LJ's beautiful books

By Kieran Larwood  Published by Faber & Faber 9 yrs and upwards I was drawn to this book by the beautiful cover alone, then learnt it was a Lord of the Rings-type adventure story -  but with bunnies... Sold! Podkin and his two siblings (the baby is so darn cute) make a bunny Baudelaire-esque trio who escape the evil Gorm (Orc-like rabbits). They face danger wherever they go, but are helped by a kind witch, a blind sellsword (that's a very exciting chapter btw) and a secret, special weapon...  The tale itself is narrated by a travelling rabbit bard to a group of excited little rabbit listeners. But the story is so gripping that I felt the suspense almost more than the rabbits listening themselves!  I found the woodland and rabbit folklore setting enchanting, the story engrossing and  the illustrations inside by David Wyatt exquisite accompaniments. There are some sad and scary moments, but this adventure of a one-eared little ...

By Chris Wormell  Published by David Fickling Books 9 yrs and upwards This wonderfully illustrated adventure story is about a lonely and mistreated girl called Clementine trying to escape from her horrible aunt and uncle who live in the Great Black City. Locked in the house, she dreams of The Magic Place... but one day she gets a chance to escape and her adventure begins. Little does she know though, that someone out there is searching for her too... Clementine is aided by her best friend Gilbert, a very clever cat and the drawings of them both together are my favourite illustrations in book. Gilbert being crucial to the story is what initially drew me to this book. The writing and characters are reminiscent of Roald Dahl and Lemony Snicket; the aunt and uncle are typical villains, (and sometimes violent) but they also get what they deserve...  The story involves roof-top chases, a big twist, hero dogs, a very important toy rabbit and of course, cruci...