Tag Archives: Younger Readers

Witch for a Week

by Stephen | Leave a comment

Kaye Umansky. Simon and Schuster. (192p) ISBN 9781471160905

Witch for a Week

Witch for a Week

Elsie is chosen to look after Magenta’s Witch Tower for a week whilst Magenta goes to see her sister. Elsie doesn’t realise why in the beginning but sees it as a good opportunity to get away from the domestic chaos of her house where her younger brothers tend to chew on anything, including to her dismay, books.

Witch for a Week has a lovely cast of supporting characters we follow Elsie through her discovery of why she was chosen to look after Magenta’s tower.

There are plenty laughs and comedic exchanges throughout the book, with some really silly bits, but everything sorts itself out in the end.

This was a wonderful evenings read and would be an exciting book to read to lots of younger children, with plenty of exclamations and different voices.

Absolutely love the illustrations from Ashley King.

I’m really looking forward to the continuation of the series and finding out how the characters get on and develop.

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Storm Hound

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Claire Fayers. Pan Macmillan. (256p) ISBN 9781509895045

Storm Hound

Storm Hound

Storm of Odin, youngest hound in the Wild Hunt, finds himself in a spot of trouble after falling to earth. He is no longer a gigantic, ravening force of nature tearing the very fabric of the sky apart, he is now a cute puppy with floppy ears and a flappy tail!

The tail weaves Welsh mythology into the modern day, old sorcerors, shape-shifting boys, and a trio of dark, but oh so stupid, wizards looking to steal the power of Storm to power their own magic and ambitions.

A wonderful adventure, that was so funny I was snorting in public (strange looks in Nero), the sections of misunderstanding between Storm and the human world are hilarious and so well written you would think Claire had first hand experience.

I loved this so much I actually had to read it a second time to make sure it was a 5-star book that I will be recommending to everyone and their granny.

I received a copy of Storm Hound from NetGalley for an honest review.

If you want to help and support this blog you could become a Patreon which would help pay for my hosting, domain names, streaming services, and the occasional bag of popcorn to eat while watching films.

If you can’t support with a monthly subscription a tip at my Ko-Fi is always appreciated, as is buying things from my Ko-Fi Shop.

You can always email me on contact@bigbeardedbookseller.com with any suggestions.

Amelia Fang and the Unicorn Lords

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Laura Ellen Anderson. HarperCollins. (240p) ISBN 9781405287067

Amelia Fang and the Unicorn Lords

Amelia Fang and the Unicorn Lords

Amelia Fang and the Unicorn Lords is the second in Laura Ellen Anderson’s Amelia Fang series finds Amelia and friends travelling to the Kingdom of the Light and face their fears.

Amelia is on a quest to rescue Tangine’s mother, Queen Fairyweather who has been missing for a while now.

Disguises are donned, angel-kittens are faced, puns are plotted, unicorns are discovered. New friendships are forged and truths uncovered in the frightening Kingdom of the Light.

Once more a fast-paced, funny adventure that takes the traditional ideas of Dark and Light and twists and plays with it in a good-natured way.

Very popular and so many youngsters have been asking for Book 3 and were sad that it wasn’t out yet but pleased when I could tell them when it was coming out, none of us though are very good at waiting.

If you want to help and support this blog you could become a Patreon which would help pay for my hosting, domain names, streaming services, and the occasional bag of popcorn to eat while watching films.

If you can’t support with a monthly subscription a tip at my Ko-Fi is always appreciated, as is buying things from my Ko-Fi Shop.

You can always email me on contact@bigbeardedbookseller.com with any suggestions.

Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball

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Laura Ellen Anderson. Egmont UK. (224p) ISBN 9781405286725

Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball

Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball

Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball is the first in the Amelia Fang series by Laura Ellen Anderson, and with a beautifully illustrated cover (shiny!) and orange sprayed edges to match the orange theme on the cover it really makes you want to own it as an object in itself.

Then you get to the story and follow the adventure of Amelia and her friends; Squashy (a cheery pumpkin), Florence (I’m not a beast, I’m a rare Yeti), and Grimaldi (just a little Death) and are also pleased that it is a great, fun story.

Amelia is a Vampire but she (and other vampires) don’t drink blood as it makes your breath bad, and all our preconceptions of the creatures of the Kingdom of the Dark are shattered, they are kind, funny and caring. That is apart from Tangine who is extremely spoilt.

There are mysteries to uncover, clues to follow and revelations to come, all the while accompanied by wonderful illustration and peppered with great humour.

I loved this book and so has my niece who got to read it immediately after me.

If you want to help and support this blog you could become a Patreon which would help pay for my hosting, domain names, streaming services, and the occasional bag of popcorn to eat while watching films.

If you can’t support with a monthly subscription a tip at my Ko-Fi is always appreciated, as is buying things from my Ko-Fi Shop.

You can always email me on contact@bigbeardedbookseller.com with any suggestions.