Childhood Experiences – friends, school journey, Victorian childhood
Traditional stories – fairy tales, myths and legends, fables
Stories form other cultures – creation stories, Chinese festivals, Christmas
Each topic contains three differentiated plays for the age range. As you can see, there are nine plays in each chapter. The first play in each set of three is the easiest and is suitable for younger or less able children within this age range. The language level and stage directions are much simpler than in the next two. The font size is also larger in the first plays. Here is an example of one of the simpler plays:
The third play in each set of three is the most challenging play with more complex language and more detailed stage directions. The font size is smaller in these plays. Here is an example of one of the more challenging plays:
There are six folders in the series, each written by a different author. Mine is aimed at ages 9-10, which would be Year Five.
To purchase a copy of Quick and Easy Plays for Primary School by Anita Loughrey directly from the publisher Hopscotch Educational, or your local bookshop should be able to order copies.
For my slot today in The Grinning Throat blog tour I have the great privilege of interviewing the author, Kate Wiseman.
The Grinning Throat is the first in a new historical middle-grade series of The Mudlark Mysteries about orphans living in Victorian London. Our main protagonists are Joe is 15 years old and Edie is 13. Forever worried that they will be sent to the dreaded workhouse, they scratch out a living the best way they can by mudlarking on the foreshore of the River Thames and selling their finds to the notorious Hempson. One day they discover something macabre, and it will change their lives forever.
‘My first thought is that it’s a pig that someone has lost to the river. Perhaps it fell off one of the barges that choke up the Thames. They’re a constant feature, toiling up and down, day and night, giving off black smoke that clings to the water.’
The Grinning Throat by Kate Wiseman
Kate Wiseman writes middle grade and YA fiction and has a specific interest in writing historical fiction. She grew up in Oxford in the 1970s. She has won the Eyelands price twice and holds a BA and an MA in literature and creative writing.
Her degrees gave her the courage to do what she’d always dreamed of doing: being a writer. Since then she has had many books published by ZunTold including, her middle grade Gangster School series and a YA fantasy, Icarus and Velvet. She loves visiting schools to deliver workshops in creative writing. Many of them are based on her own mudlarking finds.
Without any further ado I will proceed with the interview…
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Tell us a little about yourself and the inspiration for your book The Grinning Throat.
I’m a lifelong reader, of course. I think all authors are. I came to writing fairly late – about 7 years ago – and have been fortunate enough to have my MG and YA books published in several languages. My first novel for adults – about a girl who disguises herself as her brother to fight in the First World War – will be published next summer.
My devotion to mudlarking is more recent. A friend and I went mudlarking with an acquaintance a couple of years before lockdown and I was completely hooked. I’ve always loved history and historical fiction and mudlarking is history-hunting and treasure-hunting all mixed up! I started making plans to write a series on mudlarking.
It made sense to me to set it in Victorian times, when mudlarking was a recognised and fairly unenviable way for the very young and very old to scratch a living. This was in the days before there was social assistance for people in need. That creates a sense of urgency to the adventures of my characters. They aren’t mudlarking for pleasure, as I do. It’s a survival tactic.
Why did you decide to write a book about mudlarking for children?
It had to be for children because the majority of mudlarks were children. I think today’s kids will be amazed if they put themselves in the shoes of the Victorian mudlarks. Not that many of them had shoes! I think they’ll be astonished at how kids were allowed to live back then.
What has been and/or what would be your greatest find when mudlarking?
My greatest find would be a bellarmine jug, sometimes called a witch bottle. There’s one that features quite heavily in The Grinning Throat. I’ve found fragments but never a whole one. They’re very, very rare. If I found a bellarmine jug, I think I’d scream and dance around the foreshore in a very alarming way.
Witch bottles were usually used to avert witchcraft. Sometimes they’re found with hair and nails and urine and other fairly unpleasant things sealed up inside them. I have a friend with a 17th century cottage who found one under his front door, buried there to prevent witches and curses entering the house. For the purposes of my story, the characters use a bellarmine jug to set a curse on a very evil man. If you want to know if it works, you’ll have to read the book.
How did you decide on the title of The Grinning Throat?
In my book, the Grinning Throat are a gang of European anarchists who like to cut the throats of their victims. I once read a description of that kind of injury, likening it to a kind of lipless smile. The image stayed with me.
At the beginning of the 20th century, there was a gang of Serbian anarchists called The Black Hand. One of them assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which started the First World War. I was thinking about them when I devised the name.
What research did you have to do into the Victorians and the workhouses to write The Grinning Throat?
I teach English Language and Literature, including the works of Dickens and Conan Doyle and Stevenson, and I studied Victorian literature at university, so I already had a decent knowledge of how Victorians lived and what they believed in. The workhouse was designed to punish the poor for being poor, and everyone dreaded having to enter it. It was a last resort for most and many never came out again.
I did a lot of research into the circumstances under which mudlarks lived. There’s a book by Henry Mayhew called London Labour and the London Poor, which was a real eye opener. Mayhew was a social commentator who tried to record the working conditions for all kinds of poor workers in Victorian London. Some of the jobs people had to do were absolutely ghastly.
I also had to check out when certain buildings and landmarks were put up, so I didn’t make any goofs. For instance, I would like to have included Tower Bridge, but it wasn’t opened until 1886 and the Mudlark Mysteries are set in the 1870s. I hope I haven’t missed anything.
Is there anything else you would like to tell readers about The Grinning Throat and other books you have written?
The Grinning Throat is the first in a series of historical adventures with mudlarking at their core. The second one – The Hampstead Terror – is set in the world of toshers – mudlarks who operated in London’s sewers. I think it’s coming out next year.
I’m currently working on the third one – The Cursed Skull – which focuses on Wapping and the site of Execution Dock. I have plans for two more. Each book is narrated by a different member of the group of friends that form in The Grinning Throat. I love writing them and hope readers of mystery and history will love them too.
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You can find out more about Kate on her website: katewiseman.co.uk. She is on Instagram as @kittywise999, on Facebook as Kate Wiseman, Twitter as @KateWiseman and TikTok as @katewiseman99.
You can purchase a copy of The Grinning Throat by Kate Wiseman direct from the publisher ZunTold, or any bookshop will be able to order it in, if it’s not in their stock. It’s also on Amazon.
To follow the rest of the tour check out the schedule below:
I would like to thank Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part in this blog tour. Thank you.
Title: Music and How it Works: The Complete Guide for Kids
Written by: Charlie Morland
Illustrated by: David Humphries
Consultant: Gareth Dawson
Published by: DK Children
Music and How it Works: The Complete Guide for Kids by Charlie Morland and David Humphries
Music and How it Works: The Complete Guide for Kids provides answers to questions such as, why do we like music, do animals like music, how sound is made and what animal can produce the highest pitch? It provides a very comprehensive look at music and everything involved in creating and listening to music. For example children can discover more about the seven ingredients of music: rhythm, dynamics, melody, harmony, tibre, texture and form. It discusses reading music and the different notes as well as explaining sharps and flats, intervals, tones and semitones and octaves.
This book provides opportunities for children to discover their own love of music by looking at scales, chords and keys, different instruments and different genres such as opera, blues, rock and hip-hop to K-pop and electronic music. The author, Charlie Morland, includes ‘playlists’ of key pieces encouraging the children to look up pieces of music to listen to themselves. There is also an insightful look behind the scenes at the process of the music industry.
The vibrant, modern feel using bright colours, photographs and infographics will appeal to children of all ages. I particularly liked the way this book clearly explains the psychology and math behind music, how it can affect our mood and improve our minds and the research into the Mozart Effect. At the back of the book is a musical timeline which gives a breakdown of music throughout history from the first percussion to using streaming apps such as Spotify.
This is the ideal book for anyone who is interested in music whether that is listening to their favourites, or learning an instrument, or writing and composing their own songs from the introduction to the final chorus. It is guaranteed to help children to develop a deep passion for music. The perfect addition for all school libraries.
Over the years I have written a lot of teacher resources. 100+ Fun Ideas for Science Investigations in the Primary Classroom is one of my favourites.
Title: 100+ Fun Ideas for Science Investigations in the Primary Classroom
Written by: Anita Loughrey
Illustrated by: Pat Murray
Published by: Brilliant Publications
It contains over 100 exciting, fun classroom experiments in an easy-to-use layout to help teach scientific investigation in the primary classroom. The activities require a minimum of preparation and only the simplest of science equipment. Each activity provides opportunities for children to develop their skills of scientific enquiry.
All experiments listed in this book closely match the statutory and non-statutory guidelines and schemes of work for Key Stages 1 and 2.
With the aid of this book, the children are given the confidence and courage in order to thrive inside the classroom whilst having fun in the meantime. This therefore naturally promotes the development of key scientific attitudes applicable both inside and outside of the classroom. Group co-operation is also encouraged within the investigative activities, helping to enforce the importance of leadership and appropriate communication skills.
This compilation of exciting ideas for classroom experiments has been tested and approved by primary school teachers over a period of 17 years of education. You can be assured that the activities in this book will lay the relevant foundations for secondary education and support every child’s journey through education.
To purchase a copy of 100+ Fun Ideas for Science Investigations in the Primary Classroom by Anita Loughrey directly from the publisher Brilliant Publications or from your local bookshop will be able to order copies, or online at uk.bookshop.org, an organisation with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops.
It is with great delight I join The Jules Verne Prophecy by Larry Schwarz and Iva-Marie Palmer book tour. This exciting new middle-grade mystery was released by Little, Brown Young Readers US on the 29th June 2023.
The main protagonist, Owen Godfrey, is spending his summer in Paris studying science fiction writer Jules Verne, the brilliant mind behind Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty Days. When Owen and his new friends find what appears to be a dusty copy of Verne’s collected works in an old bookshop, they’re intrigued by the hidden codes written inside.
As one clue leads to another, the trio gets swept up in an epic treasure hunt spanning the city – from the depths of the catacombs to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and by way of skateboard, boat, car, and even a hot air balloon! But they quickly realize they’re not the only ones searching for the hidden riches, and that there are others who will stop at nothing to get to them first. This fast-paced larger-than-life adventure is filled with action, high stakes, and three friends who are dead set on cracking the Jules Verne mystery.
For my stop of the tour I have elected to do a creative post and tell you my top five reasons to read The Jules Verne Prophecy and traditionally I am going to give these in reverse order, saving the best to last.
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My Top Five Reasons to Read The Jules Verne Prophecy
5. It is Set in Paris
I love Paris. It is a beautiful city. Reading The Jules Verne Prophecy by Larry Schwarz and Iva-Marie Palmer bought back pleasant memories of wandering the streets of Paris with my husband. This novel captures the atmosphere and the intrepid adventurers, Owen Godfrey, Nas Shirvani and Rose Bordage are propelled into a vast array of incredible iconic attractions that the reader is instantly able to visualise, even if they have never visited Paris before.
They venture deep into the catacombs of Paris, float by the Eiffel Tower in a hot air balloon and sail down the Seine in style. They visit Europe’s oldest scientific museum, the Musée des Arts et Métiers, home of many scientific inventions and their search leads them into the neighbouring arts et Métiers Metro Station, which was redesigned in 1994 in recognition of Jules Verne and his amazing novels. I enjoyed discovering the historical significance to Jules Verne these landmarks have.
4. Refers to the Jules Verne’s Novels
The title, The Jules Verne Prophecy, drew me to the book instantly. I immediately thought this must be a novel for middle-grade that is themed around Jules Verne’s many imaginative scientific inventions that have since become a reality. I was already aware that Jules Verne had written 54 novels and each one in my opinion is a masterpiece. Bearing in mind he was writing his books between 1863 and 1905, many things such as rockets that could fly to the moon in From the Earth to the Moon (1865) and submarines, as in the Nautilus from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1869), etc did not exist. So the title piqued my interest before I had even received the book. I was not disappointed. The Jules Verne Prophecy mentions many of these inventions and some are important for the success of the quest.
There are many instances where the characters discuss Jules Verne’s novels in relation to the next step of their adventure. I particularly liked the way little facts were weaved into the plot, such as when their teacher, Professor Bessier, points out that they never actually use a hot-air balloon in Around the World in Eighty Days as they dismiss the idea as highly risky. It is however used in his novel, Five Weeks in a Balloon. Although, at no point do you feel the authors are overloading you with scientific jargon or facts. The Jules Verne Prophecy is pitched perfectly to maintain the attentions of a middle grade reader.
3. Involves a Treasure Hunt
A treasure hunt is a simple and compelling premise that will draw many readers in because treasure hunts are fun. I remember the amazing sense of achievement I would get when taking part in treasure hunts as a child. It was a fantastic boost to my own self-confidence when I found the reward at the end. I even went through a phase of designing my own treasure hunts for my friends and later on my children.
Our main protagonist, Owen Godfrey, is enrolled into a Jules Verne course in France over the summer where they are going to study and discuss Jules Verne’s novels starting with Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. I was intrigued when his copy is stolen just before the test and so he goes to the nearest bookshop where he is mysteriously hit on the head with a dusty old book, entitled The Jules Verne Prophecy – just like the title of the Larry Schwarz and Iva-Marie Palmer novel. This book is the catalyst that propels them on their quest finding a wide range of hidden doorways and secret passages with Jules Verne links at various destinations around Paris.
The great thing about The Jules Verne Prophecy by Larry Schwarz and Iva-Marie Palmer is not only are they whisked off on a treasure hunt around Paris but there are actual proper clues to decipher, which the authors give time for the reader to try and solve for themselves rather than, as other books I have read that involves a mystery, tells you there is a cryptic clue without actually telling the reader what the clue was. Here we get to read the clue for ourselves and think about it and witness the step-by-step way our heroes solve the puzzle, thus challenging the reader to think and use their creativity to solve the mystery.
I also like the way that each bit of treasure they found was significant in helping them to solve the next step of their treasure hunt in a similar fashion to the National Treasure movies starring Nicholas Cage.
2. The Terrific Tension
There is a lot of mystery and tension in The Jules Verne Prophecy from the start. We are immediately caught up in the story of who led him to that particular bookstore where he was hit on the head by a book and why was he chosen? Then there is the mystery of who is the nameless antagonist who is trying to thwart their efforts to discover Jules Verne’s treasure. We are never quite sure who to trust and even the police could be on the antagonists payroll, so we are routing the whole time for Owen and his friends to escape their clutches.
All the way through we want to discover the answers to our questions of what the treasure will be and how will it lead them to their next destination. The characters are constantly placed in situations where they have to work hard to solve each clue and their struggle increases in difficulty as the story progresses. As well as the tension of finding the treasure before the mysterious ‘baddies’, Owen has his own inner tension of self-confidence believing his mum does not think him worthy of her attention as she has to work all the time. Then their teacher goes missing and later Owen’s mum is kidnapped. Each time this conflict racks up the tension of the plot.
The Jules Verne Prophecy is plotted so the tension rises and falls but still gives sufficient time for the reader to breath during this roller-coaster of an adventure.
1. The Vibrant Voice
Yes, the book is well-plotted but the thing that stood out most for me and why it has made my number one spot in my list of the five top reasons to read The Jules Verne Prophecy is… the voice. This novel is absolutely filled with the voice of Owen Godfrey.
From the very first page the authors have captured Owen’s personality and American colloquialisms and this is maintained throughout the novel. I found him to be a relatable and dynamic protagonist with clear goals and flaws, who reacts to the situations he finds himself in organically. He reminded me of Marty McFly, Michael J. Fox’s character in Back to the Future.
In fact, every character in the story has their own voice so they are easily identifiable not only by what they say but also how they react. If other writer’s are searching for a book that showcases voice this is the book for you.
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Larry Schwarz is a creator and producer of live action and animated series for kids, teens, and families. He’s best known for Nickelodeon’s anime comedy Kappa Mikey and Speed Racer: The Next Generation and the live action series Thumb Wrestling Federation for Cartoon Network; Team Toon, a Netflix Original; and Alien Dawn for Nickelodeon. In addition to The JulesVerne Prophecy, he has co-authored Romeo, Juliet & Jim with Iva-Marie Palmer. He lives in New York City.
You can discover more about Larry on Twitter @ZoomSchwarz, Instagram @zoomschwarz and find links to his other books on Goodreads here.
Iva-Marie Palmer is the author of the novels Gimme Everything You Got, The End of the World as We Know It, and The Summers. A former journalist in Chicago’s south suburbs and still a bit of a jock who loves to box, run races, and swing big at batting cages, Iva now lives with her husband and two sons in Burbank, California.
Iva’s website where you can find out more about her and her writing is www.ivamariepalmer.com.
You can follow her on Twitter @ivamarie and Instagram @ivamarie. Reviews of her other books can be seen on Goodreads here.
Fablehouse is the first in a trilogy of another high quality Storymix innovation, beautifully written by Emma Norry. Set in 1954, it is full of Arthurian legend, folktales and Fae magic set at fictional Fable House foster home for ‘Britain’s brown babies’. That is the babies born to the British women during WWII who were left alone after the black American soldiers were recalled and shipped back to America. Many of these ‘white’ mothers were shamed into giving up their babies and the children were taken into foster homes.
Heather has been sent to several of the homes but keeps running away. She arrives at Fablehouse, which is run by Miss Isolde and finally feel she has found where she belongs. There is a great cast of characters – Lloyd who is reliable and likes to follow the rules, Arlene who loves to sing and excitable Nat who prides himself as being a magician and of course Heather who enjoys reading. Together they call themselves the Roamers as they like to explore the grounds of Fablehouse. Each of them feel as if something is missing from their lives.
The way these four friends treat it as their duty to protect and help each other really resonated with me. They go on one of their picnics to the mystical stones where they meet Palamedes, the Black Knight. He does not know who he is or where he came from. Slowly his memory returns and he warns them a great danger has escaped from the stones. When the staff and other children are replaced with changelings, Palamedes explains how they must enter the Fae underworld to find their friends and save everyone at Fablehouse, as well as the neighbouring village and ultimately the save the world.
Not only did I love the historical background of this novel but the links to the Arthurian legends captured my imagination. I have had a long fascination with the Arthurian legends so forgive me if I digress slightly to explain that in the Arthurian legend outlined in Thomas Malory’s le Morte D’arthur and also in the Post Vulgate Cycle and the Prose Tristan, Palamedes was a Saracen from the Middle East, known as the hunter of the questing beast – a fearsome creature with the head and neck of a snake, the body of a leopard, the haunches of a lion and the feet of a hart. He was in love with Lady Isolde who was married to King Mark of Ireland. Sir Tristram was also in love with Isolde and so declared Palamedes his arch-enemy.
Emma Norry has masterfully weaved this feud and emotional triangle into Fable House to produce a totally immersive middle grade adventure, encompassing the themes of friendship, truth and identity. Fable House champions the importance of not judging people by their appearances, being true to yourself and doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do.
I found myself totally immersed in Fable House and its surroundings. Emma’s lovely descriptions gave me a vivid picture of the fae underworld and how the fae had been manipulated. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.
You can buy copies of Fablehouse by E.L. Norry from your local bookshop, or online at uk.bookshop.org, an organisation with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops.
Wow! From the first page to the last Emba Oak and the Beckoning Bones is a marvel. I love this series and can’t wait to join Emba in the next book in the series, Emba Oak and the Screaming Sea. Jenny Moore’s writing is clever and flows perfectly, drawing the reader seamlessly from one well structured event to another. The cover illustration by David Dean with the dragon skull would entice any young fantasy reader to pick the book up and certainly made me excited to start reading.
Emba is a fantastic well-rounded character. Her dragon skills are beginning to emerge and she endeavours to control them. Throughout her adventure she is plagued by dreams of her dragon mother. She is constantly worried Necromalcolm will return as he still needs her blood to complete his spell.
I was pleased to see that Emba Oak and the Beckoning Bones continued with the ingenious chapter headings that I loved so much in the first book, Emba Oak and the TerribleTomorrows. I was pleased to see the continuation in this book of using double chapters, as there are two chapter ones, one showing Emba’s hopes and dreams for what is going to happen, the second showing what really occurs. I also love the alliteration used in all the place names.
When they find their home is ransacked Emba, Odolf and Fred consult the Tome of Terrible Tomorrows, which suggests they travel to find the hidden crypt under the Ruinous Rocky Mountains for answers. Their journey takes them through the Perilous Peaks to see the Hushed Hermit of Hibbert’s Hill, to fight a giant killer scorpion with two tails and to fall into the clutches of the Sleep Sucking Swirl of Slumber. On the way, Emba reluctantly befriends a wasp snake and meets Merle who is eager to help them on their quest and despite her friends warnings, Emba still trusts.
The ending is a real twist and a half. My jaw literally dropped. Emba Oak and the Beckoning Bones is another exciting, well-written adventure, which I have come to expect from Maverick Publishing, ideal for KS2.
As previously mentioned, but is worth repeating… I loved it.
You can buy copies of Jenny Moore’s books direct from the publisher Maverick Publishing, from your local bookshop, or you can also purchase copies online at uk.bookshop.org, an organisation with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops.
I would like to thank Abi Reeves at Maverick for sending me a review copy of Emba Oak and the Terrible Tomorrows. Thank you.
For my stop on the Toby and the Silver Blood Witches blog tour I will be doing a spotlight of the book.
This book won first place in the BBNYA 2022. BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 finalists and one overall winner. If you are an author and wish to learn more about the BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website http://www.bbnya.com or Twitter @bbnya_official. BBNYA is brought to you in association with the @Foliosociety (if you love beautiful books, you NEED to check out their website) and the book blogger support group @The_WriteReads.
The main character of, Toby and the Silver Blood Witches, is twelve year old Toby who has little time for friends or football since his mum fell ill. All he wants is to stay at home and keep an eye on her. But mysterious things are happening beyond his garden hedge. Who is the figure at the window behind the barbed wire fence? And why is there a strange woman in his attic with a broken broom and bothersome pet bat?
Toby becomes entangled in an adventure of flying dogs, sparking hiccups and dangerous escapes. An innocent, young witch has been captured by a secretive organisation which will stop at nothing to find out how magic works. Toby must rescue her and time is running out.
Toby and the Silver Blood Witches by Sally Doherty was also the winner of the Book Blogger Novel of the YearAward 2022 and WriteblendAward 2022. Finalist in The Wishing Shelf Awards 2021. Shortlisted for The SelfiesBook Awards 2022 and Rubery Book Awards 2022. The book is illustrated by Sarah Jan Docker @sarahjdocker
Sally writes middle grade novels. Her debut novel Toby and the Silver Blood Witches was published in July 2021. She lives in Surrey, UK, with her husband and three-legged Labrador. When not resting in bed due to chronic M.E. she can be found writing, reading or editing, searching for a sunny spot in the garden or providing a good scratch behind the ears.
Sally writes articles about living with chronic illness which have been published by MSN, Yahoo News, Metro UK, The Mighty, ME Association and Action for ME.
She dabbles in flash fiction with pieces published by Reflex Fiction, Spelk Fiction, Funny Pearls and Ellipsis Zine. She has won Retreat West’s Micro Fiction competition four times. And she is WriteMentor’s flash fiction judge.
It is with great pleasure that I am joining the blog tour for Meet the Bears by Kate Peridot and Becca Hall.
Kate Peridot is a prolific writer who loves research. Her research skills were honed by a love of books, studying for an international business degree, working as a marketer for food companies and then as a freelance writer.
She writes wild and adventurous children’s fiction and non-fiction about animals, people and STEM that encourage a can-do spirit, a quest for knowledge and a sense of adventure. Meet the Bears certainly does capture this essence.
The illustrator, Becca Hall, has a thing for nature, which often finds its way into her artwork.
She is constantly finding inspiration from the natural world around her. Over the years, she has worked on an array of projects, including illustrated maps, product and packaging illustrations, branding, book illustrations, website art, and even adorable pet portraits. She also has her own range of giftware.
My stop on the tour will take the form of a book review:
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Title: Meet the Bears
Written by: Kate Peridot
Illustrated by: Becca Hall
Published by: Welbeck Publishing
Meet the Bears by Kate Peridot is the first in the series of enticing creative non-fiction books that focus on the different species of animals that can be found all over the world. This book concentrates, as the title would suggest, on bears.
It opens with a little girl and her teddy bears in her bedroom and her father telling her how ‘great’ bears are. They pack their bear spotting kit and set off on an adventure to discover the features of all the different species of bear so she can identify her own teddy bears family.
We learn there are eight different species of bear. We also discover that some animals people think are bears are not actually bears. It was a shock to read the koala is one of these animals.
Each species of bear has two beautiful double-page spreads full of facts on their general appearance, the food they eat, their fur, whether they hibernate and where in the world they live.
I was again surprised to find out how few bears actually hibernate. Meet thd Bears is full of interesting and thought-provoking facts like these. Proving this book is suitable for readers of all ages who wish to expand their knowledge of bears.
I enjoyed the addition of the girl’s reason why her own teddy cannot be each particular species using information found in the text and felt it was a satisfactory conclusion when she finally identified the species of her Teddy bear, which gave ghe book a lovely ahhhh factor.
Becca Hall’s illustrations capture the features of the different bears perfectly. One of my favourites is the black bear asleep in the tree. Becca also demonstrates a fantastic loving relationship between father and daughter. I particularly like the way the artwork bleeds to the edge of the page in each of the first spreads.
At the back of the book there is a map with a key of where each species is found and a table comparing the size of each bear. This is a useful and fascinating appendage that young children will love to study and assess. On the very last page there was also some interesting information on how to stay safe in bear country. I believe even children in the UK, where we do not have bears will be enthralled by this.
Meet the Bears would make the ideal gift for any child interested in nature and animal conservation. It can also be used in the classroom or home schooling to support work on animals and their environments and adaptations. As well as this it would provide and excellent springboard for children to research other animals and their different adaptations, such as apes, ducks, turtles, wild cats, etc. to name but a few.
Another exceptionally concise and informative illustrated non-fiction picture book from Kate Peridot, pitched perfectly at KS1 and lower KS2.
You can purchase a copy of Meet the Bears by Kate Peridot and Becca Hall from most independent booksellers or online from uk.bookshop.org, an organisation with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops.
To take a look at the other stops on the tour check out the tour schedule:
I would like to thank Anna Cole from Hachette Books for sending me a hardback review copy of Meet the Bears to review on my blog.
And if you have got this far in the post I would like to end with a couple of bear jokes.
What did the teddy bear say after dinner? I’m stuffed.
What do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear.
Please feel free to comment with your own bear jokes below, even if it is just to prove you’ve read the post.
One of the side effects of the pandemic has been people have become more isolated and many still prefer to work from home than to travel. I am beginning to see an increase in children’s books with a theme of how the human race are very social beings. Let’s Play Football! by Ben Lerwill and Marina Ruiz is one of these books.
A real celebration of football, this creative non-fiction picture book highlights the importance of football throughout the world as a means of bringing people together. Through his clear and tightly written text, Ben Lerwill, focuses on how football is a social activity everyone can enjoy no matter your age, gender, race of physical ability. The emphasise is on how accessible and enjoyable the game is and not on the rules, the big named football stars, football teams or competitive clubs.
Marian Ruiz’s soft pastel illustrations provide a sense of pleasure and movement. They successfully show how football is a diverse and inclusive game for everyone. The overall message is football can be played and enjoyed by all, wherever you are. All you need is a ball or something that rolls.
Let’s Play Football is a great book advocating enjoying life as a community.
Much To Do About Writing 