I’m currently reading The Mermaid Call which feels like its going to be a wonderfully dark, atmospheric mystery.

I finished reading The Blackthorn Branch which I really enjoyed. Cassie’s family are dealing with grief and her older brother, Byron, gets tempted into the world of the Fair Folk. I loved the twist in this story and the link with nature. I also finished listening to A Pocketful of Stars. Safiya has a fight with her mother who then suffers a stroke and ends up in a coma. Whilst visiting her mother in hospital, she finds herself transported into another world where she meets a familiar face. This one brought tears. I’m definitely now keen to pick up A Flash of Fireflies. I also read the second book in the Lightfall series, Shadow of the Bird which was a wonderful return to Irpa and Bea and Cad’s quest to defeat Kest. The illustrations are stunning. I also read the gorgeous Autumn Moonbeam which was such a magical, fun and playful book.

I’m hoping to read Orla and the Wild Hunt next.

What are you reading? Have you read any of these?

I have read and loved all of Ewa’s books, so I am very excited to be part of the Blog Tour today for her latest book, The Dragon in the Bookshop, published on 7th July.

Thank you so much to Fritha Lindqvist and Zephyr Books for my invitation, and to Ewa for sharing the following piece, sharing books that she has loved over the years, which have a special healing power. I have followed Ewa’s piece with my Review of this wonderful story.

The Dragon in the Bookshop features a dragon, a dinosaur, a lizard-loving girl and an old lady who rescues books and stores them in a cathedral turret. But it’s mostly a story about Kon, a twelve-year-old boy who is struggling after the loss of his dad. Kon’s experience is largely based on my own, as my own dad passed away when I was at secondary school.

At the time, I was lucky enough to have an incredible group of supportive friends, and a couple of teachers who went out of their way to check in on me. But I didn’t know anyone who had gone through the same experience as me. Here’s where books played a big part, because thanks to them I met many wonderful characters who I could empathise with. Below is a list of just some of the books I’ve loved over the years, which have a special healing power. It’s by no means an exhaustive list, and it’s one that I add to all the time!

Ostrich Boys by Keith Gray

Blake, Kenny, Sim and Ross are best mates. But one day, Ross is killed in a car accident and his friends are in pieces. At Ross’ funeral, they feel utterly ignored and they become furious with everyone who they feel hadn’t behaved well towards their friend. So they steal Ross’ ashes and they take him to Ross in Scotland, where they know their friend always wanted to go. Brilliantly moving and funny.

Skellig by David Almond

A beautiful story of hope in unlikely places. With a magical old man at its centre. When Michael moves to his new house and his baby sister falls ill, he begins to feel helpless. But then when he goes out to the old rickety garage in his garden, he finds a mysterious man living beneath the cobwebs and surviving on flies and takeaways. From that moment on, his world changes.

The Illustrated Mum by Jacqueline Wilson

Dolphin and Star live with their mum Marigold, who is exciting and unpredictable. Living with her often wild moods can be hard, and Dolphin begins to wonder whether she needs to look for someone who might provide a more stable home. She knows nothing about her dad (who is different from her older sister’s) but she makes it her mission to find him. A beautiful story about families, mental illness, hope and survival.

When The Sky Falls by Phil Earle

This is a recent favourite. A story of wartime difficulties, of unlikely friendships and the powerful bond between human and animal. Joseph is a troubled boy sent away by his grandmother to London to stay with her stern friend, Mrs. Farelly, the keeper of the local zoo. Joseph forms a close bond with Adonis, the only remaining gorilla at the zoo. The friendship helps him deal with many difficulties in his life, including the fact that his mum has abandoned him.

I would definitely recommend these to readers of all ages!

The Dragon in the Bookshop by Ewa Jozefkowicz (front cover illustration by Katy Riddell) is out on 7th July 2022 and will help promote Grief Encounter (www.griefencounter.org.uk) a wonderful charity that works with children who have lost someone they love.

Grief Encounter have a message for children and young people like Kon. As a charity they work closely with individuals, families, schools and professionals to offer a way through the anxiety, fear and isolation so often caused by the grief of losing someone close.

Grief Encounter provide immediate support with a FREEPHONE Grieftalk helpline 0808 802 0111 open Mon-Fri 9am-9pm, a live chat via their website or support by emailing grieftalk@griefencounter.org.uk.

Review

The Dragon in the Bookshop is a heartfelt and tenderly written story that weaves together legend and reality in a magical adventure about grief, friendship and finding your voice when you are lost.

Whilst exploring the Kent coastline, Konrad (Kon) finds a large fossilised footprint in the rock.  His initial bubble of excitement in wanting to share his discovery with his dad is burst when he remembers that his dad has died, and the pain of his loss comes flooding back. There are some really poignant moments as Kon reminisces about adventures with his dad who called him his ‘intrepid explorer’ interspersed with the depth of his grief. 

When Kon goes back to explore the headland after school, he meets Maya, who has moved to the area with her conservationist dad.  For the first time since the day after his father’s death over five months before, Kon finds his voice, and shares his father’s love of Polish legends with her.  This elicits an invitation to his father’s bookshop, A Likely Story, a place he has been unable to visit since his father’s death and which his mother may well have to sell.

As Kon begins to rediscover the magic of the bookshop with Maya, he finds a pile of books that his mum has left for him and, amongst them, is a beautiful, old book.  As he reads, Kon and Maya find themselves no longer in the bookshop, but in the middle of a legend, a legend where a dragon is terrorising the medieval town of Kraków, living in a cave beneath Wawel Castle.  Will the children find the courage to change the legend, to find their voices, and to hope for a return to happiness?

I loved this touching story, both poignant and warm, which deals with the different stages of grief with such sensitivity and honesty. I thought that the use of the dragon legend to explore loss, and the range of feelings that this can engender from anger and fear to sadness and loneliness, was perfectly portrayed as was the sense of hope and reconnection with family and friends. 

Both Kon and Maya have found their way into my heart.  Each is just what the other needs.  Maya has not been part of Kon’s life before he lost his father, and he feels able to talk to her, perhaps because she has no expectations of what his life was like before.  She is kind and empathetic, but is lonely as she has moved around with her family not making her own connections.  Kon is struggling to cope with the loss of his father who he clearly adored and with whom he had a shared love of beach exploration and stories.  Kon’s grief is trapped inside, like his voice, and he pushes others away from him as he tries to deal with his feelings of anger, guilt and pain. He shows great courage and strength in finding a way back to a life without his father, where he can enjoy cherished memories and allow others back into his life as he moves forward.

I also loved how this story is an ode to the magic of stories and bookshops.  I absolutely believe in the power of a great story to allow us to empathise, to understand ourselves and to find strength in the courage of others.  I just have to include a couple of my favourite bookish quotes:

Kon’s Dad: 

“You know, Kon, I believe that for every reader there is a character in a book somewhere that matches them almost exactly.  It’s just a case of finding them.”

Kon: 

“… in books I’d travelled all over the globe and into the past and the future too.  For intrepid explorers, books are stepping stones to so many places …”

The Dragon in the Bookshop is a beautifully poignant and hopeful allegory of grief, healing and reconnection, and a heartfelt ode to the magic of stories. A wonderful adventure for children of 9+.

Do check out these other stops on the Blog Tour:

Adventures are best served with a drizzle of moonlight and a sprinkling of stars. 

The Midnighters is a mesmerising gothic adventure that swept me into a world brimming with wonderment, intrigue and anticipation that kept me utterly entranced throughout.

Prague, 1877:  Ema Vašková is the twelfth child born into a gifted, driven family of scientists, at the stroke of midnight on 12^th December 1877 at the exact moment her grandmother, Liliana, dies.  Whilst she is loved and nurtured by her family, she does not find an accepted field of science in which to excel.  Instead, she has a sixth sense for predicting impending doom, a heightened fear of shadows and an uncanny ability to remain unnoticed by others:  abilities that make her feel lost and alone in a world that doesn’t understand her.

When Ema’s parents leave to join their eldest daughter on an expedition, 12-year-old Ema is sent to stay with her mother’s eccentric twin brother, Josef, where she is given her grandmother’s attic room.  At midnight, she looks across to the nearby window of the abandoned house opposite and meets Silvie, a mysterious, fearless girl with a heart for adventure, who promises to take Ema on secret midnight escapades to help conquer her fears.  The girls enjoy exciting monthly adventures across the city until the night Silvie disappears …

Ema is determined to search the city to find her friend and, when she uncovers a clue from Silvie, she is led to the spectacle of the Midnight Guild, a secret society under the city, and into the heart of a mesmerising mystery which pulsates with excitement, danger, twists and revelations.  Will Ema find the courage to face her fears and save her friend?  What secrets are so dangerous that someone may be prepared to murder to keep them hidden? 

I really enjoyed the dark, tense atmosphere with spine-tingling frissons of fear and a sense of almost unbearable anticipation as the mystery crescendoed. This darker mood is relieved with lighter tones as Ema and Silvie explore the city at night not to mention the wonderful Maine Coone, Ferkel, who causes mayhem for Josef – and plenty of baking opportunities!  And then there is the Midnight Guild:  breath-taking, dazzling and intriguing, but also rather intense and beguiling.

Ema is an incredibly sympathetic protagonist who struggles to find her place within her scientist family.  It is only when she meets Silvie, who believes in her, that she feels encouraged to overcome her fears as they build a trusting friendship and undertake daring midnight adventures.  Both girls are enigmas and I was just as entranced by Ema’s intuitiveness, curiosity and journey to self-discovery and acceptance as I was with unravelling Silvie’s secrets. 

The dustjacket and hardback cover illustrations are absolutely gorgeous and really capture the intrigue and wonder of Prague that is to be found within the pages of the adventure. Each chapter heading has a stunning, detailed oval miniature which complements the story perfectly.

The Midnighters is an exhilarating, spellbinding adventure of friendship, fearlessness and acceptance, perfect for readers of 9+.

Thank you so much to Kaleidoscopic Tours for inviting me to be part of the Blog Tour, and to Puffin Books for providing me with a gorgeous finished hardback copy of The Midnighters in exchange for my honest opinion.

Do check out the other stops on this week’s Blog Tour below:

Oh my goodness! June has been a ridiculously busy month – school production, writing moderation, fundraising week, finishing reports, assessments – and even some actual teaching! But, I still managed to fit in some reading!

Books I’ve read:

I’ve read 12 books this month: 8 physical copies, 1 e-book and 3 audiobooks.

NetGalley:

My Feedback Ratio is at 96%. I have requested and been approved for two books this month.

Books sent by publishers:

I have been lucky enough to have been sent these books by publishers this month.

Books bought:

I’ve bought 12 books this month. I’ve read some of these already. I read an e-book of Boy, Everywhere but wanted a physical copy for my class library. I supported the CharChar Literacy charity by buying a hardback copy of The Starspun Web which I have read in paperback, and a couple of other books.

How has your reading month been? Have you read any of these? Have you any of them on your TBR?

I’m currently reading The Blackthorn Branch which I’m really enjoying. It is set in a Welsh village and includes the Fair Folk who have gotten their clutches into Cassie’s brother, and she is in fear of losing him. It is wonderfully atmospheric and dark. Cassie and her cousin Sian have to show incredible courage to try to save Byron. I’m hoping to finish this one this evening.

I have just finished listening to the audiobook of Noah’s Gold which is just BRILLIANT! I absolutely loved the narration and the story which was so funny and heart-warming. The children are all so perfectly portrayed and are incredibly likeable and believable. I’m very tempted to make this my first class read aloud in September, especially as we’ll be going on a residential early in the year! I read The Midnighters over the weekend which I really enjoyed. I loved the Prague setting, especially the Guild under the city. I will be posting my review early next week.

I’m hoping to read The Mermaid Call over the weekend.

What are you reading? Have you read any of these?

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
• Finally… reveal the book!

It was a night so dusky the streetlamps looked like fallen stars. A night seized by a fierce frost, which crept up the spires of Prague until they glimmered like diamond stalagmites, then inched across the Vltava River until its entire surface was as smooth as marble. It was a night that would bear a new small life. And, alas, a smidge of death.

Any ideas?

Goodreads Synopsis:

Ema Vašková has always felt different. In a family of famous scientists, there’s not much room for superstition or omens – but they seem to follow Ema wherever she goes. It doesn’t help that she appears to predict events before they happen, and has a peculiar fear of shadows . . . When Ema is sent to stay with her eccentric uncle in Prague, she fears she’ll lose the chance to ever fit in. But then she meets Silvie – a girl who finally sees Ema for the extraordinary person that she is. Soon the girls are meeting for secret midnight adventures, and facing Ema’s fears together. But then disaster strikes. Silvie goes missing – and it’s up to Ema to find her. Now she must gather the courage to hunt the city, find her friend, and uncover the secrets of the one clue Silvie left as to where she might be – inside the mysterious Midnight Guild . . .

I read Darwin’s Dragons earlier this year, and loved it so much that I read it as a class read aloud to my Year 6 class who were spellbound by it.  My Friend the Octopus was, therefore, an eagerly anticipated read, and I can confirm that it is just as enthralling a story:  an utterly gripping Victorian mystery with the most heart-warming bond between a young girl and her octopus friend at its core.

Twelve-year-old Vinnie Fyfe is the daughter of a high-society milliner who is woken in the middle of the night by her mother to take a trip under mysterious circumstances.  Soon, she finds herself separated from her mother for the first time – left in Brighton with her Aunt Bets who runs a popular tea-shop at Brighton aquarium – whilst her mother takes a business trip to Paris.

When her aunt sends her on an errand, Vinnie finds herself in another world, the awe-inspiring world of the aquarium, where she longs to draw the incredible creatures, and where she witnesses the arrival of something that will change her life in the most wonderful and unimaginable way …

Vinnie is introduced to the newest, crowd-drawing arrival at the aquarium:  a giant octopod.  Even though this devil fish frightens Vinnie at first, she is also fascinated by her.  I adored the heartachingly beautiful bond that forms between Vinnie and the octopus she names Ghost, who is playful, intelligent and a master of disguise who communicates with Vinnie through colour.  I loved learning so many fascinating facts about this awe-inspiring creature and thought it was wonderful that the story is divided into three sections, named after the three hearts of an octopus.

Vinnie’s two worlds collide when her London life is brought unexpectedly into focus when she is visited by a former employee of her mother, Mr Jedders, who becomes a blight on her new life.  What unfinished business does he have with her mother?  Why hasn’t Vinnie had any correspondence from Paris?  Could there be something more sinister to her mother’s disappearance? 

Soon, Vinnie and her friends, Charlie and Temitayo, find themselves thrown into a mystery that leads them into terrible danger and unexpected discoveries as they work together to uncover the truth behind her mother’s sudden disappearance. 

I wished I had three hearts like an octopus. 

Then maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much if one got broken.

Vinnie is the most wonderful young girl who has been brought up by a mother who shows her affection, but who is also controlling, expecting Vinnie to follow her choices.  She has led a very sheltered life, focussed on supporting her mother in her millinery enterprise and obeying her wishes.  When she moves to Brighton, she is given much more freedom and, whilst wary of this at first, I love the joy she takes from new experiences such as cycling, sea-bathing and drawing creatures which makes her feel more alive.  Vinnie shows incredible strength and tremendous courage to make her own choices, standing up for herself and what she believes in, despite the pain this causes.  I adored Vinnie’s relationship with Aunt Bets who is warm-hearted, honest and gregarious, encouraging Vinnie to ‘get doing’, to not be scared to make mistakes to help her learn and to enjoy new experiences. 

This story gives both a fascinating and horrifying insight into Victorian Society with the popularity of seaside resorts and aquariums; interest in natural history; the entrenched racism; colonisation; class and gender divisions; the influence of mass media; and, the terrible working and living conditions suffered by many in slums and backstreet workshops. These insights would open so many opportunities for discussion in a classroom as, of course, would finding out more about octopuses.  As a teacher, this is a story I would be very excited to use as a class text for English as it has such rich opportunities for enhancing the curriculum.  I’m already coming up with so many ideas!

I just have to mention how gorgeous this book looks!  The inside covers have fantastic images related to Brighton Aquarium and octopuses; the chapter headings have beautiful drawings of sea creatures; there are newspaper articles; and, factual information related to the Victorians, Brighton Aquarium and octopuses – and even a recipe! 

My Friend the Octopus is an unmissable, heartfelt story of friendship, courage and being true to yourself that is perfect for readers of 9+ who are guaranteed to be endlessly entranced by this exceptional story.

Thank you so much to Laura Smythe and Chicken House Books for inviting me to be part of the Blog Tour, and for providing me with a finished copy in exchange for my honest opinion. 

I’ve had a ridiculously busy week and very little sleep so I’ve not picked a book up to read since the weekend. I am, however, listening to Noah’s Gold to and from my drive to work. Wow! Firstly, I absolutely LOVE the narration – it’s just so lovely to listen to an Irish accent – taking me home! And I hadn’t realised this was set in Northern Ireland – so lovely to hear places which are familiar to me mentioned in a story. And then, there’s the story! Noah is so incredibly likeable. This is such a feel good, wonderfully funny story and is exactly what I need now.

I finished listening to the audiobook of The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which is surreal and genuinely brilliant. I absolutely loved this which would have made me throw my arms in the air a lot (if I hadn’t been driving!) and had me both giggling and confused! I think I definitely need to had to The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. I also read The Dragon in the Bookshop which I really enjoyed – I will be posting my review as part of the Blog Tour soon. Finally, I read something from my towering bookcases. The Last Firefox is a gorgeous story suited to younger readers which has some wonderful messages about finding inner strength and self-belief. The main character, Charlie, has two dads: I loved this representation of family which is so great to see in stories for younger readers.

This might be ambitious, but I’m hoping to have both of these read by next Wednesday!

What are you reading? Have you read any of these?

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
• Finally… reveal the book!

My mother says that until the lions have their own storytellers, the story of the hunt will always glorify the hunter. She has a proverb to suit most situations. She says that proverbs are ‘jewels from the ancestors’ to guide us through the challenges of life.

Any ideas?

I love mystery stories and this one, set in Georgian London, sounds so good!

Goodreads Synopsis

Twelve-year-olds Lizzie Sancho and Dido Belle are from different worlds – Lizzie lives in Westminster in her dad’s tea shop, while Belle is an heiress being brought up by her aunt and uncle at grand Kenwood House – but they both share a love of solving mysteries. And when their eyes meet in the audience of the Drury Lane theatre one night, both girls are sure they’ve seen something suspicious on stage. Lizzie and Belle soon find themselves on the trail of a mystery – and becoming best friends. But can they work out what’s going on in time to prevent a murder? 

Today, I’m excited to share the stunning paperback cover image (by Kristina Kister) for the brilliant The Book of Stolen Dreams which is being released on 1st September.

You can read my review of this unmissable adventure here.

In order to whet your appetite, you can enjoy reading an extract below:

#GIVEAWAY : You can also go to my pinned tweet (@marysimms72) to enter a giveaway to win a hardback copy of this stunning book which will be sent to the winner by the Publisher.