It’s flown past but the book subscription box business I run, The Book Dragon Club, is one. If you haven’t already seen the boxes then clearly my social media presence needs some attention, so here is a little teaser.
At the start of the pandemic I turned my after-school book clubs into a range of carefully curated book boxes and themed activity packs. The monthly boxes save parents’ time and effort in ensuring their child has access to a high quality, diverse library, and are specifically designed to encourage cross-curricular learning. Plus our regular book club meetings (online) are a great way to encourage a love of reading.
The book boxes are designed to inspire a lifelong love of reading with an emphasis on diversity by both genre and author. Each box includes an exclusive themed activity pack designed by experts to encourage cross-curricular, immersive, learning. Our boxes are suitable for all abilities, from reluctant readers to bookworms, although of course we call them book dragons.
If you aren’t a member already, I’d love to see you there.
My own book tours are run by the fabulous Rachel Gilby from Rachel’s Random Resources and, although I try to stick to reviewing kids books on this blog, every now and then she tempts me with something different. So, as a Scot, and a Highlands girl myself, I couldn’t resist taking a peek at High Heels in the Highlands. There’s nothing much about the Scottish setting, in fact it’s ancillary to the story (fair enough given this is more RomCom than Literary Fiction), so I filled in the blanks with a place I know myself which worked rather well to flesh out the location.
Having created my setting, back to the plot. If you take Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons you’ll get the general idea; meddling Londoner decides to fix rural community. Compared to Flora in Cold Comfort Farm who managed to meddle in a charming way, I actively disliked Clem at the start, although I did warm to her over the book. Then replace the swarthy, brooding, silent Seth with Rory. Throw in a surprise inheritance, a mysterious housekeeper, some stereotypically brash American tourists, a sheep, a ceilidh, a wedding, high drama in the fashion and art worlds, etc, there’s certainly a lot going on but once I settled into the story, I loved the combination of community, mystery, dreams, and love.
Oh, and this is book 2 in a series, but I didn’t realise, and it can certainly be read as a stand-alone.
Blurb
Clementine’s swapped a London flat for a Scottish castle – but will she get her fairytale ending?
After discovering they were heirs to an enormous fortune, the lives of the five Hiverton sisters have never been the same.
While oldest sister Ariana settles in Norfolk, Clementine heads up to the remote Scottish Highlands to move into the castle that forms part of their estate. Not bad for a girl brought up scrabbling for money in a tiny house in East London…
However, Clem quickly finds out that Ruacoddy Castle is falling apart, the neighbours – especially grumpy young farmer, Rory – are suspicious of her and the eccentric housekeeper, Ottoline, is still in residence.
But as Clem finds herself growing closer to the village community, even growing closer to Rory and forming an alliance with Ottoline, she realises that life in the Highlands might just be the change she needed.
She just needs to find out if Manolo Blahnik make wellies…Take a trip to the gorgeous Scottish countryside with this utterly feelgood, romantic and hilarious read – fans of Jen
Biography
Finalist for the 2021 Romantic Novelists Association Debut Romantic Novel Award for A New Life for Ariana Byrne
Liz Hurley (not THE Liz Hurley) writes exciting and heart warming stories that will make you cheer and laugh. Her heroines are overflowing with grit, gumption and good old-fashioned gorgeousness!
Author of – Dear Diary, a prequel to the Hiverton Sister series. – A New Life for Ariana Byrne. Book 1 / Hiverton Sisters series – High Heels in the Highlands. Book 2 / Hiverton Sisters series – Cornish Dreams at Cockleshell Cottage. Book 3 / Hiverton Sisters series.
One thing I’ve noticed through lockdown is the number of my friends who have got dogs – I suspect partly because as a result of the increased working from home it’s a much more viable option for many than previously, and partly as the “daily walk” has become an integral part of most our lives.
I always enjoy “fly on the wall” books for the insights they give into other people’s lives. And since I have a dog, I was curious to read Trials and Tribulations of a Pet Sitter although I’m not sure what I expected – it’s not like you’d get any scandalous stories from the dogs themselves during their stays, nor was I expecting any shocking revelations from the pet sitter (thank goodness – that would be far too upsetting and need a trigger warning). So this could have been a mundane recount of daily dog walks, and in a way it is, but it’s also strangely compelling and I kept picking it up at every opportunity! It’s such a lovely, warm memoir of a life filled to the brim with dogs that I defy any dog lover not to enjoy it. Oh, and I desperately want to own a slightly mad Pointer now!
I also just checked to see if there was an audio version of this as I’d love to hear it narrated by the author – sadly not (yet), but I’ve got my fingers crossed.
The Blurb
Hilarious and heart warming true stories of a Pet Sitter.
Laura takes us on her journey describing the immense joy that the animals have brought into her life. But it’s not all fun and games. With sometimes as many as ten dogs around her home, things can get a tad hectic. Not to forget the every day challenges faced in keeping the pets happy and safe when out walking. Luckily she is not alone in her quest; her unusually dominant Golden Retriever ‘Brece’ is always by her side. Brece earns her keep by convincingly playing the part of the alpha female, ensuring harmony amongst the pack.
At times, the responsibility that Laura faces becomes overwhelming. She may think she has everything covered but that hand of fate could quite easily swoop down, creating havoc for her and the dogs. Laura has endured many close calls and teetered on the precipice of disaster may a time. The longer she continues with her pet sitting enterprise, the more likely hood that total disaster will actually strike. Is she tempting fate?
Laura Marchant is the Bridget Jones of the pet sitting world!
Author Bio
Laura Marchant was born in 1959 in the seaside resort of Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, England. Both her parents were born in the same town, so not exactly a family of intrepid travellers! As a child Laura and her siblings were fortunate enough to own shares in the families pets. Unbeknown to Laura at the time, her love for the animals formed the blueprint for a large part of her life. In 2011 she finally found her vocation, and in the comfort of her own home, set up a pet boarding business. For the next 7 years she shared her abode with a pack of dogs. A lot of this time was spent watching over the animals and observing their behaviour
If you know me, you’ll know I’m very chatty on Twitter, but actually I’m loving Instagram at the moment because the images are so cheerful and uplifting. My attempts don’t always work out Insta-worthy, so I was chatting to photographer Nina Mucalov and have invited her to share her tips … I’m going to start with idea 3.
Looking for a fun 15 minute activity with your kids this long weekend?
Try an at-home lockdown photoshoot 📸 No need to tidy anything, just pick a spot next to a big window, grab a laundry basket to clear any mess, then call your kids over.
HERE ARE 4 IDEAS I’VE USED WITH MY OWN KIDS DURING LOCKDOWN
1. Reading Are books a big part of your life? Grab some favourite titles and capture your kids reading on their own or ask your partner to take one of you reading with them.
2. A favourite game Are your kids into lego, chase, or hide-and-seek? My little one never tires of hiding under the covers (and she especially loves it when I hide with her!)
3. Upside Down This is a sure way to capture genuine smiles and laughter. Get them to go upside down on the sofa or on the bed or ask your partner to hold them upside down. It always results in giggles.
4. Age Profile Take a photo of each child on their own and ask them to list their favourite things. Then use an online program – Canva is great (and free!) to create an Age Profile. You’ll love looking back on these as your children grow and their tastes change.
If you like these (how could you not!) do check out her other pictures over here …
You’ll know I love a bit of crafting, but other than Christmas cards, I’ve never got into paper crafts. Lockdown has, however, started one of my friends into ridiculously intricate paper cutting, and we have a tin stuffed with about ten thousand origami Yoda’s (if you haven’t seen the Origami Yoda series by Tom Angleberger, the instructions are at the end of each book in the series – highly recommended). Anyway, I spotted the cutest sloth paper animal kit on social media so I invited Sam White to talk to us about her kits. Over to her …
There are many reasons why so many people are turning to crafting these days. Above the usual stresses of modern life, now being stuck indoors has certainly added a different kind of pressure and overwhelm for parents. I do feel your pain … At the end of the day, just being mum, it really can be exhausting, and just leave us feeling stir crazy. The modern mum is a busy one, however you can’t continue to be everything to everyone, eventually it will catch up with you! What I’ve learned recently, is that I need to take time for myself, to rejuvenate, to make sure I am not lost while trying to hold everything together.
How to achieve this eluded me for a while, and then, at the end of last year, I decided to try something completely new, that was just for me, and I tried my hand at crafting. I bought an animal crafting kit from Flamingo Paperie and very soon, I literally had this eureka moment, when I realised, I absolutely love this!!! Not only was I learning a new skill, but I realised I was able, even as a beginner, to create something that not only looked good, but made me feel good! The whole process was so relaxing. I’d achieved something I didn’t know I could … crafting with Flamingo Paperie really has brought something fantastic into my life.
If you’re looking for different things to do, to keep everyone entertained, why not while away a few hours with some paper crafting? I mean who doesn’t love sloths and unicorns… right!? Everything you need to create your own three-D animal model is included in the kit – all the templates, high adhesion craft glue, sticks for craft glue application, scissors and a scoring tool to create those crisp folds too. Just look at the proud “parents” of these completed craft animals…
Here is a short, speeded up, video of Emily and Joe creating one of the latest craft models, the Koala… they make it look so easy!
Can children create with Flamingo Paperie’s Animal Crafting Kits?
Absolutely yes! The kits are aimed at children aged 12+ and adults, however with help from parents a younger child can get involved too.
How long does a kit take to complete?
Kits have varying timescales for completion, but you can expect crafting fun to last 3-18 hours depending on the kit purchased.
How much are the 3D craft Kits from Flamingo Paperie?
They start from £15, including everything you’ll need, even a pair of scissors! You won’t need to find any fancy or expensive tools to help you complete a kit – everything’s in the box.
SPECIAL OFFER
Free postage over £30, and, even better, when you join the Customer Club, you receive a freebie with your first online order. Www.flamingopaperie.co.uk/web/samwhite/area/customer_club/
Lexi Rees, author 