Today we welcome Briony May Smithonto Picture Book Party to talk about her new picture book, Witch in Training,written by Michelle Robinson!
Betty is brewing her first-ever potion! And potions need ingredients – ingredients that can only be found in the WILD. So Betty, with her mum by her side, soars off into the magical, moonlight night to bravely gather her wicked and wonderful supplies: vampire fangs, fairy dust, werewolf whiskers, and more. The only problem is, she might have to come face-to-face with a few monsters – a few treacherous monsters! – along the way...
With rollicking read-aloud rhymes from Michelle Robinson and spellbinding art from Briony May Smith, this is a funny, edge-of-your-broomstick adventure for aspiring witches and wizards everywhere.
Q&A with Briony May Smith
Can
you tell us more about your journey into illustration?
I always loved drawing and making up games and stories as a
child, playing with my younger sister and brother. I never put the pencil down and decided to pursue illustration in the hopes of working in the children’s
book world. I studied Illustration at Falmouth University and built up a
portfolio of artwork. I have been very lucky to work with some of my favourite
authors writing today, and Witch in Training was an exciting
venture into books with a Halloween bent! Witch in Training is
the second book I’ve illustrated with author Michelle Robinson. Our first
book, Tooth Fairy in Training follows fairy sisters as the
littlest sibling starts her first night as a tooth fairy.
How
did you begin illustrating Witch in Training?
I started with the home and characters of Witch in
Training. Betty and her mum go collecting ingredients for cauldron training
- all the spooky, witchy, magical places a young potion maker might need to
visit would be a fun exploration on each spread, but the start and finish are in
their home. I used this as an opportunity to build a house best suited for
witches, with broomstick parking, an adjoining potions room, and a witchy
weathervane, all in one wonky stone and timber home. I experimented with a few
character designs and settled on a traditional-looking witch green skin and a
mane of purple hair, wanting to mirror the Tooth Fairy’s bright colours from
mine and Michelle’s first collaboration. I had a lot of fun designing their
clothing too.
What
was your favourite spread to illustrate in Witch in Training?
I think my favourite spread to illustrate in the book was
the opening spread. It was a lot of fun to introduce the world, the time of
day, and Betty and her cat, Pumpkin Patch, to the reader, and play with the
lighting and composition.
What
are your favourite picture books, both older and more recent?
Growing up my three favourite picture books were:
The Eleventh Hour by Graeme Base
The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies by
Cicely Mary Barker
Portly’s Hat by Lucy Cousins
They are all very different - Base’s story is an intensely
detailed and clever tale of a birthday party full of intrigue and puzzles,
things to be found on every page and a code to break at the end. Cicely Mary
Barker’s fairies are like a field guide to the fairy world and enriched our
games based in fairyland. Portly’s Hat is extremely charming
and funny and bold and like The Eleventh Hour, one that I have very
fond memories of being read to us when we were little, giggling at the same
parts that make me smile now.
These three are still my favourites and sit on my bookshelf
in my studio.
As a grown-up, I’ve added some more favourites.
I saw My Little Hen by Alice and Martin
Provensen at a friend’s house and ordered my own copy. I love chickens and
straw hats and the two unite beautifully in this picture book. There are many
books illustrated by Aurelia Fronty that I love, possibly my favourites are Fil
de Fee (Fairy Threads) or Tristan e Iseo (Tristan snd Iseult) written by
Beatrice Fontanel. I also love Helen Stephens’s work, her books have a
beautiful bold palette and charm.
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A special thanks to our guest this week, Briony May Smith!
Witch in Trainingis now available from all good booksellers.
Today we welcome Michelle Robinsononto Picture Book Party to talk about her new picture book, Witch in Training,illustrated by Briony May Smith!
Betty is brewing
her first-ever potion! And potions need ingredients – ingredients that can only
be found in the WILD. So Betty, with her mum by her side, soars off into the
magical, moonlight night to bravely gather her wicked and wonderful supplies:
vampire fangs, fairy dust, werewolf whiskers, and more. The only problem is,
she might have to come face-to-face with a few monsters – a few treacherous
monsters! – along the way...
With rollicking read-aloud rhymes from Michelle Robinson and
spellbinding art from Briony May Smith, this is a funny, edge-of-your-broomstick
adventure for aspiring witches and wizards everywhere.
Q&A
with Michelle Robinson
What
was the inspiration behind writing Witch in Training?
I have
always desperately wanted to be a witch. The late Jill Murphy has been one of
my favourite writers and illustrators since I was young. I find Mildred
Hubble, The Worst Witch, very relatable.As a child, I used to
make my own ‘potions’ out of anything I could find in the kitchen, bathroom and
garden. As a writer, I love the idea of spell books and I particularly like
spells that rhyme. The idea of chanting words aloud, stirring a concoction of
special ingredients and magicking something into being is just so appealing. It
seems only natural that any young witch would need to learn the ropes along the
way.
Can
you tell us a little bit more about your writing process?
I try
and write something most days, even if it’s just for fun. My favourite time to
write is very early in the morning before the rest of my family are awake. I
find my mind is still in dream mode. The birds are just finding their voices, I
haven’t started worrying about any admin, chores or personal troubles, and I
can write freely without my critical mind clicking into gear. I work anywhere I
can sit comfortably, which is most often in an armchair or on the sofa. I find
sitting at a desk makes writing feel like serious business. Of course, I take my
work seriously, but I like to feel relaxed when I’m writing. I don’t actually
own a desk or an office chair.
Can you tell us more about your journey into the world of children’s books?
Writing
is part of who I am. I have written pretty much every day for the last
twenty-odd years. I get anxious and muddle-headed when life gets in the way of
work. Before becoming a full-time author I spent ten years working as an
advertising creative, writing copy and conceiving ads all day, every day, for
very long hours. I hated it, but it was a good training ground for learning to
accept criticism and how to identify strong ideas. I had always wanted to write
for children, and I started to give it a try in every spare hour outside work.
My first attempts weren’t great, but I stuck at it and put myself on some
courses with the Arvon Foundation. Eventually, my stories improved and I was
taken on by the Catchpole Agency, who I’m still delighted to be represented by.
What
was it like seeing Briony’s illustrations for the first time?
Briony’s
work is so special it honestly feels like very real magic whenever I look at
it. I know it must be very hard work to create illustrations of such a high
standard, but Briony makes it look easy. Beautiful, charming pictures seem to
flow from her fingertips. The light and dappled shade she creates wows me every
time. I particularly love how her characters manage to have a dreamlike
appeal while also being realistic. Briony is one of the finest illustrators the
industry has. I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to be making books with her.
Do
you have a favourite spread in the story?
Honestly:
every single one of them. The house on the first page is so inviting, I want to
move in. I particularly like how Briony included the characters from our
previous book in one scene — I’ll let readers hunt that one out. If I was
forced to pick, I adore the sea monster. The light filtering through the water
and highlighting its scales is amazing, and I love how it shows Betty’s
fearless character. I always try and make my writing as pithy as possible to
leave more space for the art. It’s wonderful to have images like this to lose
yourself in and feel awestruck by the moment.
What
are your favourite picture books, both older and more recent?
Tough
question! My favourites always seem to vanish from my brain whenever I’m asked.
I love The Giant Jam Sandwich by John Vernon Lord and Janet
Burroway, which has an absurd premise and is excellent fun to read aloud. Silly
stories are truly wonderful and I wish they were as appreciated within the
industry as they are by the families who devour them. I really love Fred
Blunt’s work, like Lionel and Gnome. He has a
brilliantly daft sense of humour and his drawings always make me laugh. His
latest collaboration with Steve Webb, Cows Go Boo, is super
funny too. And of course, I love Whatever Next! by Jill Murphy.
My children have long since grown out of it, but I keep a copy on my shelf. If
I ever want to remind myself what standard I’m aiming for, Jill’s work is right
up there at the top. I’ll keep on trying!
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A special thanks to our guest this week, Michelle Robinson!
Witch in Trainingis now available from all good booksellers.
Last month we invited the wonderful Júlia Sardàto take over our @BigPictureBooks Instagram to celebrate the publication of The Queen in the Cave!
Júlia Sardàis a Spanish artist who has illustrated many books for children, including Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein by Linda Bailey,The Liszts by Kyo Maclear, and a number of classics such as Alice in Wonderland, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
The Queen in the Caveis Júlia'sdebut to the Walker list and the first book she has both written and illustrated; she spins an enthralling and evocative tale rich with layers of meaning to be unearthed...
One night, Franca has a dream about a marvellous queen, who lives in a dark cave, deep in the forest. She cannot sit still until she knows if her dream is true! So, together with her younger sisters, Carmela and Tomasina, she ventures into the forest at the end of their garden. As they travel deeper through nettles and thickets, drawing closer and closer to the cave, the world shifts ... everything shrinks and expands at the same time. They are somewhere new now, somewhere different. Here, they meet beasts and creatures that shock and delight them, and escape horrible things that utterly frighten them. They learn how to be brave, to be bold, to face their darkest fears. And what of the queen? Well, what they find in the cave is perhaps the most unexpected thing of all...
You can now follow Julia's takeover here and see a sneak peek below!
@juliasardaportabella : I’ll start by sharing the cover of The Queen in the Cave, my first
authored book. It’s the story of three sisters and how one afternoon they
decide to run away from home. They follow something they can not name, but somehow it feels more compelling and engrossing than the familiar shelter.
Doing this picture book has been an amazingly long process. It was
around 2016 when I got my contract with Walker and started thinking about how I
could explain this weird feeling that the memory of childhood gives me.
The expectations I had, plus the fact that I hadn’t written since long
ago and I felt very shy about it, plus the big amount of illustrations that we
decided this book would have, made me procrastinate and delay the work that had
inevitably to be done.
In the end, it’s just a matter of doing it but, as we all know, all
the demons on our back make it complicated.
Luckily, I had the invaluable help of Maria Tunney and Deirdre
McDermott that made everything possible, I felt all the time as if they were
teaching me how to walk. Sadia Chowdhury was also a huge help during the
painting process, and the most patient.
In this post, you can also see some of the back and forth I did with
the cover, some alternative versions of it and a pencil sketch.
Now I’m very glad the cream option won but, I used to prefer the
orange one. I remember I made a try one night at like 12am with my last neuron
and sent it to Sadia. Later, I regretted giving them another option because
everybody preferred it.
And even before, I preferred the grey one with the frog that has
nothing to do with the story and, as my friend @rosel.david said, looks like a
second-hand shop.
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Head over to the @BigPictureBooks Instagram to find out more about Julia's childhood, the inspiration, influences and references in her illustrations, and what this book has meant to her.
The Queen in the Caveis now available from all good booksellers.
We're just a short time away from the spookiest evening of the year, Halloween! What better way to herald in All Hallows' Eve than with our pick of Halloween picture books:
Pick a Pumpkin
by Patricia Toht, illustrated by Jarvis
Then cart it home, scoop out the insides, carve a scary face, and finally light a candle inside, transforming it into a one-of-a-kind, glowing jack-o’-lantern...
It’s Halloween! Which means it's time to dangle cobwebs and bats from the windows, put on costumes, and – most important of all – visit the pumpkin patch and pick out that perfect pumpkin!
With warm, autumnal art, this is the perfect book to share by flickering candlelight on the spookiest night of the year.
Click here to download our Pick a Pumpkin activity sheets!
Watch our trailer pumpkin-filled trailer below:
Witch in Training
by Michelle Robinson and illustrated by Briony May Smith
Betty is brewing her first ever potion! And potions need ingredients – ingredients that can only be found in the WILD. So Betty, with her mum by her side, soars off into the magical, moonlight night to bravely gather her wicked and wonderful supplies: vampire fangs, fairy dust, werewolf whiskers, and more. The only problem is, she might have to come face-to-face with a few monsters – a few treacherous monsters! – along the way...
With rollicking read-aloud rhymes from Michelle Robinson, and spellbinding art from Briony May Smith, this is a funny, edge-of-your-broomstick adventure for aspiring witches and wizards everywhere.
Beast Feast
by Emma Yarlett
Beast has found a tasty dinner, and he's written to all his friends to invite them to a feast. Unfortunately, Dinner is a child who very much does not want to be eaten. As Beast's friends send their instructions for cooking Dinner, is there any way Dinner can convince Beast to change his menu? A vibrant and charming interactive book with hilarious letters to open.
Gustavo, the Shy Ghost
by Flavia Z. Drago
THE WINNER OF THE KLAUS FLUGGE PRIZE 2021
"A great story about making friends by being yourself and the illustrations are a constant visual delight" Malorie Blackman
Gustavo is a ghost. He is good at doing all sorts of paranormal things, like walking through walls, making objects fly and glowing in the dark. And he loves playing beautiful music on his violin. But Gustavo also has a problem. He is SHY. Which means some things are harder for him to do, like getting in a line to buy eye-scream or talking to the other monsters. But Gustavo longs to be a part of something, he longs to be seen. More than anything, he wants to make a friend. So, plucking up all his courage, he sends a very special letter: “Dear Monsters, I would like to invite you to my violin concert at the Day of the Dead party…”
You can read our Q&A with Flavia here and download our activity sheets here!
Monsters Play... Counting!
by Flavia Z. Drago
Eat like a monster! Eat like Simone. Simone has ONE TONGUE for licking tasty cones.
Count from 1-10 with ten funny and flamboyant monsters! As little ones discover one tongue, two ears – and a lively monster with three eyes! – they'll be inspired to shake and move, and learn the names for their different body parts, too.
With monstrously bright and bold illustrations, rhyming words, and a sturdy feel, this interactive board book is the perfect gift for a new arrival, and a stylish addition to a toddler’s first library. A first counting book has never been wilder or such fun!
Monsters Play... Peekaboo!
by Flavia Z. Drago
Hidden beneath seven flaps, seven silly monsters are waiting to be discovered! Arh-wooh! It's Winston the hairy werewolf. Clackety clack! That must be Mr Bones, the handsome skeleton. Little ones will love making the noises, lifting the flaps, and of course – shouting PEEK-A-BOO! – in this interactive board book full of surprises.
With monstrously bright and bold illustrations, read-aloud sounds, and a sturdy feel, this is the perfect gift for a new arrival, and a stylish addition to a toddler’s first library. A first game of peek-a-boo has never been wilder or such fun!
Monster Food
by Daisy Hirst
Some monsters eat peaches, some monsters eat pears, and then there are monsters who only eat chairs. Some monsters like noodles, some monsters like stew but this little monster is eating a shoe. Daisy Hirst's adorable, cheeky monsters are guaranteed to make little children chuckle! For picky eaters, I-like-everything eaters and I-might-have-liked-it-yesterday-but-I-don't-like-it-today eaters alike!
Monster Clothes
by Daisy Hirst
When monsters get up in the morning, they have to find something to wear. Simon wears socks, Darrell puts on a dress and Terrence tries on a tomato. Meanwhile, Cassie is wearing cars and Lester has the latest fashion – leaves! Daisy's adorable, cheeky little monsters try all sorts of hilarious combinations of clothes that little children won't be able to resist.
All of our Halloween books are available from all good booksellers!
Everyone Sang: A Poem for Every Feeling is a brand new, magnificent poetry anthology chosen by the creator of the bestselling Poetry Pharmacy, William Sieghart.This exquisite gift-book contains over a hundred poems and is illustrated in sensational style by picture-book star Emily Sutton.
Divided into four thoughtfully curated sections, including Poems to Make You Smile, Poems to Move You, Poems to Give You Hope and Poems to Calm and Connect You, the poems originate from an extraordinary and diverse range of sources, from Maya Angelou to A.A. Milne, Lemn Sissay, Jackie Kay, Carol Ann Duffy, Joseph Coelho, Kae Tempest, W.B. Yeats, Christina Rossetti and Emily Dickinson, among many others.
Combining traditional favourites with recent gems, there are poems to delight, inspire, entertain, intrigue, console and uplift readers of all ages.
Watch our Everyone Sang: A Poem for Every Feeling trailer below:
One night, Franca has a dream about a marvellous queen, who lives in a dark cave, deep in the forest. She cannot sit still until she knows if her dream is true! So, together with her younger sisters, Carmela and Tomasina, she ventures into the forest at the end of their garden. As they travel deeper through nettles and thickets, drawing closer and closer to the cave, the world shifts ... everything shrinks and expands at the same time. They are somewhere new now, somewhere different. Here, they meet beasts and creatures that shock and delight them, and escape horrible things that utterly frighten them. They learn how to be brave, to be bold, to face their darkest fears. And what of the queen? Well, what they find in the cave is perhaps the most unexpected thing of all...
Click here to read out behind the scenes piece with Júlia.
Gustavo, the Shy Ghost
by Flavia Z. Drago
THE WINNER OF THE KLAUS FLUGGE PRIZE 2021
"A great story about making friends by being yourself and the illustrations are a constant visual delight" Malorie Blackman
Gustavo is a ghost. He is good at doing all sorts of paranormal things, like walking through walls, making objects fly and glowing in the dark. And he loves playing beautiful music on his violin. But Gustavo also has a problem. He is SHY. Which means some things are harder for him to do, like getting in a line to buy eye-scream or talking to the other monsters. But Gustavo longs to be a part of something, he longs to be seen. More than anything, he wants to make a friend. So, plucking up all his courage, he sends a very special letter: “Dear Monsters, I would like to invite you to my violin concert at the Day of the Dead party…”
You can read our Q&A with Flavia here and download our activity sheets here!
Now out in paperback!
It's Mine! by Emma Yarlett
Once there was a mysterious thing. Nobody knew how it got there, it just was. “It’s mine, all MINE!” say Mouse, Frog, Fox and Bear. But is it a piece of fruit, a wheel, a ball, a chair or something else altogether? And who will get to keep it in the end?
Everyone Sang: A Poem for Every Feeling
by William Sieghart and illustrated by Emily Sutton
This exquisite gift-book contains over a hundred poems, chosen by creator of the bestselling ThePoetry Pharmacy, William Sieghart, and illustrated in sensational style by picture-book star Emily Sutton. Divided into four thoughtfully-curated sections, including Poems to Make You Smile, Poems to Move You, Poems to Give You Hope and Poems to Calm and Connect You, the poems originate from an extraordinary and diverse range of sources, from Maya Angelou to Roger McGough, Lemn Sissay, Jackie Kay, Carol Ann Duffy, Joseph Coelho, Kae Tempest, W.B. Yeats, Christina Rossetti and Emily Dickinson, among many others. Combining traditional favourites with recent gems, here are poems to delight, inspire, entertain, intrigue, console and uplift readers of all ages.
Monsters Play... Counting!
by Flavia Z. Drago
Eat like a monster! Eat like Simone. Simone has ONE TONGUE for licking tasty cones. Count from 1-10 with ten funny and flamboyant monsters! As little ones discover one tongue, two ears – and a lively monster with three eyes! – they'll be inspired to shake and move, and learn the names for their different body parts, too.
With monstrously bright and bold illustrations, rhyming words, and a sturdy feel, this interactive board book is the perfect gift for a new arrival, and a stylish addition to a toddler’s first library. A first counting book has never been wilder or such fun!
Monsters Play... Peekaboo!
by Flavia Z. Drago
Hidden beneath seven flaps, seven silly monsters are waiting to be discovered! Arh-wooh! It's Winston the hairy werewolf. Clackety clack! That must be Mr Bones, the handsome skeleton. Little ones will love making the noises, lifting the flaps, and of course – shouting PEEK-A-BOO! – in this interactive board book full of surprises.
With monstrously bright and bold illustrations, read-aloud sounds, and a sturdy feel, this is the perfect gift for a new arrival, and a stylish addition to a toddler’s first library. A first game of peek-a-boo has never been wilder or such fun!
BANG!
by Katherine Halligan and illustrated by Amy Grimes
In the beginning there was nothing, and then – BANG! – the universe was born. Discover the incredible story of billions of years of life on Earth, from the first tiny cells, through the age of dinosaurs and prehistoric beasts, all the way to the first humans. With playful text and stylish illustrations, this awe-inspiring history is perfect for curious young minds.
Round and Round the Garden
by Shirley Hughes
This classic collection features 60 beautifully illustrated nursery rhymes from Shirley’s childhood to inspire a new generation to discover their own favourite rhymes – and sing them wherever they go. Parents and children can enjoy these rhymes all through the day: from walking to the park on a cold and frosty morning with “Here we go round the mulberry bush”, splashing about in a tub singing “Rub-a-dub-dub” or going to bed with “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”. This collection is the perfect addition to any child's bookshelf.
My Big Book of Transport
by Moira Butterfield and illustrated by Bryony Clarkson
Come and hitch a ride in vehicles of every shape and size – from family cars to double-decker buses, chugging tractors to speedy supercars, and gigantic monster-trucks to noisy fire engines. With bounce-along rhythms and fascinating facts from author Moira Butterfield, and bright, lively pictures by rising star Bryony Clarkson, any single reading of My Big Book of Transport is sure to result in a victory lap or two!
The History of Everywhere
by Philip Parker and illustrated by Liz Kay
Did you know the woolly mammoths were still around when the Egyptians built their pyramids? Or that Leonardo Da Vinci lived at the same time as Henry VIII and the Aztecs? Welcome to The History of Everywhere, a fascinating guide to all the stuff you never knew happened at the same time! In lively maps, see the whole world of history: from ancient times to the modern day, watch civilizations rise and fall, spot fascinating connections and coincidences, and discover the people and events you never learnt about in school. Prepare for a fascinating journey around the world that will change the way you see history!
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Our October releases will be available this month from all good booksellers!
