Book Monitor - books from across the world

Engaging reads for children, from Books go Walkabout

Category: Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

I Love Books by Mariajo Ilustrajo

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On March 5, 2024

In Frances Lincoln Children's Books, BookMonitor, Featured authors, Featured children's book, Featured illustrators

*Winner of the Klaus Flugge Prize for Illustration 2023*

From the award-winning creator of Flooded and Lost comes a magical story about the joy of discovering a connection with books for the very first time.

This brightly illustrated adventure story is perfect for kids who claim to hate reading, as the enchanting narrative opens their eyes to a fantasy world created by words on a page.

In this spellbinding story, we meet a little girl excited for the end of term. No more school! However, she’s given the very unreasonable task of reading a whole book over the holidays. A whole book? but she HATES books. Luckily, her sister takes her to the library and says she has just the thing.

Slowly, the little girl is drawn into a world of adventure inside her own imagination, for the very first time. Even the greyscale world starts to fill with colour as she is carried away in the story. A little fennec fox leads her to meet fairytale witches and creatures as they find ingredients to cast a special spell at the end of her book. The little girl is dismayed to learn that this spell seemingly hasn’t changed a thing. However, the little fox points out that she is completely transformed: discovering the power of her imagination has changed her forever.

This charming and engaging picture book shows children how wonderful books can really be, leaving them with a lifelong affinity for reading. Discover adventure on every page and turn I Hate Books into I Love Books.

Mariajo Ilustrajo is an award-winning Spanish illustrator based in the UK. She completed her MA in Children’s Illustration from the prestigious Cambridge Anglia Ruskin course in April 2021. Her debut picture book, Flooded, won the Klaus Flugge Prize for Illustration 2023.

Super book from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, a great way to help children find the magic of reading.

Sue Martin – Children’s Literacy Specialist

Kid Christmas of the Claus Brothers Toy Store by David Litchfield

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On October 17, 2023

In Frances Lincoln Children's Books, The Book Monitor, Books go Walkabout, Featured children's book

This fascinating tale tells the story of little Nicky Claus, who wanted to make every child happy, if only just for one day.

Nicky Claus works with his three uncles in the Claus Brothers Toy Emporium. Uncle Hanz makes the toys, Uncle Louis checks them and Uncle Levi adds the… what’s the scientific term for it? Ah, yes. The magic! For each toy made at the Emporium has a special sparkle that means it will find the child it is perfect for. 


One day, Nicky notices a young girl with her face pressed up to the glass. When she disappears, he follows her and finds her living on the streets with lots of other children, none of whom can afford a toy. Nicky vows that for one night only, every child will have the toy of their dreams and—with the help of his uncles and some flying reindeer—the legend of Father Christmas is born.

This magical and heartwarming story from David Litchfield is centred on kindness, generosity and looking after each other. 

DAVID LITCHFIELD is a bestselling author–illustrator living in Bedfordshire,UK. He is the creator of the award-winning, best-selling ‘The Bear and the Piano’ trilogy.

Frances Lincoln Children’s Books have a wonderful collection of picture book titles and Kid Christmas is a beautiful addition.

Sue Martin – Children’s Literacy Specialist

A Hero Like Me by Angela Joy and Jen Reid, illustrated by Leire Salaberria

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On June 9, 2023

In Frances Lincoln Children's Books, BookMonitor, Children's books, Featured children's book

Empower children to stand up for what is right with this picture book inspired by the real-life events around the statue of a slave trader, its toppling and heroic replacement.
 
They call him ‘HERO’, but he’s no HERO – not to me.

This inspiring picture book of events through the eyes of a young girl; called Jen, who, every day, on her way to school, sees a towering statue. A statue of a man who sold freedom for cotton and tea. The world around her says this man is a hero. But she knows he’s not a hero – not a real one.

Heroes are hard to find. The girl looks for them around corners, under rocks, and on TV, but there are none that she can see. And so, she marches and shouts for them instead. And that statue – he doesn’t belong. He doesn’t stand for Kindness. He doesn’t stand for Peace. Maybe he shouldn’t stand at all.

 
A Hero Like Me is inspired by the events of 7 June 2020, when a statue of seventeenth-century slave trader Edward Colston was pulled down and thrown into Bristol Harbour during an anti-racism protest. Co-author Jen Reid was one of the protesters that day, and despite being afraid of heights, she spontaneously climbed onto the empty plinth and raised her fist high above her head – a moment that was captured on camera and shared around the world.
 
On the morning of 15 July, a statue of Jen by Marc Quinn was added to the empty plinth. It was called A Surge of Power and it gained national attention for the 24 hours it was in place, and beyond. 

A Hero Like Me empowers children to have courage to stand up for what is right and be their own hero. It shows every child that they have a voice in their community and a say in who is on their streets. That they too have power, just like Jen.

Another brilliant ‘fact finder picture book’ from publishers Frances Lincoln, part of Quarto Knows.

Sue Martin – Children’s Literacy Specialist

JRR Tolkein

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On April 13, 2022

In Frances Lincoln Children's Books, Featured children's book

By Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara and illustrated by Aaron Cushley

Author of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings

An outstanding book for younger readers about the life and work of one of the most famous writers of our time, JRR Tolkein. A valuable addition to the extremely popular Little People, Big Dreams series, published by Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

JRR Tolkein was born in 1892 in South Africa, his father died when he was three and Ronald moved to a busy city in England, He missed the countryside he had grown up around.

His imagination took him back to the countryside of South Africa

He threw himself into creating fantastical world and was fascinated by languages. When he grew up he studied English at Oxford University. In World War One he joined the army and fought in the Battle of the Somme.

Later he went on to create a whole new world full of mystical characters of good and evil, which he embodied in his novels of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. His fantasy world enabled him and others to escape into a world where elves and dwarves combatted evil of Sauron.

Small video clip of the film Hobbit; An Unexpected Journey

A wonderful book and a great way into discovery of Tolkein, his life and his far off world.

Little People, Big Dreams is an invaluable series for children and sharing adults to explore the life and works of this famous and intellectual person.

Sue Martin Children’s Literacy Specialist

Stories Across the World…

A World Full of Journeys and Migrations, by Martin Howard and illustrated by Christopher Corr

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On February 16, 2022

In Frances Lincoln Children's Books, Featured children's book

The Movement of People and Ideas

If you are a traveller at heart, like me, this is the perfect book! It features over 50 incredible stories of human migration and how different cultures and ideas have spread through the world because of migration. What a positive attitude to people travelling across continents, what an amazing story through time of how peoples have travelled and continue to travel for the benefit of all people. This book hits right at the point where migration is integral to a better word and a better society.

“About 70,000 years ago a small tribe of human beings walked out of Africa and into the country we now call Yemen in the Middle East. With them was them was the mother who would become the grandmother to all humans outside of Africa.” Martin Howard.

Just one of many amazing facts that will keep you enthralled as you read through the book.

A World Full of Journeys and Migrations is illustrated in a wonderfully engaging style, each page in this large hardback book is packed with illustrations and text which draw you in to each and every page.

Two of my favourite pages are Chinatown and America’s New People. As with all the pages there are facts and information which will promote thought and enable further research.

Follow the trails

The sections on Migration of Modern Humans shows how we are just continuing the same pattern of travel, where and how we can.

Martin Howard, the author, lives in France, and has written many titles for both children and adults, including the Bad Dog’s Diary series and the Wickedest Witch.

Christopher Corr is an established author/illustrator whose books are renowned internationally. He studied at the Royal College of Art and now lives and worked in London as an artist and tutor at Goldsmith’s University

Frances Lincoln Children’s Books are the publishers, and A World Full of Journeys & Migrations is part of the beautifully published series called A World Full of…. Stories, Dickens Stories, Celebrations and Festivals.

A perfect book for any school, library or home, my copy is definitely staying with me so I can discover more about people spreading ideas around our planet and creating a better world.

Sue Martin Children’s Literary Specialist

Stories Across the World…

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