Cover art by Laura Ellen Anderson, published by Farshore, 29 August 2024, ISBN: 978-0008591366
This is the second adventure for brave young moth Marnie Midnight and her two best friends at the Minibeast Academy, Floyd Flombiddium a flamboyant bee who thinks he’s more of an ‘A’, and ant princess, Star Vonstrosity who is on a mission to avenge her father, armed with a spoon!
Marnie is filled with excitement at the prospect of attending the New Moon Club, a new addition to the curriculum which will be run by her hero Professor Lunora Wingheart who the friends helped to rescue in their first adventure (you can read my review here). Additionally, the Minibeast Academy Great Critter Contest has the three friends planning to combine their individual skills and strengths in an attempt to win the prestigious title. It sounds as if the next few days are going to be filled with positivity and fun…but Marnie’s arch-rival Veronica Spottage, the leader of the ‘Betterflies’ has other ideas! This makes for an adventure filled with challenges, tolerance and bravery which will keep young readers gripped from beginning to end. Veronica is the classic ‘mean girl’ and causes all sorts of chaos, although I have to admit to a soft-spot for her (perhaps for obvious reasons) and for the lessons that her behaviour provides.
There are so many things to love about this book (and the series so far). Firstly, Laura Ellen Anderson’s creativity, which extends far beyond her beautifully detailed and distinctive illustrations. The entire insect world that she has created, encompassing the town of Thimbledown and its prestigious Minibeast Academy, brings together the tropes of a school-based adventure with an astonishing range of scientific learning which is presented so subtly that it never distracts from the story. One example is that we are told that the Book of Moon Spells, which is central to the plot, is divided into eight chapters, each covering a different phase of the moon and theses phases are named at various points in the story. Another example can be found in the different lessons that the three main characters attend: double Night Pollination, Waggle Dancing class and Stridulation Symphony practice; all of which introduce biological concepts and vocabulary which interested readers can follow up on, or which could be incorporated into Forest School or science lessons in schools.
Of course, the illustrations deserve a paragraph all to themselves! The cover is a thing of beauty; the endpapers are glorious; there is a gorgeous map of the layout of the Great Critter Contest challenges in the grounds of the museum; followed by an illustrated guide to the key characters. The story is liberally sprinkled with full-page and inserted illustrations, and even those pages that are full text are edged with minibeast or moon phase images. These all contribute to a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience for young and older readers alike, giving the eyes a chance to pause and rest which is especially important for children at the start of their independent reading journey.
I simply cannot praise this book highly enough and I recommend it to parents, caregivers, primary school teachers and librarians. I think it will be hugely popular with children aged 7 and above (I will certainly be purchasing as a gift for some younger relatives). I cannot wait for the third book in the series and certainly hope that it is going to feature an extremely cute seed who appears during this adventure.
Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of Marnie Midnight and the Great Critter Contest ahead of publication by Liz Scott PR and Farshore Books. It was my choice to review the book and all opinions are my own.
Cover art Steve Roberts and Joel Stewart, published by Hachette Children’s Books, 1 August 2024, ISBN: 978-1801301534
Today I am delighted to join the blog tour for this fun and quirky graphic novel, and to welcome authors and illustrators Steve Roberts and Joel Stewart to my blog for a Q&A.
I hope that you enjoy learning about Steve and Joel’s creative partnership as much as I did:
Q1. May I start by asking you to introduce us to the Tangletree Mysteries and to your two investigators?
Steve and Joel:
Tangletree Mysteries follows the adventures of a dog detective called Peggy. When Peggy goes for a walk in the park every morning, her owner throws a ball for her into an ordinary-looking patch of trees. But when Peggy enters these trees and comes out the other side she is transformed from a pet dog on all fours to a Mystery solving dog who can walk upright on two paws! She is now in Tangletree, a huge mysterious wood. As Peggy visits Tangletree regularly she has an office and a side-kick – Stuart Moss the shrew! Stuart loves helping Peggy and all things mysterious. He lives with his nan in a small town of brightly coloured wooden houses, alongside loads of eccentric towns folk. Peggy enjoys helping them with all sorts of strange and silly things that happen to them. She loves thinking through challenges and solving mysteries and nearly always keeps cool in unexpected and sometimes scary situations .
Q2. I have read that you have been collaborating on animation for quite some time, what made you decide to write a book together, and how was the Tangletree idea conceived?
Steve:
Joel and I met when we worked together on a TV show called The Adventures of Abney and Teal that was produced by Ragdoll Productions (and created and directed by Joel). I was already working another show for Ragdoll called Dipdap but I joined the writing team and also helped with the design and storyboarded on Abney and Teal. We got on really well and spent a lot of time talking about comics and books that we both like. Then a few years later we co-created another Ragdoll show called B.O.T. and the Beasties. Working together again meant collaborating closely on writing stories, designing the characters and directing animation. All of these seemed to flow naturally into making a comic together. All that chat about other comics set us up to have a go at doing our own. We had both recently got dogs so we also spent quite a bit of time talking about that. I’m sure that was where Tangletree comes from. The idea that your dog has another exciting life when it’s out of sight looking for it ball seemed like a good setup for a story. We were also both fans of the 90’s show Northern Exposure so that was an inspiration and I thought it would be fun to draw animals walking around in outdoor wear! I think also Wind in the Willows was in the back of my head too as it was a childhood favourite. I think this all appealed equally to both of us so it developed pretty naturally and painlessly!
Joel:
Anne Wood had her Cairn terriers at the Ragdoll studios most of the time we were there, too. I only mention that because they’re a little more alike to Peggy than either of our own dogs. Tangletree actually began when we had had about a year of working together but remotely (B.O.T and the Beasties was finished during the early part of lockdown). After that finished we were very used to collaborating in person and at a distance and it was finally time to get going on some comics after we’d been discussing them for so long.
Q3. Do you both create the artwork and write the text? And can you give us an idea about how that actually works in practice?
Steve:
Well a Tangletree story usually starts with a phone call (possibly whilst walking the dog) or a FaceTime. We just come up with a plot idea that we both like and find funny and want to draw. Once we have that vaguely locked down I write it down quickly in a bit of a splurge and share that with Joel. Usually as a big block of text on an email. Joel will then write a pass of this and get it into a clearer shape and edit and add where needed. At this stage we may change the story quite a bit if we realise it could be stronger. When we are both satisfied with the plot, I start drawing out the pages in (digital) pencil, very loosely, to keep the drawing as energetic as possible and also with dialogue in rough speech balloons that might make it to finished book or just be a placeholder. I work in blocks of about five pages and send these roughed out pages to Joel, who draws over and inks them. Luckily we’ve worked together for so long that Joel can make sense of my very loose sketches!
Joel:
I send the black and white pages back to Steve, and especially in the recent stories Steve mostly would add colour and send it back again to me to edit. So it really is back and forth and 50/50.
Finally, I make edits and changes to the dialogue and add the lettering to the speech bubbles ready for delivery. I also tend to do one or passes all through the drawings and fix any inconsistencies that have crept in (Although I’m doing more of the finishing on these stories, I still have quite a wobbly drawing style and sometimes things can drift too far one way or another).
Q4. I grew up watching Scooby Doo, so a dog detective seems perfectly natural to me but can you tell me why Stu the assistant is a shrew, and why did you decide to make all of your characters animals?
Steve:
I was a big fan of ScoobyDoo as a child too but I don’t think that came up when we were developing Tangletree. I think the character of Stu came together very quickly. I think he is a shrew purely because we both like shrews and they are very cute little creatures!
If I’m honest I’m not sure why we made all the characters animals.
As I mentioned in the previous answer, possibly Wind in the Willows and all the classic children’s literature with anthropomorphic characters were an inspiration but also maybe we didn’t feel like drawing human characters and the fact that it takes place in a wood means it makes sense that the characters are all animals.
Joel:
It’s funny about the animals. They aren’t really the kind of anthropomorphic animals that have lots of jokes about the nature of their real world counterparts (apart from Peggy and her ball I suppose!) They represent more the different kinds of characters in a community. In some ways their animal types only differentiate them visually from one another. We both really revelled in the freedom to improvise that doing a comic together gave us that we tried not to think about it too hard!
Q5. Detective mysteries are one of my favourite genres and have been since my childhood discovery of the Famous Five, so I’m really excited for today’s young readers that they can discover the genre in graphic novel form. Did either of you enjoy any particular detective adventure stories or have any favourite authors when you were younger?
Steve:
I must admit I didn’t read a lot detective mysteries when I was a child and don’t now really. I think the only Enid Blyton book I read was The Magical Faraway Tree which I loved. I also had a ‘talking book’ of ‘Alfred Hitchcock’s presents ‘The Three Investigators’ which was a bit obsessed with because it was narrated by Tom Baker and had ludicrous sound effects and was mildly scary. I really liked spooky stories when I was child and loved hunting around the village I grew up in looking for ghosts! I also loved reading comics and my absolute favourite was Asterix but I also read Whizzer and Chips, Buster and the Beano too. I read Roald Dahl as well of course. In particular James and the Giant Peach and there was also a monthly magazine called Storyteller which came with a cassette of the stories narrated by pretty high profile actors and excellent illustrations which I loved and studied closely.
Joel:
I did read Tintin when I was young (although I was probably more taken with the humour of Asterix) some of which has a mystery element. As an adult I do read, watch and listen to a fair amount of detective fiction of most kinds. I love Agatha Christie (especially in book form where there’s a dry wit that’s harder to get across in tv adaptation). I also love Edward Gorey’s take on Agatha Christie as well in books like The Audrey-Gore Legacy. Ultimately we were going for even more of a cozy crime feeling with Tangletree (and its quite nice that in a comic about woodland creatures we can do that in a less bloodthirsty way than even the most cozy of crime dramas!) There’s an American series by John Bellairs that has such fantastic titles as The Lamp form the Warlock’s Tomb and The Dark Secret of Weatherend etc. that I wish I’d had access to as a kid.
Q6. When you are creating the books, what comes first, the story or the pictures – or are they created simultaneously?
Steve:
The story comes first unless we come up with a random character that we love and decide to make up a story about them. But that doesn’t happen too often .
As we develop the story we draw the characters as it helps the writing I think.
Joel:
Story comes first now since we know most of the characters quite well. At the beginning we were probably sharing and developing characters through drawing more. Sometimes still it will be a sketch or a visual idea that sparks off a story idea.
Q7. There is so much detail in every panel of your story, how long does it take to write and draw one of the Tangletree books?
Steve:
That’s tricky. I’m not really sure. Joel may have a better idea about that than me. Maybe six months per story? Maybe more.
We have to draw a huge amount of bushes, trees, grass and pebbles.
But I thoroughly enjoy spending hours drawing foliage and silly animals!
Joel:
Yes, it sometimes is as long as that. Occasionally it goes faster, but it is a labour of love!
Q8. I really appreciate that the text uses lower case rather than all capitals which is often more common in graphic novels. I know from a social media conversation that Joel created the font. Could you tell us about this process and why you chose to do this?
Joel:
I created the font, but it was inspired by some of Steve’s handwritten bits. Mine tend to be more cursive and harder to read! It wasn’t actually a conscious choice to go lower case. I think it is because my earlier versions, which were more like my own handwriting automatically came out that way. That had a look more like some modern french comics, but it felt a bit inaccessible. All caps like many traditional comics have (particularly English language) felt wrong too and what we eventually came up with feels like it strikes a balance with having the feel of a traditional comic but perhaps that little bit more book-like and also easy to read for young readers.
Q9. I can see that a third book in the Tangletree Mysteries is in production, are you allowed to provide any hints at the story lines?
Joel:
I can definitely tell you that they are a couple of our favourite stories, even though I had to contend with drawing hundreds of bicycles (notoriously difficult) for one of them. We have some very strange noises coming from the deepest darkest part of Tangletree which might be putting the local kids, and Peggy and Stu in danger. Then we have some equally strange goings on at the Tangletree Veg Patch where things really get out of hand.
Steve:
The stories in the third book are quite dramatic and action packed. I think they may be my favourite Tangletree stories so far. For the record I did voice my concern about having lots of bikes in one of the stories! It was definitely worth it in the end though.
Finally, can I thank you on behalf of myself and readers of my blog, for taking the time to answer my questions.
Joel:
Thank you for having us!
Steve:
Thank you! It was fun to go back and think about how it all came together.
My review:
The second book in the Tangletree Mysteries graphic novel series is every bit as enjoyable as the first (for which you can read my review here). In Peggy & Stu Play all the Wrong Notes, readers are again treated to two new cases for doggy-detective Peggy and her assistant Stu to crack and in this book we are introduced to the Peskies who play a crucial role in both stories. In the first story, Trumpet Trouble, it is the day of the Spring Dance in Tangletree Wood and Peggy arrives to find the residents busy hanging bunting and happily making preparations. However, band leader Joan’s trumpet is making an ear-splitting din and then takes off on a dash through the wood. Peggy and Stu are on the trail, which leads them into some prickly situations in the murky depths of Shadowy Wood. Will Peggy and Stu have enough puff to reunite Joan and her trumpet and save the dance? Cake Crimes begins with the residents of Tangletree Wood rushing to buy delicious cakes and buns from a new stall set up in the town square, ahead of the grand unveiling of a new statue of Mayor Stacey. Peggy’s detective instincts are in evidence as she notices that two local residents are not as joyous as everyone else though. With most of the woodland folk in a frenzy of gluttony at the cake and bun stall, nobody is very interested in the mayor’s statue and Flo’s cafe is deserted, but there is definitely something sinister about the cake stall and even more so about a new pop-up dentist!
Both stories have just the right amount of mystery and peril for a readership aged 6/7+. The illustrations are full of life and fun and the accessible font in the speech bubbles makes the stories a pleasurable and achievable read for children who are beginning to read independently, as well as a relaxing read for children throughout KS2 in primary schools. I highly recommend the Tangletree Mysteries to primary school class teachers, librarians and parents/caregivers of children of 6/7+.
Disclaimer: I was sent a free copy of this book and invited to join the blogtour by Antonia Wilkinson PR and Hachette Children’s Books. All opinions are my own. Do check out the other stops on the blog tour schedule.
Cover illustration by Tom Roberts, published by Farshore, 12 September 2024, ISBN: 9780008551599
Evenfall: The Golden Linnet is the debut middle grade novel by Alexander Armstrong, and is a sophisticated, contemporary-fantasy novel which gave me vibes of Harry Potter meets the TV series Alias!
Central to the story is thirteen year-old Sam, who lives with his increasingly incapacitated dad Jake, in a small terraced house in Durham. Life has been pretty miserable for father and son ever since Sam’s mum died in a mysterious minibus crash several years earlier. However, Sam has been feeling some very odd fizzing in his chest recently and seems to be strangely drawn to water. With a peculiar gathering of characters calling themselves the ‘Elver’ setting off on a march through England to protect ‘The Tempest’, and a sinister billionaire father-son plot to eliminate the same Tempest and steal his powers, we are off on a thrill-ride of an adventure by the end of the second chapter. Will the legendary Bellasis be found? And who will benefit from the incredible power of the óthr if it is?
The plotting is beautifully paced, with revelations about Sam’s mother and his ancestral history waiting to be discovered at key moments in the narrative. I am not going to reveal any more details for fear of spoiling anyone’s enjoyment when they encounter Evenfall for themselves. I loved the setting in Durham, which has been strangely neglected in children’s fiction and I thoroughly enjoyed the themes of storytelling, the deep and powerful magic of words, and the significance of who controls the narrative. Sam’s deep friendship with Ish, and their developing friendship with Goz are thoroughly believable, and the portrayal of the ways in which Ish’s family provided support to Sam was a heart-warming centre of this epic adventure.
As is often expected with fantasy novels, this is a long book at just under 400 pages and the writing and storylines are complex, so I think it will provide a compelling read for those children who are advanced readers and aged 10+. I believe that the published version will contain illustrations bt the cover artist Tom Roberts. The storytelling, symbolism and fast-paced plot will make it an excellent story for adults to share with children; I know that I would have loved to read this as a bedtime story when my children were young. I think this is sure to be a big hit with upper primary and secondary school libraries, as well as for home book collections. I am eagerly anticipating book two in the series.
Disclaimer: I am very grateful to Farshore Books for sending me an ARC of Evenfall: The Golden Linnet. It is my decision to post a review and all opinions are my own.
Cover art Steve Roberts/Joel Stewart, publisher Welbeck Chidren’s/Hachette, July 2023, ISBN: 978-1801300735
The Tangletree Mysteries are vibrant graphic novel style stories which are a perfect introduction to detective mysteries for newly confident readers of 6/7 years of age and which are likely to appeal to children throughout primary school. Each book contains two separate stories, each approximately 60 pages long, so they are an achievable read for those children who are looking to build their independent reading stamina. I am very impressed that publisher, Welbeck Children’s, an imprint of Hachette, has printed the text in the speech bubbles in lower case font rather than the upper case that is more usually found in graphic novels. I think that many children at the start of their independent reading journey will find this text easy to read. The full-colour, cartoon style pages are full of detail, feature a quirky cast of animal characters and are written and drawn with a great sense of playfulness by Steve Roberts and Joel Stewart.
The stories feature Peggy, a seemingly ordinary dog, who chases her ball into Tangletree Wood on her daily walks. As soon as she is under the shadow of the trees, she turns into a talented investigator and mystery-solver, who even has her own detective agency office deep within the woodland. Like all great fictional detectives, Peggy has a sidekick, in this case Stu the Shrew, who helps her sniff out the answers.
The first story, Slime Time, is almost too much for the sensitive snouts of our detecting duo. The occupants of Tangletree Wood are suddenly appearing to be sleepy, smelly and covered in nasty green slime! Peggy and Stu have to stay up all night and do some serious tracking to solve this mystery, which I found very amusing as it featured some unorthodox library practice! The second story, Mud Race, is another in which the woodland residents get extremely mucky. It is the day of the Annual Tangletree Race and, as usual Fiona and Clive are the odds-on favourites to take the title. However, with a new course ploughed through the wood by Hannah and her unreliable bulldozer, the race presents some extreme challenges. Could there be a surprise winner? And what is causing a threat to the competitors? Can Peggy and Stu save the day?
Disclaimer: I am grateful to Welbeck Children’s Publications and Antonia Wilkinson PR for sending me a copy of Tangletree Mysteries: Peggy and Stu Investigate! It was my choice to review the book and all opinions are my own.
I have received two glorious picture books in the past week, both due for publication on 29 August 2024, so I thought I would review them together for #PictureBookFriday!
Pearl and her Bunch by Momoko Abe
Cover art Momoto Abe, publisher Hachette Children’s, 29 August 2024, ISBN: 978-1408362938
This charming and warm picture book is written and illustrated by Momoko Abe, who was born in Japan and moved to the UK to study film making. Her illustrations are bold and vibrant and just seem to pulse with energy as they move the story-telling along. I was certainly not surprised to discover that Momoko Abe still works in the TV and film industry as well as creating picture books.
The story begins with Pearl introducing her huge family, The Grapes – a big bunch who are depicted playing all sorts of games on the kitchen counter and giving each other group hugs in the fruit bowl. However, one day Pearl’s world collapses into despair when she hears a young human say that there is a pea amongst the grapes, and Pearl realises that she is the pea! Although mama and papa grape tell her that they have loved her from the moment they found her alone under the toaster, Pearl runs away horrified at the thought that she doesn’t belong with her family. Thus begins an adventure in which Pearl discovers the true meaning of family.
I loved the way that this book cleverly and gently portrays all kinds of families, using fruit and vegetable characters, showing young readers that family members don’t have to look the same but it’s how they make you feel that is important. I think this would be a lovely story to share with pre-schoolers at home, or in nursery and early years settings.
My thanks to Hachette Children’s Group and Antonia Wilkinson PR for sending me a copy ahead of publication.
Colin’s Castle by Holly Swain
Cover art by Holly Swain, published by Farshore/Harper Collins, 29 August 2024, ISBN: 978-0008698126
Colin’s Castle is Holly Swain’s debut picture book as both author and illustrator, previously she has illustrated works by other authors. She has come up with a ‘quacker’ of a story about Colin a vegan vampire, who has found his perfect home, except that it contains a pesky and very persistent duck!
This is another picture book with boldly drawn illustrations which depict the hilarious tale of Colin trying every strategy that he can think of to banish the duck and I enjoyed the mixing of full page drawings, double page spreads and horizontal panels to drive the narrative forward. I think that young children will thoroughly enjoy watching the battle of wills between the vampire and his fowl rival! There is one particular page that I can imagine causing a lot of giggles, but I won’t ruin anyone’s fun by telling you more.
I think that Colin’s Castle will be a great addition to the Halloween collection in primary school libraries and classrooms, and is also likely to provide a lot of fun as a shared read between adults and children of 4+ in homes.
My thanks to Farshore/Harper Collins Children’s and Rory Codd for sending me a copy ahead of publication.
Disclaimer: both of these books were sent to me by publishers, it was my own choice to review the books and all opinions are my own.
Cover design: Ness Wood, publisher Guppy Books, publication date 10 October 2024, ISBN: 987-1916558331
It has taken me a few days to try to order my thoughts on Handle With Care, and I am still not sure that I can do justice to this outstanding novel by Louisa Reid but I have tried to summarise my reflections below.
I have never before read a Young Adult novel which begins in such a visceral manner; we are introduced to best friends Ashley and Ruby in their GCSE History lesson, and it rapidly becomes apparent that Ruby is not just “about to barf” but is actually in the third stage of labour. The author’s technique of presenting Ashley’s viewpoint in prose alternating with Ruby’s voice in verse, makes their contrasting narratives hit the reader’s head and heart like emotional heat-seeking missiles. The bewilderment and excruciating pain felt by Ruby, the chaos in the classroom compounded by a male teacher’s utter inadequacy to deal with the situation, contrasts with Ashley’s calm control and support for her best friend, despite her complete shock at the event. Ashley is from a family of four children and has witnessed the births of her two younger siblings, so she seems more competent in the moment than even the school nurse.
Throughout the rest of the novel, Ashley’s narrative provides the context and detail as the story unfolds, whereas Ruby’s world becomes completely focussed on her emotional state, which is so brilliantly expressed in verse. There are no chapters, but this switching of voice and style is utterly compelling and makes the book hard to put down. We learn that Ruby has always been the golden child of her year group, top performer in exams as well as star of the school productions. She is destined for academic success, driven to achieve by her high-earning-executive single mother. She lives in an affluent, gated community, where she has always welcomed Ashley and been incredibly generous to her, despite her ice-cold mother’s obvious disapproval of a lower social class friend. Ashley lives in a modest and noisy house, with hard-working parents who are supportive with their time and attention and have raised their family as devout Christians who still attend church as a family. Despite their different backgrounds the girls have been inseparable friends since primary school. However, the repercussions of the unexpected birth lead to fractured friendship and descent into serious mental health disorder, explored in the heart-breaking narrative. The story unfolds as organically as any biological process and I don’t want to say too much more about it for fear of ruining anyone’s enjoyment of reading it themselves.
As a YA novel, this story is intended for a readership of ages 14 and above, and Louisa Read perfectly captures the GCSE years of exam pressures, sleepovers with friends, after school extra-curricular activities and the malevolent effects of social media. The novel is bookended with the same quote from Frankenstein and I have to credit my home-for-the-holidays, student daughter for spotting an homage to An Inspector Calls towards the end. (We had an excellent conversation about the book after both reading it). I could quote so many powerful lines from the novel but will use the following in which Ruby’s understanding of Pride and Prejudice is used to great effect:
I try Jane Austen instead,
a love story I know so well
it’s stuck in my veins.
But she’s no better these days.
I wish she were here so I could tell her
that in the twenty-first century
boys don’t really care about your fine eyes.
They just care about getting your knickers off
and then pretending you’ve never met.
I want to tell her Wickham rules;
Mr Darcy is dead. page 208
I love the use of texts that many readers will be studying for their English GCSEs and which help them see these characters reflected in their own everyday experiences. I hope that it will make young people consider the importance of their friendships, the power that their words and actions can have, and think about why, as a society, we still seem to place responsibility on the female rather than the male in matters of sexual conduct. It is sad to realise that attitudes have not moved on so very much from Victorian morality playscripts. I would also encourage anyone working with teenagers and anyone who commissions health and social services, to read Handle With Care and reflect on the loneliness and confusion felt by so many young people, and the gaps between services into which it is so easy for those needing help to fall, especially those who cannot rely on family support. Their stories might not have the ultimate ending of Ruby’s but their potential to lead productive lives can surely be enhanced by better, more joined up care.
This novel has real emotional heft and is one that I highly recommend to all secondary school librarians and to public libraries to add to their health and wellbeing collections.
Disclaimer: I am grateful to Guppy Books and Lz Scott PR for sending me an ARC ahead of publication; it was my choice to review Handle With Care and all opinions are my own.
BlogTour image created by TheWriteReads in association with Neem Tree Press
I am delighted to join this blog tour, which marks the publication of Scareground in the United States this week. Do check out all the other posts on the tour schedule.
Although it is a year since I read Scareground, the characters, setting and narrative have remained in my head, such was the originality of the novel and my enjoyment in reading it. It is a great read for children aged 10+ who want to be spooked a bit, but the plot remains the right side of scary for an upper middle grade audience.
Here is the review that I first posted on this platform in August last year:
Are you ready for the unexpected? The extraordinary? The daring? Roll up, roll up! The Scareground is in town!
Nancy Crumpet is ready to seek the answers to her past! What is the meaning of the silver horse that marks her wrist and that she hides from the prying eyes of the world? Why do her loving, adoptive parents Ma and Pa Crumpet, whose bakery home is usually filled with warmth and openness, become evasive and embarrassed when she asks about her origins? And why have they, along with her only friend Arthur’s father, forbidden her from visiting the travelling fairground setting up in Oxleas Wood? Despite her guilt at betraying the trust and love that the Crumpets have always shown her, Nancy has a burning desire to know where she comes from, so ignoring the warning messages that the sky is sending, she sets out after dark with Arthur to visit Skelter Tombola’s Scareground!
This is a deliciously creepy tale for an upper middle grade readership. It gave me vibes of Rooftoppers crossed with The Night Circus, and I am sure will be greatly enjoyed by fans of Katherine Rundell, Emma Carroll and Jennifer Killick. The juxtaposition of baked-goods-metaphors in parallel with an ominous sense of foreboding works brilliantly to build a tense narrative. Angela Kecojevic’s writing is distinctive, filled with originality and sentences which demand to be re-read to fully appreciate the imagery they convey. She creates the setting of Victorian Greenwich with such clarity that from the opening pages, readers feel the thrill of Nancy’s rooftop view over the Thameside village and her sense that something unexpected has been blown in by the wind. Oh, I should probably mention that there is an excellent map of Victorian Greenwich in the endpapers (I could not find a credit for the artist in my ARC copy); the inclusion of a map always adds to my enjoyment of a book!
Characters spring to life, fully formed but begging readers to explore their back stories and motivations. From Ma and Pa Crumpet who bake all week and love to relax by reading books in front of the crackling fire on Sunday evenings, to the mysterious and sinister fairground impressario Skelter Tombola, readers will be enthralled. Nancy and Arthur’s friendship is touching and entirely believable and both characters undergo considerable growth throughout the narrative. I really don’t want to ruin anyone’s enjoyment by giving away too much of the plot but the magical ability to skyread, a phantom carousel, a sky ship, a profusion of black crows’ feathers and a horrible demon who seems to leave hideous black slugs in his wake will all send shivers down the spine! Scareground is certain to be popular with mature readers of 10+ as autumn approaches.
Disclaimer: I was sent a free copy of Scareground by publisher Neem Tree Press. It was my decision to review the book and all opinions are my own.
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