10 Ten Exciting New Releases in October 2025

I am looking forward to October and all the lovely new release books that await.

Here are just ten that I am excited about.

 The Lion Cub Secret by Lauren St. John 

Imagine rescuing a lion cub . . .

After Martine rescues an orphaned lion cub from a market, she dreams of keeping him forever. But Tau, the cub, already has a home. He's been snatched from one of South Africa's most famous game reserves.

When Martine and her best friend Ben are invited to the reserve to help settle Tau in, they leap at the chance. But the beautiful wilderness is riddled with mysteries and secrets, and the lion cub's secret is the biggest of all.

As Martine and Ben start asking questions, they quickly discover that there are those who'll stop at nothing to get to Tau. Will the lonely lion cub ever be truly free?

Lauren St John's White Giraffe series has become internationally beloved. This is the perfect time to discover - or rediscover - this bestselling series.

Preorder Link

The Dog Walkers Detective Agency by Michael Hogan

They've got a lot of leads...but can they collar a killer?

When Charlie Boardman and his beloved Staffy, Ruby, stumble across a corpse in the woods, the sleepy coastal town of Framstone is rocked by the discovery that the local pub landlord has been murdered.

Charlie and his fellow dogwalkers take it upon themselves to try and sniff out any clues that might help the local police with their investigation.

But what begins as idle speculation and gossip quickly becomes something more sinister, when Charlie starts receiving anonymous threats warning him off the case.

Then, a second body washes up on the beach…

Can Charlie hunt down a killer, before he becomes the next victim?

Preorder Link

  Daughter of the Stones by Alexandra Walsh

When Caitlin King’s father collapses on the eve of the summer solstice, she’s drawn back into the tangled web of her already fragile family – and strange visions begin to haunt her. Visions of another life, another time and a woman who looks uncannily like herself.

In Iron Age Britain, Cordelia is the third daughter of chief Lear Bladudsunu and a gifted shaman. But she is left grief-stricken when betrayal, ambition and patriarchal power threaten everything she holds dear.

Linked across the centuries, Caitlin and Cordelia each face devastating choices. As Cordelia fights to protect her people from destruction, Caitlin finds herself drawn deeper into the mysteries of the past.

As the veil thins between past and present, can Caitlin unravel the truth of her own heritage in time to heal old wounds and unite her fractured family?

Alexandra Walsh’s captivating new novel is a richly layered tale of sisterhood, legacy and the enduring power of love across the ages.

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A Stranger Comes to Town by Lynne Sharon Schwartz

"What's the last thing you remember?" 

This is the question posed to Joe Marzino after being found on a sidewalk, knocked down by a bicycle on Columbus Avenue, one block from New York's Central Park. Joe remembers nothing, not even his own name. He awakens into the world with only the clothes on his back, a throbbing pain in his left ankle, and more questions than answers.

A Stranger Comes to Town is a masterful novel of self-discovery, revealing the multitude of histories and lives we each inhabit, as well as the many ways we seek to reinvent ourselves and reshape our pasts. Joe's search to discover his true identity exposes how even the most ordinary aspects of our lives are often extraordinarily felt.

Lynne Sharon Schwartz is a celebrated author of thirty books including novels, short fiction, poetry, criticism, and works of translation. A Stranger Comes to Town is crafted with immense imagination and a skillfulness that reaffirms Schwartz as one of the most assured writers of our time.

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 Better Days on Dressmakers Alley by Rosie Clarke

Catch up with the goings on on Dressmakers' Alley, where love seems to be in the air.

London’s East End 1926

The girls of Dressmaker’s Alley are busier than ever and Lady Diane’s business continues to thrive.

New recruit Janice Williams is one of the new seamstresses Miss Susie hires to cope with the work but on the day of her interview, Janice is injured in a roadside accident that will change her life forever.

Poor Winnie Collins’ pregnancy is beset with problems and under Doctor’s strict orders she is confined to bed rest. How will she cope when there is so much to do?

Susie Collins’ and Timothy Marsh’s relationship continues to flourish. But when will Susie find time to allow Timothy to make an honest woman of her?

Meanwhile business is blooming at the flower shop but Lily is concerned what her husband Jeb Jarvis and brother Joe Ross are up to. When something seems too good to be true, it usually is and none of them realise the danger it could bring.

Things are looking brighter on Dressmaker’s Alley, but there are always those who want to cause trouble…

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 The Old Gals Bucket List by Karen King

It’s been eight months since Sandra lost her beloved husband, and she knows something has to change. Her son wants her to sell up her home and move into a retirement apartment, close to him. But she doesn’t feel ready for that yet.

Then she bumps into her old friend Patti, heading off to get her first tattoo. Patti explains she’s beaten cancer and now she’s ready to make every second count… And – sitting down for a cuppa and a slice of cake – the women land on the perfect idea – a bucket list!

As they set out to fulfil dreams, overcome fears, and have the adventure of their lives, their lives intertwine with others who feel the same, including Mary and her anxious husband…

If anyone can help them live their best lives… it’s the old gals!

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  A New Recruit for the Resistance Girls by Alice G May

They said women were a liability in war. They were wrong...

March 1940

A woman desperate for escape…

A skilled mechanic, Fliss Makepeace chafes under the suffocating expectations of her family and society. Ordered to abandon her beloved engines for a 'woman's job' and pressured into a brutal marriage with the menacing Jake, Fliss feels trapped. But as the drums of war beat louder, she vows to serve King and Country rather than surrender to a life of quiet torment.

A chance to serve her country…

Joining the ATS offers Fliss not just a uniform, but freedom. Yet, a chance encounter with the formidable Major Stapleton propels her into an even deeper secret: a clandestine Women's Army, poised to become the British Resistance should Hitler invade. For Fliss, it's an undeniable call to duty—and a thrilling escape from her past.

And turn the tide of war?

At a secret research base, Fliss and the other ATS girls join scientists in a race against time to intercept Hitler's deadly bombing raids. The work is exhilarating, exhausting and fraught with peril. When a vicious attack rocks the isolated compound, a chilling question echoes through the ranks: Is there a German spy in their midst?

With their vital mission now at risk, Fliss must draw on every ounce of her mechanical ingenuity and intuition to unmask the traitor before their secret war plans—and their lives—are shattered.

A heart-stopping story of courage, betrayal, and the hidden heroines who risked everything to change the course of history. Inspired by the true-life stories of The Women's Secret Army. Perfect for fans of Kate Quinn, Lana Kortchik and Tenko!

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 Dead of Winter by Keri Beevis

A sister looking for answers.

A brother with secrets to hide...

Three days before Christmas, I travel to Midwinter Manor in Norfolk through a worsening snowstorm to meet Daniel, the brother I never knew existed. He has reluctantly granted me an hour of his precious time.

The welcome I receive is frosty. Daniel is cold, intimidating and unfriendly, while his wife, Rose, is polite, but tense. From the moment I step through the door of this imposing manor house, I sense I’m not welcome.

When I go to leave, the snowy blizzard prevents me. Then there’s a power cut and I can’t let anyone know where I am. I realise I am trapped.

Something feels wrong in this house. The way Daniel and Rose speak in whispers behind closed doors suggests something’s amiss. As cracks start to form in their stories, I wonder what it is they are hiding.

Midwinter Manor is a house full of secrets, and some of them are dangerously deadly.

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 The Cornish Chrismas Book Club by Angela Britnell

'Tis the season for second chances - and unexpected chapters . . .

Tamara Pascoe has spent years saving every penny and perfecting her baking in the hopes of opening her own café in the cosy Cornish village of Penworthal. But when she loses her job, her long-held dream is suddenly out of reach.

To make matters worse, her perfect café location is snapped up by newcomer Gage Bennet - a brooding ex-Marine with plans to open a bookshop.

Gage has no time for pleasantries, let alone Christmas spirit. But he didn't count on Tamara - sharp, stubborn and full of festive cheer.

Tamara is impossible to ignore, and when the village book club throws them together, Gage realises they might just be able to help one another. Tamara needs a job. He needs help connecting with the community.

Striking a reluctant truce, Tamara and Gage's frosty beginning starts to melt as they bond over their shared love of books.

As snow begins to fall and the fairy lights go up, could a little Cornish book club help two opposites write their own happily ever after?

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 The Peculiar Incident at Thistlewick House by Jenni Keer

As the bones start to fall, the spirits will rise…

Norfolk, England, 1895: When renowned spiritualist Edward Blackmore receives a desperate message from his cousin Barnabas, begging him to come to the coastal village of Thistlewick Tye, his first thought is to ignore the request. Despite his cousin’s insistence that his wife is possessed by a malevolent spirit, Edward has no time for the man who stole his inheritance. Lured by the promise of money, along with a genuine concern for Barnabas’s wife – who he’d once loved – he reluctantly travels to at Thistlewick House, only to arrive too late. Emma is dead. Barnabas suspects there are supernatural forces at play. But Edward is convinced murder is afoot. As he begins to investigate, he finds himself drawn into the lives of those in this isolated and unnerving village, especially the beguiling woman who gathers up the human bones falling from the rapidly eroding cliffs. Then he discovers that a travelling circus completely disappeared in the area forty years previously and no one is willing to talk about it. Perhaps not everything at Thistlewick Tye is quite what it seems…

Preorder Link

Reading Wrapup for August 2025

Another month has flown by and we are at the end of August already.

It has been a good month. The weather has been lovely and I've been able to meet with friends and family... and of course, I've read lots of good books.

Did you read anything good this month?

Visitation by Jenny Erpenbeck

I really wanted to like this short book but I just could not get into it.

Wedding Bells for the East End Library Girls by Patricia McBride 

This delightful book starts and ends with a wedding. What could be lovelier?  If you would like to read my review you can find it here.

The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore

I loved this book. You can find my review by clicking here.

The Tour at School by Katie Clapham and Nadia Shireen

This is a delightful picture book, aimed at those about to start school or nursery, and also for those who may just be the tour guide themselves.  If you would like to read my review you can find it here.

The Herb Knot by Jane Loftus

A book which is largely set in 14th Century Winchester, along with a great plot - what could be better?   If you would like to read my review you can find it here.

The Secret Lives of the Doyenne of Didsbrook by Tessa Barrie

This novel contained so many wonderful characters. I enjoyed becoming acquainted with them all.   If you would like to read my review you can find it here.

The Youngster by Bibi Berki

This was my favourite read this month.  It was a tense book to read, and it had me holding my breath at times.   If you would like to read my review you can find it here.

The Appletree Animal Agency by Katya Balen

A lovely book for younger readers.

Winter Wishes for the Home Front Nurses by Rachel Brimble

I really enjoyed this character-driven novel, and I really enjoyed meeting the three main characters, Veronica, Freda and Sylvia.   If you would like to read my review you can find it  here.

A Dark Death by Alice Fitzpatrick

This book is set on a Welsh island, there lives a small, tight-knit community. It is a place where everyone knows each other and what is going on.  If you would like to read my review you can find it here.

Clues to You by Claire Huston

I enjoyed this book very much. You can find my review by clicking here.

Grave of the Fireflies by Akiyuki Nosaka

Look out for my review of this book coming very soon.

10 Ten Exciting New Releases in December 2024

 

There are some gorgeous new releases coming next month and here are just ten that have caught my eye...

A Christmas Surprise in Pelican Crossing by Maggie Christensen

Beyond Treats: Revolutionary Dog Training for Lasting Behaviour Change: A Story-Based Force-Free Compassionate Dog Training Guide by George Tran

The Silver-Haired Sisterhood by Judy Leigh

A Short History of the World in 50 Failures by Ben Gazur

Reach for the Stars by Maxine Morrey

Stuck in Second Gear by Carmen Reid

The House of Echoes by Rachel Crowther

A Better Tomorrow for the East End Library Girls by Patricia McBride

The Girl in the Window by Diana Wilkinson

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A Series of Rooms by A J Barlowe

Happy Reading!

New Releases for September 2024

 

September is just around the corner and there are some fantastic new releases to look forward to. Dare I say it, but there are one or two Chrismas titles in here!

Without further ado, here are just ten that have caught my eye.

The Last Bookshop in Prague by Helen Parusel

Was she incredibly brave or incredibly stupid? Neither. Just a bookshop girl doing what she could against her country’s oppressors.

The banned books club was only the beginning; a place for the women of Prague to come together and share the tales the Germans wanted to silence.

For bookshop owner, Jana, doing the right thing was never a question. So when opportunity comes to help the resistance, she offers herself – and her bookshop. Using her window displays as covert signals and hiding secret codes in book marks, she’ll do all in her power to help.

But the arrival of two people in her bookshop will change everything: a young Jewish boy with nowhere else to turn, and a fascist police captain Jana can’t read at all. In a time where secrets are currency and stories can be fatal, will she know who to trust?

A Christmas Murder by Mary Grand

Susan didn’t plan on being an amateur sleuth and after two successful investigations, she’s looking forward to a quiet Christmas. So, when local businesswoman Meera is in desperate need of help, Susan agrees rather reluctantly.

The task should be easy enough. The infamous press mogul Duncan Fern is coming back to the Isle of Wight, the scene of his family’s childhood holidays, to celebrate Christmas with his grown-up children and their partners, his new glamorous wife Kirsten who is forever dripping with diamonds, and the spikey editor of his paper the Morning Flame, Antoine. The newly-refurbished luxurious Bishopstone Manor is the perfect setting for a festive break and all Susan has to do is help Meera host.

But when a snowstorm descends over the island, and the following morning a body is found, Christmas at the Manor takes a darker turn. Can Susan get to the bottom of the mystery before the murderer strikes again…

The Red Lie by Hua Foley

Born into the Mao era, the author’s education in school and at home by her father, a devoted Communist propaganda officer, was a brainwashing process. She was just seven when her father described how the enemy Nationalists beheaded his parents with a straw cutter during the civil war. Before she was old enough to understand the concept of love, she learned who to love and who to hate, believing all enemies deserve to die.

When student protesters in Tiananmen Square in 1989 demanded freedom and democracy, Foley risked prison passing them secret information about army troop deployment. This act ended her career as a university assistant professor and put her on a wanted list. She embarked on a smuggler-aided border crossing to Macau, and eventually arriving in Hong Kong, and from there, departed for a new life in the United States.

Returning to China after an eight-year exile, she discovered her father’s betrayal and lies. She eventually came to understand that his fear-driven loyalty to the Party arose from survival instincts. He chose to dance with the devil. Over time, he learned to dance with ease and grace, and in the end, such dancing became his life.

The Red Lie is an account of the struggle to free oneself from the binding tentacles of brainwashing. It is a tale of loyalty tested, humanity challenged, and lives ruined by lies. At its core, it is a woman’s struggle in a world so hardened by ignorance, hatred and fear that compassion and kindness are largely nonexistent. It shows one person’s quest for self-invention against the backdrop of late twentieth century politics—a tale still current given the East-West tensions of today.

The Tanglewood Bookshop by Lilac Mills

A rural book shop. A chance to start over. But can she make her dream a reality?

Karen used to love the excitement of her London life, but lately her passion for expensive city living has begun to wane. So when she's given the opportunity to open a bookshop in picturesque Tanglewood, she jumps at the chance.

But village life is much quieter than she anticipated – is she actually suited for rural living? Resigned to a boring and uneventful Christmas, when she meets gorgeous Saul she is more than ready to have some fun and enjoy the festivities. If only Saul didn't have a reputation for being a player...

Will Karen become the heroine in her own Christmas romance, or will he love her and leave her under the mistletoe?

Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton

Imagine you could hold a baby hare and bottle-feed it. Imagine that it lived under your roof and lolloped around your bedroom at night, drumming on the duvet cover when it wanted your attention. Imagine that, over two years later, it still ran in from the fields when you called it and snoozed in your house for hours on end. This happened to me.

When lockdown led busy professional Chloe to leave the city and return to the countryside of her childhood, she never expected to find herself custodian of a newly born hare. Yet when she finds the creature, endangered, alone and no bigger than her palm, she is compelled to give it a chance at survival.

Raising Hare chronicles their journey together and the challenges of caring for the leveret and preparing for its return to the wild. We witness an extraordinary relationship between human and animal, rekindling our sense of awe towards nature and wildlife. This improbable bond of trust serves to remind us that the most remarkable experiences, inspiring the most hope, often arise when we least expect them.

A Lake District Christmas Murder by Rebecca Tope

As Christmas draws nearer, Simmy Henderson is invited to a party in Glenridding at the heart of the Lake District. However, the festivities are overshadowed by two alarming discoveries: a man’s body in the beck above the village and a vulnerable newborn baby, apparently abandoned by its mother.

Caught in the crosscurrents and tensions of the inhabitants of Glenridding, Simmy is drawn into the investigation. The season of goodwill has been eclipsed by far darker emotions and a murderer must be found.

The Grandmother by Jane E. James

I might be a grandmother. But I’m not some sweet, harmless old lady who people can push around.

Two little girls stand with their heads bowed in my living room. I’m told they’re my granddaughters. This is the first time I’ve met them since my daughter and I fell out after she married that waste of space, Vince. Daisy is nine, and Alice seven. Daisy is the spitting image of her mother.

They’ve come to live with me because their mother — my daughter — was murdered. In her own home while they slept close by.

I think their father, Vince, killed my daughter. But the police can’t prove it. I’ve always known he was no good. He treated my daughter like dirt. I warned her he’d cheat on her — but she wouldn’t listen.

But then, most people have a dark side — and I’m no different.

Now he wants his daughters back.

Over my dead body.

I finally have a family of my own. And nobody is going to take it away from me.

The Witches of Santo Stefano by Wendy Webb

An investigative journalist uncovers the haunting secret history of her own ancestors in a bewitching novel by the bestselling author of Daughters of the Lake.

When Cassie Graves discovers her husband’s affair, it’s enough to chip away at the foundation of her life. But after researching her family’s Italian ancestry, it completely crumbles beneath her.

Her grandmother Gia’s often-told stories about the past are a lie. Her much-romanticized great-grandfather Giovanni may not even have existed. Most alarming of all, it appears her mysterious great-grandmother Violetta died by stregoneria―witchcraft. Now, piecing together the puzzle of her family tree in the small, centuries-old hill town of Santo Stefano, Cassie finds help from a welcoming group of locals: the accommodating Renzo; Dante, whose own family history connects with Cassie’s; and the ethereal Luna, an interpreter of dreams who gives Cassie a protective amulet―and the warning that she may have walked into a trap.

When Cassie comes upon an old spell book, she gets closer to unearthing long-buried family secrets, the truth about a powerful female lineage, and the haunting discovery of who she really is.

The Beforelife of Eliza Valentine by Laura Pearson

You’ve heard of the Afterlife. Welcome to the Beforelife.

There are four of us: Samuel, Lucy, Thomas, and me – Eliza.

We came into being the day Becca Valentine was born. We’ve been by her side ever since. What she doesn’t know yet, is that one day she might become our mother.

Then two men come into her life. Both seeking her heart. And then we realise: everything rests on Becca’s love story. Because one of the men is Lucy and Thomas’s father. And the other is mine and Samuel’s. And there’s simply no way we can all be born.

We all want her to make the right choice. We all want to be born. To hold her hand one day. To feel her stroke our hair. To call her our mother.

Then we discover there is something we can do. We can change Fate. But we only have a single chance each. How would you make sure you were born? And what if doing that isn’t what’s best for the person you already love the most in the world – your mother?

Snow is Falling by Sarah Bennett

When Sadie Bingham’s life takes an unexpected turn, her children treat her to a well-earned break at Juniper Meadows, the gorgeous Cotswolds estate owned by the Travers family.

The festive season is in full swing, and Sadie throws herself into the packed Twelve Days of Christmas programme, relishing the opportunity to make new friends and new memories.

Single father Dylan Travers hasn’t been to his childhood home of Juniper Meadows for decades. Estranged from his cantankerous father Monty, he has made a happy life for himself in the States. But now with teenage children keen to know more about their roots, Dylan has brought them back to the Cotswolds to meet his family.

As Sadie and Dylan both navigate a Christmas very different from the ones they had expected it's soon clear that, geography apart, they have a great deal in common. And as Dylan confronts his past and Sadie contemplates her future, perhaps the miracle of this Christmas will be the happily-ever-after they both deserve.

Monti and Leo: A Newcomer in Pocketville by Sylvie Kantorovitz - #bookreview

 

There were four things Monti Mole liked to do in the morning... he welcomed the day...he stopped by the Pocketville Bakery... he visited the Pocketville library... settled on his favourite rock by the river and gazed peacefully at the water... It was a perfect routine...

***

A charming graphic novel for early readers with strong themes of friendship and kindness that celebrates difference and new ideas with a light-hearted touch.

Pocketville is a small town, set in its ways, and the arrival of a stranger causes a stir. Monti the mole is stunned one morning to find Leo the crocodile hogging his special reading rock. When Monti visits the bakery and the library, he learns that the last cinnamon roll has been purchased, and the book he was waiting for has been checked out. What’s a fastidious mole to do? When Monti confronts Leo, the newcomer turns out to be agreeable in the extreme, and friendship is a given. Now to convince the town’s cantankerous baker, Ms Sheep, to stop turning everyone against Leo. Together, Monti and Leo hatch a plot that will have Ms Sheep singing Leo’s praises in no time. This reassuring tale of friendship against the odds from the creator of the graphic memoir Sylvie draws on the author’s experiences as an immigrant and will appeal to anyone who has struggled to fit in in a new place.

***

This is a very sweet graphic novel that is aimed at early readers; children around six to eight years of age. It would also be perfect for reluctant readers too.

I loved the simple cartoon like illustrations that make this into a lovely humourous novel. They are clear and uncluttered and serve to demonstrate more than is written in the actual text.  It is written in chapter form, so is an excellent introduction to chapter books.

Monti and Leo's burgeoning friendship has much to teach about embracing difference and welcoming newcomers into the community. It is also about friendship and acceptance. This would be a great aid in schools to teach about welcoming new children into the classroom and why we should demonstrate kindness to one another.

And who amongst us would not like to start our day with a visit to the library and bakery? I know I would!

ISBN: 978 1529518566

Publisher: Walker Books

Formats:  hardback and paperback

No. of Pages:  80 (paperback)

About the Author:

Sylvie was born in Casablanca in 1960 and grew up in France.She has lived longer in the US than in France. And yet, her accent gives her away very quickly!

After high school, she became a school teacher and read and drew for her students. She loved teaching but she also wanted to study art. 

In 1980, I went to New York City for a year and studied at the Art Students League. Back in France, I studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. It is during these years that she discovered — or re-discovered — the magic of children’s books. 

She moved to the US in her 20s, and now lives in the beautiful Hudson Valley with her partner, Barbara Lehman. Barbara is also an author-illustrator of books for young readers.

She started her career in books for young children with the illustrations for a Raffi Song to Read: Wheels on the Bus.

 She grew up reading popular French comics — or graphic novels.  When the form became more popular in the US, she embraced it wholeheartedly and found it the perfect way to tell her stories.

She loves books, movies, art (ethnographic art, medieval art, contemporary art, street art, outsider art, book art, children’s art, etc), strolls in town or in nature, drawing and doing collages.

(book courtesy of the publisher)

(all opinions are my own)

Counting Sheep: A Farmyard Counting Book by Michelle Robinson - Illustrated by Nikki Dyson - #bookreview

It's been a busy day on the farm. 

The rooster is already fast asleep. 

Sam the farm dog is very tired, too - he's been herding sheep all day...

***

Down on the farm, it’s time to sleep. So sheepdog, Sam, rounds up the sheep…

Everyone knows that counting sheep will send you straight to sleep but what happens when the sheep won’t go to sleep? And what if they don’t know how to count, either?! Sheepdog, Sam, is on the case and he tries everything he can to lull them off to dreamland. But, before long, the whole farm is awake and noisier than ever...

An alternative bedtime story full of farmyard sounds and counting chaos sure to make little ones laugh and parents sigh in sympathy.

***

This is such a delightful picture book, and even though I was reading it by myself and not sharing it with a child it made me laugh out loud.

Each page is covered with charming illustrations through which we can observe Sam the dog getting more tired with each page that is turned. The idea of him teaching the sheep to count sheep in order to get to sleep is comical. 

As the book progresses it is not just the sheep who are awake but the whole farmyard. Sam patiently attempts to get them all to sleep whilst fighting off his own tiredness. Most adults will be able to identify with Sam's tiredness.

In addition to the text and beautiful illustrations, each page has a speech bubble with noises of the various farm animals.

This is such a pleasing, humourous and entertaining book that will be wonderful to share with little ones. It would be perfect for the pre school and infant school setting as it supports the learning of how to count.

A wonderful book which I highly recommend.

ISBN: 978 1406384918

Publisher:  Walker Books

Formats:  Paperback

No. of Pages:  32

About the Author:

Michelle has written over 50 books so far and just keeps going. She loves to perform her stories, sometimes dressed as her characters. In 2020 she won the Laugh Out Loud Book Awards alongside David Walliams. 

She spends her time either writing, editing, making videos, daydreaming, cooking, cleaning the house, going for a walk or having a video call with someone cool. That cool person might be one of her famous author or illustrator friends,

She has dreamed of being an author since she was five. Before she learned to write, she'd fill whole notepads with squiggly lines that looked a bit like joined-up writing. She grew up in a working class household and was the first person in her whole family to go to university. It wasn't easy. She had to work a part-time job as well as studying, but she didn't mind.

When she finished university she started working in advertising agencies as a copywriter. She started writing stories in her spare time, early in the morning and late at night. Her first real book came out in 2012. She couldn't quite believe it. Fifty-something books later, she still can't quite believe it - and she is still working all the hours she can, in between being mum and all that other grown-up stuff.

About the Illustrator:

Nikki Dyson is the bestselling illustrator of Oscar the Hungry Unicorn, Oscar the Hungry Unicorn Eats Christmas and You’re Called What?! Her other books include Dinosaurs Don’t Have Bedtimes, Zippo the Super Hippo and Mack and the Missing Cheese. She lives in Northamptonshire. Find Nikki online at nikkidysonillustration.co.uk and on Twitter @DoodleDyson. 

(book courtesy of Walker Books)

(author media courtesy of her website)

(illustrator media courtesy of Hachette Publishing)

(all opinions are my own)