Remember Those Golden Envelopes?

Way back last term, Barry Donaldson (aka Reading Bus Man) went out into the world with some golden envelopes - and in the golden envelopes there was a challenge - and the challenge was ...

... to create some amazing cover images for The Wickit Chronicles!  And here are the winners (and a couple of Honourable Mentions) from Heatheryburn Primary School -

For Ely Plot, we have Hollie Thompson's bold design - 

Then, Keia Robb's cover for Fen Gold -

For Ice Road, we have Evan Michael Forrest's picture - 

And for Witch Bell, the last book of the series, here is Dylan Carroll's cover -

I wanted to also post 2 Honourable Mentions - Bradley Robertson's energetic Ely Plot picture -

and Ella Webster's scary poisoner -

Was it hard to choose the winners?  You bet it was.  I want to thank all of you for letting me see your cover ideas - it absolutely made my day!  Huge congratulations! 

And now, let's see what amazing challenges Barry can come up with next - 

Things in Envelopes

Welcome back!  Last time I mentioned Barry Donaldson's (Reading Bus Man) small golden envelope with a challenge inside ... which has resulted in a large white envelope full of fabulous book covers arriving at my door!  Who sent them, you ask?  What are they book covers of?  And which are my three favourites???

All will be revealed next month, when the schools go back!

But that wasn't it for excellent envelopes.  My postman also brought me these - advance copies of my new Viking books - in a large brown envelope.  Leif Frond and the Viking Games and Leif Frond and Quickfingers will both be available from 14th August.  Exciting!

Meantime, who's my favourite author this month?

Diana Wynne Jones

Which of her books have I read lately?

Howl's Moving Castle

and

Enchanted Glass

Which of her books should I read next?  You choose!  Let me know and I'll dive right in.

Bye for now!

Patron of Reading for a Bus!

This is what the outside of the beautiful Aberdeen Reading Bus looks like…

 … and this is what the inside looks like …

… and this is what a Patron of Reading and a bevy of readers look like!

That’s right – fuzzy! I think it’s because, behind the camera, 5 classes of P5s from Heatheryburn Primary and Brimmond Primary in Aberdeen were thundering about the place! We had a great time together, finding out about Pip and the gargoyle Perfect and their adventures in my books The Wickit Chronicles, trying on medieval costumes, and discovering some squishy and revolting facts about the Middle Ages. And if that wasn’t enough, Barry Donaldson, king of the Reading Bus, has set those schools a fabulous challenge … in a golden envelope … 

What can it be? 

I’m Joan Lennon, Patron of Reading for a Bus – and if you want to find out more about me, or what on earth a Patron of Reading is, or what Barry hid in the golden envelope, then come back soon!

(Meantime, you can find out more about Aberdeen's Reading Bus here!)