The Picture Book Box

The Perfect Shelter with author Clare Helen Welsh   The Perfect Shelter by Clare Helen Welsh and Å sa Gilland is a book that I and many others have been anticipating for some time. Like Clare's previous book 'The Tide', this story encapsulates elements of life for children in a way that resonates with them, makes them feel understood and let's them know that they are not the only ones who feel this way. There are so many beautiful levels to this story that I can only hope my post here will do it some justice... The Perfect Shelter It is a tale of a young family featuring a Mum, a Dad and their two young girls. The family enjoy spending time in nature and the girls adore constructing dens. Together, the sisters aim to build "the perfect, perfect shelter!" However, unbeknownst to them, a harsh storm is brewing. The storm is set to test the strength of their den and anyone who takes shelter within it.   The imagery here of the storm and...

 The summer of 2019 provided me with my first fantastic visit to the incredible book festival and I am still revelling in the memories of it! I was really looking forward to making a second visit this year, but with everything that is going on leading to the festival (understandably) being cancelled, unfortunately that will not be the case. However, to cheer myself up, I thought I'd take some time to write down a few top tips so that when next summer rolls around (and all being well, my second Edinburgh Book Fest visit), we can really make the most of our time there. Here are some of the things that I recommend/plan to do in preparation for the summer of 2021... 1. I'd highly recommend signing up to the newsletter on their website so that you hear about all of the events in plenty of time. You're also able to request a Festival brochure from the website to maximise your organisation and planning schedule! 2. When you receive the brochure, have ...

The Inspiration Behind 'The Boy Who Loved Everyone' & World Kindness Day 2019   In celebration of World Kindness Day today, I'd like to share a picture book with you about a young boy who sends a little bit of kindness out to everyone and everything around him as easily as he breathes. In turn, he causes a 'ripple effect' of goodwill simply because he says "I love you." I'm also incredibly lucky to be able to share with you the inspiration behind the story from the author and illustrator themselves...     'The Boy Who Loved Everyone' by Jane Porter & Maisie Paradise Shearring   As the story begins, young Dmitri has just started going to Nursery. He encounters a group of children who seem to be well-acquainted already, but his kind nature shines through as he chooses to sit beside another child during their story time and tells him "I love you, Liam". Liam is not quite sure how to respond and so chooses not to....

Spooky Shelfie 2019       This is the first year that I've really gotten into collecting Halloween-inspired stories. Though I grew up adoring magical tales, waited patiently for my Hogwarts letter (I'm still waiting), and have a best friend who loves every scary film and horror story going, it was the wonders of 'Bookstagram' that really sparked my interests this year... and boy have we found some great stories!   Here are my 'Top 3' books for this year:   1. 'The Right One' by Violeta Noy (Published by Templar books). This story is about sweet little Roderic, the smallest ghost in his ghost family. Until now, every ghost has chosen to wear a 'white sheet' to cover their 'ectoplasm' (green stuff - think 'Ghostbusters') because that is just what these ghosts have always done. However, this doesn't feel quite right for Roderic. It's just not his style! In a determined bid to reflect his own personalit...

Edinburgh International Book Festival 2019   Oh Edinburgh Book Festival... you have my heart!       I had been looking forward to visiting the Edinburgh Book Fest since I first heard about it last summer (I know, where have I been?!) and I can honestly say that it went above and beyond everything that I thought it was going to be! Positioned across George Street & Charlotte Square, you'll find two HUGE book shop tents, an assortment of  'event tents', a 'signing tent', a café, a bar, a children's play area... so many places to explore!     The Charlotte Square book shop tent is jam-packed with carefully selected treasures that are moved or swapped around every day so that you always have something new to gaze wistfully over. Note to self:- bring a larger suitcase next year so that you can take more books home! (I didn't even make it into the George St. book tent because I knew I'd find more books that I'd have to be...

Welcome to The Picture Book Box! I just wanted to say a big hello to you all and that I'm so happy to be here, sharing some of my favourite stories with you. I recently heard someone refer to this current era of children's books as 'The Golden Age' of children's literature, and I have to say that I think I agree with them! As a child, I was always enchanted by stories - Harry Potter mostly - and I certainly have fond memories of visiting my local library with my lovely Mum and siblings... But if I look back now, I feel that I never ventured too far from the worlds and characters that I was familiar with: The Jolly Postman; The World of Peter Rabbit; Roald Dahl's Matilda... All of which are still favourites for me I hasten to add, however, when I started working in education almost 10 years ago, my eyes were reopened to the wonders that lie within picture books! I fell head over heels for them. Which is why I've started to spread the word about the vast ...