One thing I really enjoyed about the holidays was the new books I received as gifts! As a children's writer of middle grade fiction, it's necessary 'homework' to read in that genre. That's my excuse for all the time I've spent delving into imaginative and at times profound stories, which for me is one of my favourite things to do - a treat!

One book that was gifted to me by my friend Linda in California was the first book in the Pages & Co series, Tilly and the Bookwanderers. Reading this book was a lot like curling up in a comfortable armchair with a cup of hot chocolate (with marshmallows - make those vegan marshmallows) in the company of books that line the shelves of a warm, cosy room like waiting friends. The story was a delicious wander through classic stories, meeting figures like Alice and Anne of Green Gables, as I journeyed with Tilly who searches for answers about her origins. The idea of Bookwandering was a lovely one and well-executed, with characters not being as fictional as they seem. As a reader and writer, I can relate to the blurred line between fiction and real, especially considering all the time I spend thinking about my characters and wondering what they are up to ... they do take on a life of their own!

I enjoyed Bookwanderers as a cosy, lovely adventure.  

Element Eyes Image by Azriel Cross

Poem from Beatrice:

There are four oracles who all live on a place called The Beginning of an End.
They are the Elemental All-seeing Eyes and a person could always claim they were their friend.
Ask the Eye of the Fire and it would reply: find your heart and soul, let them burn bright and aim for a goal.
Talk to Water's Eye and it will say: feel your calm and flow, feel your wishing grow.
Remark to the All-seeing Eye of the Earth and it could tell you: search for your place of comfort and love, your place of hearing and above.
Speak to the Air of the Eye and it might comment: gather your freeness and breath, gather your energy and death.
And then, with all that in mind, you board your boat and sail away from the Beginning of an End, feeling like you have made amend.
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I am the co-creator of a new project, Creative Elementals. In one of our outdoor workshops for children, we explore the element air. Spinning, light, feathery, clear, we 'meet' air through brainstorming, swirling dance, writing and drawing. Amani, 10, went home after one of these and was inspired to create a 'map of air':
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