Tag M.G. Leonard

Hunt for the Golden Scarab

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Hunt for the Golden Scarab
M.G. Leonard, illustrated by Manuel Sumberac
Macmillan Children’s Books

This is a superb start to what promises to be another excellent M.G.Leonard series. Herein she brings together her loves of history and music; she visited Egypt before writing this book, which is evident from the historical and geographical detail included on both modern and ancient Egypt.

Twelve year old Sim loves to play the piano and practise martial arts, the latter his mother teaches. After moving around quite a bit, her main job is to act as caretaker of the Sir John Soane’s Museum in London, which houses the collector’s archaeological and artistic treasures and objects of interest. Mum (Callidora) and son live in the caretaker’s flat and Sim currently attends the local school where he’s made a good friend, Nelson.

One night, when a pair of strangers appear in the museum after it’s closed. Sim is amazed that his mum plays a tune on a penny whistle she has with her and the tune opens a door, transporting them back to the time of Sir John. It transpires that Mum is a Time Key, able to time travel; however so too are her untrustworthy brother, Emmett and his daughter, Jeopardy, whom they meet beneath the basement of Liberty’s department store. Callidora and Emmett are considered renegade keys as they don’t follow the rules set by the Council of Keys, a society that governs movements.

Everyone is looking for the golden heart scarab of Nefertiti, said to hold the secret of eternal life, but at first no-one knows the whereabouts of her tomb. Callidora though works it out and appropriately clad, they travel back in time. Sim meets the young Tut Ankh Amun

and Jeopardy assists in laying out the body.With the council’s hunters hot on their trail, the excitement and danger mount: Callidora, Sim and Jeopardy must piece together the long-hidden clues if they are to solve the mystery of the scarab before they’re found by the Council.

There’s a satisfying ending that leaves the way open for further adventures. The author’s use of music and musical instruments as a way of opening time doors is genius: I for one, eagerly await Time Keys second instalment.

Interestingly there’s also Sim’s Time Traveller’s Diary recorded by his friend, Nelson and a ‘Key’s Guide to Ancient Egypt’ at the end of this book. Manuel Šumberac’s black and white illustrations are splendid too.

Future Hopes: Hopeful stories in a time of climate change

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Future Hopes: Hopeful stories in a time of climate change
ed. Lauren James
Walker Books


‘… dreams and stories are the real seeds of change.’ So says Nicola Davies in her foreword to
this book, a collection of nine compelling short stories edited by Lauren James, the theme being the climate crisis.

First we have Eyeballs, Tentacles and Teeth by Oisin McGann’s exciting tale of plastic eating bacteria and geoengineering with its unintended consequences – there’s a giant squid in this one. Next comes Tolá Okogwu’s Saving Olumide, a tale of community food production using a farm created on the roof of an apartment building, family love and neighbourly kindness. All the stories are thought-provoking and each has its own appeal. I laughed at Louie Stowell’s playful comic strip They Came Back with its rewilding theme and fanciful elements; but I think my absolute favourite is M.G. Leonard’s Food of the Future which tells how two friends win their school competition which asks that pupils create a sustainable, preferably innovative dish; the Bug Burgers that Borneo and Francesca make are assuredly that, but they taste delicious too.

Lauren James follows each story with a summary and the facts behind the fiction, together with observations and ideas about how each of us, through our lifestyle choices, can make a difference. In so doing, having read this optimistic book, one hopes today’s children feel galvanised and sufficiently empowered to become part of the change that saves our precious planet Earth. With its terrific cover art by David Litchfield, it’s a must have collection that needs to be in every upper primary and secondary class collection.

Feather

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Feather
M. G. Leonard
Walker Books

This is the fourth and final book in what has been an absolutely brilliant series, a series that celebrates friendship, bird watching and the natural world. Herein the Twitchers find themselves
on the trail of a gang of ruthless rare artefact thieves as well as protecting somebody who may have been involved in the crime.

The story begins when Ava is on an end of term class visit to the Swan natural history museum. An alarm sounds and hearing a rustling, she delays leaving and by chance is present when, what turns out to be a daring and well-executed robbery of rare, vintage bird ‘skins’ takes place. Who would want such things – a fashion designer perhaps?

Once outside the museum she encounters an unusual girl with a pet raven waiting at the bus stop opposite. Does she know anything, Ava wonders. With the school trip suddenly curtailed, and a possible clue in her bag, rather than going back home early, she messages her friends and she decides to head off to Briddvale and seek the help of the other Twitchers. Needless to say, the Twitchers are immediately onto this, especially as it involves rare avian specimens of historical importance.

Ava takes the lead in this adventure and some of her actions are exceedingly risky, especially as she is soon as anxious to help Rae (the bus stop girl), who is clearly in need, as she is to get to the bottom of the feather heist, though the two strands are intertwined.

M. G. Leonard includes an amazing amount of detail about bird species and the history of scientists such as Wallace and Darwin; and she clearly respects her audience showing rather than telling lots of the story. Inspired by a true crime, this tension-filled mystery is a superb conclusion to the seasonal quartet and perfect for deep thinking nature-loving readers.

The Ice Children

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The Ice Children
M.G. Leonard, illustrated by Penny Neville-Lee
Macmillan Children’s Books


With echoes of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen and Oscar Wilde’s The Selfish Giant, this magical fantasy from the author of Twitch and the Adventures on Trains series draws you in from its opening lines: ‘Once upon a warm winter, in the dawning darkness of December, a boy was found in the city rose garden. The boy looked like a statue. He was frozen solid.’ Said boy, Finn, the five year old brother of Bianca is wearing his pyjamas, his hair is full of icicles but he’s still alive – at least he has a heartbeat but nobody can wake him. Bianca is determined to find out what is going on. She soon suspects that the sparkling silver book he got from the library has something to do with it but the book has mysteriously disappeared.


Now whereas one frozen child is indeed puzzling, with the number of ice children increasing day by day, it is imperative that the mystery is solved and Bianca knows it’s down to her to discover the truth. Who or what is behind the freezings? Could it be that strange tall cloaked man with a top hat and a triumphant smile?


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Bianca’s quest takes her into a fantastical winter wonderland, full of beauty and danger where nothing is what it seems: a world splendidly depicted in Penny Neville-Lee’s black and white illustrations


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Make yourself a hot chocolate, snuggle up in your hoodie blanket and prepare to be transported into a brilliantly imagined tale, at the heart of which is a vitally important message about climate change and global warming.

Clutch / Dragon Storm: Connor and Lightspirit

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These are additions to two exciting series:thanks to Walker Books and Nosy Crow for sending them for review

Clutch
M.G. Leonard
Walker Books

This is the third story of the Twitchers and for me it’s even better than the previous two.

Twitch and Jack are alarmed to hear that somebody has been stealing eggs from the nest of a peregrine falcon in Aves Wood. As the Easter holidays start, all the Twitchers come together for the first time in a while and are determined to solve the mystery of the missing eggs before the thief strikes again.

In the knowledge that the thief’s actions are both against the law and immoral, the gang set off to find clues and learn what they can about any possible suspects. With the police involved Passerine Pike is now a crime scene, but is the criminal a local or somebody from outside come to participate in the Canal Masters fishing competition? With the competition only lasting a few days and a pair of Spoonbills nesting on the edge of the pond in the locality, time is of the essence in catching the thief.

However, suddenly Twitch receives a visit from the police and learns that he fits the suspect profile and evidence places him at the crime scene. Now it’s not only the nesting birds but Twitch in need of saving and the evidence against him seems to be mounting.
With several red herrings and wrong turns, the friends finally succeed in their mission: all ends well for Twitch, the real crooks are unmasked and there’s a new member of the Twitchers too.

With its superb mix of mystery, crime and environmental issues, this is another cracker for established fans of the series but others new to the Twitchers will quickly find themselves engrossed too. Whither next for these conservationists? I can’t wait to find out.

Dragon Storm: Connor and Lightspirit
Alastair Chisholm, illustrated by Eric Deschamps
Nosy Crow

This is the seventh of the author’s Dragon Storm series for younger readers and what a gripping tale it is. Relatively new to life in the Dragonseer’s Guild, Connor and the other children are told by vice-chancellor Creedy of a code that needs solving. But how trustworthy is Creedy? Connor thinks he’s OK but not all the others agree. The boy sets about cracking the code, which he does, helped by a clue about some of the symbols from Cara.

However the more involved he gets with Creedy, the more troubled Connor is by doubts that he’s doing the right thing by helping him, especially when under cover of darkness Creedy leads him to the Royal Palace. Moreover, Lightspirit is far from happy about what is happening: the truth is what matters to this dragon. Is King Godfic up to no good, or is it his son, or somebody else?
The Dragon Storm grows ever closer but can trust and truth save Draconis from a horrific war?

The story, with its atmospheric black and white illustrations by Eric Deschamps, ends on a real-cliffhanger leaving readers eager to discover what it is that Connor knows.

The Arctic Railway Assassin / Solve Your Own Mystery: The Missing Magic

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The Arctic Railway Assassin
M.G. Leonard & Sam Sedgman, illustrated by Elisa Paganelli
Macmillan Children’s Books

Hal flies off to Sweden where he is to meet Uncle Nat. From Stockholm the following day they will take a Christmas trip aboard the sleeper train bound for the Aurora Sky Station to see the Northern Lights. Uncle Nat announces that his friend Morti, who has just won the Nobel Prize, is to accompany them, but then she suddenly changes her plan. After the announcement of her prize she’s been scared by some inexplicable events with things of hers disappearing and now Hal and Nat are to travel without her.

While waiting to board the train Hal sketches a group of musicians,

then as they leave Stockholm, he and his uncle think they are being followed, and Nat tells the boy that one of the people in his drawing is an assassin from his past, supposedly long dead. Something doesn’t quite add up with this picture of Hal’s. And what about the sudden appearance of Hal’s mum on board too?

Full of suspense, and with some great new characters, this truly is a gripping page turner with some really perilous episodes when readers will find themselves fearing for the lives of some of the characters. Hal’s drawing skills really come to the fore in this adventure, considerably helping to solve the mystery of what the assassins are after and where it is. Elisa Paganelli’s illustrations do a wonderful job bringing his sketches to life and adding to the reader’s involvement in solving the mystery.

My only regret is that this is the final book in the brilliant Adventures on Trains series.

Solve Your Own Mystery: The Missing Magic
Gareth P. Jones, illustrated by Louise Forshaw
Little Tiger

In the third interactive adventure from Gareth P. Jones there’s another puzzling mystery waiting for readers to solve. Like previous titles it’s set in the town of Haventry, a place where with its unusual population almost anything can happen at any time. Now it’s the opening day of Magicon, the world’s biggest magic convention and everyone is gathering for the great event when suddenly disaster strikes: all the magic in the town disappears. Who is responsible for this catastrophe?

It’s up to readers to don their detective hats, find out, and get it back in time for the opening ceremony. Could the thief perhaps be Evil Enid; or maybe Nigel Rigmarole whose business is magical energy? These are just two of the possible suspects that detective you, along with boss Klaus Solstaag (a yeti) need to consider. There are also the likes of meditative unicorn Moondance (too good to be true maybe)

and powerful Magic Circle head, Grandmaster Dimbleby.

There’s not a minute to lose: time to make the sparks fly – unless you want to shoulder the responsibility of allowing an ancient monster to waken from a century-long sleep beneath the town.

With a multitude of possible routes to take, this is terrific fun and with Louise Forshaw’s splendid portrayal of the weird and wonderful characters, this diverting read will delight primary age readers who like fantastical tales.

Sabotage on the Solar Express

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Sabotage on the Solar Express
M.G. Leonard & Sam Sedgman, illustrated by Elisa Paganelli
Macmillan Children’s Books

In the fifth of the Adventures on Trains series, Hal and his Uncle Nat are on a three week trip to Australia. Billionaire train enthusiast, August Reza, has invited Hal and his uncle on the inaugural journey of the Solar Express – the winning design of his Reza’s Rocket competition. Also on the maiden voyage is Marianne, August’s daughter about whom Hal has rather mixed feelings though with her around he knows the journey won’t be boring. So too is the inventor of the hydrogen powered, Solar Express, a 14-year-old Aboriginal boy, Boaz who is enormously proud of his ‘no pollution, no waste’ engine as Hal discovers when he meets him on the day they arrive.

The following day comes the actual train journey, it’s to last around four and a half hours but as the locomotive departs, Hal is concerned that something isn’t right. His suspicions are confirmed when the journey gets underway for it’s not long before an alarming discovery is made: the Solar Express has been sabotaged. What’s more Hal and his team, notably Marianne and Boaz, only have a small window of time to find out exactly what the saboteur has planned.

Full of twists and turns, this truly nail-biting, unputdownable story unfolds at breakneck speed. With each new book authors M.G. Leonard, Sam Sedgman, and illustrator Elisa Paganelli add to the series, I think it’s the best so far, and then along comes another that’s even better.

Twitch

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Twitch
M.G.Leonard
Walker Books

Oh my goodness this is a totally immersive, brilliantly written, unputdownable story with a fascinating main character, Twitch.

Twelve year old Twitch is a passionate bird watcher, keeper of pigeons and pet chickens, and at certain times of the year, has swallows nesting in his bedroom. He’s kind-hearted but happy in his own company and bullied at school.

As the story starts, the summer holidays are about to begin and Twitch anticipates spending lots of time in Aves Wood where he’s constructed a hide.

Things don’t quite go as planned though for when he arrives at his hide he finds police everywhere. A potentially dangerous robber is on the run with the possibility that the missing millions from the bank haul are buried in the locality.

Can Twitch put his bird watching skills to use in tracking down the convict and even find the money?

Perhaps, with the help of some of the unexpected friends he makes, not least of whom is Jack, one of those who has bullied Twitch but actually has a kinder side that he sometimes keeps hidden. The way their friendship develops is superbly done but there are a host of other interesting characters too, several of whom aren’t what they appear.

Indeed, the entire story is full of surprises; and what a wealth of ornithological information is embedded in the plot, thanks largely to Twitch’s knowledge and passion.There’s plenty of suspense too: as the tale twists and turns; it’s hard to tell who is to be trusted and there’s a terrific finale, which one hopes indicates that we’re going to be hearing more of the newly formed club, The Twitchers.

Murder on the Safari Star

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Murder on the Safari Star
M.G. Leonard & Sam Sedgman, illustrated by Elisa Pagnelli
Macmillan Children’s Books

Tickets ready? Then climb aboard the Safari Star.

Harrison Beck is somewhat underwhelmed when he receives his Christmas present from his Uncle Nat until he discovers that the small tin contains more than just the sticks of charcoal. Inside too is a train ticket: at half term he and his uncle are going to South Africa for the trip of a lifetime all the way from Pretoria to Victoria Falls on the border of Zambia in a luxury train.

So begins another fast-paced, twisting turning, hold on to your seats adventure.

Aboard the train are a host of interesting characters from various parts of the world and even before they’ve departed Hal has made friends with Winston the son of the train’s safari guide; with him is Chipo, Winston’s yellow mongoose. There’s one passenger that almost everyone takes an instant dislike to, that’s Mervyn Crosby, an extremely rude character who boasts about having heads of four of the Big Five animals on his wall and lacking only the rhino. He also says he’s brought his rifle along – which is strictly prohibited.

No sooner is the journey under way than the two boys are off exploring the entire train and finding out what they can about their fellow passengers.

But then one of them meets with a terrible accident – or is it? At any rate there’s a fatality aboard and almost everybody is under suspicion.

Before you can say ‘rhino horns’ Hal, his uncle and Winston are investigating a mystery and it’s one that has to be solved before the train reaches the Zambian border.. It’s as well Hal has brought along his essential equipment – his sketch pad and drawing tools. He’ll certainly need to make full use of his wits, his observation skills and his powers of deduction in this life and death conundrum that involves poisonous snakes, 

hidden compartments, smuggling and more. And, there is time to see some incredible wildlife such as a rhino, zebras, elephants and impalas too. I loved the conservation element of the story.

Once again Elisa Paganelli’s illustrations are superb.

Adventures on Trains: Kidnap on the California Comet

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Adventures on Trains: Kidnap on the California Comet
M.G. Leonard and Sam Sedgman, illustrated by Elise Pagnelli
Macmillan Children’s Books

In this sequel to The Highland Falcon Thief 12 year old Hal Beck is on another railway trip. Now he’s with his journalist Uncle Nat, embarking on a three day journey from Chicago to San Francisco.

Before they’ve even boarded the California Comet, Hal has his sketchbook out and has started recording what he sees. He’s also met up with Mason and his sister Hadley who tells him later on that she practises magic.

Shortly after, he meets Marianne, daughter of August Reza, the billionaire technology entrepreneur whose press conference Uncle Nat is to report on.

Hal encounters a host of other unusual characters, including Seymour Hart who always wants to stay close to his briefcase, and teenager Ryan whose speech is hampered by the dental braces he wears, but wants to communicate with Hal all the same.

As the train speeds on across the plains, Hal feels increasingly uneasy; something strange and possibly dangerous is going on.

Around 7.30pm, Hal sees a girl in a yellow dress being dragged into the boot of a waiting car that drives away into the night. Seemingly, Marianne has been kidnapped.

Can he possibly discover exactly what is going on? Perhaps, with the help of his new friends, Hadley and Mason.

Full of mystery and intrigue, this cracking story is full of interesting details and dropped hints.

It’s not only Hal (aka Sherlock da Vinci) who has an extremely deft hand when it comes to sketching: Elisa Paganelli’s smashing, sometimes finely detailed illustrations add considerably to the atmosphere of the twisting, turning adventure.

Lovers of trains and detective stories especially, will devour this; so too will anyone who loves a gripping yarn.