Crowvus Book Blog

Wow! What a week it has been! We're now settled back home in Caithness, but last week we were dashing from one school to the next to conduct workshops. Each of the schools had something amazing to offer and I loved every second of it. That is, once I'd plucked up the courage to actually get out of the car! The nerves didn't settle down until we were driving back north. Even then, niggling feelings of doubt were clawing at me. "What if they don't like my book?" "Oh no, I should have done this differently." Rather than nattering about the multitude of events, I have compiled a photo diary of our time on the Taking Wing Book Tour. Of course, there are very few pictures of the school events because, well, it's a school! One school shared their photos publicly some one of these is included... The trip started off well, leaving Mum with a copy of Taking Wing. Here's Mum - supportive as ever! Here we are - arrived at the Guest Hou...

12-year-old Jake has been suppressing his heartbreak over the loss of his mother for the past four years. But his emotions have a way of haunting his dreams and bubbling to the surface when he least expects it. When Jake learns how to take control in his dreams, he becomes a lucid dreamer, and that’s when the battle really heats up. Using his wits to dodge bullies by day and a nefarious kangaroo hopping ever closer by night, Jake learns about loss, bravery, the power of love, and how you cannot fully heal until you face your greatest fear. This uncompromising novel is a magical yet honest exploration of emotional healing after a devastating loss. Described as a  “poignant coming-of-age novel (that) offers a sensitive and honest examination of a child’s spiritual and emotional battles”  by The BookLife Prize. This moving story is in the genre of  magical realism , a type of storytelling popularized by acclaimed authors such as Neil Gaiman, Rebecca Stead, Katherine A...

As promised, here is my 2nd class novel suggestion for a primary school classroom. It has been tried and tested in my own classroom and the children loved it. "Children of Green Knowe" by Lucy Boston is a really great story to read in the lead-up to Christmas. Here is the blurb from Goodreads: ""Tolly" Toseland 7 is rowed up to great-gran Linnet Oldknow by servant Boggis - there has always been a Boggis at Green Knowe. The real "castle" is over 900 years old. Gran tells old family stories, and songs. Over the generations there have been many who can see, hear, and feel the ghosts, evoked by white-on-black illustrations. Toby 14, Alexander, and Linnet 6 linger after the Plague, as does the cursed topiary Green Noah." While it is my policy to use the blurbs from Goodreads on my blog, quite frankly, I don't think this blurb does the book justice. It seems to have been written by someone who is trying to bring the book up to date...

"A Wounded World" by Crit Kincaid Book Review ☆☆☆☆☆ “A Wounded World” was one of 5 books I got off Amazon. I’d just got a subscription for Kindle Unlimited and I knew I would want to read something while on the train north. I scrolled through my Kindle and clicked on this book at random – entirely unsure what to expect but I wasn’t holding my breath… The first chapter gripped my attention in an uncommon way. I have not read many books where my interest is piqued so near the beginning but I found that I really did not want to put my kindle down. The Highland scenery went by…and I was still engrossed in this book. As far as I’m concerned, a book that can elicit heightened emotions from me is a sign of good writing. At one point, I looked up from the ‘page’, needing to find the composure to carry on. My Mum notices, as she does, and moves forward to place her hand over mine. “Don’t read it!” She says. “No, I have to.” I stubbornly look back down to my kind...