Tag: Otter-Barry Books

In 7+ years, 9 to 10 years, All Ages, Books go Walkabout, Featured authors, Featured children's book, Featured illustrators, History, The British Library

Books! Books ! Books! - cover image and web link

Buy this book here…free delivery!

A book about books by Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom. Explore inside the greatest library on earth!

A fascinating journey through literature via Shakespeare, Bronte sisters, Brothers Grimm, Dickens, Lewis Carroll and many others included at The British Library. Opening the pages of Books! Books! Books! is like stepping into The British Library itself in London. An enormous building full of hidden treasures and packed with books. Visit the cafe with a wall of very old books stretching from the ground floor to the second floor.

Mick Manning and Brita Granstorm work in partnership, this intriguing book is full of information and illustration; from man-eating monsters to lost children, from magical creatures to flying machines. Mick and Brita’s Facebook page shows some of their award-winning titles, such as What Mr Darwin Saw, The Beatles and William Shakespeare.

…with free delivery

Otter-Barry Books has created and published this beautiful hardback book, which children of many ages will enjoy reading and adults too.

The book will act as a pathway for children to venture into libraries and explore, to follow their imaginations learning along the way.

We recommend for all ages and for adults too!

Sue Martin

Is it a Mermaid? by Candy Gourlay, illustrated by Francesca Chessa

By The Book Monitor team

On April 5, 2018

In Featured authors, Featured children's book, Featured illustrators, New titles, Otter-Barry

Buy this book here…

When Benji and Bel find a strange creature on a tropical beach they know it is a dugong. But the dugong insists she is a beautiful mermaid.

After many attempts to convince the children that she really is a mermaid the dugong swims away with her tail splashing into the warm ocean.

Bel believes her but Benji is very practical and just can’t make the connection. But they all play together with the turtles, and the fishes.

At the end of the day as the sun is disappearing, and the illustrations become gradually softer, the dugong says goodbye to Bel and Benji.

“I have to go,” she said. “Mermaids never stay out after dark!”

The last page is a beautiful purple colour and Ben and Benji walk home in the sunset along the beach to the little wooden cabin.

“I love mermaids!” said Bel. “Me too,” said Benji.

The first picture book from Candy Gourlay, whose acclaimed novels for young readers, Tall Story and Shine have been listed for the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian’s Children’s Book Prize and both won the Crystal Prize for Europe.

Candy Gourlay is from the Philippines and grew up in Manila. As a child she often wondered why the books that she loved reading were all about pink skinned children and snow covered mountains, it was not like that in the Philippines. So she was determined to become an author and make some changes to the stereotypes.

At Books Go Walkabout, we work in many countries and these aims reflect our own, for books and stories to be meaningful to all children. There are always stories to be told wherever you are.

Francesca Chessa has illustrated over 40 books, including Elliot’s Arctic Surprise and Library Lily. She lives in Turin and holds art workshops for children and adults.

Otter-Barry Books in London, is an exciting children’s imprint making a difference and pushing boundaries of the standard book publishers.

We strongly recommend, Is it a Mermaid? The text and the beautiful illustrations will make it a favourite in schools, libraries nurseries and at home.

Sue Martin

A Child’s Garden of Verses

By The Book Monitor team

On February 11, 2018

In 6+ Years, All Ages, Books go Walkabout, Poetry

Get this lovely hardback book here…

A beautifully presented hard back book of A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson and illustrated by Michael Foreman in this magical new edition from Otter-Barry Books.

The verses were first published in 1885, so reflect quite a different era. In 1985, Michael Foreman created the wonderful water-colour illustrations which bring a soft and ephemeral magic to the poems.

This latest edition published in 2017, from Otter-Barry has a foreword from Alexander McCall Smith, who begins by saying about Stevenson,” He not only knows what children like, but he likes it along with them”

McCall Smith tells of Stevenson’s childhood in a family of lighthouse engineers, but he suffered from ill-health and spent much time in his sickbed. May be that it was here that he dreamed and thought of the world beyond. It was also in the Victorian times, when travel to far away places was possible for those with money to spend.

The poems are a delight and can conjure up images of gentle childhoods, as in The Swing,

Till I look down on the garden green,

Down on the roof so brown

Up in the air I go flying again

Up in the air and down.

One of my favourite illustrations is from My Shadow, a poem that will stay with you once read.

This book will make a wonderful present and will add to any school, library and home collection. I am off to read some of the poems now, by the fireside and ready to dream!

Sue Martin

Books Go Walkabout

Dreamer by Brian Moses and Bee Willey, buy from Amazon.co.uk

A beautifully written and illustrated picture book about a world where we all care for each other, for animals, plants and places. It will be inspirational for young children and for adults as they see just how the world is changing.

Each page has a scene which has amazing colours and images, including the child dreamer, lots to see, and lots of ways into discussions and questions.

Brian Moses and Bee Willey are an excellent duo, they both have so much experience and good books to their names. Brian is one of Britain’s favourite children’s poets and he is featured on the National Poetry Archive with over 200 books published and 2000 schools visited.

Bee spent her childhood in France and now lives in Suffolk, her books include, The Wooden Dragon by Joan Aiken and How to be a Princess by Caitlin Matthews.

Otter-Barry Books are new publishers this year and have included Dreamer in their new titles, a great edition and a clear direction for their books, which will make a difference.

Sue Martin

Books across the World!

By The Book Monitor team

On August 12, 2016

In 4 -5 Years, All Ages, Books go Walkabout, Featured authors, Featured illustrators, New titles

Adder, Bluebell, Lobster
Wild Poems by Chrissie Gittins

By The Book Monitor team

On August 11, 2016

In 6+ Years, Dolphinbooksellers, Featured children's book, New titles

Adder, Bluebell, Lobster - book cover image

Review or buy from Amazon.co.uk here…

There is more to this Wild Book of Poems from Otter-Barry Books than meets the eye!

From Adder to Wren, forty fantastic poems celebrate forty amazing animals, birds and plants and their beautiful names – names which you can help poet Chrissie Gittins save from EXTINCTION!

They are all words which have been left out of the latest Oxford Junior Dictionary. Join authors such as Michael Morpurgo and Margaret Atwood, who along with 28 other authors, protested against Oxford Junior Dictionary’s replacement of natural words with 21st century terms.

The poems are brilliant, each page has a poem from Chrissie and illustration from Paul Bommer such as. Harry the Hamster…

‘Harry the hamster, in his ball

rolled round the bedroom,

rolled round the hall.

He rolled to the bathroom,

he rolled to the stairs

where a huge teddy bear

took him clean unawares’.

We recommend for ages 6+ and for all ages.

Sue Martin

The Seal Children by Jackie Morris

By The Book Monitor team

On June 21, 2016

In All Ages, Dolphinbooksellers, Featured authors, New titles

Review or purchase this book from Amazon.co.uk here…

The Seal Children by Jackie Morris has been republished in this captivating edition by Otter-Barry Books.

The water colours on every page are a joy in themselves and you can spend so much time just looking as they portray the story in picture.

The story is about a fisherman who falls in love with a Selkie – half woman, half seal – she gives him her seal skin as a sign of her love, and bears him two children, Ffion and Morlo, before returning to her own people. When a stranger comes to the village, telling of a land far away, the children remember their mother’s stories of the cities of gold and pearls beneath the waves….

This is a wonderful book from Jackie Morris. Presented in a beautiful new gift edition, this is a haunting story of love and freedom, for all ages.

‘A lyrical story with beautifully painted watercolours’ – Books for Keeps

A book for everyone to have, in the home to share, and to read alone, in schools for all sorts of projects in education and in the libraries. It is a book that definitely will not be staying long on the shelves but will be on the table, by the rug or in the fireside chair ready to be read time and time again.

Recommended for all ages and especially for me!!

Sue Martin Dolphin Booksellers and Books Go Walkabout

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The Princess and the Castle by Caroline Binch

By The Book Monitor team

On June 17, 2016

In Dolphinbooksellers, Featured children's book

All Genevieve wanted was for her Dad, who she imagined to be a king in a castle, to be waiting for her as the princess. So, she wouldn’t go to the beach with friends, ” Princesses don’t like beaches” she would say.

In fact she was afraid to go near the water, as her father was lost at sea.

This is a beautiful book, the illustrations are breath-taking and the story of restoration to friendship for a small child is perfect.

The Princess and the Castle is written and illustrated by Caroline Binch and is republished as a launch title for Otter-Barry Books. Caroline is the illustrator of Amazing Grace and won the Smarties Prize for illustrating Hue Boy.

Otter-Barry Books is an exciting new children’s imprint aiming to make a difference,push boundaries and publish books that children will love.

The Princess and the Castle is one of my favourite books and is definitely for reading alone or together at home or in school or the library.

Sue Martin Dolphin BookSellers and Books Go Walkabout

Books and authors around the world

Immi by Karin Littlewood

By The Book Monitor team

On June 14, 2016

In All Ages, Books go Walkabout, Dolphinbooksellers, Featured authors, Featured children's book, New titles

Review or purchase this book from Amazon.co.uk here…

A classic picture book, Immi, about friendship across cultures, reissued by popular demand and an Otter-Barry launch title for Spring 2016.

It is written and illustrated by Karin Littlewood in a beautiful style of painting, which create a real atmosphere on the pages. Karin has illustrated over 40 childrens books and her work has been nominated three times for the Kate Greenaway Medal.

Immi lives in a land of ice and snow and one day when she is fishing she finds a wooden bird at the end of her fishing line. Every day after that, she discovers something new, until her igloo is the brightest in the land.

But where are these mysterious gifts coming from and who is sending them? One day she drops her small white bear pendant into the hole in the ice. Where does it go? It finds a home in a distant land.

‘This is a book that will be with you forever, we recommend it for all ages of children and adults’.

Sue Martin Dolphin BookSellers and Books Go Walkabout

Books and authors around the world…together

Kangaroo Kisses
by Nandana Dev Sen
from Otter-Barry Books

By The Book Monitor team

On June 7, 2016

In Books go Walkabout, Dolphinbooksellers, Featured children's book

Buy this title from Amazon.co.uk here…

Kangaroo Kisses by Nandana Dev Sen and illustrated by Pippa Curnick is an opening title for Otter-Barry Books, an exciting new imprint, being launched on June 8th in London.

Kangaroo Kisses is beautifully produced in hard back by Otter-Barry Books. It is a a book of adventures for bedtime as the toys become real wild animals.

‘I’m learning to fly with the geese in the sky!’ and the illustrations are engaging and fun for young children. From hippos to bears and at the end to Kangaroo… who is god with the kisses to send you to sleep.

Great for young children, a debut children’s book for Nandana Dev Sen who is an award winning actor writer and child-rights activist. Visit her website to see her amazing work. I was inwardly most impressed by Princess Jasmine in Disneyland!

Pippa Curnick is a freelance designer and illustrator, and winner of the Seven Stories Illustration Competition, 2013.

Looking forward to being at the launch of Otter-Barry Books, a great start and future ahead.

Sue Martin Books Go Walkabout Dolphin BookSellers

@booksgowalk

A Better Best Friend by Olivier Tallec April 2, 2024
A feel-good picture book about best friendship told with sensitivity and an open ending—squirrel and mushroom are best friends until another best friend comes to play. This morning when I was out walking, I found a best friend. At least I think so. It certainly looks a lot like it! He really has a best […]
The Dolphin
Good Night, Good Beach by Joy Cowley, illustrated by Hilary Jean Tapper April 1, 2024
An evocative bedtime picture book that distils the essence of a family summer at the beach. Living in Norfolk in the UK with the wild beaches nearby this book is a wonderful memory of holidays at the beach hut. It's a glorious way of being family together and enjoying the simple things of life […]
The Dolphin
Have You Seen Dinosaur? By David Barrow March 4, 2024
Play hide and seek in the city with a boy, his animal friends and a dinosaur that’s surprisingly hard to spot. The brilliantly interactive follow-up to international bestselling picture book, Have You Seen Elephant? An amazing book in which children will spot the dinosaurs well ahead of the adults, I guess! The story charmingly follows a journey with many clues. Children […]
The Dolphin
Mo’s Best Friend, A Stone Age Story by Bridget Marzo February 27, 2024
A recent astonishing discovery was made in the famous Chauvet Cave in France, where the footprint if a young child was found with a paw print beside it- from 26,000 years ago! When Mo makes friends with a little wild beast, her family are horrified – wild beasts are dangerous. But could this wild beast […]
The Dolphin
The Cat Who Couldn’t Be Bothered by Jack Kurland February 8, 2024
There is a cat. A cat that couldn’t be bothered to do anything … anything at all. His friends ask him if he wants to play but he doesn’t feel like it. They invite him on adventures to far-off places, but he would rather stay at home. Until one day, a friend asks how he […]
The Dolphin
The Lucky Red Envelope Vikki Zhang December 5, 2023
Get ready for Lunar New Year, following a young girl and her family as they get ready for and celebrate the Lunar New Year festival. A stunning book with so much visual information, set around a young Chinese girl called Yue. Perfect for children around the world to celebrate and understand the beauty and joy […]
The Dolphin
Lenny Has Lunch by Ken Wilson-Max, October 13, 2023
Lenny Has Lunch written and illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max, is a wonderfully illustrated picture book for young children. Have fun sharing the book together and the everyday things that make life full of adventure. Lenny and Daddy prepare a delicious lunch, looked on lovingly by the dog. Lenny uses the large blue spoon to feed […]
The Dolphin
The Most Famous Rhinoceros By Dianne Hofmeyr – Illustrated by Simona Mulazzani September 25, 2023
An intriguing look into the past when animals were moved from one country to another as gifts. Explore the world at that time with the history and geography of that time and place. A moving and beautiful story inspired by a work of art, Albrecht Dürer's celebrated woodcut print of the rhinoceros sent from India […]
The Dolphin
When Dinosaurs Walked the Earth by Sean Taylor and Zehra Hicks July 12, 2023
Set back in the days WHEN DINOSAURS WALKED THE EARTH, this is a hilarious picture-book about Smallasaurus, who enjoys a plant-based diet, and Badasaurus who likes to eat small dinosaurs who enjoy a plant-based diet. It all begins when Smallasaurus has to think. And thinking can be a problem when you only have a brain the […]
The Dolphin
The Last Tiger by By Petr Horáček July 11, 2023
When the last tiger is captured by human hunters, he realises that it is more important to be free than to be strong... Strong and proud, the tiger is lord of the jungle, but all his strength and boldness cannot keep him safe from the human hunters. In captivity, the tiger realises that what […]
The Dolphin