Category: Junior fiction

acquisitions, Announcements, Book news, Junior fiction

We have acquired Lorena Carrington’s first junior novel!

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Christmas Press is delighted to announce that we have acquired world rights in Leaf Letters, a unique interactive short novel for young readers that is award-winning creator Lorena Carrington’s first junior fiction title as an author-illustrator. With a background in fine arts, photography and design. Lorena has previously worked as an illustrator for story collections, anthologies and picture books, and has also created a number of cover illustrations and designs.   

Christmas Press publishing director Sophie Masson said, ‘As soon as I read Lorena’s proposal for Leaf Letters, I was hooked. Told in words and pictures, this is a story of friendship, the pleasures of the natural world, and the pleasures of mystery! Plus it’s an invitation for young readers to join in the fun through coded messages and puzzles to solve. What’s not to love?’

From the beginning, readers are drawn into the world of nine-year-old Hazel Bird as she roams her neighbourhood bushland, photographing its tiny wild worlds. But then she meets Cole, a boy with a hundred pockets and a strange and marvellous way of talking. Together they find hidden treasure and a handwritten book of secret codes…Will they solve its mysteries?

Lorena Carrington said, ‘Hazel Bird is undeniably a young version of my adult self, happily lost in the tiny worlds of the undergrowth, camera in hand and twigs in her hair. She loves puzzles of all kinds, whether they involve constructing pictures, deciphering words, or figuring out the world around her. I’ve been wanting for a long time to create a story, told in words and pictures, that includes secret codes and a mystery. When Hazel and Cole popped into my head, I knew it was the perfect chance.  I was so thrilled that Christmas Press felt the same way, embracing the idea of Leaf Letters. They are the perfect publisher for this book, and I am ever grateful to Sophie and the team for their enthusiasm and support. It means I get to dream up weird and wonderful enigmas, and spend a whole lot more time crawling around the damp mossy ground.’

Leaf Letters will be published by Christmas Press in July 2024.

anniversary, authors, Books, celebrations, Junior fiction, middle-grade fiction

And more from another wonderful author…

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This time, it’s the fabulous Jenny Blackford who’s penned some lovely words from our anniversary. Jenny’s published two fantastic books with us: The Girl in the Mirror (2019), a middle-grade mystery novel which won the Davitt Award for Best Crime Novel in the Children’s Category in 2020; and Fil and Harry (2021, illustrated by Kristin Devine), a lively, engaging fantasy novel for junior readers. As well as writing fiction, Jenny is an award-winning poet who has had two books of poetry published plus numerous others in anthologies and journals.

Small presses are beautiful things, and Christmas Press is a particularly beautiful small press, creating gorgeous packages. I am so grateful that they published my spooky middle grade novel The Girl in the Mirror, which won the Davitt Award for Best Children’s Crime Novel, and my junior novel Fil and Harry, complete with snarky talking cat. Thank you, Christmas Press, and happy anniversary!

activities, Announcements, chapterbooks, free stuff, Junior fiction, New releases

Fantastic free Four Up In Lights activity pack

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We’re delighted to present a fabulous activity pack for Four Up In Lights, the third and final book in the fantastic early readers series by Sophie Masson and Cheryl Orsini, published this month.

The activity pack, which includes story prompts, a word search, colouring pages, and more, was created by our talented editing intern Ash Taylor. Ash is also a student at the University of New England, studying Writing and Publishing, and hopes to have a career in the publishing industry later. Ash much enjoyed creating the activities, and says: ‘I look after some children who really like vehicles like trucks and cars and trains. So I thought about what sort of activities they might like to do or would come up with on their own after reading the books and went from there!’

Thanks, Ash!

We are sure everyone is just going to love these activities, which are free to download, print and use, for families, schools and libraries. Please note however that copyright remains with Christmas Press and that the activity pack may not be sold or used commercially.

Ash Taylor

To access the Four Up In Lights activity pack, just click below.

four-up-in-lights-activity-packDownload
activities, Announcements, free stuff, Junior fiction, New releases, Teachers' Notes

Activities and teachers’ notes for A Very Special Moon Mission now available!

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We have some great free, downloadable activities and Teachers’ Notes available for A Very Special Moon Mission, which can be obtained from the United Publishers of Armidale website. The activities outside of the Teachers’ Notes have been created by Lucy Eddy, who also edited the book, and the Teachers’ Notes have great input from author Rebecca Fung and illustrator David Allan.

Find the activities here and the Teachers’ Notes here.

authors, Books, Junior fiction, Reviews

Fil and Harry reviewed on Buzz Words

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Another lovely review for Fil and Harry: this time by Dannielle Viera, on the Buzz Words site. Here’s a short extract:

Award-winning author Jenny Blackford has delivered a delightful junior fiction novel suitable for kids aged seven to ten. The friendship headaches that Fil suffers from are common in this age group, so youngsters will immediately feel empathy for the troubled protagonist. And who doesn’t love the idea of owning a talking cat? …..Kristin Devine’s images are exceptionally detailed, which encourages young readers to pause and ponder what is happening in the story.

You can read the whole review here.

illustration by Kristin Devine.
authors, Books, Illustrators, Junior fiction, New releases, Reviews

Great new review of Fil and Harry

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Very pleasing to read a great new review of Fil and Harry on the ReadPlus site! Here’s a short extract:

The third person narration is light and breezy. Humour laces the storyline.  We feel for Fil; we worry about her problems. We think we know where she is going wrong with her friendship choices. We love the way her family rally around her. There is a tangle in the story which any young child would recognise. Harry the magical cat has a solution and the ending is very satisfying. The pencil sketches scattered throughout the story are soft and comforting. Stars and cat paw prints accompany the text.  This is a delightful little book. 

You can read the full review here.

illustration by Kristin Devine
Announcements, authors, Books, Illustrators, Junior fiction, New releases, publication day

Publication day for Fil and Harry!

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It’s publication day for Jenny Blackford’s fabulous junior novel, Fil and Harry! Illustrated with charming, lively black and white pictures by Kristin Devine, this is a warm and engaging short novel, with a touch of fantasy, which readers seven and up will love.

Find out more about the book, author and illustrator here and read a great review of the book here.