Books for Christmas 2016: Grooving in the jungle and stuck in the chimney - no boring picture books for Christmas!

A few months ago there was a bit of a hoo-ha when a very well-known music media mogul (who shall remain nameless) declared that he was writing his own picture book, because he found the current picture books 'boring'.

Difficult to know where to start with that one. On the one hand, huge kudos for setting a great example to Dads and reading to your child (just five minutes a day folks, huge impact, remember that). On the other hand, I would hazard a guess that his 'domain expertise' when it comes to the canon of picture books may not be as broad as perhaps his five minute search on the Internet might have turned up.

Anyway, at Mostly Books we are surrounded by incredible works of art and imagination in picture book form, and of course for every book on display there's a score or more that we can recommend and order in the next day. Picture books are some of our most cherished children's books.

Here are our recommends and books we feel have the 'X Factor' for Christmas 2016. They soar across magical worlds, and stimulate young imaginations like nothing else. Boring? You're having a laugh...

A Child of Books - Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston
Difficult to overstate how wonderful Oliver Jeffers is, with his sparse but incredibly expressive illustration style and huge drama and emotion packed into his illustratins. 'The Day the Crayons Quit' and 'Lost and Found' are modern classics (we recommended 'Crayons' to a local primary schools, and they have used it as the basis as a whole host of writing exercises).

In 'A Child of Books' Jeffers has joined forces with typographical artist Sam Winston to create an inspiring, lyrical tale about the rewards of reading and sharing stories. A little girl sails her raft "across a sea of words" to arrive at the house of a small boy. There she invites him to come away with her on an adventure. Guided by his new friend, the boy unlocks his imagination and a lifetime of magic lies ahead of him...But who will be next? With real wow-factor, it's a wonderful gift for a young child from any book-lover.

Help - Sally Grindley
An interactive version of a classic fairy tale that follows the success of the bestselling 'Shhh!'. Based on 'The Three Little Pigs', 'Help!' physically involves the reader in the narrative and adventure. There's a wolf inside this book and the pigs need to catch him. Can you help them? Don't let him escape! Young children can lift the flaps and peep through the holes as they follow the adventure.

Anyone who has to read to a child should definitely discover Sally Grindley. Her books are almost as fun to read aloud, as to listen to...

Meg in the Jungle - David Walser and Jan Pieńkowski
Meg and Mog are as popular as ever - still illustrated by Jan Pieńkowski, since Helen Nicoll's untimely death in 2012, the stories are now written by David Walser - and they are just as engaging for young readers, with bright, bold shapes and colours.

In this new adventure, Meg, Mog and Owl explore the jungle, meet a friendly elephant, a sinister snake - and a tiger without any stripes! But can Meg's spell help or might things get a little more tricky for our hapless heroes?

Moomin and the Ocean's Song - Tove Jansson
It was a day that really ought to be filled with adventure...Moomintroll and his friends have heard of the legend of the Ocean's Song - held inside a shell, which only its finder can hear. Snufkin takes them to the island of the Hattifatteners but the friends have to turn back to escape a thunderstorm! Will they find the Ocean's Song, and get home in one piece?

This is a brand new picture book adventure based on the beloved Moomin characters by Tove Jansson - perfect for all Moomin fans young and old!

Nuddy Ned's Christmas - Kes Gray and Garry Parsons
Santa's sleigh was on its way just leaving Lanzarote. "Goodness Gracious," Blitzen cried. "Did I just see a botty?"

Yes, it's Nuddy Ned, running riot, completely starkers. Kes Gray does humour brilliantly for young readers (probably best known for his 'Daisy' books, and doing brilliantly with 'Oi Frog' at the moment). At Christmas, Nuddy Ned is desperate to meet Santa Claus, so let's hope there's a few flaps to protect Nud's modesty en route to the North Pole...

Oi Dog - Claire Gray, Kes Gray and Jim Field
Talking of 'Oi Frog', if you haven't already discovered it you must come in and take a look. And then take a look at this hilarious sequel which really will have children rolling around with laughter. After the indignities suffered in the first book, Frog's had enough, he's changing the status quo! Cat insists that there are rules - only mules sit on stools, no one but hares should sit on chairs and however irritating, dogs MUST sit on frogs.

'Well, I'm changing the rules,' said the frog. 'From now on, dogs sit on logs, not frogs!' And everyone else is going to have to sit somewhere else too. Will Cat want to sit on gnats instead of cushy mats? Will spiders like sitting on gliders? Will whales be happy to sit on nails? And, most importantly, where is FROG going to sit?

The Storm Whale in Winter - Benji Davies
It's winter time and Noi's island is covered in a blanket of snow. Even the sea is icing over.

Noi is worried about the little whale he saved last summer: Can he survive the harsh conditions? Little does Noi know that it's the little whale's turn to save him. A magical and touching story about a lasting friendship. A truly beautiful work packing a real emotional punch.

Hugless Douglas and the Great Cake Bake - David Melling
Who can resist Hugless Douglas. The big bear with the big heart can be found making sweet treats for his friends, and just like in his earlier adventures, things are not going entirely to plan...

The honey cakes are taking far too long, and the sheep are getting restless. There is some incredibly naughty behaviour, but the result is that Douglas doesn't have anything to eat. But help is at hand...containing an actual recipe for honey cakes, and David Melling's dynamic and mischievous illustrations, this is another Hugless book to treasure!

Tell Me a Dragon - Jackie Morris
Everyone has their very own dragon, and this book describes many different varieties of the beast, showing in words and stunning pictures exactly why their owners find them so entrancing. They range from a dragon as big as a village to a tiny dragon with whisper-thin wings, from a snaggle-toothed dragon to a sea-dragon which races dolphins on the waves - ending in a page inhabited by every dragon in the book!

Winnie and Wilbur Meet Santa - Valerie Thomas
Korky Paul spent a magical afternoon in the Mostly Books garden earlier this year, so we were very excited to see this fabulously festive story with a spectacular pop-up ending! Winnie is going to be making her television debut early in 2017, so it's going to be a big year coming up for Winnie and and her long-suffering cat Wilbur...

When Winnie and Wilbur write their letters to Santa they never imagine that they are actually going to meet him on Christmas Eve! After the crisis of Santa getting stuck in their chimney, Winnie and Wilbur join him on his sleigh in a desperate race against time to make sure children everywhere wake up to stockings filled with presents on Christmas morning. What a magical memorable night! It's a fun and festive Winnie and Wilbur adventure!

Magnificent Creatures - Sue Tarsky
Anna Wright's stunning introduction to non-fiction and the natural world is enlivened by her gorgeously sophisticated and fun art style which mixes pen and ink, watercolour and fabric collage.

Find out what 'pronking' is and how one jellyfish can become two in the humorous descriptions. Both educational and beautiful Anna's unique picture book shows the character of these animals beyond their familiar forms.

Ollie's Christmas Reindeer - Nicola Killen
When a jingling sound wakes her from her sleep, a little girl's dreams come true when she meets a lost reindeer in the forest. Setting off on a magical adventure together it soon becomes a Christmas never to forget.

Nicola Killen's evocative illustrations are sure to enchant in this beautiful book with die cut pages, foil and flashes of festive red colour.

The Darkest Dark - Chris Hadfield and The Fan Brothers
After Buzz Aldrin, possibly the famous astronaut in the world is Commander Chris Hadfield, he of the guitar-playing exploits on the International Space Station, and regular commentator on space and science. This is his first picture book, and is based on the fact that Chris, when he was very young, was afraid of the dark.

It's a poignant story of a young boy who dreams of wanting to be an astronaut. And he's very busy; saving the planet from aliens is much more important than taking baths or going to bed. Because at bedtime the worst sort of alien appears - darkness. But when Chris watches the first televised moon landing, he discovers that there is a dark out in Space that is much darker than he's used to. It's the darkest dark ever, and he realises that the unknown can be ...exciting! 

Blue Penguin - Peter Horacek 
A heart-warming fable about a friendship and belonging from the award-winning illustrator Petr Horacek. "I feel just like a penguin," says Blue Penguin. "But you're not like us," said the other penguins and they left him all alone.

Poor Blue Penguin. Will he be able to convince the other penguins he is one of them after all? A moving and beautifully illustrated story from Petr Horacek, an illustrator described by the Washington Post as "the thinking tot's Eric Carle".

Coming Home - Michael Morpurgo
Yes, we know this is the story that the Waitrose ad is based upon, but the picture book is so-o-o much better! 

This is the story of the little robin's migration, as he endeavours to be home for Christmas. Few people do animal stories as well as Morpurgo, and this has all the makings of a modern classic.

Books for Christmas Part 5 - Wild Wolves, Imaginary Friends and A Slice of the Moon - Middle Grade Grandeur for Christmas

At Mostly Books, we call them 'confident readers', the wider book world increasingly likes the phrase 'Middle Grade' (or 'MG' as it fights back against the downward-pressing, all-conquering, social media-fuelled 800-pound gorilla that is YA).

For everyone else though, it's the brilliant time in life when children are reading independently, flexing their individuality, and discovering the books that will have a profound effect on them for the rest of their lives.

(We're always a bit flexible in terms of age-guidance - so do take a look at our recommends for younger readers too.)

At Christmas we look for those gorgeous editions that combine the best writing with the best that publishers bring to the physical book. Beautiful, desirable and shouting out to be read - what more could we ask. Here's our favourites this year...

The Wolf Wilder - Katherine Rundell (£12.99)
Feodora and her mother live surrounded by the snowbound woods of Russia and with only wolves for company. In a world where there is a huge divide between rich and poor, the rich have taken to taking wild wolves as pets. But if they turn savage, they are brought to Feo and her mother - wolf wilders. But with such a divide between rich and poor, revolution is brewing and when Feo is unwittingly caught up in the fight, suddenly, having wolves on your side can make you very sought after – for good reasons and by bad people.

In Katherine's trademark style (which readers will know from Girl Savage and multi award-winning Rooftoppers), Feo is left with no option but to go on the run, finding friends and fighting foes, finding out what her skills and her strengths really are. What follows is a story of revolution and adventure, about standing up for the things you love and fighting back, rich in language and lore and with a spirited protagonist you will be rooting for all the way.

Published as a gorgeous hardback edition, complete with atmospheric illustrations, this is a book to treasure in every way.

An Eagle in the Snow - Michael Morpurgo (£12.99)
A brand new fiction title from Michael Morpurgo is always an exciting event, and in 'An Eagle in the Snow' Morpurgo again tells a dramatic and extraordinary tale - partly based on a true story - and painted onto the canvas of the Second World War.

Barney and his mother, their home destroyed by bombing, are travelling to the country when their train is forced to shelter in a tunnel from attacking German planes. There, in the darkness, a stranger on the train begins to tell them a story. A story about one of the most decorated soldier of WW1, who once had the chance to end the war before it even began, and how he tried to fix his mistake. But sometimes doing the right thing is hard to see - and even harder to live with. This will delight Morpurgo's legion of fans - and further cement his reputation as one of our finest living storytellers.

Little Stars - Jacqueline Wilson and Nick Sharratt (£12.99)
This is the wonderful new Hetty Feather story from the legendary author Jacqueline Wilson - the fifth book in the series. Hetty and her dearest friend Diamond, having escaped from Tanglefield's Travelling Circus, are determined to find positions as glamorous music hall artistes. Hetty and Diamond quickly become the 'Little Stars' of Mrs Ruby's show.

But the Cavalcade proves a dangerous place, and Hetty must fight to protect Diamond, whilst struggling to understand her feelings for Bertie - and for Jem, whom she has never forgotten. Hetty dreams of a glittering future for herself and Diamond. The bright lights of the London theatre world beckon - will Hetty become a true star?

Hetty is developing into a classic series, and with the foundling's tale having been turned into a West End production and serialised on CBBC, It's a beautiful, sparkly edition with bags of appeal to new readers and fans alike.

The Imaginary - AF Harrold and Emily Gravett (£7.99)
We recommended 'The Imaginary' when it came out as a beautiful hardback last year - and the paperback is just as stunning. It's an extraordinary tale of love, loss, imagination and not really being there, definitely for fans of Roald Dahl and Neil Gaiman, by the world's most famous bearded poet AF Harrold (and that award is up against stiffer competition than you might imagine).

Rudger is Amanda's best friend. He doesn't exist (but then nobody's perfect). Only Amanda can see her imaginary friend - until the sinister Mr Bunting arrives at Amanda's door. Mr Bunting hunts imaginaries. Rumour says that he eats them. And he's sniffed out Rudger...

It's funny, scary and moving, and gorgeously illustrated by the award-winning Emily Gravett. Highly recommended...

Mountwood School for Ghosts - Tony Ibbotson (£6.99)
Fredegonda, Goneril, and Drusilla are Great Hagges, much more important and much rarer than regular old hags. They think that ghosts these days are decidedly lacking and that people haven't been scared of ghosts for years. So one day they decide that something needs to change - it's time for these ghosts to learn a thing or two about being scary. And what better way to teach them than to set up their very own school for ghosts? A funny ghost story from Toby Ibbotson, son of award-winning author Eva Ibbotson, and based on an idea conceived by her. The cover is by Alex T. Smith.

Pathfinder - Angie Sage (£6.99)
Another book we raved about in hardback - now out in paperback.

Tod has grown up a PathFinder, one of an ancient seafaring tribe. Her mother, who died when Tod was young, had a very different history. She was from a mysterious magykal desert-dwelling family. When Tod's father disappears she is not only alone, but soon finds herself swept into the path of an evil sorcerer. Now Tod must choose which of her pasts will help her to survive: PathFinder or Magician. Magyk will allow her to fight like with like, but her PathFinder heritage gives Tod something special - the edge. Angie Sage's new book combines breathtaking action with fabulous plotting. The characters are instantly engaging, the tension is relentless and Angie's superlative storytelling weaves the threads seamlessly together for an utterly satisfying read.

The Seal's Fate - Eoin Colfer & Victor Ambrus (£7.99)
A stunning coming-of-age novella by international bestselling author and current Irish Children's Laureate Eoin Colfer (author of 'Artemis Fowl'), beautifully illustrated by Greenaway winner Victor Ambrus. School's out and Bobby Parrish is spending the summer on his dad's boat. Job number one is to deal with the seals infesting the peninsula. The money's good - but Bobby knows, deep down, that he hasn't got it in him. Eoin Colfer's trademark humour and lightness of touch and Victor Ambrus's classic artwork evoke a strong sense of place, character and vitality. An ideal gift for lovers of a fantastic artist and writing team, from reluctant-reader specialist Barrington Stoke, who bring all their experience in developing a love of reading for all children.

A Slice of the Moon - Sandi Toksvig (£9.99)
The brand-new action-packed story of one family's journey across the world from author Sandi Toksvig. Slim Hannigan and her family are poor but happy. Theirs is a life filled with love and laughter - and a pet pig called Hamlet. But things change overnight and suddenly they find themselves facing hunger and danger like they have never known. So they leave their village in Ireland to journey to America where, they hope, family and fortune await them. Can one brave girl keep her family together no matter what is thrown at them?

The delight of this book is the surprising amount of humour, and emotional depth Toksvig brings to a story full of danger and heartbreak. It's another beautiful hardback edition to treasure as well.

Top of the Class (nearly) - Liz Pichon (£10.99)
From the winner of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize, the Red House Children's Book Award, the Waterstones Children's Book Prize and the Blue Peter Best Story Book Award 2013, comes the ninth (can you believe that?) amazing instalment of the Tom Gates adventures. Tom Gates is a superb, accessible voice for children of 9+, and great for reluctant readers who may struggle to get into reading.

Return to the Secret Garden - Holly Webb (£8.99)
Return to Frances Hodgson Burnett's timeless classic, 'The Secret Garden', in this magical sequel by bestselling author Holly Webb. It's 1939 and a group of children have been evacuated to Misselthwaite Hall. Emmie is far from happy to have been separated from her cat and sent to a huge old mansion. But soon she starts discovering the secrets of the house - a boy crying at night, a diary written by a girl named Mary, and a garden. A very secret garden... Holly Webb is the author of The Truffle Mouse and the Emily Feather series. 

The Astounding Broccoli Boy - Frank Cotterill Boyce (£10.99)
Frank Cottrell-Boyce is one of our favourite authors - his special genius is to tell stories that grip and unfold through the eyes of the children he's created, which allows him to generate incredible twists in perspective that are a totally delight.

After 'Cosmic' and 'Millions' this is another funny and wildly imaginative modern-day adventure. When Rory Rooney turns inexplicably green he is convinced he has super powers, but after being whisked off to a research facility, he must team up with his worst enemy - and some penguins - to find out what's happened. Why does London seem to be under attack from aliens? Will he ever be normal again? And will he be able to drive the bin lorry he's just stolen? Crazy, super-powered and just fantastic!

Books for Christmas Part 4 - Guinea Pigs, Pugs and Polar Bears - Favourite Fiction for Younger Readers

Giving books as gifts for young children is possibly the best part of Christmas - we've already told you about some of our favourite activity books for children - but here are some of favourite new fiction books throughout the year for ages 7+.

Knight In Training: A Very Bothersome Bear -
Vivian French and David Melling (£4.99)
David Melling has become renowned as the creator of bestseller (and everyone's favourite dispenser of hugs) Hugless Douglas, but before the cuddly bear he was already critically-acclaimed as the illustrative genius behind 'The Tale of Jack Frost' and 'The Kiss That Missed'. 'Knight In Training' is a new young fiction series inspired by the hapless Knight from that book, and has been written with author Vivian French.

Following the tale of Sam J. Butterbiggins (whose only ambition is to be a Very Noble Knight) it manages to harness the energy and quirkiness of the original, as Sam discovers a magical scroll listing the six quests to be completed to become a knight. Along the way he helps a grumpy dwarf, a dunderheaded bear and an island of tiny elves. Huge fun and bags of young reader appeal!


Atticus Claw on the Misty Moor - Jennifer Gray (£5.99)
The world's greatest cat-burglar turned cat detective is back! With the Cheddar family celebrating New Year's Eve in a Scottish castle, it isn't long before Atticus is up to his whiskers in hidden treasure, an ancient family curse, and sightings of a mysterious giant cat on the moor. Police Cat Sergeant Claw's detective skills will be needed once again, and with danger lurking everywhere, can Atticus solve the mystery? Imaginative, very funny, this series of books keeps getting better.

Olga da Polga - Michael Bond (£20)
Be prepared for a lot of very cute animals in this wonderful new edition of the classic guinea pig tales illustrated by the wonderful Catherine Rayner. Olda da Polga loves telling tales of her adventures to Graham the tortoise, even though he's not sure they all actually happened! A feast of adventure and fun - and utterly charming illustrations.

(We have a very few copies signed by Catherine in the shop - email to reserve one!) 

Gabriel-Ernest and Other Tales - Saki (£6.99)
In 'Gabriel-Earnest', local landowner Van Cheele is stunned when his aunt decides to take in a wild-looking boy found on the estate, buying him a suit of clothes and naming him Gabriel-Ernest. Van Cheele is suspicious, especially when it is revealed that there is something supernatural about their new ward...

Saki was the pen-name of Hector Hugh Munro. and his short stories were strange and satirical, poking fun at the mores of the Edwardian age. This republished book (with new illustrations by Quentin Blake) is a mischievous collection of stories which find an echo of Roald Dahl a generation before.

The Adventures of Miss Petitfour - Anne Michaels (£10.99)
Meet the utterly irresistible Miss Petitfour (a name of unknown origin but possibly descended from bakers of tiny delicious cakes). She loves baking and making and dancing with her cats, but most of all she loves to fly. All she has to do is pick up a favourite tablecloth (preferably the one with the paisley print), catch the breeze and she swooshes off on an adventure - with her many cats dangling paw-to-tail behind her.

In five utterly captivating stories of gentle adventure, delicious edibles (with cheese for the cats), occasional peril and heart-zinging warmth, poet and novelist Anne Michaels (author of award-winning 'Fugitive Pieces') makes a charming, purrfect debut as a children's author.

Meet at the Ark at Eight! - Ulrich Hub (£6.99)
Snow and ice and ice and snow all around, and nothing for three penguins to do but fight with each other and smell slightly of fish. But are they good penguins or bad penguins? And if they're a bit bad then what's the worst that...What? Building an ark? The whole world is going to be flooded? Well! They should probably get on that ark.

Meet at the Ark at Eight is a delight: a funny, odd and strangely moral story of three penguins, a plump, over-worked dove, a beautiful butterfly that may or may not get done in, and a quite apologetic God.
 

Goth Girl and the Wuthering Fright - Chris Riddell (£10.99)
What a year for Chris Riddell. With Goth Girl winning prizes galore, delighting huge numbers of children - and being appointed Children's Laureate, it's difficult to appreciate that Chris started his illustration journey almost 30 years ago.

In 'Goth Girl and the Wuthering Fright' - the third in the Goth Girl series - sinister happenings are surrounding Ghastly-Gorm Hall during Lord Goth's Literary Dog Show. The esteemed judges are in place and the contestants are all ready to win. But there are mysterious footprints, howls in the night and some suspiciously chewed shoes. Can Ada, the Attic Club and their new friends the Vicarage sisters (Charlotte, Emily and Anne) work out what's going on before the next full moon?

The Storm Leopards - Holly Webb (£8.99)
From best-selling author Holly Webb comes this charming wintery story: the countdown to Christmas has begun, and Isabelle is enjoying a family day out at the zoo. As her sister watches the penguins, Isabelle is the only one to catch a glimpse of a snow leopard, with its beautiful spotted silver-grey coat and long fluffy tail. Fascinated by these rare and endangered creatures, Isabelle tries to find out what she can do to help protect them. Little does she know she's about to be whisked into her very own magical snow leopard adventure, where a mother and her cubs are in danger...

My Father is a Polar Bear - Michael Morpurgo (£11.99)
Drawing on Michael Morpurgo's own childhood experience of first seeing his real father on television, 'My Father Is a Polar Bear' tells the story of two young brothers rediscovering their birth father in the most unlikely of places - and in an entirely unexpected guise! A warm and delightful tale of family bonds and love told by a master storyteller and beautifully illustrated by Rome-based artist Felicita Sala.

How to Fight a Dragon's Fury - Cressida Cowell (£12.99)
It's taken twelve years, spawned two films (a third is in production), cracking audio book voiced by David Tennant, and now the final book has arrived!

It is the Doomsday of Yule. At the end of this day, either the humans or the dragons will face extinction. Alvin the Treacherous is about to be crowned the King of the Wilderwest on the island of Tomorrow. His reign of terror will begin with the destruction of dragons everywhere. The fate of the dragon world lies in the hands of one young boy as he stands on the nearby isle of Hero's End with nothing to show, but everything to fight for. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third's Quest is clear. As Doomsday draws to an end can Hiccup be the Hero of the hour? A mixture of sadness and celebration with a splendid end to a modern classic series.

(Revisit Cressida's visit to Kennington back in 2012 when we interviewed her!)

Refuge - Anne Booth & Sam Usher (£7.99)
This is a poignant and wonderfully told take on the Christmas story and what follows: the fleeing of Jesus, Mary and Joseph from Herod's soldiers to Egypt. In a beautiful hardback format, it’s a book that takes the Christmas story and makes the reader consider it from the point of view of today’s refugee crisis.

Nosy Crow and the wider book trade are ensuring that £5 from the sale of each book will go directly to the charity War Child, which is caring for Syrian refugee children in camps and host communities in Jordan and Northern Iraq.

(Mark reviewed this book, and the next one, on BBC Radio Oxford during Children and Need - you can listen to his review on iPlayer here at approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes)

A Boy Called Christmas - Matt Haig (£12.99)
This is a completely different take on Christmas, the childhood story of a figure we all know well. It tells of the upbringing of a young Father Christmas, before the responsibilities of getting toys to children, before he came to live at the North Pole. It’s brilliantly imaginative, as a young Nickolas escapes from a Dahl-esque wicked Aunt, and travels North to discover what happened to his father – lost on a polar expedition. Along the way he befriends a reindeer named Blitzen...but not everything runs as smoothly as you might imagine.

This is an instant classic, and we think children will love the flawed but determined Nickolas, and the obstacles he overcomes to fulfil his destiny. It’s witty, a few aspects of modern consumerism are neatly skewered – and the illustrations from Chris Mould, one of our favourite (and, in our opinion, underrated) illustrators just turns this into a seasonal delight.

Harper and the Scarlet Umbrella - Cerrie Burnell (£8.99)
A beautifully written, lyrical tale featuring a cast of funny and loveable characters, created by CBeebies' presenter Cerrie Burnell and stunningly illustrated by Laura Ellen Anderson. Harper lives in the City of Clouds with her Great Aunt Sassy and her beloved cat Midnight. When Midnight goes missing - together with all the cats of the neighbourhood - Harper realises that only her magical scarlet umbrella can help her find him...When Harper steps out with the umbrella in her hand, she is carried up into the sky on a series of amazing adventures. And Midnight isn't all she finds when she stumbles upon the Midnight Orchestra and its wild conductor... 

Pugs of the Frozen North - Philip Reeve (£8.99)
The Race to the Top of the World! It comes around once in a lifetime, and the prize? Your heart's desire. Shen and Sika can't resist the chance to win, but competition is fierce. The path to victory is littered with snow trolls, sea monsters, and a gang of particularly hungry yetis. But Shen and Sika have something the other contestants don't have. Actually, they have 66 other things; pugs to be exact. That's a 264 paw-powered sled. Let the race begin! This beautifully illustrated story by the award-winning team of Philip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre will enchant fans of their previous books, 'Oliver and the Seawigs' and 'Cakes in Space'.

To know the causes of things: the BBC Radio Oxford Afternoon Bookclub with Morpurgo, Mitchell and Diamond

Today's BBC Radio Oxford Afternoon Bookclub had some heavy subject matter - bravery and cowardice in the first world war, century-long conflicts between good and evil, and the - often counter-intuitive and surprising - causes of how the world got into its current state.

Susie Dent was sitting in for Kat Orman, and you can listen to the show by fast-forwarding to 1 hour and 7 minutes here.

The first book we talked about was Michael Morpurgo’s ‘Private Peaceful’. Aside from a compelling and moving read in its own right, Morpurgo's real genius is to have written a children's book that has plenty to offer adults. Morpurgo is a master storyteller - and the book was a fitting one to talk about on the centenary of the start of the first world war.

The story is about a soldier called Thomas "Tommo" Peaceful, who is looking back on his life from the trenches of World War I in Belgium. We start with his upbringing, how he looks out for his older brother, ‘Big Joe’, who has learning difficulties, and his relationship with his brother Charlie, and their shared love for a girl, Molly.

Structurally, each chapter of the book brings the reader closer to the present until the story turns to present tense. Private Peaceful epitomizes the devastatingly unfair treatment soldiers were given and the unjust ending many brave soldiers had to face. It is also a story about the friendship between the two brothers and the undying bond of trust between soldiers in the trenches.

This Summer, Private Peaceful is an ‘Abingdon Big Read’ – through an initiative with Our Lady’s Abingdon, and the town’s bookshops, everyone is being encouraging to read ‘Private Peaceful’ and then tweet or give their feedback to us or the school about their experience. On September 24, there will be a special showing of the 2012 film of Private Peaceful, and a talk by its producer at OLA.

Although not yet published, David Mitchell's 'The Bone Clocks' has made it onto the Book Longlist - and we were lucky enough to blag a proof copy ahead of publication. It is utterly remarkable, easily one of our books of the year.

It starts in 1984, and follows a fifteen year old girl, Holly Sykes, running away from home after a relationship goes wrong and she can’t bear to face her parents. We learn that Holly used to have voices in her head (who she dubbed ‘The Radio People’) and was visited by a Miss Constantin, who sat on her bed and seemed to be able to influence events in Holly’s life. Her mother takes her to a ‘Dr Marinus’ who seems to cure Holly of her voices, and though she still has the occasional terrifying ‘Daymare’ all seems to return to normal. That is until her younger brother disappears, and Holly is thrust into a new nightmare. What follows is an accelerating, and increasingly complex story, that advances in leaps and bounds to the present – and then far into the future. Holly’s life unfolds, and a dark conspiracy emerges: a battle between good and evil that has been going on long before Holly was even born...

This is bold and brilliant storytelling that takes huge risks, bringing in characters and themes from Mitchell’s earlier books, and one that has plenty to say about everything from the war on terror to the state of modern novel writing. But at its heart is a good old-fashioned story to lose yourself in – breathtaking and a book we will be placing forcefully into the hands of our customers come September...

Finally, we’re celebrating a Vintage Summer at Mostly Books, so selfishly picked a favourite Vintage Classic: Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. This is one of those tour-de-force, history of everything books – but in this instance Jared really does go back to the basics to show how the world evolved and came to be the complex place we see today.

Diamond takes a socractic rerum cognoscere causas ('to know the causes of things') approach, starting with a simple question: why did Spanish conquistadors arrive in South America, and not the other way around? It turns out that there are compelling – and simple – reasons as to why farming emerged in the Middle East (and never in Australia) and why the Incas or Chinese did not build empires like the Europeans. You’ll understand why Diamond won a Pullitzer when this was originally published in 1997.

(You can listen to the whole show here - fast forward to 1 hour and 7 minutes.)

Children's Book Week: Holly Webb and the Oxfordshire Book Award

On Wednesday during Children's Book Week we welcomed "Rose" author Holly Webb.

She started off at Cholsey Primary School, talking to the girls there about her life as first an editor, and then author. Along the way she revealed some of her favourite books (such as 'The Little Princess', and possibly her favourite book, CS Lewis' 'The Horse and His Boy'), and telling the children to read, read, read if they wanted to be writers.

She had even brought along the manuscript of the fourth 'Rose' book to show the children and tell them what it's like to be an editor (which Holly used to be) and an author (which is what she is now).

And then Holly read examples of the children's writing in a very interactive session. Several of the girls had written pieces inspired by books they had read about the blitz (in fact, there was a fantastic display of writing up based on both Michael Morpurgo's Friend or Foe, and Henry Moore's Shelter Drawings). Holly was able to join in as the class advised on aspects of the writing that worked well - or could have been improved. Kudos to Holly - and also to the girls who allowed their work to be scrutinised by the class.

And then Holly signed copies of her books:

We then hightailed it across the countryside to Abingdon, where we spent a wonderful afternoon with children from Rush Common School. Some great questions from the children (there seemed to be an awful lot of budding writers at the school!):

Holly then came back to the shop before catching the train home...


The following day we were at Abingdon School for the annual Oxfordshire Book Award. We did this last year - and it is a wonderful celebration of the best children's writing, with some fantastic authors turning up to receive their awards - voted on by children in schools across Oxfordshire...

This year, authors included Michael Morpurgo, Rachel Ward, Marie-Louise Jensen, Nick Sharrat and Jill Arbuthnott.

It was an intense affair, with lots of children all wanting to meet the authors, but I did manage to slip out from behind the bookstall and meet the authors, including the great man himself (not that I'm a fan or anything...let's hope I didn't come over *too* starry-eyed...)

It was a great Children's Book Week for us, (we ended the week tired but happy). The best thing about school events is when the children come into the shop to tell you how much they enjoyed meeting the authors...and fired up to read more of their books.

Next up for us...Gervase Phinn on Oct 25, and then the return of the Mostly Bookbrains Literary Quiz for charity...