Neon Squid

28/11/2023

Discover the magic of nonfiction this season with… Aliens! 💫

You read that right – nonfiction. In their book Aliens, space expert tells kids what really goes on at Area 51, and how to spot an advanced alien civilization.

👽🔭 Aliens may seem as fanciful as wizards and monsters, but this book will show kids that scientists not only believe that aliens exist – but that it’s only a matter of time before we find them!

Beautifully illustrated by .
Perfect for ages 8–10. 🎁

22/09/2023

During World War II, 50,000 Papua New Guineans carried injured men to safety through thick jungle and swampy mud. These brave men became known as the Angels of the Kokoda Trail. 💪🏾

Check out Margarida Esteves's creative process behind the beautiful illustration for this story!

📅 Tales of World War II by Hattie Hearn comes out October 2023.

15/09/2023

"If you're looking for a book that's going to empower your child, definitely grab it!" ✅

A huge thanks to Cath Hakanson that parent group (with Cath Hakanson) for the wonderful review of We Need to Talk About Vaginas!

📣 "I'm starting to rave about this book... I really like it!"

We Need to Talk About Vaginas by Dr. Allison K. Rodgers is an inclusive body-positive book for educating children about their v***a and body.

11/09/2023

What if we could grow food in a different way?

🥦 🌽 We can recreate natural environments by growing lots of vegetables, flowers, and fruit trees that would have grown together in the wild. After a while, these plants will continue producing food!

This is called permaculture. It’s not a new concept, but it is becoming more and more popular. Will you join the permaculture party?

📚 Plants to the Rescue! by Vikram Baliga and illustrated by Brian Lambert.

05/09/2023

Two of our books are out in the US today! 🎉🇺🇸

🐻 Bears (A Day in the Life) takes kids on a journey through the wilderness as they spend time with these amazing creatures discovering what they get up to all day. Written by Don Hardeman Jr. and illustrated by Rebecca Mills.

🐺 Gray Wolf (Young Zoologist) teaches kids all they need to know about these predators and what can be done to save them. Written by Brenna J. Cassidy and illustrated by Sally Agar.

30/08/2023

Plants are coming to our rescue! 🌱

Odds are you’ve probably owned a product that contains aloe vera. That’s no surprise – aloe vera has been used in different cosmetics for thousands of years! 🤯

The ancient Egyptians were some of the first people to realise how amazing it was. They even called it the “plant of immortality”.

📚 Plants to the Rescue! by Vikram Baliga and illustrated by Brian Lambert.

22/08/2023

📣 NEW RELEASE 📣

The Mind-Blowing World of Extraordinary Competitions is out in the UK today! 🇬🇧

“We’ve been wild about contests for thousands of years, from wrestling in ancient Greece to tug-of-war in ancient Egypt, ball games in Aztec and Maya cities, and poetry battles among the Vikings.” - Anna Goldfield, author and expert fact finder. 🔎

📚 If you’re in the UK, head to a bookshop near you to grab a copy for that young reader in your life who loves wacky facts and mind-boggling things!

Written by Anna Goldfield and illustrated by Hannah Riordan.

21/08/2023

We spotted The Book of Sisters by What'sHerName on the shelves of Shakespeare and Company! 🇫🇷

If you spot our books in your local bookstore or while on vacation, be sure to tag us – we love to see them around! 👀

17/08/2023

Today Indonesia is celebrating its Independence Day! 🇮🇩🎉

There are several festivals and celebrations throughout the country to mark the special day, but the most unusual of these is Panjat Pinang, or climbing the areca nut tree!

Competitors attempt to climb the tree’s tall trunk to reach gifts (sometimes even bicycles!) that have been attached to the top. How far up do you think you could reach? 🌴

📚 From The Mind-Blowing World of Extraordinary Competitions by Anna Goldfield and illustrated by Hannah Riordan – coming to the UK next week, on August 22.

16/08/2023

Plants are coming to our rescue! 🌱

It’s no secret that we’re all tired of plastic bags… The tricky thing is finding an alternative that doesn’t harm the environment.

🌵🌵 That’s when prickly cacti come in! A group of scientists in Mexico have realised they can make plastic bag replacements using these plants. How pricklin’ cool is that?!

📚 Find out more in Plants to the Rescue! by Vikram Baliga and illustrated by Brian Lambert.

15/08/2023

Venture into the wilderness and learn about gray wolves in this field guide from Brenna J. Cassidy! 🐺

📣 “Although some people think wolves are scary, we have learned so much about them that says otherwise. They have a rich family life and play an important role in different ecosystems around the world.”

Brenna is a wildlife biology PhD candidate at the University of Montana. Together with her, readers will learn all about these incredible predators!

Gray Wolf (Young Zoologist) comes out next month in the US and UK. 🇺🇸🇬🇧

11/08/2023

Plants are coming to our rescue! 🌱

To be more specific – beets are coming to our rescue!

Beet and its cousin sugar beet are incredible root vegetables that can be used to make everything from medicine to table sugar. Europeans in the 1800s even used the juice from beets to dye their hair and create makeup. 💄🔴

📚 Find out more in Plants to the Rescue! by Vikram Baliga and illustrated by Brian Lambert.

09/08/2023

Meet Don Hardeman Jr., author of Bears (A Day in the Life). 🐻

Don is a wildlife ecologist, science communicator, and entrepreneur. He has 13 years of experience in wildlife ecology and conservation, so rest assured that readers are in good hands!

🌏 In his debut book, kids will meet black bears, grizzlies, and cute polar bears while learning about the role that these incredible animals play in ecosystems around the world.

Bears (A Day in the Life) is the perfect book for future biologists. Out in early September! 📅

04/08/2023

Plants are coming to our rescue! 🌱

It’s tricky to imagine a whole world without electricity… The problem is that lots of the methods we use to create power at the moment harm the environment.

☀️🤯 What if we could get our power directly from plants? Here's the good news: scientists are working on ways to capture some of the leftover energy from plant photosynthesis!

📚 Find out more in Plants to the Rescue! by Vikram Baliga and illustrated by Brian Lambert.

04/08/2023

🕵🏻‍♀️ Meet Anna Goldfield, author of The Mind-Blowing World of Extraordinary Competitions!

For a book filled with some of the most unusual contests out there, who better as an author than an expert fact-finder?!

🔍🎙️ Anna is a podcaster, science writer, illustrator, archaeologist, and creator of all sorts of content to introduce people to the study of the world around us. She co-hosts the
archaeology podcast The Dirt and produces the kids’ science podcast Brains On.

Her book The Mind-Blowing World of Extraordinary Competitions is out in the US now and coming to the UK this August! 🇺🇸 🇬🇧

28/07/2023

If you thought all sharks were carnivores, think again!

Bonnethead sharks are unlike any other sharks. They’re omnivorous, which means that their menu consists of both meat and plants – no fussy eaters here! 🦀🌿

The shark wiggles its head from side to side along the seafloor looking for a tasty crab, but if that’s proving hard to find, seagrass will do just fine.

Find out more unusual facts about these amazing creatures in Sharks (A Day in the Life)
📝 Carlee Monique Jackson Bohannon
🎨 Chaaya Prabhat

27/07/2023

“Sharks” and “walking” aren’t usually two words you hear in the same sentence, right?

Well, prepare to be surprised when you meet the epaulette shark, who can survive out of the water for up to three hours! ⏰3️⃣

This shark likes to hunt for prey in rock pools. Instead of swimming, he uses his large flappy fins to walk around the rocks looking for his next meal!

📚 Sharks (A Day in the Life) by Carlee Monique Jackson Bohannon and illustrated by Chaaya Prabhat.

26/07/2023

Sharks have been swimming in our oceans for more than 400 million years. That means they’ve been around longer than trees! 🌳

Instead of putting the spotlight on a single species of shark today, we’re looking at some of the common features that make these incredible creatures such fierce underwater predators:

🦷 Sharp teeth organised in rows, with new ones replacing old ones
✈️ Pectoral fins that keep them balanced
⚡ A snout covered in pores to detect electrical signals from prey
👀 Pretty good eyesight and a keen sense of smell

Find out more in Sharks (A Day in the Life) by Carlee Monique Jackson Bohannon and Chaaya Prabhat.