I know I’m slow to the Grumpfort praise party (It’s already been a Waterstones Children’s Book of the Month) but it’s such a joyful book that I couldn’t resist shouting about it too. Out of all the children’s books I’ve read in the last couple of years, I think this is the book fans of Small! would enjoy most.
Harvey and Mo would make great friends
While my main character Harvey struggles to master the basics of being a giant, poor old Mo is an equally hopeless Warden (a monster hunter who is expected to step up and protect the village of Bogfoss). Both start their stories with low self esteem and an equally low ability to swing axes, maces or bashing clubs. I was rooting for poor old Mo the moment I met him.
It’s got monsters galore
If you had fun meeting the giants, swamp goblins and skelephant in Small!, you’ll have a great time getting to know the monsters living in the forest around Bogfoss. But don’t believe everything you read in A Beginner’s Guide to Monsterology. Just as my giants had the wrong idea about (some) humans, the humans in Bogfoss have got monsters all wrong, too!
The Grumpfort cast of characters are utterly loveable (especially the sausage-roll-loving Snotwoggle, Bork whose keeness to make Mo his best friend gives me the same fuzzy feeling I get from writing about Harvey’s friendship with Walloping Toenail). And the book’s message about not believing everything you read, or judging every monster by the size of its teeth is deftly done all the way through.
Jamie’s illustrations are fabulous
Jamie’s writing is so immersive that everything is easy to picture. But his illustrations inject even more life into each page. In fact, they capture the action so well (especially the graphic novel-style panels and full-page spreads) that you can feel how exciting the story’s going to be before you’ve read a single page.
I sweated buckets over my thank you speech (complete with life advice from the world of Small). So, in what might be my most self-indulgent post ever, I thought I’d share it.
Here I am holding my award next to fellow winners Liz Flanagan and Jenny McLachlan
Thank you SO much. This might just be the most exciting thing to happen to me as an author in the history of the world, ever!
It’s partly really exciting because Small is my first book, and this is the first time it’s won an award, which makes it extra special.
It’s also really exciting because YOU voted for it. I write for lots of reasons. And I admit, I enjoy making myself laugh writing about kids who set fire to their headteachers’ trousers and giants that take up ballet dancing. But I’ve always thought that stories are better shared. So knowing that you’ve read Small and talked about it and hopefully laughed and finished it feeling excited to start your next book is just brilliant.
You’ve also made me feel like my main character Harvey in the best possible way.
If you haven’t read Small yet, it’s about a boy who’s had quite a bit of bad luck. He’s been kicked out of a few different schools. Now the only place willing to give him a chance is Madame Bogbrush’s School for Gifted Giants. There’s just one problem. Harvey’s not a giant. And giants don’t like humans. So he has to wear a daft giant disguise of stilts, fake rubber feet, extra long trousers and a top hat.
Harvey looks like a giant. But he doesn’t feel like one.
Well, I’ve always called myself a writer. I’ve been writing since I was big enough to hold a pen. When I was little, I mostly wrote rhymes and looked for ever more creative ways to tell my brother he smells. As I got older, I found jobs where I could write. But I was always writing very serious things, like the messages your grown ups might get from the bank saying they owe someone money. The problem with writing very serious things for grown ups is that they almost never let you include stories about swamp flapper birds pooing on your shoes … or giants who wear tutus.
So I called myself a writer of serious things, but never a children’s author. Becoming a children’s author was my dream. It was also scary because there were already so many brilliant books and children’s authors already out there. Could I really do it?
Even when I found a publisher and even when my book was on the shelves in shops and libraries I still didn’t completely feel like an author.
Putting stories out into the world feels a lot like being a kid on stilts, pretending to be a giant and hoping no one will see through the disguise.
Putting stories out into the world feels a lot like being a kid on stilts, pretending to be a giant and hoping no one will see through the disguise.
Being shortlisted for the Lancashire School Libraries Fantastic Book Award and waiting nervously for the results felt a lot like being Harvey, leaping from his stilts to escape a deadly swamp sink pit and not knowing if his best giant friend would catch him … or if he’d be eaten by swamp goblins.
Thank you so so much for reading Small, for voting for it, and for catching me. I’ve never felt more like a real children’s author.
I’ll finish on one thought. Think for a moment about a big dream you have. Things you want to do, whether that’s a school club or team you’re thinking of joining or something you want to do when you’re grown up. When you think about that dream, it might make you a bit scared. Perhaps it feels too hard or you think you won’t fit in or someone will laugh at you. Well, I have a secret. Most of us (especially grown-ups) feel like we’re walking around on stilts most of the time. We’re all just hoping no one will spot our disguise.
So if you have a big dream, even if it seems scary, my best advice, is to be brave like Harvey and leap!
Thank you so much again. Keep reading. Keep sharing stories. This really is the most exciting day in the history of the world ever. Thank you.
First, an apology: when I wrote Small! I didn’t think about the World Book Day costume implications of creating a character who wears stilts for an entire book. (Unless the young readers in your life go to circus school, please don’t encourage them to try it.)
Luckily, there are lots of safe ways for fans of SMALL! and SMALL BITES BACK to dress as characters from the books.
Here are some printable props you can use to become Walloping Toenail, Ms Sugar Plum or Clot the vampire dentist apprentice on World Book Day.
Walloping Toenail
Walloping’s my favourite giant. If you love him too, copy his style by:
writing the word MAPS on a piece of paper, then rolling it up and sticking it down one sock
printing out this cover for The Big Book For Explorers
cutting around the dotted line and wrapping it over another book for the day.
Cover any book to make your own Big Book for Explorers
If you have a leftover vampire costume from Halloween, you could be any of the vampire dentists in Small Bites Back. Just remember to carry a toothbrush wherever you go!
Clot also loves carrying her pet bat Fruity on her wrist. Download the template and follow the instructions to make your own flying bat wristband.
Ms Sugar Plum, the tutting, clipboard-wielding Beastly School Inspector
Fancy being a Beastly School Board inspector? Then grab a clipboard (or use the side of a cereal box and a paperclip) and print off your very own inspection report! Spend the day tutting loudly and scoring your school.
Add any extra fairy touches to your costume that you have at home, too – like wings or a sparkly tiara. You could also print and colour these wings and stick them onto the back of your outfit.
Have a brilliant World Book Day! If you dress as any Small characters, don’t forget to share your pics with me (I’m @MissDePlume on all the social media channels) 😄
I loved reading Libby and the Parisian Puzzle last year. This cosy mystery for kids was exactly the kind of book 7-year-old me would have devoured. So I can’t wait to see what mysteries Libby will have to unravel next as she heads to Scotland to visit her new friend, Connie.
Luckily, I don’t have long to wait. Libby and the Highland Heist is out on 19th January. Pre-order at Waterstones (or head to your local indie to bag a copy).
2.Villains Academy
Ryan Hammond
Unsurpisingly, I’m a sucker for stories set in unusual schools. So I’m really looking forward to visiting Villain’s Academy in February.
Has Bram the werewolf really got what it takes to be a proper villain? I’ll be first in the queue to dive into this silly (and spooky) story to find out!
Michael the sausage dog has a rare talent: he can read minds. But is it enough to turn him into the su-paw-star of his dreams?
I was lucky enough to read an early draft of Michael’s memoirs, so I already know his journey to Hollywoof is heartwarming and hilarious. And his sidekick, Stanley Big Dog might just be one of my all-time favourite supporting characters. I can’t wait for the rest of the world to fall head-over-paw for this fabulous story.
Michael The Amazing Mind-Reading Sausage Dog is out on 8th June 2022. Give your future-self a treat and pre-order now.
Which books are you looking forward to reading in 2023? Let me know in the comments 🙂
Small! cover (mocked up with help from diybookcovers.com)
1. The illustrator
Rory Walker
Rory is an absolute marvel. I’m convinced most illustrators would have heard the brief, ‘can you draw me a friendly undead elephant with a visible skeleton and shimmery shadow memory of its former body’ and run a mile.
Not Rory.
His madcap cartoonist style couldn’t be a more perfect fit for Small! I was in love the moment my editor, Mikka, shared Rory’s first rough sketches last summer. And the final designs bring so much fun to the story – I hope young (and old) readers will giggle as much as me when they see them.
All the illustrations on the cover appear in black and white inside the book. And if you take a look at Rory’s website, you might get a sneak peek of a few more, including every author’s dream – a map!
2. The cover designer
Holly Ovenden
Sometimes your illustrator will be your cover designer too, but not always. (After all, they’re very different skills – I wouldn’t ask a pastry chef to whip me up a bouillabaisse.)
Holly’s a superstar of the book design world. She was named a Bookseller Rising Star in 2021 and shortlisted for Designer of the Year at the British Book Awards. (Take a look at the work on her website and you’ll see why.) So I’m totally honoured she agreed to work on my cover.
The colour, the lettering and the layout of the Small! cover were all Holly’s vision. I don’t think it’s easy working with someone else’s illustrations to create something new – but Holly’s design really pops. I totally LOVE it, and I hope you do, too.
3. The cover revealer
Jo Clarke aka BookloverJo
Not every book has an official ‘cover reveal’, but adding one to your publishing calendar is a fun way to keep the excitement going between your book announcement and the actual launch. And it helps people recognise your book when it lands in the shops.
My cover reveal happened on Twitter this afternoon, courtesy of the lovely BookloverJo. Jo is a school librarian, kidlit book blogger and soon-to-be debut author herself. Jo’s first book, Libby and the Parisian Puzzle publishes on 3rd March with Firefly press and you can pre-order now in all good bookshops.
Jo is an expert cover revealer, having done many a reveal before mine. And why do so many authors like me call on her? Well, as a librarian and blogger, Jo definitely has ‘kidlit influencer’ status. By revealing the cover, Jo’s not just making the moment feel even more special, she’s also helping lots more people see it. Thank you, Jo!
Disclaimer: In the spirit of my ‘three things’ format, I’ve stuck to describing three people who’ve had a big impact on the cover. But of course, huge thanks go to my publisher for teaming me up with such talent, and my agent for sharing her advice and artistic wisdom along the way, too. Publishing a book really is a team sport…
I’ve loved learning about cover design over the last few months. Do you have a favourite illustrator, cover designer or cover? Tell me about them in the replies.
Hannah Moffatt, word wrangler 