Unleash Your Creative Monster (AGAIN) by Andy Jones, illustrations by Olaf Falafel, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

This post includes a review of a book that I first posted three years ago. I’m partly reposting it because I’m short of time but, mainly, I’m reposting it because of a recent encounter with some young writers, aged 9 and 8 years. They are daughters of our friends, very keen readers, and they love writing. They had both brought a story to read to us as part of their trip. I was put on the spot and asked to give them some writing tips.

PHEW! This book sprang to mind and I raced to my bookshelf and brought it out.

The book is packed full of advice, tips and writing prompts FOR EVERYONE. As the blurb states ‘this book contains essential skills for storytellers, the secret weapons of successful authors, and over 50 prompts and exercises to inspire not only young writers but old and gnarled ones like me too’.

There are four sections: Training your creative monster, Monster mistakes, When your monster gets stuck, and Feeding your creative monster. You don’t have to follow it from section to section, it’s designed for dipping into.

The first exercise invites you to create your own creative monster and give it a name. It suggests keeping your name secret because the mystery – that secret bond between writer and monster - is part of its power. Some monsters do reveal their names as Olaf’s illustrations point out and that is OK too.

On every page, Olaf Falafel’s illustrations make you smile, illuminate the concepts, and at times reassure you. For instance, the scary wind–up monkey says, ‘I wouldn’t say I’m evil but I do eat beans straight from the tin’.

It is not patronising or dull. The muses are mentioned, rich vocabulary is used, and grammar and literary concepts are explained with clarity and warmth. You will find an explanation of Chekhov’s gun and quotes from Stephen King. It shows you how to create FSPs (Fantastic Story Possibilities) and to play with metaphors but to mix them at your peril! It encourages you to make mistakes, because at least you are making something, and to write fearlessly. There is advice on how to start and run your own writers’ group and support on drafting and editing your work. The editing checklist is brilliant. The pages of advice on adding rhythm and variety to your sentences are the best!

The book emphasises the importance of developing your own style and reminds us that, ‘There are a lot of so-called “rules” for writing, but rules are like eggs. Not everyone likes them, some are bad, and all of them were made to be broken’.

A creative monster should visit every school in the land and deliver a copy to each classroom, but only after making the head teacher say ‘bum glue’ three times in morning assembly.

ISBN 978-1-4063-9662-1

www.walker.co.uk

Meet the Artist – James McNeill Whistler by Dide Tengiz; review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

It is heartening to read that that children’s enjoyment of reading and their daily reading habits have risen for the first time in five years. Good news but let’s not forget that in 2025 it reached a record twenty year low. The report also showed that the disadvantage gap was widening.

Check out the National Literacy Trust’s report on children and young people’s reading in 2026 here.

https://literacytrust.org.uk/research-services/research-reports/children-and-young-peoples-reading-in-2026/

In the report, nearly half the children (48.7%) said that reading helps them explore their interests. This got me thinking. How are the other 51.3% supported to explore their interests? Online, shared conversations with fellow enthusiasts, collecting e.g.  football stickers or building up a fossil collection? When I’m working with school groups at The Wallace Collection, I often ask them what they collect and, after a moment’s hesitation, I’m given a long list. So far, however, no-one has spoken about building a book collection or collecting comics.

Perhaps it is the right sort of book that is required to explore interests. Yesterday I went to Tate Britain to see the James McNeill Whistler exhibition and I bought Dide Tengiz’s art activity book about the artist.

 Meet the Artist is a series of activity picture books that introduces children to the lives and works of artists. The accompanying activities are designed to encourage children to use art to explore themes, express their own ideas, and develop a lifelong love of art.

It is a good size book, approx. 24cm x 28cm, with the feel of an artist’s sketch book. Some of the activities include an invitation to go on a walk and sketch a street scene, listen to your favourite song and draw how it makes you feel, design patterns or write a poem, or identify places where you felt happy or sad.

Dide’s illustrations capture Whistler’s art whilst maintaining her own unique and beautiful style. Dide says, ‘I love storytelling and creating a sense of place and feeling in my work using colour and observational drawing.’

Check out Dide’s website: https://www.didetengiz.com/

I hope her unpublished silent graphic novel, Slow Things, gets snapped up by a publisher soon. This wordless novel would make a perfect, enjoyable ‘read’. Now that is another theme for a blogpost!

Tate Publishing

ISBN 978-1-917055-12-3

 

                     How I Learned to Read by Lynda Waterhouse

I have always been fascinated by the mysterious process by which a child learns to read. In my experience there is always a moment where all the mechanical parts - the letters and sounds, the handling of books, the listening to and shared enjoyment of stories, the musicality of language in songs and poems - all come together and everything clicks into place.

I’m not even sure what reading is. The dictionary defines it as ‘The activity or skill of looking at and comprehending the meaning of written or printed matter by interpreting the characters or symbols of which it is composed.’

That covers the mechanics but what about that inexplicable process where the words transport you into another world? Or provide you with information and food for thought?  As Dr Seuss says, ‘The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.’

It got me thinking about my own reading journey.

Early memories

My grandfather, William Waterhouse, from the age of 11, was a ‘half timer’ working for half a day in the local cotton mill and receiving half a day of schooling. This left him with a thirst for knowledge and he educated himself. As a child we had many of his books on our shelves. Reading was a form of self-betterment for him and his family as well as a form of escapism. He died before I was born but his legacy lived on in the many books he left behind.

At home we had a very old book of Bible stories. Each page folded out to make a 3D image. This book was fragile and had to be handled carefully. We were not a religious family, but my Mum believed in hedging your bets and liked the social side of the local church. My Dad, coloured by his own experiences of intolerance during the war, was scathing about it. I was about three years old and I recall ‘pretending’ to read the words that accompanied the pictures to the delight of my parents who encouraged me to continue doing this.

The subversion of words

I was in infant school, about Year 1, and our teacher read us the A.A. Milne poem Furry Bear. The whole class shrieked with delight and made her read it over and over again for days. The reason was these lines

‘For I’d have fur boots and a brown fur wrap

And brown fur knickers and a big fur cap’

We were making our teacher say ‘knickers’ over and over!

All was going smoothly, I was reading, writing and loving words THEN I BECAME PART OF AN EDUCATIONAL EXPERIMENT.

ITA Experiment

With no explanation nor rhyme nor reason, our school introduced a new way of teaching reading called ITA or Initial Teaching Alphabet. This method was created by the MP James Pitman, the grandson of Isaac Pitman who devised a shorthand system. He was not an educationalist. It was an attempt to simplify English and accelerate learning. I had to learn 44 symbols for each of the sounds in English. To add to my confusion the spellings were presented with sounds of someone who spoke with Received Pronunciation, not an Oldham accent.

It was traumatic and made no sense to me but being a compliant child I went along with it and went from being a successful reader and speller to being a slow learner needing extra help.  Then after a year it disappeared without explanation and I was told to go back to the way I had learned to read before and that I was not a failure after all. It has left me with a distrust at the over reliance on synthetic phonics.

The library is my lifesaver

Once I had recovered from my ITA experience (although my spelling never really did) I became and remain a voracious reader. During the summer holidays I had many reading adventures thanks to Oldham Library and the access to books that it provided to me for free.

Reading for pleasure remains one of the joys of life, alongside making up stories to the ‘pictures’ I see in art galleries and a love of subversive language. How did you learn to read?

The Crocodile on the Bus – Capturing memories before the Elephant forgets by Lynda Waterhouse

 

This is the second community short film I’ve produced in two years with funding from Southwark Council’s Neighbourhood Fund. It was twelve months in the making, on an excruciatingly low budget, drawing on tons of favours and goodwill and leaving me a bag of nerves.

Never one to make life easy for myself  by  following the exact same model as its companion, ‘The Old Cow in the Kitchen’ completed in 2024.

 https://www.southwark.gov.uk/southwark-presents/film-month-old-cow-kitchen-and-other-stories-2024)

I wanted this film to generate some new creative work so I invited Paul Taylor to write a poem using some of the old photographs of the area. He produced three stunning poems.  Sara Byers composed a song based on some of the accounts of cinemagoers to the iconic and long demolished Trocadero Cinema.

Our filmmaking process to the onlooker must have appeared lackadaisical and random but it was a deliberate decision on mine and filmmaker Ludmilla Andrews’s part not to simply ‘interview’ people. We wanted to take our time, share conversations, laughter and cake, trusting that the stories would eventually unfold. This meant that we built lasting friendships but also that Ludmilla had a huge task editing all the material. It also meant that some surprising stories emerged.

How many times have people said, mainly at funerals, ‘I wished I had asked them about... and now we’ll never know.’ Another aim of the project was to remind people to have those conversations and overcome any shyness about asking certain questions.  

Working on this project also held up a mirror to my own writing process reminding me that I always start a writing project with a character who interests me and often come up with a title long before the story is fully formed. Then comes a first draft followed by a long editing and cutting period.

So as the holiday season approaches and family and friends gather, now might be the perfect time to ask those questions.  Go on I dare you!

 

A Few Rules for Predicting the Future by Octavia E. Butler, Art by Manzel Bowman review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Don’t be deceived by this slight volume. It is packed with wonderful words, Manzel Bowman’s stunning artwork and sage advice from the legendary science fiction writer and Afro futurist pioneer, Octavia E Butler (1947-2006). She was the first science fiction writer to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship “genius” grant in 1995 and the first African American woman to win widespread recognition and receive awards. Her gripping novels reflect on racial injustice, women’s rights and climate collapse.

Her archive is kept at The Huntington Library in California. Find out more about her here;

https://www.octaviabutler.com/

In her dystopian novel Parable of the Talents, (published in 1998), a dictatorial presidential candidate, Andrew Steele Jarret, accuses whole groups of people, without grounds, of being drug dealers and rapists. He uses the slogan. ‘Make America great again, ’and storms to victory in 2032.   

A Few Rules for Predicting the Future was originally published as an essay in Essence magazine in 2000. This edition contains art work by American artist, Manzel Bowman aka artxman. He is a digital collagist and painter who uses digital media to create Afro- Futurist art. His art ,matched with Octavia’s wise words, make this a book to collect and keep and re-read on a regular basis.

This powerful essay was inspired by a student misquoting her response to his question, “So do you really believe that in the future we’re going to have the kind of trouble you write about in your books?”

Octavia states,

‘..the one thing that I and my main characters never do when contemplating the future is give up hope. In fact, the very act of trying to look ahead to discern possibilities and offer warnings is itself an act of hope.’

The essay is divide into four sections;

Learn from the past

Respect the law of consequences

Be aware of your perspective

Count on the surprises

Sage advice for life as well as for writers.

The essay begs with the question, ‘Why try to predict the future at all if it’s so difficult, so nearly impossible?’

 

‘Because, most of all, our tomorrow is the child of our today. Through thought and deed, we exert a great deal of influence over this child, even though we can’t control it absolutely. Best to think about it, though. Best to try and shape it into something good. Best to do that for any child.’

This edition would be a great gift for someone who has just finished school, or who is anxious about the world and wants to shape the future into something good.

ISBN 978-1-035 427604

Headline –www. Headline.co.uk

Share your voice – National Day of Writing June 25th by Lynda Waterhouse

 In 2024 the National Literacy Trust undertook its annual survey into children’s writing habits. The results were shocking. Fewer than 3 in 10 (28%) children and young people aged 8 -18 said that they enjoy writing in their free time.

 Levels of enjoyment have decreased by 18.1 percentage points over the past 14 years, with levels decreasing by 11.9 percentage points over the past year alone. Just 1 in 9 (11.1%) children and young people told us they that they wrote something in their free time. Interestingly, the data shows that opposite is true of children’s experience of writing in schools with more than half of the children and young people saying they enjoy the writing that they do at school.

Findings show that children’s and young people’s enjoyment of writing and frequency of writing in their free time is at an unprecedented low

What’s happened to writing for enjoyment?

Children and young people deserve to be re - connected to the amazing art form that develops their creativity, gives them a voice, helps them to understand the word and supports their mental well-being.

Wednesday 25^th June is National writing Day. The theme for this year is Share Your Voice. Everyone is invited to take part.

First Story have commissioned Dean Atta to create an activity to inspire us, so let’s get started!

Check out these websites. They have lots of wonderful resources .

https://firststory.org.uk/writeday/?mc_cid=d8b31fb5ea&mc_eid=a7f4527e64

https://literacytrust.org.uk/about-us/national-writing-day/

https://nationalpoetryday.co.uk/national-poetry-day/poems-and-resources/

Have fun sharing your voice!

Fridge Philosophy Part Two by Lynda Waterhouse

 

 I posted Fridge Philosophy Part One in 2011. I still have the same fridge although like me, it’s now a little rusty round the edges, but still functioning. Some of the same magnets remain but there have been some additions.

Lately I’ve found myself staring at my fridge door in preference to looking at the news. My eyes skimming over the rust and dust and focusing on the magnets searching for clues.

Clues for what you may ask.

The meaning of life? The essence of myself? The remembrance of things past? Or simply the urge of the collector to ogle their horde?

Consider the Fridge.

There is the vibrant ‘The Springtime of Flight’ by Tirzah Garwood. This painting was one of a series of stunning works made in her bed during her final months in a nursing home. She is gaining more recognition as an artist in her own right and not simply as the partner of a well-known artist. She reminds me to always try to capture the beauty of a fleeting moment.

Close by is a black and white still from the first comedy film ever made in 1895: ‘The Sprinkler Sprinkled.’ It was created by the Lumière Brothers. A souvenir from a recent visit to the Musée Lumière in Lyon. Watching the film made me smile. Laughter is timeless.

There are a couple of magnets featuring Frederick Prince of Wales, the eldest son of George ll and the father of George lll. A cultured and artistic man who, to put it mildly, was not liked by his parents. He died prematurely at age 44. His son became King George lll and Frederick is a forgotten footnote. I am fond of Frederick and the way he parented his own son with love and attention.

The cat by Elizabeth Blackadder is there because my life contains a black and white cat. Mimi, whose tail you can see, is the latest tuxedo cat who came into my life when her previous owner went into a care home.

Whenever I look at a Holbein drawing or painting I am awed by the freshness and humanity he depicts. Holbein is my direct line to humanity.

John Singer Sargent’s portrait of Dr Pozzi stands on my fridge as a reminder of the Sargent and Fashion exhibition at Tate Britain. So good that I visited it twice. It was thrilling to see Ellen Terry’s Lady Macbeth costume beside the painting and to stare in horror at the glistening green beetles sewn into her gown.

The woman dressed in black with the large white collar reminds of how I marvelled at Frans Hal’s addition of a fly to the painting, some kind of memento mori I supposed until the fly moved. Life does sometimes imitate art.

The Paolozzi magnet came from an exhibition of his work in The Whitechapel Gallery. Many years ago I was fortunate to meet with Paolozzi and he gifted me a maquette of an alligator called Meezles as he liked my idea for a story about a boy with measles who travels to a mysterious land and meets the strange creatures, Meezles and Scarletina. The idea of writing a story about measles was rejected as being ridiculous as vaccination had everything under control. Art does sometimes imitate life.

What secrets does your fridge contain?

 

The Process of Making ‘The Old Cow in the Kitchen’, by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Here is the film.

This is how the project took shape.

https://www.londonsscreenarchives.org.uk/title/22456/

Ideas form and take shape

Rewind to the late 1990s, a piece of graffiti on a wall in the Elephant and Castle said:

A fungus grows on our collected Dickens

Back home I took the line and added one of my own to make a poem.

The soil of the Elephant makes rich pickings

Like a demented Cassandra I wailed on and on about how the developers will move in and destroy/sell off the area and that opportunities must not be wasted.

I never finished the poem to my satisfaction. It languished in my unfinished drawer.

In the 2010s I began a poem, ‘The Marmalade Ladies’, inspired by two older sisters, Marian and Jessie, who made tons of delicious marmalade to sell every year at West Square Summer Fete.

 I never finished this poem either. It also languished in my unfinished drawer.

Fast forward a decade or so and, as part of a campaign group set up to protest at the high rise land grab by off-shore developers, I met Marian who was now in her 90s. She told me she was leaving to move into sheltered accommodation.

There was no time to waste languishing or otherwise. Her memories needed to be captured.

Encouragement

So many people offered encouragement and support. There was a neighbour, John, who had lived in the area all his life, and was a treasure trove of stories, photographs and connections. There was Ludmilla, a film maker and housing co-op member. We’d recently worked together (with no funding) to make a short film about housing co-ops: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irrF_AdbaKI&t=513s

Our Local councillor, Maria Linford-Hall, encouraged me to apply for some funding from Southwark Council’s Neighbourhood Fund. A local historical society agreed to vouch for me and manage the funding. We started visiting and recording Marian and John began to write down his memories.

The End Goal

At first our goal was simply to make a short film capturing memories, put on an event, and stay in budget.

Experimenting in style

We began by recording conversations loosely based around a theme but trying to capture the feel of a conversation between friends rather than a specific interview. We did experiment with a more traditional question and answer approach but it just didn’t work.

The idea changes shape and the End Goalposts shifted

John kept on writing, Marian kept sharing, AND we discovered Marian’s father’s photographs and felt that his work needed to be exhibited at the event.

I invited some people to sing and for local poet, Paul Taylor, to recite some of his poems. I finished the ‘Marmalade Ladies’ poem and dared myself to read it. We made John’s writing and photos into a booklet. There was a memory table for people to share their memories. The End Goal had shifted.

Celebrating is not showing off

By nature I am an introvert. I am also a product of my northern working class background where any attempt to push yourself forward was considered ‘making a show of yourself.’ This had to be worked on.

So, during this process I learned that ideas can take a long time to shape and form and sometimes they are developed in unexpected ways. It’s always good to have an End Goal to work towards but, once you start writing, expect it to change in surprising ways and embrace that change. Experimenting in style is a good thing because you can tell what doesn’t work as well as what does, and always take time to celebrate your achievements! 

Art Matters by Lynda Waterhouse

 

For the first time in my life I splurged and bought something in the Black Friday sale. It was a print by Bob and Roberta Smith (aka Patrick Brill).

Many years ago, when visiting the Deptford X Festival, in a damp railway arch I discovered the artist known as Bob and Roberta Smith. He was inviting people to ‘decommission’ their art and in return receive a certificate and a badge telling you ‘I am no longer an artist’.

I loved it! There was something deceptively simple and warm about the exhibition and my brain had been fried by a lot of super intense and impenetrable video installations which were in vogue at the time.

 The ‘I promise never to make art again’ exhibition made me smile and then it made me ask questions including the age old chestnut – what is art? Who gets to make art and who decides what is good and bad art? If you are failing as an artist (or writer) to sell any work, is it worth carrying on or should you just give up? 

Bob and Roberta Smith says, ‘Asking questions is what art is about.’

When I’m working with school groups in art galleries I often begin by asking what do they think they need to be a writer.  After we have considered pencil, paper and ideas, I share that for me the most important thing is to be ‘nosey’, curious about life and to ask questions. My two favourite questions being ‘I wonder’ and ‘What if.’ If you ask those questions then you can usually find your way to a story.

I also encourage ‘slow looking’ at art; an almost meditative process of paying attention and noticing. We are bombarded by so many images that we are in danger of not really taking the time to look around us. The pressure of the number of images, particularly on Smartphones or social media platforms can become stressful.

The government is starting to consider that art matters and is currently reviewing the curriculum, and the importance of visual literacy is being recognised with such initiatives as The Superpower of Looking (ArtUK-superpower-of-looking). There are studies about the impact of looking at an art work in a gallery on brain function (Guardian-real-art-in-museums-stimulates-brain-much-more-than-reprints). The importance of visual literacy is being discussed (Visual-literacy-research-initiative).

ART MATTERS!

 

‘The Old Cow in the kitchen – capturing memories before the Elephant forgets,’ by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Last week, for the first time in years I missed my slot and I didn’t post, and it was the fault of the Old Cow in the Kitchen!

I’d received some funding from my local council, Southwark, to make a short film and stage an event with the aim of capturing memories of the people who have lived their whole lives at the Elephant and Castle in South London. I have been deeply affected by the way that my ‘manor’, The Elephant and Castle, has been rapidly changing. I felt that this noisy and at times controversial re-development is in danger of drowning out the voices of the people that have made it such a rich and vibrant place. Initially, my aim was to interview local elders such as local resident, John, whose family had connections to one street going back to 1916.

Then there was Marian. I’d first encountered her in the 1990s at a local summer fete, where she was known as one of the ‘Marmalade Ladies’. She, along with her older sister Jessie, made and sold her delicious homemade jams for charity. Later on, I knew her as an outspoken and fearless campaigner against the building of a high rise hotel by an off-shore developer way too close to our homes (we lost). At the age of 97, she agreed to be interviewed. She mentioned that her father, Henry Townshend, had been a keen amateur photographer. It turned out that he was a hugely talented and chronicler of local life and I uncovered a treasure trove of images as I learned more about Marian’s life.

Marian’s mother, Kathleen, and her Aunt Rose had been orphaned but, as Kathleen was fourteen, she was deemed too old to be taken into Charlotte Sharman’s orphanage in West Square. Instead, she went to work as a scullery maid in the square where she kept a watchful eye on Rose.

After the First World War Kathleen met and married Henry and rented rooms in a boarding house in West Square.  Marian explained that her uncle also rented rooms in the same house and that there was a lodger on the top and an old cow in the kitchen.

‘What? You had a cow in the kitchen?’ I gasped

Marian smiled, ‘Grandma.’

©Townsend

Grandma lived in the kitchen and had a job finishing collapsible opera hats. I was mesmerized by the story and the photograph. Then Marian added, ’Later on I wondered if it was the mercury that was used in the finishing process that had affected her and she wasn’t just being bloody minded.’

Henry had photographed her at work.

In fond memory of Marian (August 1928 – August 2024).

 If there is any interest I’ll post the link for the film. A bid is also in progress for a companion project, ‘The Crocodile on the Bus.’

I’ll try not to miss my slot again!

Slug Life by Moesha Kellaway, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

This debut picture book is about the world’s grumpiest slug and no wonder Stevie is feeling so upset. Slugs get such a bad press; labelled as a pest, called disgusting, gross or just plain EW!

Stevie is sent to a slug self-esteem class where there are lots of fascinating facts about slugs to discover, including their scientific name Gastropod meaning stomach foot, how they evolved from snails, and shown examples of all different types of slugs including sea-slugs.

After hearing all this information Stevie says,

‘Mr Babosa says humans don’t like us

Because they think we look weird,

Our slime is yukky and we only eat their favourite plants.’

Reading this I can only hang my head and say… GUILTY AS CHARGED!

Slug Life is the first book in a new series combining great picture book storytelling with lots of information and facts that hopefully can change the way some creatures are viewed.

I learned a lot; that plants are only one part of a slug’s diet and the important role they play as decomposers. Who knew that slugs can regrow bits of themselves and have 27, 000 teeth (I have been telling everyone I meet this fact)? Slug slime is reframed as ‘liquid crystal’ which sounds magical.

Moesha’s illustrations are colourful and lively and conjure up the subterranean slug world. The text and the illustrations are perfectly pitched for a young reader to enjoy both the characters and to learn valuable information.

I have two minor niggles. There are two spellings of health centre/health center on one page. The slug love-in protest and the bringing in of the humans broke the spell of Stevie’s world for me and the speech bubble ‘AARGH IT’S A SLUGPOCALYPSE’ was a tad confusing.

Once Stevie has learned of the value of slugs the grumpiness goes away and Stevie has now a plan to spread the word to the small humans that SLUGS ARE SUPER.

I found this book in the Garden Museum in South London which is a great place to visit if you are in the area. There are always lots of activities for children

https://gardenmuseum.org.uk/

ISBN 978-1-91539-509-2

Rocket Bird Books an imprint of Harper Collins

www.rocketbirdbooks.co.uk

Wake up, Mr Kean by Bridget Crowley review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Wake up, Mr Kean by Bridget Crowley review by Lynda Waterhouse

Wake Up Mr Kean is a funny and exciting time slip story with a Cornish setting.

Charlie and his Mum have recently moved to Penzance from Newlyn on the Cornish Coast to start a new life following an incident in which Charlie’s fisherman father was lost at sea.  Charlie is adjusting to his new life when he  meets Mr Clemo who runs a second-hand book shop and is a former actor, ‘Once an actaw , always an actaw, I daresay.’

Clemo is a leading light in the Pam Drams – The Penzance Amateur Dramatic Society. They are trying to raise funds to save The Old Theatre that stands in the yard out of the back of the Hope and Glory pub. Charlie is drawn to the Old Theatre and encounters a man there with wild eyes and black curls and his rendition of Shakespeare holds him spellbound. After this encounter Charlie is determined to save the Old Theatre. He also meets a lad, Davey, who is struggling to ‘manage’ the old actor so that he can give one of his electrifying performances. They connect through time.

The story is beautifully written and has a strong sense of place. It shows the lives of local people. Many landmarks are featured: Penlee Park, Morrab Library, and the Promenade, and events such as Mazey Day feature in the storyline. The time slip element is inspired by a performance given by Edmund Kean, the great nineteenth century actor at the Old Theatre. It is refreshing to read a story set in a seaside town that is solely about the locals and their lives.

Sparkling dialogue is one of the strongest elements of this story; establishing character, showing not telling, and moving the plot along. The lively dialogue is peppered with Cornish. The story is filled with a variety of colourful characters, quite literally in the case of Jowan Spargo and her changing hair colour.

Despite its particular setting the themes explored are universal. The issues of creating homes for local people in rural areas and not only providing profit for property developers, versus the need to maintain the heritage and recognise the magical history of a place is relevant in many places.

Throughout the course of the novel Charlie discovers that not everyone has good intentions and that people, even his mother, can have mixed feelings. As Charlie witnesses the growing friendship between Tom, the pub landlord, and his mother it makes him uneasy but it helps him to understand and connect with Tom’s challenging daughter, Bel.

People are not perfect. Even Edmund Kean had his struggles. As Charlie says to Bel, ‘Perhaps what we want isn’t always the best thing. Maybe the best thing takes some getting used to.’

For many years Bridget has inspired and supported me to design and deliver creative writing workshops in art galleries and museums. She has an innate connection with children and a wicked sense of humour. Check out her website at bridgetcrowley.co.uk to hear more about her fascinating life.

Here’s hoping her magical writing can be ‘rediscovered’ and her latest novel is enjoyed by a flotilla of new readers as it deserves to be. You can also buy the book in audio, read by Bridget.

ISBN 978-1-917022-32-3

Jelly Bean Books

www.candyjarbooks.co.uk

Mildred the Gallery Cat, text and illustration by Jono Gantz, review by Lynda Waterhouse

I’m a sucker for cat stories, particularly ones that contain black and white cats. Tuxedo cats have a habit of finding their way into my life. First of all there was Tim, who aged 10 came into our lives and stayed for eleven years. We now have Mimi who moved in with us when her owner went into a care home.

 Mildred, who inspired this story, was the much loved resident cat at Tate Modern.

So, naturally, I was instantly attracted to this story when I encountered a shiny black and white cat with the twinkling eyes and enigmatic grin on the bright cover of Jono Ganz’s debut picture book.

By day, Mildred is to be found happily napping in her cosy bed and everyone thinks she is so lazy. At night time Mildred is free to explore the gallery when there is no-one else around.

‘She thought some of the art was a bit confusing, but she liked finding the pictures that had animals in them.’

 Mildred encounters many different kinds of art and each experience makes her feel something different: happiness, introspection, hunger.

Mildred ponders what it would be like if she too could create a work of art, something that would make other people feel the kinds of things that she had felt in the gallery. Her adult introspection, ‘And is being an artist doomed to be the privilege of the special few…?’ is undercut by her realisation that there is also a mouse in the gallery enjoying the art.

A classic cat and mouse chase ensues with all the inevitable slapstick humour culminating in a double page SPLAT. Mildred does not catch the mouse but, in the midst of all the chaos, she has created a fantastical sculpture, a self-portrait that astounds the visitors. She has found a way to become an artist.

Mildred is a delightful character who demonstrates how looking at art can be confusing at first but, once you start looking and finding points of interest, it can make you make you feel so many different things. It can also inspire you to create.

As befits a work commissioned by the Tate, the book itself is a well-crafted physical object. The font is clear and appealing with a beautiful colour palate.

Jono’s illustrations flow and dance across the pages and have a delightful cut out and collage feel. Mildred’s (and the mouse’s) character shines through on every page and the text has warmth, humour and a gentle poetic flow. It is no surprise that this picture book has been shortlisted for the 2023 Klaus Flugge prize.

I would have liked a list of the art works that Mildred encountered in the gallery (e.g. Dali, Matisse, Lichtenstein, Kusama, Calder, Kenoujak, and the aptly named Elizabeth Catlett) so that I could retrace Mildred’s paw prints and seek the artworks out in the gallery or look at them online. Although the picture book has a more general appeal by not being site specific, ’In a big building in a big city there was an art gallery.’

ISBN 978-1-84976-871-9

www.tate.org.uk

 

Fairytales, Families and Forests by Georgiana Keable and Dawne Mc Farlane, illustrated by Araiz Mesanza, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Storytelling with Young Children

I was gifted this book. There was no expectation on the part of the giver that I would positively review it. I picked it up and began to read and ….

It is a large, heavy book and has the appearance of a textbook but as it states in its introduction,

This book will open secrets of fun, wisdom and mystery that live inside your mouth. You will discover (if you didn’t already know) that you are a storyteller.

We hope this book will be a gift to brave parents and teachers in times of climate change, environmental destruction and global health concerns.

This is a practical book packed full of advice, rhymes, songs, and poems. It is divided in six parts and each part is colour coded and contains Araiz Mesana’s gentle illustrations to accompany the stories.

The largest section of the book - Part 1 - looks at Storytelling with your growing child from Babies to through to Six and Seven Year Olds. This is a masterclass in understanding child development. On many pages there are speech bubbles where the two authors, Georgiana and Dawne, ‘break in’ to speak to us and share their own experiences and recommendations. There is so much encouragement to be creative, e.g. inventing your own cumulative stories and updating ring games. I loved the reworking of an old rhyme in ‘Isabella’s Rewilding Farm!’

Part 2 considers stories of nature and our human role in nature and also story as healing and the role of storytelling to mend wounds. Part 3 looks at Rhythms of the Year and Festival Stories.

My current favourite section is Part 4 – Building Creativity and Confidence - which states, ’Now we need to confess something here. Storytelling is not as easy as it looks!’

It offers advice on choosing a simple story that resonates with you, but then mentions that if it is a story from a culture beyond your own to choose from a trusted source that respects the origins of the story. ‘Part of respecting the story is acknowledging its source and if in doubt ask permission from the person you heard the story from.’

I am currently using the part on ‘Seeing the Story’ to develop my own writing/storytelling practice at the moment. There is a section of support for educators and storytellers and advice on setting up a Storytelling Circle. It also discusses the use of phones and tablets in children’s language development with reference to research done in the last ten years on the effect on babies, children and teenagers of parental use of mobile phones.

This book is the perfect gift for parents, educators, writers and storytellers.

Hawthorn Press

www.Hawthornpress

ISBN 978-1-912480-38-8

Seven Secrets of Spontaneous Storytelling by Danyah Miller, illustrations by Kate Bunce, review Lynda Waterhouse

This book came to me as a gift.

It had been donated by the author, Danyah Miller, as part a Crowdfunded campaign, SPACE FOR STORYTELLING, which I’d supported.  Discovering the seven secrets of storytelling was to be my reward for making a contribution.

In this book Danyah generously shares with us her knowledge and insights built up over many years as a parent, from working with families, with children in schools, in the theatres, and from so many wise women that she has encountered.  

Danyah passes on her secrets to us through the medium of story.  She introduces us to the Dale family, Darinka and Adam and their three children. At the beginning of the book they are struggling to manage work and home life. One day they meet Dorothy, an older woman who offers them understanding, advice and practical support. Gradually Dorothy gives them the reassurance and confidence to create their own spontaneous stories and to see the transformations they can bring. The depiction of the family feels real, Adam struggles, the children don’t always get on, and things don’t always work out.

The Seven Secrets has its own chapter which is explored through situations that the Dale family encounter, e.g. Chapter One – A Welcome Stranger: The First Secret – Imagination, Chapter Four- In Search of Treasure: The Fourth Secret-Puppets and Props, and Chapter Seven - One Step at a Time: The Seventh Secret-Confidence.

At the end of the chapters there are games and activities, an information section and recommended reading. The beginning of each chapter is introduced with a line drawing black-and-white illustration by Kate Bunce. My favourite is the drawing of the den.

Danyah says, ‘I believe that sharing spontaneous stories, on a daily basis, is a simple, satisfying and successful way to reconnect with yourself and with each other. The story games included in this book will enable you to share stories easily and effortlessly, creating harmony, positivity and peace.’

I devoured this intelligent and magical book in one day and will keep it on hand for reference for many years to come.

The crowd funder was successful and from September SPACE FOR STORYTELLING will create an affordable space for storytellers, actors, authors, stand–ups, poets and anyone who uses spoken word as part of their practice. https://londondreamtime.com/

Hawthorn Press

www.hawthornpress.com

ISBN: 978-1-912480-86-9

 

The Lizzie and Belle Mysteries: Drama and Danger by JT Williams, illustrated by Simone Douglas, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Ever since I was a child I have loved a good series. From Malory Towers to The Song of the Lioness I’d relish the opportunity to get to know all the characters safe in the knowledge that whilst I was reading we’d share danger and countless adventures together. Time invested in a series also brings with it the delight of waiting for the next instalment and the joy of collecting the whole series. My eyes lit up at the sight of ‘The Lizzie and Belle Mysteries.’

My interest was first piqued by Simone Douglas’ vibrant and exciting cover illustration with the two figures dashing towards me through the streets of London. The map of Georgian London inside intrigued me.  I snapped up a signed copy.

The two main protagonists in this series are Lizzie (Elizabeth) Sancho and Dido Belle who were real people who lived in London in the eighteenth century.  JT Williams says, ‘The stories of Black people in Britain intrigue me. Though we have been here for centuries, many of our stories have been hidden for a long time. I love trying to find something that you know has been hidden from you, that you have to work really hard to uncover – this is true of the work of the writer, of the historian, and of the detective!’

Lizzie lives with her family in her father Ignatius Sancho’s tea shop off the Strand whilst Dido lives a luxurious but lonely life in Kenwood House on Hampstead Heath. Their paths collided at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane at the opening night of a production of Othello starring Ignatius. The first time a Black man has played the role. The performance is halted by a crashing chandelier which just misses Ignatius. Who was the shadowy figure seen on the balcony?

Belle and Lizzie team up to try to discover the perpetrator and stumble upon other mysteries too. Why are Black children disappearing? Who is the mysterious Meg? Who are the Sons and Daughters of Africa? Lizzie and Belle are plunged into a murky underworld. There were times when I feared for their safety and others when I marvelled at their audacity and improvisational (and running!) skills.

The book is strong on family with all its complications and jealousies. Just as Othello is poisoned by such feelings, Lizzie too is briefly affected. Understanding this themes in Shakespeare’s play also helps to unlock the mystery.

The novel is pitched perfectly for a middle grade audience with its balance of period detail, modern dialogue, and fresh historical insights. The novel is interspersed with newspaper articles, extracts from their detecting notes, letters, and Simone Douglas’ illustrations. I loved the instructions for writing a letter in the eighteenth century.

Devising and running creative writing sessions for The Wallace has increased my fascination with the Georgian period and one of my favourite paintings is the portrait of Mary Robinson by Thomas Gainsborough. https://wallacelive.wallacecollection.org/eMP/eMuseumPlus?service=ExternalInterface&module=collection&objectId=64932&viewType=detailView

It was great to see her reimagined and playing a part in Drama and Danger. (I’m hoping they will stock the book at The Wallace!)

ISBN 978-0-0084-8525-2

Farshore.co.uk

Unleash Your Creative Monster by Andy Jones, illustrations by Olaf Falafel, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 The book is billed as a children’s guide to writing. But the creative monster on the title page holds a piece of paper in its paws which boldly states, ‘This book will definitely 100% make you a better writer, I personally guarantee it’.

I agree. This book is packed full of advice, tips and writing prompts FOR EVERYONE. As the blurb states ‘this book contains essential skills for storytellers, the secret weapons of successful authors , and over 50 prompts and exercises to inspire not only young writers but old and gnarled ones like me too’.

The book is split into four sections: Training your creative monster, Monster mistakes, When your Monster gets stuck, and Feeding your creative monster. You don’t have to follow it from section to section, it’s designed for dipping into.

The first exercise invites you to create your own creative monster and give it a name. It suggests keeping your name secret because the mystery – that secret bond between writer and monster - is part of it power. Some monsters do reveal their names as Olaf’s illustrations point out and that is OK too.

On every page, Olaf Falafel’s illustrations make you smile, illuminate the concepts, and at times reassure you. For instance the scary wind–up monkey says, ‘I wouldn’t say I’m evil but I do eat beans straight from the tin’.

It is not patronising or dull. The muses are mentioned, rich vocabulary is used, and grammar and literary concepts are explained with clarity and warmth. You will find an explanation of Chekhov’s gun and quotes from Stephen King and Neil Gaiman. It shows you how to create FSPs (Fantastic Story Possibilities) and to play with metaphors but to mix them at your peril! It encourages you to make mistakes, because at least you are making something, and to write fearlessly. There is advice on how to start and run your own writers’ group and support on drafting and editing your work. The editing checklist is brilliant. The pages of advice on adding rhythm and variety to your sentences are the best!

The book emphasises the importance of developing your own style and reminds us that, ‘There are a lot of so-called “rules” for writing, but rules are like eggs. Not everyone likes them, some are bad, and all of them were made to be broken’.

A creative monster should visit every school in the land and deliver a copy to each classroom, but only after making the head teacher say ‘bum glue’ three times in morning assembly.

ISBN 978-1-4063-9662-1

www.walker.co.uk

@AllYourMonsters

 

Lines on the Leaves – Poetry at Kew by Lynda Waterhouse

 

As far as I’m concerned you can keep ‘Paris in the springtime’ or ‘Walking in a Winter Wonderland’, ‘Autumn Leaves’ is the song for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gnp58oepHUQ

Autumn is my favourite season. I love the bursts of bright sunlight and flashes of colour paired with a cold nip in the air. I was born in October, coming in the world as my grandmother was leaving it, naming me as she went.

A few years ago Sophie Shillito gave me the opportunity to devise a creative writing session for Kew Gardens in October.  Each session would be twenty minutes long, be for all ages and include some scientific explanation of why leaves fall from tree. Creative writing would be next to yoga and a willow weaving tent surrounded by trees.

I thought I would share the session outline.

 ‘Lines on the Leaves’; a twenty minute exploration of what happens when a leaf falls from a tree (with some scientific explanations too!)

I often mark the beginning of a session with a chant, a rhyme or a poem. This session begins with some lines from Emily Brontë which we all spoke together.

Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers away;

Lengthen night and shorten day;

Every leaf speaks bliss to me

Fluttering from the autumn tree.

Some questions. How do we think a tree and a leaf in particular tells the time? What makes a leaf decide to fall?

During the discussion weave in the words abscission, anthocyanin, senescence and their meanings. (They were written on laminated sheets and dotted around the tent)

Thinking about how a leaf might fall from a tree – does it glide on the wind or belly flop as it is caught in a shower of rain?

Everyone is invited to demonstrate their leaf’s journey with their hands in the air. Sound effects too!

Next, with some art materials and paper map out the journey and mark on it three places. In these places note the leaf’s reactions, thoughts or feelings or write a word or phrase to describe what is happening.

Share our ideas.

Hand out a leaf template and offer the chance to transform those words/ideas or feelings noted on the leaf’s journey into a poem. They could include some of the science words too. Or just sound effect or just colours or just a prop for telling someone the story of your leaf.

Sharing some of our lines on the leaves

Final question – Where does the leaf’s journey end? Does it land with a bump or a soft landing with its fellow leaves? Is it blown off course or…….?

That was the plan. At first one or two people came along and  soon the tent was packed. Some people just wanted to colour, some were intrigued or already knew about the science. The textures of the pile of leaves drew others or the chance to make a whooshing noise. Some left. Others stayed and wrote several poems. One toddler amazed his dad by repeating fall, leaves fall and another terrified me by trying to eat the charcoal!

It was such a wonderful experience, not least for the experience of walking through Kew Gardens on a sunny, cold autumn morning.

 

Trixie Pickle Art Avenger by Olaf Falafel, review by Lynda Waterhouse

I’m a grump who tends to avoid so-called ‘funny’ books. All too often they are written by celebrity authors and they don’t make me laugh. I dislike the lazy notion that just by saying bottom, fart or puke you are onto a winner. But this really isn’t another trashy fart book. It has brilliant characters, a strong plot and it makes this ancient grump laugh every time she reads it.

There are celebrity endorsements on the cover from Matt Lucas and Joe Lycett, but I was powerless to resist the rat holding up a banner saying ‘Don’t buy this book’.

 As someone who works in art galleries, the notion of Trixie Pickle being an Art Avenger intrigued and appealed. Throughout the book there are Fact Files providing information on artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci, Bridget Riley, Keith Haring, Invader, Anish Kapoor, Chris Ofili, and Banksy.

At the start of the story, twelve year old Trixie Pickle thinks that art sucks and who can blame her with an art teacher like Mr Woodhouse. He rips us comics! Her aunt takes her to an art exhibition, not in a gallery but in a disused warehouse, featuring street artists.

The thing I like most about Banksy is that he uses art to stick up for people who don’t have a voice. Also he isn’t afraid to ridicule people in power …its like he’s an art superhero, and that gave me an idea.

Inspired by various artists, Trixie becomes an Art Avenger taking on bullies, fast drivers and stupid school rules that stop girls from playing sport. Every page is filled with Olaf’s hilarious illustrations.

Trixie’s best friend is Beeks; ‘He lives two doors down and he’s my best friend, although sometimes you wouldn’t know it. It all depends whereabouts on the Friendship Frisbee™.’  The Friendship Frisbee™ is one of my favourite illustrations in the book.

This book is a perfect blend of slapstick humour, fun facts and great characters who are both comic and embody real conflict and anxieties that we all face.

A story that is both funny and wise is a hard act to pull off. And you even get a Bum-Faced Snails comic strip thrown in at the end.

ISBN 978-8-241-53764-0

www.penguin.co.uk

 

Maggie Blue and the Dark World by Anna Goodall, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 

Many moons ago I visited a jeweller and had an ouroboros (snake biting its tail) ring made from Welsh gold and tiny chips of diamonds. It may communicate its magical power to me one day but, until then, I’ll just read about the magical ouroboros in Anna Goodall’s powerful debut novel, Maggie Blue and the Dark World.

The striking cover art by Sandra Dieckmann sets the scene of the two parallel worlds encountered in this dark tale. It also depicts the irascible old one-eyed wise-cracking cat, Hoagy, in his rightful place beside Maggie Blue.

Twelve year old Maggie Blue Brown sits at the centre of both worlds. She is highly attuned to people’s emotions and actions. At the start of the story she is deeply unhappy. She has been moved away from her home by the sea to the suburban drabness of West Minchin to sleep on a dusty sofa in her eccentric Aunt Esme’s poky flat. The ring belongs to Esme and is always on the fourth finger of her right hand. This ring curls around Maggie’s fingers and speaks to her in its sinewy sweet voice and guides her journey between this world and The Dark World.

Maggie’s mother is suffering from depression, her father has left home, and she is being bullied at her new school by a group of girls lead by the glamorous Ida. The only person at school to show an interest in her is the school councillor with the cold green eyes, Miss Cane.  Maggie is rightly suspicious of Miss Cane and can see unhappiness under the veneer of Ida’s successful life. Maggie may be feeling isolated and lonely but she has a rebellious streak. Despite it being forbidden, she walks through Everfall Woods and pursues her belief that she and Ida are kindred spirits. Soon Ida will be taken to the Dark World and Maggie will come to her rescue.

The Dark World is a frightening and puzzling place. Selfishness and greed have led to a climate of disaster. There is no authentic happiness. Eldrow, the ruler of Sun City is both seductive and terrifying. Maggie learns to appreciate the value of real happiness and compassion.

This story has a strong fast-paced action plot filled with real jeopardy and danger. It is beautifully written in the third person which gives it an epic feel. Hoagy is a wonderful comic cat creation. There is a strong emotional undercurrent to the writing that explores both the disconnect between humans and their environment and the struggle to find true happiness and meaningful friendships.

At the end of this part of the story Maggie turns her back on the Dark World and the ouroboros ring is locked away.  One day she will need it again to guide her. In Maggie Blue and The White Crow perhaps?

ISBN 978-1-913101-33-6

Guppybooks.co.uk