During day two of our blog takeover to celebrate the publication of The Mab we are delighted to welcome author and the inaugural postholder for the Children's Laureate Wales, Eloise Williams to introduce us to some of the women of The Mab.

In stories from the olden days, women are often there to look pretty, be a foil to the stories of men, and not say much. They wave fond farewells as the men ride off on horseback to have great adventures. Sometimes it’s possible to think that these women didn’t have any voices at all.

Not so in The Mab! The women of The Mab have a lot to say. They are fierce and bold, clever and witty, smart and resilient. They make decisions and they make mistakes. They are very important people in their stories, and we are proud to give them voices.

In Rhiannon, Pwyll and the Hideous Claw women are central to the story. Rhiannon, a powerful, enchanting woman from the Otherworld joins this world only to face terrible trickery and punishment for a crime she didn’t commit. She is accused of murdering her own child when it has actually been stolen by a hideous, monstrous claw. Who has tricked her? Her maids, and to protect their own skin because they slept as the baby was taken. As punishment, Rhiannon is forced to carry people on her back as if she is a horse. Yes, you’re right, these stories are weird.

Blodeuwedd, in Meadowsweet and Magic is a woman conjured entirely from flowers because a man called Lleu wants a wife, and his mother has cursed him that he may never be married to a human. Unhappy with the arrangement, Blodeuwedd plots to kill Lleu. Unfortunately, for her he has protection charms placed around him which mean that he can only be killed in very specific circumstances. Luckily, Blodeuwedd is extremely inventive and spends a whole year thinking up ways to murder Lleu. I don’t want to give too much away but her plan involves a goat and a bath!

In Branwen and the Cauldron of Rebirth we meet the main character Branwen as she listens to the wisdom of birds while men wage war.  Branwen’s mother has taught her to open her heart in times of trouble. The starlings talk to Branwen and she agrees that love will conquer all. Where there is bloodshed and heartache and grief, she chooses an unusual way to continue spreading her message of love, changing herself and her son into birds.

Women often save the day in the stories of The Mab. Cigfa in Happily Ever After has fire in her belly, rides her horse like a warrior, and uses her intuition to expose the truth of an enchantment. Her story tells us of how real life is much more interesting than your typical happy ever after. In Luned and the Magic Ring, the title character uses a bluestone and a ring which render the wearer invisible to help someone escape certain death, but she also employs logical thinking and her powers of intellect to save the day.

We can’t wait for you to meet these women. They aren’t wholly good or bad. They aren’t just there to wave weeping farewells from castle windows. They are strong and wild, magical and powerful, fallible and free. They have thoughts and ideas and solve problems with their quick wit and intelligence. Perhaps they will remind you of the women in your own life?

A big thank you to Eloise Williams for writing this fantastic blog feature for us.  You can find out more about The Mab every day this week during our blog takeover and might like to think about attending the YLG Wales Zoom training day Empathy in Your Librarywhich includes a conversation with Eloise Williams and Matt Brown who will be discussing The Mab with librarian extraordinaire Alison King.  Special thanks too, to Max Low, illustrator of the The Mab for use of its brilliant cover and the image of Blodeuwedd.

We are delighted to welcome Francesca Gibbons to the blog to discuss writing Clock of Stars: Beyond the Mountains,  the brilliant second book in the series, now available in paperback and how the impact of the pandemic influenced world-building for the series.

Imogen and Marie are sisters. Like many siblings, they don’t always get along. In the first Clock of Stars book, they find themselves trapped in a magical world, where they must work together if they want to get home.

I wrote that book in quite a few different places – visiting family in the Czech Republic, on holiday, in cafes and on trains. Some of the adventures I had made their way into the story.

For the second book in the series, I wanted to take Imogen and Marie somewhere new.

They return to the magical kingdom. But when Marie is kidnapped, Imogen gives chase. The pursuit takes her beyond the mountains (which is the title of the second book).

I hoped to stuff this story full journeys, danger and fun. I planned to do some travelling of my own...

And then the pandemic happened.

Suddenly, I wasn’t having any adventures. Like everyone else, I was hardly leaving the house. How could I offer other people escapism? Where would I find new ideas?

It’s a privilege to be able to work from home, but I’m not going to lie… I often got in a big flap about this book. And when that happened, I did the only thing I could – I went for a walk.

I’m lucky enough to have some good footpaths near my house. A neighbour told me about a circular route, one I hadn’t explored before. So I packed some snacks and headed off.

Sometimes, my characters would come with me. I’d imagine Imogen, walking at my side. She’d look at my local river and wonder what lived beneath the surface.

“A river sprite,” I’d tell her, imagining webbed fingers clutching muddy banks. Then Imogen would get curious and stand too close and the webbed fingers would reach for her ankle.

“Stay back,” I’d hiss, but she wouldn’t listen. Imogen is naughty like that.

I walked at night, at day, in rain and in sun – exploring the area around my home. Some of the paths began to join up in my head, and I realised how much I didn’t know.

I kept walking…

Slowly, the landscape around where I live began to filter into my book. The lands beyond the mountains started to look a little like images 2 and 3.

Sometimes, after a very long walk, Imogen would come home with me. She’d look at my ginger cat, who was very friendly, and I knew she’d have questions.

“He’s a sněehoolark,” I’d tell her. “A giant and very rare cat.”

One time, Imogen and I got back from our walk early and my husband was in the kitchen. We caught him red handed – drinking tea straight from the tea pot. Imogen thought that was hilarious. So we put it into the book.

Except it wasn’t my husband who drank from the tea pot in the story, it was Zuby (pictured below).

Some of the things in Beyond the Mountains can be found in the “real” world: slow-moving rivers, coppiced willows and rulers who don’t care for their people.

I don’t think I realised it at the time, but I was writing during a lockdown about the separation of two sisters. How would Imogen cope without Marie? How far would she go to be reunited? The answers to these questions felt close at hand.

Other things were harder to find: river sprites, witches and giant cats. But they are there if you look hard enough.

A Clock of Stars, Beyond the Mountains is about being separated from the people you love. It’s about worry… and many other things…

But most of all, I hope it provides ESCAPISM and FUN. I think those things are very important – especially during a pandemic.

A huge thank you to Francesca Gibbons for the excellent blog and to HarperCollins for the opportunity.

We are delighted to welcome Emily Jacques, secretary for YLG Eastern region who provides us with a special update on a Scallywag Press event.  Grateful thanks to Scallywag Press for their support with this.

We were thrilled to host an event with Scallywag Press. It was a very chilly and frosty morning when we hosted our author/illustrator event. So, it was rather nice to be able to snuggle up with a cup of tea in front of Zoom rather than leaving the house.  As we were waiting for attendees to arrive the authors chatted amongst themselves about backlogged post and how they were still receiving Christmas cards, an ongoing reminder of the unusual times we still find ourselves in.

YLG Eastern Chair, Ellen, welcome everyone to the session before handing over to Sarah Pakenham to introduce Scallywag and the individual authors present. Sarah explained that Scallywag was just three years old but, in that time, had published 30 books. She gave thanks to libraries and Librarians for their support and commented how useful events like this have been for them.

Scallywag is all about books that entertain and bring joy but are also useful tools for life lessons.

Our first speaker was author/illustrator Rose Robbins.

A Graduate of Cambridge University, alongside being an author and illustrator, she works with young people with autism. Writing predominantly about neurodivergence and disability her book “Me and My Sister” was shortlisted for the Waterstones award.
She draws a lot of inspiration from both her experiences of having a sibling with autism and from her own more recent diagnosis.
“Me and my sister” is the book she felt she needed growing up. One that validates the experience of siblings and celebrates the important role they play in the lives of their siblings with autism.
“Talking is not my thing” is written from the perspective of someone with autism, Rose drew on her own experiences but also received a lot of input to make sure her work was as authentic as possible. IBBY selected this book as outstanding for young people with disabilities, a high accolade which is testament to the care Rose took in presenting the autistic experience.
“Loud” explores the idea of “disruptive/difficult” children and highlights how, if we find the right way, we can create positive learning environments for all.

Rose also shared an exclusive of a brand-new character she is working on!

Our next speaker was Guatemalan author/illustrator Elena Arevalo Melville.
Winner of the coveted “Queens Knickers” award, her work continuously receives rave reviews and she’s been published in 6 languages.
Elena shared some of her original concepts for her book, delved into to her relationship with colour and gave us a sneak peak of early concepts and sketches.

“Umbrella” a story about reconciling bad choices, what it means to be a flawed human and how community is key.  She creates stories and illustrations for children with the belief that they are capable of decoding images and she provides space for their own Interpretations. Within the everyday mundane she sees scope to imagine, and her work feels like a beautiful and timely reminder of our capacity to make the ordinary extraordinary.
She too generously shared a preview of her next book!

Jeff Norton was up next and set a different pace to the talk, a “reluctant/struggling reader” himself as a child, he now creates worlds in his stories in a very fast paced and visual way. Working with illustrator Jeff Cosby they create stories that are as compelling and addictive as any other visual media. It was incredibly interesting to be brought in to the very detailed world of Dino Knights and Panttera. We were fortunate to hear a reading of Dino Knights 2 which has only just gone to print and he shared what we can expect from Dino Knights 3.

Derek Kielty was our final speaker of the day and he tackled some tech gremlins with style and grace, I could tell he would be a great visitor who I hear delivers interactive events which see children creating their own characters.
The technological gremlins didn’t allow us enough time with Derek but we did get a reading from his book, and I can tell you that he does a great reading and does a fantastic “Librarian Voice”

All of our speakers were incredibly generous in sharing future works, answering questions and reading for us. All are available for events, virtual or in person, and each had a great deal to offer and I could see would have a unique session for anyone working with them. I hope many more librarians will be able to watch the event on the replay and that many are able to work with these dynamic creators in the future.

Grateful thanks to Emily Jacques, YLG Eastern region and Scallywag Press.

In the run-up to Halloween, we are delighted to welcome Sam Pope to the blog to give her run-down on her top five spooky books for adults.  We will be joined by Sam again tomorrow for the lowdown on her top choices for young people. Sam is the brilliant author of The Haunting of Lindy Pennyworth, a brooding psychological horror.

Sam's Top 5 Spooky books 

I love a good, scary read. It’s hard to pick just five of my favourites, but here are some that really get my pulse racing!

1. Dark Matter, by Michelle Paver

Twenty-eight-year-old Jack joins a scientific expedition to Gruhuken, in the Arctic but, after initial high spirits (pardon the pun) things soon start going very wrong. Not only will they soon be plunged into continuous polar night for several months, but Jack’s companions start dropping like flies, leaving our hero entirely on his own. Or is he? I’ve read this multiple times and listened to it as an audiobook and it still utterly chills me to the bone.

2. The Woman in Black, by Susan Hill

A well-known story, this one, having been adapted into a play and a movie, and studied as a secondary-school text – this story frightened me so much that I had to sleep with the light on after I’d finished reading the book. Junior solicitor Arthur Kipps is sent to sort out the papers of recluse Alice Drablow but soon discovers a horrifying world of haunting where bad things happen every time the woman in black is seen.

3. The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson

Shirley Jackson has a reputation for creating stories that disturb you into a sense of unease and dread. For me, this is her best book because it absolutely nails the haunted house genre perfectly. The story focuses on Eleanor, who has been invited to spend a summer in a reputedly haunted house as part of a social experiment, along with two other guests, all of whom have also been hand-picked by Dr Montague. While the others become scared of the obvious hauntings occurring around them, Eleanor becomes entranced – perhaps to the point of no return.

4. The Complete Ghost Stories of MR James

No one does ghost stories like MR James does. No one. He is the master, my muse. It is said that he redefined ghost stories by moving away from Gothic cliches and setting his tales of fear in real and modern places, not dark castles. This atmosphere of familiarity is, perhaps, what makes his stories more frightening – you don’t need to be in a crumbly castle for something bad to happen. Often the scariest events are just around the corner.

5. The Silent Companions, by Laura Purcell

Laura Purcell has garnered herself a reputation for being a master (or mistress?) of historical spookiness. Her debut novel, The Silent Companions, remains, for me, one of her scariest stories. Elsie is our heroine, recently widowed and pregnant with her first child. She leaves London to live in her late husband’s country estate but is met with hostility by the servants and the local villagers. Lonely and mainly alone, she finds a locked room that contains a diary and a painted wooden figure – a Silent Companion – that looks like Elsie herself and whose discovery brings with it terror and doubt.

We are delighted to provide an update about Happy Here an anthology from 20 of our best Black British writers and illustrators.  Happy Here will form the focus of an exciting panel that closes the YLG Virtual Conference this year (details here) we are thrilled to have the chance to welcome Jasmine Richards, Yome Ṣode and Clare Weze in conversation with publisher Amée Felone.  Read below for an exciting update!

This week, every primary school in England will receive a free copy of Happy Here, a new anthology from 20 of our best Black British writers and illustrators.  Published by inclusive publisher Knights Of, Happy Here includes stories and poems which explore themes of joy, home and family through a wide range of genres and styles. The initiative is part of a wider long-term programme of research and activity led by the children’s reading charity BookTrust and The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) to empower changes in teaching practice and improve representation in children's literature and publishing.

Alongside this, BookTrust and CLPE are supporting schools with a range of resources and events designed to help teachers share a love of reading and writing with children and give them a rich and diverse learning experience by bringing inclusive and representative stories into the classroom:

·  All schools are invited to attend a free online event with celebrated children's author Joseph Coelho, hosted by BookTrust on 13th October as part of Black History Month.

·  CLPE are providing a free teaching sequence for Key Stage 2, to support schools in the study and enjoyment of Happy Here as part of their Literacy Curriculum.

·  CLPE will deliver online sessions for teachers to learn more about the importance of representation in the classroom. 

·  BookTrust has provided an additional 50 free copies of Happy Here to 100 schools with a minimum of 25% of pupils receiving free school meals.

The Happy Here initiative follows the publication in 2020 of BookTrust Represents’ Interim Research and CLPE’s annual Reflecting Realities Survey of Ethnic Representation within UK Children’s Literature, which highlighted the under-representation of children’s authors and illustrators of colour, and of minority ethnic characters within children’s books, respectively.

Having the opportunity to engage with an author through a school visit inspires children by bringing their favourite stories and characters to life and also gives access to diverse role models. Schools are invited to sign up for a FREE virtual school session with Joseph Coelho on 13^th October visit https://www.booktrust.org.uk/happy-here

To sign up for CLPE’s FREE teaching sequence and to find out more about their online CPD to support the study and enjoyment of Happy Here visit https://clpe.org.uk/news/free-copy-happy-here-all-primary-schools-and-free-teaching-resources-and-cpd-partnership