"They looked towards the hilltop and saw a yellow flame rising against the sky. Too-ticky had lit the bonfire. It wrapped itself in flames at once, from ground to top, it gave a roar like a lion and threw its reflection straight down on the black ice" Moominland #Midwinter, Tove Jansson

Another #Christmas present from us to you! @nicolettejones.bsky.social interviews Jamila Gavin about her #nerobookawards shortlisted MY SOUL A SHINING TREE: it has musical prose and historical facts about a hero who won the Victoria Cross. #KidLitUK @farshorebooks.bsky.social tinyurl.com/y5ry8d8f

'Winter hares in conversation' by UK contemporary printmaker Angela Harding #WomensArt #ArtAdvent

“Once upon a time, on a cold winter’s day, as the snowflakes were falling softly and swiftly, a Queen sat sewing by her window. As she looked out, the snow scene was framed like a picture by the black ebony of the window frame” Artist: EricWinter Writer VeraSouthgate

A perfect poem for these blustery days. 🌬🧥 'Winter Coat' by Rosita Boland, published in Poetry Ireland Review Issue 58, edited by Catherine Phil MacCarthy.

'Crookery Hall' by the immensely talented Leonora Carrington (1917-2011) The house is so haunted even the ghosts are fleeing. #Gothicadvent

The House With Chicken Legs Runs Away ARCs are landing! Cover by Melissa Castrillón, internal illustrations by Elisa Paganelli. You can read the first chapter here: issuu.com/usbornepubli... & signed dedicated copies are available from @samreadbookseller.bsky.social & @bookendscarlisle.bsky.social🙏

Santa Claus by Arthur Rackham #LegendaryWednesday

‪Day 16 of the #NewIllustrationOfTheDay #AdventCalendar quiz. Two children’s book characters whose name begins with P. Your task: name the ILLUSTRATORS. The second is a famous illustrator but a rather unexpected vision of a familiar character. (Answers will be posted on Christmas Eve.)

Remembering Edna O'Brien

Grimogen Darkstar: Bat-cat-tastrophe is a Spooky and Magical Story for Animal Lovers and spooky characters. Ideal for aves 6 and up. A Young Girl's Quest for a Pet Leads to Moonlit Mayhem! amzn.eu/d/bNvFtwg #GrimogenDarkstar #books #christmas #ChristmasGift #reading @tinytreebooks.bsky.social

Illustration from 'The Snow Leopard', 2007 by author and illustrator Jackie Morris, who lives and works in a small cottage in Wales #WomensArt #ArtAdvent 🎄

Day 12 of the #NewIllustrationOfTheDay #AdventCalendar. Characters whose name begins with L. A family name for all the characters in the first picture and the child in the second. Your task: name the ILLUSTRATORS. Answers to the whole quiz will be posted on the afternoon of December 24th.

Eeeeekkkkkkkk!!!!! My copy of THE DAD TRAP arrived yesterday and I was so excited and overwhelmed and EMOTIONAL and did I mention I was EXCITED?!? If you’ve got kids aged 8-13 who love silly, action-packed, fun stories full of chaos and mischief, they might like this! #KidLit #PrimaryEduSky

Great to see The Midnight House on this fabulous list of the best Cork books of 2025. Thank you @marjbrennan.bsky.social @irishexaminer.bsky.social 📚✍️✨ www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/ar...

#OwlishMonday 'December' by Quentin Blake, from Roald Dahl's 'My Year'

Huge thanks to Leia at @fullhouselitmag.bsky.social for featuring one of my short stories alongside brilliant creatives over on their website. 🥰

It's my turn on the Stories 4 You blog today, I'll paste the link below 🙂 #GrimogenDarkstar #kidlit #childrensbooks #writing #writerslife #writingcommunity #reading #books @tinytreebooks.bsky.social asmallgangofauthors.blogspot.com/2025/12/meet...

Day 7, Picture Fiction for Early Readers: 'Super Nani and Captain Yaz' by Saira Shah & Maria Gabriela Gama. A joyful superhero adventure starring an unstoppable gran. @sairaswrites.bsky.social @templarbooks.bsky.social #Spark12BooksOfChristmas 🎄🎁📚

Théophile Alexandre Steinlen, 'Cat in the Moonlight' #Caturday

Hi guys, I’m fundraising, join me? Christmas won’t be magical for every child. A book gift could add sparkle to Christmas for a child who needs it most, giving them something to cherish for years to come. Will you help? Find out more here: www.booktrust.org.uk/xmas @booktrust.org.uk #MagicOfBooks

'Driving home...' by contemporary Welsh painter Sarah Evans #WomensArt

So here they my favourite 40 picturebooks of 2025 (actually there are 42). Merry Christmas! #FavePicturebooks25 #PicturebookPage

📢 Amazing news alert! Our brilliant #WriterInResidence Matt Goodfellow has launched his poetry competition for children - and his favourite entries will win a signed bundle of his books! Get more info on how to enter here 👇 https://bit.ly/3Khwki9

Poem-a-day advent calendar 🎁Day 3 is 'A Spell to Banish Grief' by @theferocity.bsky.social from 'Alive at the End of the World' @coffeehousepress.bsky.social 🌹

'The Witch' by Ida Rentoul Outhwaite Illustration from 'Fairyland'

www.gladstoneslibrary.org/event/the-si... Want to do a six month writing course with me? Or looking for a great Christmas present for the writer in your life? Sign up quickly as there are only 15 places. I would love to see you there!

CHRISTMAS OFFER! Buy SHOO! (for 3-6 years) or THE DANGEROUS LIFE OF OPHELIA BOTTOM or THE INVISIBLES (8-12 years) and I'll send you a signed and dedicated bookmark! Just leave your details and who you'd like the book dedicated to via my website susiebower.co.uk

Today is #RLSDay which marks the birthday of the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson who would have been 175 today. It's also a good day to remember that it is NOT actually his birthday because in 1891 he gave it away to a young girl because she didn't like her birthday. 🧵

"There is indeed a change of register in writing for children, but you don’t write down to them, you write out of your own adult concerns and interests." Read more as Penelope Lively argues that we need children’s fiction now more than ever. https://bit.ly/4r2xKO7

"This is about how you manage a massive festival when you’re so little and can’t possibly know what it all means." My Books for Keeps interview with Lauren Child about her Charlie and Lola Christmas book. booksforkeeps.co.uk/article/the-... @booksforkeeps.bsky.social @simonandschuster.bsky.social

#BookHaiku a day Totally Gothic a chilly mist crawls across a lake of secrets Beside a spooky school with creepy staff, fragile memories trapped, set new pupil Rosella on Edge , eerie Black Roses #CarnegieMedals #Gothic

The 2026 Carnegies nominations are live! 🎉 Join us in celebrating the exceptional storytelling and illustration recognised this year. 🏆 Get ready for an inspiring awards season! Congrats to all nominees! 📖❤️ https://carnegies.co.uk/nominations-announced-2026 #Carnegies2026

Absolutely thrilled that Black Gables has been nominated for the Carnegie Medal for Writing. Huge thanks to all the librarians and readers @carnegiemedals.bsky.social Special thanks to @everywithwords.bsky.social and Silvia @pfd Congrats to all the nominees! #Carnegies2026

I’ve updated my Halloween book recommendations blogpost, adding in some recently published titles. Happy spooky season reading! #UkKidLit vsviewfromthebookshelves.home.blog/2025/10/25/h...

More Book 📚 recommendations for 🎃the Spooky Season #UKKidLit #Librarians #BookBloggers #ReadingRecommendations 📚💀👻🎃 #SpookyBooks @michellepaver.bsky.social @eibhliscarcione.bsky.social @spookypurcell.bsky.social

Lovely to see Black Gables on this fab list! Thanks @bookcraic.bsky.social 👻🏫🍁🖤💀🍂🧌 bookcraic.blog/2025/10/11/s...

From Linda Pastan's book, Queen of a Rainy Country: bit.ly/lindaqueenLB #poem #books #writing

Children In Read is now LIVE! The largest signed book auction in the world. All proceeds are in aid of @childreninread.bsky.social Delighted to have three signed spooky books with bookmarks in the bidding! www.jumblebee.co.uk/childreninre... 📚✍️✨

"Listen! the wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves, We have had our summer evenings, now for #October eves!" By Humbert Wolfe #October1st #BookChatWeekly #Autumn 🎃🍃🍂 🖼️ 'La Bourrasque' (The Gust of Wind) by Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer, 1896

Manchán Magan 1970 - 2025 💔 Craoltóir, scríbhneoir agus Gael. Ní bheidh a leithéid arís ann. Thar na blianta, chruthaigh sé & chuir sé i láthair an t-uafás cláracha do TnaG & TG4. Tá oidhreacht shaibhir fágtha aige dúinn a thabharfaidh inspioráid don chéad ghlúin eile 🕯️ 🔗 www.tg4.ie

Great to see Black Gables included in this fab round up! 📚✍️ #BlackGables

Honoured to have an essay in Bread Alone, a ground-breaking and important anthology from @indienovella.bsky.social featuring 32 working-class writers, collated and edited by award-winning journalist Kate Pascal. Pub: 9 March 2026. Pre-order: t.co/9AwOtMjLXC

I’m very excited to reveal the cover of my debut novel A MILLION TINY MISSILES ALL AT ONCE. Out with @chickenhousebooks.bsky.social on April, it’s the story of a 14 year old teen struggling issues at home and beyond, I hope you enjoy it. You can pre order here! www.amazon.co.uk/dp/191717139...

The October Country. By Ray Bradbury.

Delighted my dark summer tale The Summer Visitor is featured in today’s Irish Examiner as part of its summer-themed writing series. ✍️🌞🖤 www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/ar...

Delighted to have been awarded a 2025 Mentorship in Fiction Bursary with Frank O’Connor fellow @laurajeanmckay.bsky.social @munsterlitcentre.bsky.social

#NewIllustrationOfTheDay by Lucy Rose from Comeback Creatures, about animals that were thought to be extinct but have reappeared. Scrupulous observation of creatures and foliage combined with pattern, light in dark and decorative composition. Text by Leisa Stewart-Sharpe. Wide Eyed Editions 25 Sept.

I’ve been waiting a while to share this! Thank you @puffinbooksuk.bsky.social @waterstoneskids.bsky.social