A wonderfully messy family
Elisa Puricelli Guerra: Un Ciclone In Salotto (A Cyclone In The Living Room* originally published by Giunti Editore in 2012) Elisa Puricelli Guerra: La trisnonna in cima all’albero (Great-great-grandmother at the top of the tree* originally published by Giunti Editore in 2012) Elisa Puricelli Guerra was born in Milan, Italy. She always dreamed of being a writer (or an astronaut or a witch) and her love of books was born when her mother read her the Pippi Longstocking books. Like Pippi, Guerra also has red hair and this caused her a lot of problems. She never got away with anything at school because her flaming red hair always caught the attention of the teachers. As a writer, the protagonists of her stories are often redheads, but in return they are extra skilled, so they get away with a little more than her. Guerra also works as a freelance writer and…
The endless sea
Jonne Kramer: The Riddle of the Sea (Picadilly Press 2022; originally published under the title Het raadsel van de zee by Billy Bones in 2019) This year, the Netherlands will be the guest of honor at the Budapest International Book Festival. Now I recommend you a novel by a Dutch writer. Jonne Kramer is a Dutch children’s book writer. After her studies in Amsterdam, she studied linguistics and creative writing at the University of Westminster in London. In 2017, she returned to Amsterdam, where she began studying Dutch as a second language and multilingualism at the University of Amsterdam in 2020. The writer also worked as an advertising writer, singer-songwriter, and multilingual education consultant. Since 2019, she has been teaching language and storytelling classes, and since 2020 she has been teaching at a language school and working as a consultant. Already in high school, she participated in the production of…
Emily Windsnap, the mermaid
Liz Kessler: Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist (Orion Children’s Books 2006) Emily Windsnap is a completely ordinary girl who lives with her mother in a small seaside town. The family’s only friend is the lighthouse keeper. However, Emily’s life changes when she discovers during a swimming lesson that her legs turn into tails in the water. Emily is the kind of girl who never looks for trouble, but always finds it… However, with her perseverance and kindness, she always solves problems and helps others. I read the first two volumes of the series last summer, and the third one this year. In this story, Emily finds a special ring that belongs to Neptune, the lord of the seas, thus angering the king (again). However, Emily doesn’t just have to put her own life in order, the fate of several people depends on her. You might think this…
Looking for Emily
Fiona Longmuir: Looking for Emily (Nosy Crow 2022) Lily Hargan moves to a small seaside town with her mother. That sounds good, but in reality Edge is such a small town that if you drive by and blink, you’ve already passed it. It is nice and quiet, but Lily loved the noise of the city and the fact that there were so many people she didn’t know, so she could make up stories about them. In Edge, everyone knows each other. She doesn’t make friends at school either, so only the books remain because you can’t be disappointed in them. However, one day she finds a secret museum that introduces the life of an ordinary girl, Emily. The girl lived in the city years ago, but disappeared without a trace. Lily decides to find out what happened to her. In the meantime, she even finds friends. I really liked the…
Falvia Sorrentino Readathon Wrap-Up
Sylvia Bishop: The Midnight Thief (Scholastic 2021) Cerrie Burnell: Wilder Than Midnight (Puffin Books 2022) Molly Brooks: Sanity and Tallulah (Little, Brown Ink 2018) Justyn Edwards: The Great Fox Illusion (Walker Books 2022) Justyn Edwards: The Great Fox Heist (Walker Books 2023) Ally Carter: Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery (Orchard Books 2021) The Flavia Sorrentino Readathon was the second book challenge I organized as part of BogiWrites. It was inspired by my favorite illustrator, whose books I have read before. I was so taken by her style that I looked for the works she illustrated. In doing so, I also got to know many new-to-me authors, from whom I read other books later. During the Readathon, I read six books, five of which were illustrated by Flavia Sorrentino, and the sixth was written and drawn by another talented illustrator, Molly Brooks. The latter one is a comic book about…
Home sweet home
Ally Carter: Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valour (Orchard Books 2020) Ally Carter: Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery (Orchard Books 2021) April has never had a home, just a key that she always wears around her neck. Her mother left her when she was two years old and she has been waiting for her return since then. She has never felt at home anywhere, but she doesn’t need to, because one day her mom will come back for her anyway. However, now she enters the Winterborne Home, where she is shocked to find that it is not as horrible as the places she had to live until now. For example, all the children who live here are special and unique in their own way. She might even find a home now, but nothing at Winterborne Mansion is what it seems and it’s up to the kids to unravel the…