Three bookish gift-ideas for traveling (and non-traveling) kids

Books always make lovely gifts, no matter what the occasion, and they also make great travel companions. Whether you bring along one or more paperbacks or hardcovers for a long trip, or whether you load up your e-reader or tablet with some bookish enjoyment, it's always a good way to pass the time: on board the airplane, at the airport, at the hotel, on the train, or wherever else you find yourself.

There are so many good books out there for children, but here are three that have really caught my eye lately, and have also received a stamp of approval from my kids.

The Fox and the Star, by Coralie Bickford-Smith

About the book:
"From the award-winning designer of the iconic Penguin Hardcover Classics comes a beautifully illustrated fable about loss, friendship, and courage."

My take:
This is an absolutely gorgeous book that should definitely be judged by its cover. The illustrations by Coralie Bickford-Smith are strikingly beautiful, and the story itself is touching, heart-warming, and wistful. This books is available in both ebook format, and as a hardcover, and it would make an amazing gift in any format, but the hardcover might be the way to go for this one: illustrations of this quality and caliber do look their best in actual paper-format. Its a book that would work well for kids who are reading by themselves or with some help, and it would also make a lovely book for reading out loud.

Wings of Fire Boxset, Books 1-5, by Tui T. Sutherland

About the book:
"A war has been raging between the dragon tribes of Pyrrhia for years. According to a prophecy, five dragonets will end the bloodshed and choose a new queen. But not every dragonet wants a destiny. And when Clay, Tsunami, Glory, Starflight, and Sunny discover the truth about their unusual, secret upbringing, they might choose freedom over fate -- and find a way to save their world in their own way."

My take:
I've just started reading this series of books with my 8 year old, and she absolutely loves them. At this point, she could read them herself (they are listed as being for kids 8-12 years old), but she still enjoys having her bedtime read-out-loud stories, and I'm not going to argue with that. The books are engaging, easy to read, and very well written: the dragons talk and behave much like human tweens and teens, but their struggles and their adventures all take place in the fantasy world of Pyrrhia, where dragons are the main characters and humans are only mentioned in passing as "scavengers". I would highly recommend these books to any and all young readers with an interest in fantasy, and especially for dragon-lovers! The box set contains the first five books: there are two more available right now, and an 8th one being published in early 2016.

Shadowshaper, by Daniel José Older

About the book:
"Sierra Santiago planned an easy summer of making art and hanging out with her friends. But then a corpse crashes the first party of the season. Her stroke-ridden grandfather starts apologizing over and over. And when the murals in her neighborhood begin to weep real tears... Well, something more sinister than the usual Brooklyn ruckus is going on.

With the help of a fellow artist named Robbie, Sierra discovers shadowshaping, a thrilling magic that infuses ancestral spirits into paintings, music, and stories. But someone is killing the shadowshapers one by one -- and the killer believes Sierra is hiding their greatest secret. Now she must unravel her family's past, take down the killer in the present, and save the future of shadowshaping for generations to come."

My take:
This young adult fantasy novel set in present-day Brooklyn is a terrific read for both young readers and adults. Daniel José Older weaves in some amazing magic into this tale as the young and talented high-school student and mural painter Sierra Santiago begins to realize that she has some extraordinary powers. There are good and bad spirits on the loose, and also good and bad human beings: determining who is good and who is not so good isn't always easy for Sierra, but she has to learn fast or the entire city is in peril. The book is full of real and likable characters that are also complex, the dialogue is often fast and funny, and the relationships - friendships, family ties, and some romance - are all written in a way that feels real and true to life. Shadowshaper pulls you in from the first page and moves at a very quick pace: some of the scenes here are rather breathtaking. It would make a great gift for any young reader on your list. Or pick it up for yourself: I hugely enjoyed this story and will be checking out more books by Older.

For some more reading- and book-tips, check out these posts:

• Kids, reading, and books - 5 tips & 5 of my favourite quotes 
• 10 favourite books for my growing, traveling kids

Kids, reading, and books - 5 tips & 5 of my favourite quotes

Today is International Literacy Day, and to celebrate I'm sharing five of my favourite quotes about reading and books, paired with five tips for getting your kids into reading, and for enjoying reading with your children.

1. Bring books along when you're traveling
Books are fantastic travel companions - I never travel without books in my hand-luggage - and audiobooks can also be a great way to make time for a story or two on a trip (they can be great in the car or on the bus if you're prone to motion sickness, for example). 

The last few years though, I've been partial to e-books. A Kindle or other e-reader (the Kobo and the Nook are other options, for example) is a great addition to your luggage, no matter where or how you're traveling. An e-reader can be packed full of books for both you and your kids and still won't weigh down your bags!

2. Use a reading app on your phone, tablet, or other device
There are a lot of apps for reading and books available out there, including:

• the Kindle App
• the Kobo App
• the Audible App for audio books
• Ebook Reader for Android
• Apple iBooks

3. Let your kids explore fiction and non-fiction
Non-fiction books can really get some kids hooked on reading: every child's taste in books is different, and learning about animals, cars, the human body, space, bugs, volcanoes, plants, dinosaurs, or some other subject can entice kids to read, even if they don't feel like diving into fiction.

4. Don't worry too much about what your kids are reading, as long as they are reading
Even if they're reading something that might seem less "educational", just the fact that they are reading means they are forming a reading habit, and are becoming better readers. In the end, that is worth a lot.

5. Read to your kids at bedtime
Reading to my kids is one of my favourite things to do with them. Some nights it puts me to sleep as well as them, other nights I've been choking back the tears reading certain passages in certain books ('Charlotte's Web', I'm looking at you!.) My love of Tolkien goes all the way back to when my dad read both The Hobbit, and The Fellowship of the Ring to me as a child, so I know first-hand how important the parent-child bedtime reading habit can be.

Finally, here are a list of books that my kids have enjoyed, both more recently and when they were younger:

•  Guji-Guji 
• Adventure Time - the comic book 
• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz 
• The Very Busy Spider
• The Harry Potter Books
• The Hobbit
• Green Eggs and Ham
• Mooncake (Moonbear)
• The Chronicles of Narnia
• Strega Nona
• Not a Stick

Find out more about International Literacy Day from UNESCO's website:

"Literacy is a fundamental human right and the foundation for lifelong learning. It is fully essential to social and human development in its ability to transform lives. For individuals, families, and societies alike, it is an instrument of empowerment to improve one’s health, one’s income, and one’s relationship with the world.

The uses of literacy for the exchange of knowledge are constantly evolving, along with advances in technology. From the Internet to text messaging, the ever-wider availability of communication makes for greater social and political participation. A literate community is a dynamic community, one that exchanges ideas and engages in debate. Illiteracy, however, is an obstacle to a better quality of life, and can even breed exclusion and violence.

For over 65 years UNESCO has worked to ensure that literacy remains a priority on national and international agendas. Through its formal and non-formal literacy programmes worldwide, the Organization works to realize the vision of a literate world for all."

10 favourite books for my growing, traveling kids

My kids are turning 8 and 12 this year, and I can hardly believe that they are so grown up. They have been traveling since they were babies, teaching me a whole lot about air-travel, parenting, and both myself and themselves in the process. They both really love books and stories, and through the years we've gone through picture books, fairytales and all sorts of other tales. Here are 10 of their current literary favourites.


1. Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
My daughter is absolutely in love with Tolkien's world already. She might end up a bigger Tolkien-geek than I am, though time will tell... This story works for younger kids, teens, and adults, and has truly become a modern classic.


2. His Dark Materials, by Philip Pullman
This trilogy of fantasy books is probably better suited for kids age 11 and up (and I mean up to adult age!), and Pullman has really created a fantastic and very original world. Great for reading out loud, or by yourself.


3. Animorphs, by K.A. Applegate
This book series is a new discovery in our home, even though the books are several years old by now. A group of kids fight back against an alien invasion, and can morph into various animal shapes. There are apparently 54 books in all!


4. The girl who loved wild horses, by Paul Goble
This beautifully illustrated book tells a very original and captivating story about a young native American girl and her love of horses, and the horses that come to love her.


5. 125 True Stories of Amazing Animals, by National Geographic Kids
Non-fiction books are a big hit at our house currently, and this easy-to-read book is one of the favourites.


6. The Ice Dragon, by G.R.R. Martin
Written by the author of "A Song of Ice And Fire"-books (made famous on TV as "Game of Thrones"), this is a book for children, young adults and adults. It's beautifully told and illustrated and very evocative. It's not for the smallest children, but definitely a fantastic story.


7. My Noisy Body, by Liza Fromer
Another non-fiction hit at my house, this book teaches kids a lot of true, interesting and rather hilarious facts about the human body. A great read for kids who will get a chuckle out of it for sure.


8. The Dog Breed Bible, by D. Caroline Coile
We got a dog this year, and the kids love looking at pictures of and reading about dogs. My daughter has become very interested in learning about various dog breeds. This books has lots of great pictures, and even though the text isn't written for kids, it still works great if your children already have an interest in dogs. 



9. Adventure Time Vol 1, 2, 3, and so on, by Ryan North
The crazy world of Adventure Time has become one of my kids' favourite TV-shows, and these comic-books are also popular reading. Get ready for the awesome weirdness of the Land of Ooo!


10. Weird But True!, by National Geographic Kids
Easy to read amazing and weird facts about various creatures and phenomena in the world: perfect for new readers to read by themselves. Get ready to learn some of those weird facts as your child follows you around and reads them to you (this might have happened to me).

15 summer-reading tips for traveling parents (and young adults)

In a recent post, I listed some books that my kids have enjoyed recently, and other books I am planning to share with them soon. This time, I'm making a list of books for parents, and in some cases for young adult readers. These are all books that I have read and loved recently, and I hope you can find some good book tips here!

Whether you read hardcovers, paperbacks, or on a Kindle (which is how I do most of my reading these days), books are a wonderful thing to bring along when you're traveling with kids. And if you find yourself in a comfy chair, or on a sunny beach... well, a book can come in handy too.


The Warlord Chronicles, by Bernard Cornwell
The Winter King, Enemy of God, and Excalibur, are the three titles in this trilogy by prolific author Bernard Cornwell. This is his take on the King Arthur-story, and it is an excellent, and in many ways very original version of what might have happened. A real page-turner, and a great peek into life in ancient Britain as well.


The Iron King: Book 1 in "The Accursed Kings"-series, by Maurice Druon
Druon's books about the medieval French kings are solidly based in history, but they are also very much page-turner-fiction. I first started reading them because George R.R. Martin, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire (AKA Game of Thrones), recommended them and cited them as inspiration for his own stories. Murder, intrigue, love, war... it's all here. These are the titles available in English right now, with another (The Lily and the Lion) being released later this year.

• The Iron King
• The Strangled Queen
• The Poisoned Crown
• The Royal Succession
• The She-Wolf

The Foundation Series, by Isaac Asimov
Asimov's books about The Foundation are classic science-fiction. There's rollicking space adventure, a Galactic empire, rebellion, space battles, alien planets, and a search for mankind's "mythical" origin-planet. I am a self-confessed sci-fi lover, and this series of books is always worth a read, or a re-read. The titles in the series are:

• Prelude to Foundation
• Forward the Foundation
• Foundation
• Foundation and Empire
• Second Foundation
• Foundation's Edge
• Foundation and Earth

The Earthsea Quartet, by Ursula K. Le Guin
This year I re-read Ursula K. Le Guin's books about Earthsea. I loved these books as a teenager, and found that they have stood the test of time: the prose is still exceptionally beautiful, the stories are gripping, and the characters original and believable in the midst of dragons and magic. They are a great reading experience for both young adults and adults.


Red Shift, by Alan Garner
To quote the sales blurb: "Three separate stories, three utterly different lives, distant in time and yet strangely linked to a single place, the mysterious, looming outcrop known as Mow Cop, and a single object, the blunt head of a stone axe: all these come together in Alan Garner’s extraordinary Red Shift." This book by by Alan Garner is a twisting, trippy and hard-to-describe tale that winds through three different historical times, all set in the same place. It's a story that I first read in my teens, but it has stayed with me over the years. Fantasy/history/poetry... there are shades of all three in this story.


Life, by Keith Richards
This is one of the best memoirs I've ever read, regardless of rock'n'roll stardom. Keith Richards knows how to spin a tale, and his life story - from the post-war bomb-craters of Britain, to the heights of Rolling Stones' fame - is a page turner. There is lots here about his love of music, his relationship with Mick Jagger, and much more. This is a book I'd recommend to anyone, whether they're a fan of Keith's music or not.


It's So Easy: and other lies, by Duff McKagan
Biographies by rock'n'roll legends must include tales of debauchery, and this one does but that's not the main focus of the story. Written by the bassplayer for Guns N' Roses, this is a very well-told story about working your way up to the top of rock'n'roll, while simultaneously destroying yourself with drugs and fast-living. The redemption is that he does emerge on the other side, alive. And along the way, there's a lot of inside-stories from the Seattle music scene, as well as Guns N' Roses behind the scenes. If you have any interest in the music of the late 80s and early 90s, this is a must-read.


World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, by Max Brooks
I found this book very hard to put down, and while I liked the movie based on the book, the book is indeed a very different kind of story. Yes, it's about mankind surviving (with difficulty) a zombie-infection, but there's a lot of depth and humanity in the stories here. Each chapter is a short story, with a different person talking about what happened to them during this "near-Armageddon". It's very well-written, and easy to read.


Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption - by Laura Hillenbrand
This story about a man who survived years of starvation and torture as a prisoner of war during World War 2 is an extremely gripping true story. It's made even better because it doesn't just speak about his captivity, but how his life was affected by that captivity, and how he eventually manages to overcome the pain and darkness it left him with.


Cloud Atlas: A Novel, by David Mitchell
A real mind-twister of a story, this book weaves together storylines about several different people in several different times: past, present, and future. The essence of the story is about how we affect people around us, and how we are shaped by the past and can influence the future by how we choose to act. It's science fiction-ish, with real heart and soul and poetry.


Bossypants, by Tina Fey
"From her youthful days as a vicious nerd to her tour of duty on Saturday Night Live; from her passionately halfhearted pursuit of physical beauty to her life as a mother eating things off the floor; from her one-sided college romance to her nearly fatal honeymoon..." Yep, Tina Fey made me laugh out loud (literally) throughout this book. It's insightful, hilariously funny, and piercingly truthful.


A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens
Without a doubt this is my favourite Dickens' story. (Well, this and A Christmas Carol!) Adventure, love, mystery, French Revolution, secrets, lies... Dickens doesn't get much better than this.


Song of Ice & Fire, by George R.R. Martin
George R.R. Martin's massive, raw, and often shockingly brutal fantasy-tale is a real marvel. It might not be for everyone - the unflinching brutality and the way characters you care about tend to die turns some people off - but there's a real power and originality in Martin's writing that is extremely engaging. Now, if he'd only finish writing the next installment already....Titles in this series so far:

• A Game of Thrones
• A Clash of Kings
• A Storm of Swords
• A Feast for Crows
• A Dance with Dragons

The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas
In my opinion, Alexandre Dumas' classic tale of revenge is one of the best revenge stories ever told. It's a sprawling and rich story, with so much tragedy, heartbreak, love, sorrow and redemption that it's enough to take your breath away. I've re-read this book a few times, and it always reminds me that some classics are classics for a very good reason.


The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
Funny, hilarious, and absolutely gloriously original - Douglas Adams' take on science fiction, science, and the universe is a modern classic. This is a book for adults that young adults might also find irresistible. The "trilogy of four books" makes for great reading anytime, anywhere.