I'm spoilt for choice! Much like the fairy in the following picture I spend my days flitting from book to book without alighting on any of them. But it has to stop! So without further ado – here are some newly listed books, please enjoy.
Standing at just seven inches tall these diminutive little books have the ability to transport us back to the cosy days of childhood. Wills and Hepworth who publish Ladybird books are celebrating their centenary this year. One hundred years ago, they were busy printing stationery, catalogues, maps and all manner of commercial ephemera. They also provided book-binding services and from that came the printing of the first Ladybird books.
Who stole the valuable cat? Mr. Goon the policeman has been on a refresher course and learnt many new things - including the art of disguising himself. Robberies come along, with plenty of clues, but the clues lead nowhere. Is the thief invisible?
Douglas and Jerry are fond of practical jokes and enjoy playing them on the masters at school. When things begin disappearing, a detective is engaged to find the culprit. After the mystery is solved, Douglas, Jerry and their friends form themselves into a society of Junior Detectives and unmask an illicit gang.
Kit Pugh is a dreamer. He has only to see a ship, or leaf through a travel folder, and he is lost in a dream of faraway places which he longs to visit. Perhaps that is why Joe fascinates him so much, for the mysterious Joe can tell stories of exotic lands which make Kit's heart beat with excitement. Another favourite pastime of Kit's is gazing through the dusty glass of Quoram's the antique shop in Langley. It is there he first sees the painting which is to stir up so much trouble...
Pop Larkin and his handsome family of seven step outside their rural paradise for an excursion into another world. Armed with plenty of tax-free cash, their Rolls-Royce and little French, they take their first holiday abroad...
This beautifully illustrated edition of
Snow Whitewas published by Gallery Five, London in 1977. A miniature Book measuring just 3.5 x 4.5" with 42 pages. Very pretty colour and black/white silhouettes by Jan Pienkowski.
The picture in the background is by Agnes Richardson. I have lots of old illustrations that I can't bring myself to throw away even when the books have long fallen apart. I've hung on to some of them for more than twenty years with no idea what I might do with them, how nice then to share some of them on my blog.
Just two more before I flutter away.
Bumble-ardy by Maurice Sendak. Bumble-ardy the mischievous pig decides to throw a birthday party. He invites along all his friends for a wild masquerade that quickly gets out of hand.
Racketty-Packetty House by Frances Hodgson Burnett with illustrations by Holly Johnson. Published by Evans Brothers of London in 1976. Cynthia much preferred Tidy Castle, and no longer wanted to play with the old doll's house, indeed she was quite ashamed of it. She thought the corner behind the door quite good enough for such a shabby old thing. This is the story of how Queen Crosspatch, and her band of fairies rescued the house and its occupants from a terrible unjust end.
Now where did I put the fairy dust?
A challenge to draw my favourite animal, which stumped me, because I have about a bjillion favourite animals & I've already drawn most of them. So I chose my favourite from the list of my favourites which I haven't drawn yet.
A FACT, especially for everyone who has ever told me a ladybird took a wee on them & I've tried to pursuade them otherwise, it's called
'autohaemorrhaging' & it's because said ladybird thinks you're gonna eat it! Such clever lovely lazy ladybugs!
© copyright Alicia Padrón
Follow the shiny bright star to Bethlehem
© copyright Alicia Padrón
Ladybird Happy Babies Series-Teatime Baby
A little peek at one of the inside illustrations from
Hawk-eyed OUPblog readers may have noticed a few changes recently and it’s high time we came out with them. May I present UK blog editor Nicola Burton, who joined the UK publicity team at Oxford University Press in August 2011. In addition to her work on OUPblog, Nicola is the publicist for Dictionaries and OUP’s language reference, music and religion trade titles. She also tweets @OUPAcademic, @OEDonline and @OxfordWords. In previous years, Nicola could be found working in technology PR, drinking in East London pubs, and globetrotting with an overly large pink backpack. She is now mostly to be found in charity shops satisfying her button-buying habit. And now on to our Q&A… –Alice
What’s your favourite word?
This changes regularly, but at the moment I’m a fan of abbreviating words à la The Only Way Is Essex. For instance, “Don’t be ridic, I’m well jel! That party was totes amaze.” There’s a great blog post on Sentence First about this phenomenon.
What is your favourite fiction book?
It’d be impossible to pick one for all time, so instead I’ll share my favourite fiction read of 2011: Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. I was fascinated by the destructive propensity of the narrator’s psyche to perpetuate a self-constructed ideal with which she compares and berates herself.
What weird things do you have in your desk drawer right now?
Some steel wool, artist’s fixative spray, and a stack of Oxford World’s Classics’ Kamasutra postcards . Do I need to expand further?
Name three acceptable bribes that potential guest bloggers could send you.
Buttons, pearls, and Hendrick’s gin are incredibly acceptable forms of bribery.
What’s your favorite animal?
The ladybird [Ed: known as a "ladybug" to Americans]. They have a propitious habit of unexpectedly rocking up when I’m feeling undecided or generally woebegone, so I’ve become convinced they are my lucky talismans.
What’s your most obscure talent/hobby?
Something I can only describe as ‘button art’ – using mixed vintage and modern buttons to create mosaics and decorate accessories. Here’s one I made earlier…
What’s the longest book you’ve ever read?
Without researching word counts, I guess it would either be A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth, or Clarissa by Samuel Richardson. Both effortlessly seduced me through to their last pages.
Fill in the blank: I’m chuffed to be the OUPblog editor because it is _________
…Without a doubt the
© copyright Alicia Padrón
I was very excited when Ladybird contacted me offering to illustrate one of their books. They had a Fairy Tale book in mind that they thought would work very well with my illustrations. They asked me to whip up a full spread paid sample first with my choice of the Fairy Tale characters in it.
I came up with the illustration you see above. I always thought Little Red Riding Hood set in the winter instead of spring would be so much lovelier, so I placed all the characters in a snowy forest.
After seeing this, Ladybird decided they wanted me to illustrate a Christmas title instead. I was thrilled because I am a Christmas nut. It's my favorite time of the year. I just love the magic in the air. People seem happier and it's all about the kids. So of course, I said yes. :o)
© copyright Alicia Padrón
This is one of my favorite spreads in the book. When I was a little girl, I always imagined how thrilling it would be to see Santa. I think all kids wish this at one point or another. So I gave them that in this illustration.
© copyright Alicia Padrón
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Today we are kicking off our celebration week of Alicia Padron's latest book for Ladybird. And it couldn't come at a more perfect time if you are looking for a super cute gift for the young ones this holiday season. The book is filled with Ali's beautiful watercolors with all her whimsy and charm. There is such a sweetness and innocence to her work and I can see why the publisher picked her for this project.
I love the layout of the book, with big sturdy pages and tabs. At the end of the book is the Christmas Story. But this book is really all about her artwork. I just love how she lets loose with her watercolor technique. Such freedom.
Be sure to leave a comment to be entered into our giveaway of this book.
You have until Saturday!
Be sure to check in with the PBJ's next week for a super fun celebration week
and book giveaway. We will be reviewing Ladybird's First Favourite Christmas Book, illustrated by our own Alicia Padron! And beginning on Monday you can leave a comment to be entered to win a copy of this adorable book. It's big and beautiful!
I was thrilled to see my book featured at the end along with many other beautiful titles! :o)
One of the books I worked on last year over the summer has been recently released in the UK! :)
It features full page color illustrations. I had to work very big for this book and I wanted the kids to enjoy all the beauty and magic of christmas so I really pumped up my color. I wanted those pages to pop. I tried to leave little fun details for the kids to look at while singing the song or reading the story.
I'm still waiting for my copies to arrive. Can't wait to see them! It's one of my favorite things of being a children's illustrator, holding that big FedEx box in my hands and having my kids help open it! :)
Ladybird is to publish a range of Hello Kitty pre-school titles, having acquired UK rights from Fluid World, UK agent for Hello Kitty brand owner Sanrio.
Ladybird will publish a range of formats for 0-3-year-olds, launching in September 2011 with two board books (£4.99), a buggy book (£4.99) and a touch-and-feel playbook (£7.99).
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Ladybird Books is to publish a series of pre-school children's books in collaboration with singer and TV star Peter Andre.
Publishing director Eric Huang, who bought world English language rights, excluding North America, through Can Associates, said: "We're looking forward to our collaboration with Peter Andre and Can Associates. Peter has such a passion for being a dad, and mums and dads everywhere will be able to relate to the experiences and stories he's told us for these books."
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Twin sheep! Kind of linked...!? Not sure which one is the evil twin though? I need to try and get my IF done over the weekend instead of leaving it to the last minute everytime!! x
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just beautiful!
Beautiful illustration! Love the soft dreamy effect!!!
Sweet :)
Qué bonita, Alicia!
So sweet! Adorable characters and camels. Love the sky, too.
So sweetly atmospheric. Spot-on with the shiny star!
Très jolie, grande douceur !!
Such cute characters! Like the addition of the little dog!
love, love, love!! especially the little dog... ;)
Qué tierno, Ali! dan ganas de que llegue Navidad pronto :)
Ese perrito rechonchito es un amor!
Beso grande
Thanks so much you guys! I'm glad you liked the pup too :o)