Six for Sunday: 19th May 2019

Hello! I’ve been fairly quiet on the reading front; it was Mental Health Awareness Week so I tried to do a post most days for that. Please do feel free to check them out! However, linking in to that, I’ve been really struggling with the side effects of reducing my medication this week so have been so sleepy and tired so I just haven’t had a chance to read! Anyway, this week’s Six for Sunday has me thinking about which books I simply must get around to! Six for Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot! Today’s theme is:

The Ever Growing TBR: 2019 books I want to read

1. Finale – Stephanie Garber
2. Starfell – Dominique Valente
3. The Day I Was Erased – Lisa Thompson
4. A Girl Called Shameless – Laura Steven
5. A Pinch of Magic – Michelle Harrison
6. A Curse So Dark and Lonely – Brigid Kemmerer

I can’t believe I haven’t got around to these ones yet; they’re all books that I’ve been so excited to read! Have you read any of these and think I need to make time ASAP?

 

OWEN AND THE SOLDIER – Lisa Thompson

5/5

RELEASED: 15/06/2019
PUBLISHER: Barrington Stoke
GENRE: Children’s Fiction, Dyslexia Friendly

A crumbling stone soldier sits on a bench in the park. Only Owen understands how important he is. At home, Owen and his mum are struggling and there’s nobody he can talk to. Hidden away in the park, Owen feels free to be himself. When the war-weary soldier is listening, his worries slip away. But nobody else cares about the soldier, and the town council want to tear him down. Owen’s the only one who can save him but can he find the courage to speak up before it’s too late? A touching story of loss and remembrance from Lisa Thompson, the award-winning author of The Goldfish Boy. Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant or dyslexic readers aged 8+

I knew I’d have to have the tissues ready for this one.

Lisa Thompson is one of the most talented writers in children’s fiction today, and she has a knack for crafting stories that, whilst they cover complex or hard-hitting topics, are delivered in a way that’s accessible and completely unputdownable. The Goldfish Boy is one that for the past two years now I haven’t shut up about, and I look forward to every new book by Lisa. So, I was pretty excited to see that a new novella was coming out this year with Barrington Stoke, and even more excited when I was offered a copy for review!

Barrington Stoke have really upped their game in recent years with a steady stream of dyslexia friendly titles from some of the leading authors in children’s and young adult fiction. However, this year just seems to be on a whole new level! I’m very excited about several of their upcoming books, but the first one to really get my heart racing was this one – Owen and the Soldier.

Owen and the Soldier is a really heartwarming and touching tale that I think everyone will love, and there are so many messages and characters that will resonate with different people. For something so small, it’s full of so much, and what I love about this novella is that it is so accessible to everyone. Lisa is the perfect author to work with Barrington Stoke, and I love that her storytelling is being brought to a new audience as well as adding to the collection of beloved favourites that came before it.

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Thank you to Kirstin at Barrington Stoke for sending me a copy of Owen and the Soldier!

WWW Wednesday: 8th May 2019

Good evening! I’ve had a really good reading week this week; I’ve had a few days off work and have found a few titles that have really caught my imagination and have been ones that I just haven’t been able to put down!

What are you currently reading? 

FINALE! It’s finally in my hands and it’s beautiful! I’ve only had a chance to read about 20 pages so far, and already I’m loving it.

What did you recently finish reading?

So far this month I’ve read Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly, and I’m so glad that I finally made the time to read this wonderful retelling! I also read Owen and the Soldier by Lisa Thompson which was beautiful, and Malamander by Thomas Taylor. Fun fact – he illustrated the original Harry Potter books!

What do you think you’ll read next?

I’d like to read some more of my new books next – I have a fair few to choose from!

Six for Sunday: 28th April 2019

Today I’ve had a fairly bookish day as I got to spend some time in several bookshops! I was very good and only bought three! Six for Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot! Today’s theme is:

Kid’s Lit Represent: 2019 KidLit Recommendations

1. A Girl Called Justice – Elly Griffiths
2. The Golden Butterfly – Sharon Gosling
3. The Star-Spun Web – Sinéad O’Hart
4. Murder Most Unladylike Book 8 – Robin Stevens
5. The Day I Was Erased – Lisa Thompson
6. A Pinch of Magic – Michelle Harrison

I’ve read the first three and LOVED them! I highly highly recommend checking them out! The next three are ones that I’m excited to get to this year that are either out already or coming soon! Have you read any of these/are you going to?

 

Six for Sunday: 3rd March 2019

Hello and welcome back to Six for Sunday! I had a little break for the month of February; in all honesty I struggled with the prompts but I’ve loved reading everyone else’s S4S posts! Six for Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot! Today’s theme is:

An Ode To: Favourite Author(s)

1. Lisa Thompson – Aside from writing one of my favourite books of all time (The Goldfish Boy), Lisa comes across as such a kind and lovely lady on social media and I’d love to get to meet her one day! I am so grateful to her too for sending me French and Spanish editions of The Goldfish Boy, which she didn’t have to do, so I really do appreciate that kindness!
2. Phyllida Shrimpton – again, an author who has always been so kind and wonderful on social media! I always have felt that she takes the time to get to know her readers, and I always remember how she kindly wished me a merry Christmas last February when my friend and I did our pretend log cabin Christmas!
3. Robin Stevens – aside from the fact that her books are AMAZING, I always felt touched by the fact that she knew who I was when she signed my books (I was working at the Cheltenham festival as a bookseller so unfortunately couldn’t meet her!).
4. Anne Digby – I loved Anne Digby’s books growing up, especially her continuations of some of Enid Blyton’s series’, and so when she followed me on Twitter and referred to me in a few tweets about MG reviewers to follow that made me feel really good!
5. Cliff McNish – again, one of my favourite authors growing up, and I really felt like a superfan as a young teenager when he signed all my books and commented on not having seen anyone else with the hardbacks! He’s such a lovely man!
6. Kes Gray – apart from that fact that I’ve always loved his books, discovering Worries Go Away made me feel less alone. When he signed my copy, although I wasn’t able to meet him (again Cheltenham festival downside!) he put the most heartfelt and lovely message in it that made the book even more special to me.

I decided to go for a few authors who, by doing something that may seem small, has created memories that I still cherish. There are more that I could’ve mentioned, but these six really do stand out for me!

 

WWW Wednesday: 9th January 2019

Hello and welcome to the first WWW Wednesday of 2019 (that I’ve done)! I’ve had a fairly hectic week, but have still been enjoying some books of course! I’ve been so exhausted, that all I want to do is chill when I get home from work and be lazy, so I’ve spent a lot of time on Pinterest where I’ve been planning my wedding…awkward moment of the week when I got a call from a venue (I downloaded their brochure the day before just to have a mooch) and had to explain that I am not actually engaged…yet!

What are you currently reading? 

FINALLY, I’ve started reading Enchantée by Gita Trelease which I am LOVING so much! It’s absolutely wonderful. The description is definitely right; it has a lot of Caraval vibes, and, because I needed a new audiobook, I also started The Night Circus which was also listed! I’m really enjoying that too, especially since the narrator, Jim Kay, is brilliant!

What did you recently finish reading?

I finished The Year After You last week, and it was such a good read! YA meets Enid Blyton; it was brilliant. Look out for my thoughts on this next month when I’m part of the blog tour!

What do you think you’ll read next?

I must read The Day I Was Erased by Lisa Thompson! Her books are always a fab start tot the year!

Six for Sunday: 6th January 2019

Hello and welcome to 2019! I totally meant to do Blogmas every day of December, and to have posts scheduled for the first week of January…but life. It’s inconvenient sometimes!

Anyway, I’m back, and very happy to see that Six for Sunday has a whole new list of prompts for the first half of this year over on Steph’s blog, so, without further ado, here is the first Six for Sunday of 2019!

Bookish Beginnings: New Year, New Books

1. The Day I Was Erased by Lisa Thompson
2. The Art of Not Breathing by Sarah Alexander
3. Goodbye Days by Jeff Zentner
4. The Year After You by Nina de Pass
5. Enchantée by Gita Trelease
6. Henry and the Guardians of the Lost by Jenny Nimmo

It was hard to narrow down which books to feature from some of the titles I received over the Christmas period, but I think these ones are some of the best books I got! What books are you starting the year with?

 

snailycanflyy Book Award 2018

Last year, I hosted my first snailycanflyy Book Award, where I narrowed down my top books of the year, and after a fab reading year the award is back for 2018! Last year saw some tough competition from some amazing books featuring amazing authors and illustrators with the overall winner being the very worthy The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson which still stands out as one of the best books I’ve ever read!

The award is split into three categories – Best Picture Book, Best Middle Grade and Best Young Adult, with a winner in each category and an overall winner. The criteria is simply that it has to be a five-star rated book published in 2018 and one that I want to talk about, one that has stuck with me since reading and one that I would recommend wholeheartedly. So, without futher ado, here are the category nominees:

BEST PICTURE BOOK:

Oscar the Hungry Unicorn – Lou Carter, Nikki Dyson
The Bear, The Piano, The Dog and the Fiddle – David Litchfield
Ruby’s Worry – Tom Percival
Space Tortoise – Ross Montgomery, David Litchfield
The Story Orchestra: The Sleeping Beauty – Jessica Courtney-Tickle

BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOK:

The Truth Pixie – Matt Haig
Death in the Spotlight – Robin Stevens
The Eye of the North – Sinead O’Hart
The Light Jar – Lisa Thompson
The Secret Seven: Mystery of the Skull – Pamela Butchart

BEST YOUNG ADULT BOOK:

I Was Born For This – Alice Oseman
To Kill a Kingdom – Alexandra Christo
Legendary – Stephanie Garber
Sunflowers in February – Phyllida Shrimpton
The Exact Opposite of Okay – Laura Steven

AND THE WINNERS ARE…drumroll please!

BEST PICTURE BOOK
Oscar the Hungry Unicorn

BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOK
Death in the Spotlight

BEST YOUNG ADULT BOOK
To Kill a Kingdom

OVERALL WINNER
The Truth Pixie

A massive congratulations and thank you to all of the authors who’s books made it to the shortlist! All of these books are so incredible and I’ve loved reading them in 2018!

 

My Year of Audible: 2018

It’s scary to think that I’m already over halfway through Blogmas 2018! Today I am going to share with you some of the audiobooks that I have loved this year; although I’ve not listened as frequently lately, I have got some brilliant audiobooks this year!

The Goldfish Boy – Lisa Thompson narrated by Leon Williams

The Truth Pixie – Matt Haig narrated by Matt Haig

Notes on a Nervous Planet – Matt Haig narrated by Matt Haig

The Kissing Booth – Beth Reekles narrated by Cynthia Holloway

I Was Born For This – Alice Oseman narrated by Aysha Kala, Huw Parmenter

The Exact Opposite of Okay – Laura Steven narrated by Laura Aikman

Legendary – Stephanie Garner narrated by Rebecca Soler

To Kill a Kingdom – Alexandra Christo narrated by Jacob York, Stephanie Willis

Daughter of the Pirate King – Tricia Levenseller narrated by Marisa Calin

Although I haven’t got around to finishing listening to all of these, I have loved the freedom of having an Audible membership and having some wonderful titles added to my audiobook library!

Have you listened to any of these, or are there any you’d recommend?

Six for Sunday: 4th November 2018

Hello and it’s a very early morning (for me) welcome to this week’s Six for Sunday (you can find the prompts here)! This week’s topic is:

Dream panels/events…

I actually found this prompt a little tricky to think of, especially as I’ve just woken up. So, I’m going to put a slight twist on it and go for the six authors I’d most love to meet!

1.  Lisa Thompson

I feel so bad for how much I have tagged Lisa in all my fangirling over The Goldfish Boy, and am so grateful to her for sending me the beautiful French and Spanish editions, that she’s top of the list of authors I’d love to meet!

2. Stephanie Garber

The Caraval series is just amazing, and Stephanie seems like such a lovely person that I’d love to have the chance to meet her!

3. Robin Stevens

I’d love to go for bunbreak with Robin Stevens and chat all things murder mystery!

4. Phyllida Shrimpton

Sunflowers in February has been one of my favourite books this year, and Phyllida seems so lovely on social media that I’d love to get to meet her!

5. Maz Evans

Admittedly I haven’t read her books yet, though I recommend them…but she seems hilarious and like she’d be good fun!

6. Giovanna Fletcher

Who wouldn’t? She’s adorable and everyone says how lovely she is to meet!

Which authors would you most like to meet? Have you met any of the ones I’ve listed?