This Friday is World Book Night!
World Book Night is an annual celebration of books and reading for 23 April (nicely coinciding with Shakespeare’s birthday). This year they’re celebrating their 10th anniversary!
I wanted to choose three top books that are my favourite children’s books for it. Some I’ve read recently, others I’ve read not so recently.
My Top Three Children’s Books
This is a great children’s book, almost reminiscent of Harry Potter, but one of the main characters so reminds me of Willy Wonka. It begins with Morrigan Crow, cursed to die on her 12th birthday, whisked away just in time to a land called Nevermoor and given the opportunity to join the magical school there. But there’s a catch – of course there is. She has to go through three trials and win them to get a chance at a place at the school! And she has to have a talent to get her through the doors, but there’s just one problem – Morrigan Crow does not have a magical talent.
I loved all of this book. The worldbuilding, the characters, the plot. It’s deftly woven together and Morrigan Crow is a character you root for at every opportunity. A magical enchanting tale, I thoroughly recommend if you haven’t read it already.
I’ve only just finished this book last night and I loved the story. It begins on Sofia’s twelfth birthday, and she’s upset because her mother has spent many days and long hours in her workshop, building something secret out of bones. She’d promised to be finished on Sofia’s birthday. But instead, her mother leaves the children in the house and promises to return, and that’s when the story begins. It tells a tale of secret passages, secret rivers, and bone keys. It dips and dives with the spell of feathers, the story delving into the history of the city and hints at plagues that had swept the city a few years before. Sofia is pulled into finding her mother, who disappears on her birthday, and joining her is her brother and a strange boy who traverses the city underground – not to mention their pet crow. Yes, I really loved this story, and definitely recommend it for World Book Night.
I read this book a few years ago now, and have reread it since. It begins with a boy called Nobody Owens, living in a graveyard with a bunch of ghosts and a vampire. There’s somebody hunting him, and the ghosts are worried. As he ages, he’ll no longer be safe at the Graveyard, but with no family to speak of, where does he go?
Neil Gaiman does it again with his stories. The worldbuilding is great, and you really get to the heart of the character of Nobody Owens, following as he grows up from babe to young teenager. The ending was sort of sad, but the great news is he conquers those who would hurt him. The characters are all believable, even if many are ghosts! This is a must-read for all.
Happy reading for all!
Kate @ Kandid Chronicles x
kandidchronicles.com 