The second exciting book in the series following Ivy Newt, a young sand witch and her adventures with Tom, her familiar who can transform into a boy or a wolf. The story is set in the fictional land of Miracula, where Ivy lives with her parents, the King and Queen, in Newt Castle. Together with her familiar, Ivy embarks on a forbidden adventure to visit the dilapidated haunted house that magically appears every Halloween and lift the ten-year-old curse.
Readers follow Albie as he uses fashion in a bid to express himself. He experiments with different styles of dress that appeal to all genders or none. While one could accuse Albie of excessive consumer waste regarding his frequent clothing purchases, young readers will delight in studying some of Albie’s outlandish outfits and Willis offers redemption in the form of a charitable action towards the end of the story.
When Ivy’s birthday surprise goes awry and her parents, the king and queen of the Sand Witches, disappear, Ivy leaps into action. She and her familiar, the wolf-boy Tom, set off across Miracula. Pairing up with a young wizard to defeat an evil queen, they must bravely attempt to rescue Ivy’s parents and reunite the kings and queens of Miracula.
Sometimes it’s hard to be quiet and sit still. Abigail is not having a good day in school. She wants to fidget and draw and play, and instead she just gets in trouble. When she sees all her friends trying different musical instruments, she feels overwhelmed and left out. That’s when her voice gets LOUD! But Miss Butler sees Abigail’s voice as a talent, not a problem, and by the end of the story, Abigail gets to shine.
A hat is presented and out of it comes an entire world. First arrives our magician, Hattie, in a smart yellow jacket and dickie-bow. Following on from Hattie is an assortment of animals and, eventually, their habitat.
There’s a wall in the middle of this book. And it’s a good thing – the cheerful little ladder-carrying knight tells us as he arrives to repair a brick that has come loose from the wall, perhaps a signal that all is not as it seems in his world.
The little knight is confident in his world view. Dangers lurk on the other side of the wall, not on this side. Ferocious wild animals roam about, waiting to attack and, worst of all, there is an ogre the knight says would ‘eat me up.’
‘Me And My Sister‘ tells the story of two siblings that experience the world differently. It embraces the perspective of a young boy who gives us a little insight on what life is like with an autistic sibling. It shows the highs and lows, acknowledging that there can sometimes be difficult days while it also celebrates the strong bond that can be shared between siblings. It educates young readers on various emotions and reminds them that everyone is different.
Umbrellas are very useful. They stop nasty plods of rain hitting the nape of your neck, from trickling down your back, warding off the chill of a wet winter’s day. Yes, umbrellas are wonderful! And this is no ordinary umbrella! With Elena Arevalo Melville’s Umbrella ‘anything is possible!’. This umbrella can speak, it can magic friends, animals – even a butterfly band! But be sure to ask kindly – the umbrella does not respond well to commands!
Taylor has worked hard on building something special, an amazing structure built out of blocks. He stands back and admires it proudly when, out of nowhere, a flock of crows fly by and cause it to crash to the ground.
One by one the animal friends come by offering solutions, let’s talk about it, laugh about it, get mad, get even …. But Taylor doesn’t feel like doing any of these things and one by one everybody leaves him alone by himself. Then, very quietly, the rabbit arrives moving closer and closer, saying nothing but silently offering warmth and comfort.
An astronaut sets off all alone to Mars to prove that there is life there. Everybody at home thinks he’s crazy, nobody believes there’s life on the Red Planet, but the astronaut is so sure he will find something – anything – that he brings a wrapped box of chocolate cupcakes as a present. Surely whoever might be on Mars would be friendly to a lonely astronaut bearing cupcakes?
