David Dean has it Covered!

Ted Spark is 12 years and 281 days old and his aunt has just been accused of stealing a priceless painting from her workplace! The Guggenheim Museum in New York is the imposing setting for David Dean’s glorious cover artwork for the sequel to ‘The London Eye Mystery’ and his instinctive sense of scale once again evokes a feeling of Ted being a very small boy in another very big city! David’s striking depiction of the towering Frank Lloyd Wright designed building with mysterious thick smoke billowing from inside makes this incredibly eye-catching book, and one that begs to be picked up and read! 

Grab your copy here!

Gareth's success not in the least puzzling!!!

Gareth Lucas’ latest creative collaboration with Usborne has resulted in these beauties hitting the shelves this month! Packed inside each technicolour box is a whopping 100-piece jigsaw and a stunning 24-page picture puzzle book bursting at the seams with things to spot and talk about! ‘Dinosaurs’ boasts bountiful bold beasts playing prehistoric pranks, ‘Under the Sea’ is teeming with colourful aquatic antics and ‘On the Farm’ unleashes a menagerie of mayhem! As always, Gareth injects humour and personality into each and every scene and with so much to look at, we think these will keep you occupied until at least October when his brand new Look and Find book ‘Jungle’ will be swinging into bookshops too! 

Get your copies here, here and here!

2nd Book of the Month for Javier!

Not content with one stunning book out in August, Javier Joaquin has also been hard at work on another release, this time having closely studied the animal kingdom for the wry Brazilian folk tale ‘Monkey and Rabbit’! Once again, Javier’s fine attention to detail shines through on every vibrant page. In these wonderfully evocative images, Rabbit dreams of living up in the tall tree like monkey and so one day decides to move in with his friend... with some dire consequences! ‘Monkey and Rabbit: A Tale from Brazil’ is a gorgeous little fable about friendship and the importance of knowing where we come from and is out at the end of this month from Heinemann Publishing. Quite frankly, you’d be bananas to miss it!

Get your copy here!

Fred's French Road Trip!

If you were cruising down any of the autoroutes in France on your hols this year, you will no doubt have noticed that they all boast the most gorgeous illustrated signs to highlight places of cultural or historical significance (which quite frankly in France, is most places!) to the weary and bleary-eyed motorist! Well, this summer, our very own Fred Van Deelen was commissioned by APRR - Europe’s fourth largest motorway group - to create these stunning scraper board style works for their extensive route through Burgundy. The sublime golden tones exude a restful warmth whilst the burgundy subtly hints at the region’s best loved export! For an area so steeped in history, and with the signs standing whopping 6.5 metres high, this is a hugely prestigious commission for Fred - especially as they are planned to be in situ for the next 20 years! With work coming from all directions, Fred has had a busy year, so next time you are passing through, why not raise a glass or two to him!

Tiny Tantrums and Big Talent!

When it's time to clean up, or take a bath, or put on her coat, Tiny throws a terrible tantrum! Her parents are at their wits’ end, then one day, some friendly monsters show up... could they be just what this little girl needs to tame her tantrums?

Ella Okstad is in her element illustrating this adorable book designed to help children to better understand their emotions and hopefully stop ‘windows wobbling and birds falling out of trees’ when things don’t go their way! Her exquisite and playful artwork beautifully compliments this simple story of friendship. The whimsical settings and her on-trend Scandi colour scheme combine to create a serene and dream-like world while subtly reinforcing the overall message of the book - to remain calm, to share and to not waste time on such silly things like tantrums! Ella says:

When I first received Caroline’s text, I was very charmed. It has lots of energy to it. I had great fun drawing the fluffy monsters, making them move around on the page trying to ease Tiny whenever she has a tantrum. I had a few rounds with Tiny getting her just right. She had to be cute, but at the same time have a naughty and stubborn look behind that cute facade. I am very pleased how the colours turned out. I think that soft pastel suits the paper quality so well. It’s been a pleasure working with both the lovely people at Little Tiger and Caroline Crowe.

Told in bouncing rhyming text, this little lifesaver is sure to get the thumbs up from frazzled parents everywhere! 

Get your copy here!

Javier's Great Escape!

Join a ragtag group of pasta on their death-defying adventure in this hilarious new book illustrated by Javier Joaquin for Little Bee Books!

Javier has once again worked his magic to create the cutest carbs you will ever see and this lovable band will have to use their noodles and concoct a great escape if they are to avoid being somebody’s lunch! Javier hails from Argentina and his inspiration comes from his acute observation of people, architecture, fashion, design and music. From outraged Ramen’s crazy curls to neat and sensible Bow Tie’s geeky charm, each unique little pasta shape reflects the close attention to detail and characterisation for which Javier is known. He says of this commission:

"It was great fun working on this project. Especially in the creation of their characters. Granting each type of pasta with the right expression according to their personality was a challenge and inspired my enthusiasm for the project. I am sure kids will love this story, full of adventure and fun!”

You can grab your very own copy later this month so save those pennes because we can guarantee you will fall tortellini in love with it!

Get your copy here!