Suzy Davies's Blog: Book News - Posts Tagged "picture-books"
Free Children's Book Reviews For A Good Cause!
Children's Authors who need a well-written, honest review, here is my offer!
Send me a copy of your print book, and I will review it on Goodreads and Amazon for free, and then pass it on to a Children's Home. I need picture books and middle grade books, please!
I will only write a review if your book merits 3 stars or more. If not, I will make helpful suggestions on how it may be improved.
Simply inmail me here with details of your book, and I will give you an address to which you may send it.
Thanks,
Suzy Davies, Children's Author
Send me a copy of your print book, and I will review it on Goodreads and Amazon for free, and then pass it on to a Children's Home. I need picture books and middle grade books, please!
I will only write a review if your book merits 3 stars or more. If not, I will make helpful suggestions on how it may be improved.
Simply inmail me here with details of your book, and I will give you an address to which you may send it.
Thanks,
Suzy Davies, Children's Author
U.K Talk Radio
Tomorrow I'm chatting with Jonathan Hines of U.K Talk Radio about my new Children's Book, "Luna The Moon Pig, The Pig Who Hid" which is released on December 9th, 2017. Watch social media for details of tune in times.
A Radio Chat with Jonathan Hines on U.K. Talk Radio and a Day to Remember!
So, I have just recorded an interview with Jonathan Hines about my new Children's Book - A Piggy Fairy Tale with Moonwishes Magic! Watch this space to hear when it'll be broadcast and for tune in times!
A Magical Collaboration
Happy to announce that Sheila Graber and I publish our Children's Picture Book, "Luna The Moon Pig, The Pig Who Hid" on 9th December 2017!
Sheila has created a movie book trailer which is now on my LinkedIn Profile, and on Twitter @ birdwriter7
Sheila has created a movie book trailer which is now on my LinkedIn Profile, and on Twitter @ birdwriter7
Christmas Launch on 9th December 2017 - " Luna The Moon Pig: The Pig Who Hid" - A Fairy Tale of MUD, Mystery, Moonwishes Magic , and the power of Self-Belief!
Abracadabra - A Fairy Tale is about to Be Born:
“Luna The Moon Pig, The Pig Who Hid” - Written By Suzy Davies, Illustrated By Sheila Graber.
Luna Moon Pig is the cutest of pigs, with a moon face, chocolate-drop eyes, and the wiggliest of tails. The Millers adopt her, and give her to their daughter, Maria. But Moon Pig longs for her freedom, and she soon escapes! A friendly cardinal, and a wise owl accompany her on her adventure - a magical journey to a wild wood, and beyond. When Luna returns to her surrogate family, something is different! How has she changed? Who did she meet? She has made a discovery, and has a new philosophy about life! What she knows now will change her life, for good! This is a fairy tale about a kind of magic - the magic of self-belief!
Luna The Moon Pig - a fairy-tale that came from real life!
One day, author Suzy Davies was standing on the back porch step in the back yard of her house in Florida, taking in the evening sunset, when she saw a little black animal creep out from under the bushes! At first, Suzy thought it was one of the cats who lived in the neighborhood. But this animal did not move like a cat. It kept its nose to the ground, and rustled through leaves. It didn’t sound like a cat, either. It made a squeaking sound!
Suzy slowly approached the small animal, and to her surprise, it was a piggy! Sure enough, this little piggy was very shy, and when she saw Suzy, off she trotted!
That same evening, Suzy put out lettuce and water for the her. She tried to make sure the piggy was fed and watered. The piggy was sighted for several days and nights. Suzy took notes as she observed her antics from the back window. Very quickly, Suzy came to realize that this cute shy piggy was a nocturnal animal. She liked to hide away from people, under the cover of the dark. Little did the piggy know how visible she was under the light of the Harvest Moon! At last, the runaway piggy was captured by a neighbour and returned to her owners to make a real life fairy-tale ending. Suzy could never forget the little piggy. “Ah, Luna,….” Suzy thought, and the name fitted the lovable piggy very well.
Suzy knew she had the seed of an idea for a children’s book, and she set to work. When the first draft of her story was complete, she wondered who might be the best illustrator for her Luna piggy tale.
Abracadabra!
One person - and one person only - came to mind, Sheila Graber, the award-winning world-acclaimed animator for “Paddington Bear” and animator/illustrator for Kipling’s “Just So” stories, who Suzy knew had an empathy for animals and animal tales. Suzy sent off an email to Sheila just to ask Sheila what she thought of her story. Suzy hoped Sheila would enjoy it, and enjoy it - Sheila did!
Author and illustrator decided to collaborate on Luna’s story “just for fun” and fully immersed themselves, day by day, in the creation of a book. Sheila enlisted the help of a real family to act as models for The Millers in her stunning rotoscoped cartoon-style drawings based on reality, which range from Whimsical to Wonderful!
Sheila also dreamed up a special name - Moonwishes Magic - for Suzy’s notion of making wishes under the light of a glowing moon. This magic seemed to touch everything the two collaborators did together, with text and images falling into place to make this enchanting tale a dream come true!
Sheila read Luna The Moon Pig aloud to 6 year old Henry, who enjoyed the book so much that Sheila and Suzy decided this piggy tale was a tale to be shared. And here it is for everyone - children and adults - to enjoy! On Amazon Worldwide on December 9th, 2017!
“Luna The Moon Pig, The Pig Who Hid” - Written By Suzy Davies, Illustrated By Sheila Graber.
Luna Moon Pig is the cutest of pigs, with a moon face, chocolate-drop eyes, and the wiggliest of tails. The Millers adopt her, and give her to their daughter, Maria. But Moon Pig longs for her freedom, and she soon escapes! A friendly cardinal, and a wise owl accompany her on her adventure - a magical journey to a wild wood, and beyond. When Luna returns to her surrogate family, something is different! How has she changed? Who did she meet? She has made a discovery, and has a new philosophy about life! What she knows now will change her life, for good! This is a fairy tale about a kind of magic - the magic of self-belief!
Luna The Moon Pig - a fairy-tale that came from real life!
One day, author Suzy Davies was standing on the back porch step in the back yard of her house in Florida, taking in the evening sunset, when she saw a little black animal creep out from under the bushes! At first, Suzy thought it was one of the cats who lived in the neighborhood. But this animal did not move like a cat. It kept its nose to the ground, and rustled through leaves. It didn’t sound like a cat, either. It made a squeaking sound!
Suzy slowly approached the small animal, and to her surprise, it was a piggy! Sure enough, this little piggy was very shy, and when she saw Suzy, off she trotted!
That same evening, Suzy put out lettuce and water for the her. She tried to make sure the piggy was fed and watered. The piggy was sighted for several days and nights. Suzy took notes as she observed her antics from the back window. Very quickly, Suzy came to realize that this cute shy piggy was a nocturnal animal. She liked to hide away from people, under the cover of the dark. Little did the piggy know how visible she was under the light of the Harvest Moon! At last, the runaway piggy was captured by a neighbour and returned to her owners to make a real life fairy-tale ending. Suzy could never forget the little piggy. “Ah, Luna,….” Suzy thought, and the name fitted the lovable piggy very well.
Suzy knew she had the seed of an idea for a children’s book, and she set to work. When the first draft of her story was complete, she wondered who might be the best illustrator for her Luna piggy tale.
Abracadabra!
One person - and one person only - came to mind, Sheila Graber, the award-winning world-acclaimed animator for “Paddington Bear” and animator/illustrator for Kipling’s “Just So” stories, who Suzy knew had an empathy for animals and animal tales. Suzy sent off an email to Sheila just to ask Sheila what she thought of her story. Suzy hoped Sheila would enjoy it, and enjoy it - Sheila did!
Author and illustrator decided to collaborate on Luna’s story “just for fun” and fully immersed themselves, day by day, in the creation of a book. Sheila enlisted the help of a real family to act as models for The Millers in her stunning rotoscoped cartoon-style drawings based on reality, which range from Whimsical to Wonderful!
Sheila also dreamed up a special name - Moonwishes Magic - for Suzy’s notion of making wishes under the light of a glowing moon. This magic seemed to touch everything the two collaborators did together, with text and images falling into place to make this enchanting tale a dream come true!
Sheila read Luna The Moon Pig aloud to 6 year old Henry, who enjoyed the book so much that Sheila and Suzy decided this piggy tale was a tale to be shared. And here it is for everyone - children and adults - to enjoy! On Amazon Worldwide on December 9th, 2017!
Books Which Celebrate Earth Day
I would never have dreamed up the idea of "Snugs The Snow Bear," my first Children's Book, without the image of "The Polar Bear on The Isle of Wight" which first inspired me to put pen to paper.
And, once the character of "Snugs" was born, my thoughts turned to something very serious, which has been preoccupying me in recent years.
People in certain areas of the world struggle to survive. They struggle for food. They struggle for water. Every day is a battle.
It seems likely that, in the future, more and more places on earth will become, at best, inhospitable places to live. At worst, they will be places where no human being can survive. I am talking about the phenomenon of Global Warming, a phenomenon that destroys life; it makes the survival of endangered species fragile, and survival of humans in certain areas almost impossible. This is a war - the war against Global Warming. And every day, we ignore the dangers at our peril.
How much more evidence, from the top scientists on this planet, do we need? How many more World Summits will we hold, before we listen, and take action?
The world is hot - too hot. And we need to take measures before it is too late.
We have seen record temperatures across The States, and this is taking its toll on people far and wide across the country.
The idea behind my Snugs Children's Series is to drive home this message in a way that is compelling, engaging, entertaining and inspirational. Colorful illustrations by Peter Hall capture the landscape of The British Coastline and Iceland. It is important that we preserve these landscapes for our children's children to enjoy.
My second Children's Book, "Luna The Moon Pig," illustrated by Sheila Graber of Paddington Bear fame, echoes the environmental concerns in my first book.
Behind a cute story of a little pig, is a message about caring for all animals and about the beauty within us. It speaks of the natural world, of which we, and animals, are a part. Remembering our roots is a metaphorical theme. The story is based on the stunning woodland areas in The Lakes Area of Florida. Captured to perfection in Sheila Graber's stunning illustrations, the book shows Florida animals, flora and fauna.
By showing our children fabulous natural world landscapes in picture books and middle-grade readers, we are bringing into focus one of the most important things in
life; the knowledge that the world is wonderful!
And, once the character of "Snugs" was born, my thoughts turned to something very serious, which has been preoccupying me in recent years.
People in certain areas of the world struggle to survive. They struggle for food. They struggle for water. Every day is a battle.
It seems likely that, in the future, more and more places on earth will become, at best, inhospitable places to live. At worst, they will be places where no human being can survive. I am talking about the phenomenon of Global Warming, a phenomenon that destroys life; it makes the survival of endangered species fragile, and survival of humans in certain areas almost impossible. This is a war - the war against Global Warming. And every day, we ignore the dangers at our peril.
How much more evidence, from the top scientists on this planet, do we need? How many more World Summits will we hold, before we listen, and take action?
The world is hot - too hot. And we need to take measures before it is too late.
We have seen record temperatures across The States, and this is taking its toll on people far and wide across the country.
The idea behind my Snugs Children's Series is to drive home this message in a way that is compelling, engaging, entertaining and inspirational. Colorful illustrations by Peter Hall capture the landscape of The British Coastline and Iceland. It is important that we preserve these landscapes for our children's children to enjoy.
My second Children's Book, "Luna The Moon Pig," illustrated by Sheila Graber of Paddington Bear fame, echoes the environmental concerns in my first book.
Behind a cute story of a little pig, is a message about caring for all animals and about the beauty within us. It speaks of the natural world, of which we, and animals, are a part. Remembering our roots is a metaphorical theme. The story is based on the stunning woodland areas in The Lakes Area of Florida. Captured to perfection in Sheila Graber's stunning illustrations, the book shows Florida animals, flora and fauna.
By showing our children fabulous natural world landscapes in picture books and middle-grade readers, we are bringing into focus one of the most important things in
life; the knowledge that the world is wonderful!
Essential Skills for Children's Writers.
The skills that are needed to write a quality children’s book are:
1) Empathetic understanding of a child’s world - what is important and interesting to him/her.
2) The ability to write a story which “sees” “hears” and “feels” the world through the eyes of a child.
3) Imagination, in bucketloads!
4) Humour - the younger the child, the more obvious and slapstick the humor should be. Think bodily functions or humor that is naughty - tummies rumbling, snoring, farting, seeing the baddies fall over, and so on.
5) Writers of children’s books need to be aware that young children’s attention spans are shorter. Therefore, the ability to make smooth, relatively swift transitions from scene to scene, to write clearly, simply, and at a good pace is important.
6) Characterisation and character-led stories work very well indeed in children’s books. The ability to create larger than life, lovable heroes and heroines is the essence of a good read for children. It’s good to have baddies, too. Larger than life characters work - ones that kids want to hug, and ones that they love to hate! Think pantomime!
7) Young children adore animal and nature stories so a knowledge and love of animals and nature is very useful to a writer of children's books.
8) Writers of children’s books should have a good ear for their story. All books should flow, and sound good, but with children’s books, this is all the more important if they are the kind of books that are read out loud.
9) Unless the author illustrates their own books, authors of children’s books need the ability to communicate their ideas to their illustrator in a visual way. Illustrations in young children’s books help to convey information. Having a good rapport with an illustrator collaborator is essential.
10) Excellent artwork is at the heart of good children’s books.
11) Voice acting ability is very useful to writers who narrate audiobooks and/or do readings of their books. Personal warmth, a liking for children, and the ability to have a rapport with them is essential.
Authors of children's books need to be entertainers and educators. It is a great responsibility writing children’s books which will influence a generation growing up, and many generations to come.
Copyright Suzy Davies, Author, "Luna The Moon Pig," "Snugs The Snow Bear" 2018. All Rights Reserved.
1) Empathetic understanding of a child’s world - what is important and interesting to him/her.
2) The ability to write a story which “sees” “hears” and “feels” the world through the eyes of a child.
3) Imagination, in bucketloads!
4) Humour - the younger the child, the more obvious and slapstick the humor should be. Think bodily functions or humor that is naughty - tummies rumbling, snoring, farting, seeing the baddies fall over, and so on.
5) Writers of children’s books need to be aware that young children’s attention spans are shorter. Therefore, the ability to make smooth, relatively swift transitions from scene to scene, to write clearly, simply, and at a good pace is important.
6) Characterisation and character-led stories work very well indeed in children’s books. The ability to create larger than life, lovable heroes and heroines is the essence of a good read for children. It’s good to have baddies, too. Larger than life characters work - ones that kids want to hug, and ones that they love to hate! Think pantomime!
7) Young children adore animal and nature stories so a knowledge and love of animals and nature is very useful to a writer of children's books.
8) Writers of children’s books should have a good ear for their story. All books should flow, and sound good, but with children’s books, this is all the more important if they are the kind of books that are read out loud.
9) Unless the author illustrates their own books, authors of children’s books need the ability to communicate their ideas to their illustrator in a visual way. Illustrations in young children’s books help to convey information. Having a good rapport with an illustrator collaborator is essential.
10) Excellent artwork is at the heart of good children’s books.
11) Voice acting ability is very useful to writers who narrate audiobooks and/or do readings of their books. Personal warmth, a liking for children, and the ability to have a rapport with them is essential.
Authors of children's books need to be entertainers and educators. It is a great responsibility writing children’s books which will influence a generation growing up, and many generations to come.
Copyright Suzy Davies, Author, "Luna The Moon Pig," "Snugs The Snow Bear" 2018. All Rights Reserved.
Author Reading - Excerpt "Luna The Moon Pig"
Tune in to my author reading of "Luna The Moon Pig" Illustrated in color with hand-drawn cartoon-style illustrations by the celebrated Sheila Graber, award-winning world-acclaimed Artist, Animator and Educator who drew Paddington Bear for B.B.C Children's Television Paddington Bear Programmes!
https://twitter.com/birdwriter7/statu...
https://twitter.com/birdwriter7/statu...
When Luna Dances in The Moonlight - a Poem/Song based on "Luna The Moon Pig" Picture Book
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
she makes us want to join in,
her feet have a rhythm as she takes flight,
like a little bird in the spring!
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
her eyes have a special glow,
her pretty face is always smiling,
she’s the loveliest piggy that we know!
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
her snout nods to the tune,
she swishes her tail,
like a sailboat sail,
gliding under the moon!
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
we all like to clap and sing,
as she sways to the music,
everything is magic -
and it’s all such a wonderful
all such a magical,
all such a beautiful thing!
Copyright Suzy Davies 2018. All Rights Reserved. No Copying. A Song about “Luna The Moon Pig: The Pig Who Hid” on Amazon Worldwide!
she makes us want to join in,
her feet have a rhythm as she takes flight,
like a little bird in the spring!
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
her eyes have a special glow,
her pretty face is always smiling,
she’s the loveliest piggy that we know!
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
her snout nods to the tune,
she swishes her tail,
like a sailboat sail,
gliding under the moon!
When Luna dances in the moonlight,
we all like to clap and sing,
as she sways to the music,
everything is magic -
and it’s all such a wonderful
all such a magical,
all such a beautiful thing!
Copyright Suzy Davies 2018. All Rights Reserved. No Copying. A Song about “Luna The Moon Pig: The Pig Who Hid” on Amazon Worldwide!
Book News
"The Flamingos Who Painted The Sky," our new picture book is NOW fully available to bring in #Christmas #sunshine, #flamingo #sunsets, and #happiness #worldwide Illustrated by the talented Shirin Mass ...more
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