Welbeck Publishing

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The Tangletree mysteries: Peggy and Stu play the wrong notes by Steve Roberts and Joel Stewart

It is really great to see this fantastic series of full colour comic style books, for the younger reader.  As a reader in the 1960s and 1970s, I remember the adventures of characters such as Rupert Bear, Danger Mouse and then later Asterix and Tintin.  However, these were all created as annuals or as large format books and it is only in recent years that we have seen the arrival of graphic novels in a smaller format.

This series feature a dog called Peggy and her friends in the animal village of Tangletree, but especially her young sidekick Stu.  I particularly enjoy the fact that there are two separate adventures in each of the two books so far, which makes it a pleasure to read with the younger audience.  In both of the books Peggy is going for her morning walk with her owner, who then throws her ball into the woods, with Peggy going to retrieve it.  However, when Peggy enters the wood everything changes and she becomes a sleuth who help the other animals solve the crimes and mysteries in their village.  It also seems to have a different time zone, so that when Peggy leaves, little or no time has passed in the real world.

Peggy and Stu Investigate  volume 1

Slime Time

Welbeck Children’s Books, 978-1801300735

When Peggy arrives in Tangletree woods, she is hoping for more mysteries to solve, but does not imagine it would involve all of her friends.  She finds that everyone is extremely sleepy and covered in a really foul smelling slime. can our intrepid investigator find the culprit behind all of these events and can they be stopped?

Mud Race

This episode involves the animals taking part in the annual mud race, only this year the route is being created by a new design of track laying machine.  When the machine appears to go out of control, without its driver and creates a dangerous route for the race, the investigators have to save the day and prevent anyone getting hurt.

Peggy and Sue Play the Wrong Notes   volume 2

Trumpet Trouble

Welbeck Children’s Books, 978-1801301534

On this occasion, Peggy arrives at the village to find everyone preparing for the spring dance that evening, but then Joan, the squirrel arrives with her trumpet that is not playing properly.  Then the trumpet takes flight and the investigators have to race after it; but who has ever heard of a trumpet that can move by itself?  Of course there is a solution and it consists of a tiny creature, called a Peskie, that has hidden in the instrument and has been attempting to take it to its own home, for their own party.  As with all of these stories, all’s well that ends well and everyone has a great time.

Cake Crimes

When Peggy arrive at Tangletree village she discovers that it is the grand unveiling of a new statue to the mayor and a party is going to take place.  To help in this, a pop-up bakery has set up in the square and everyone thinks the cakes are fabulous.  Unfortunately, they eat so many sweet things that they all start to get toothache; then a dentist sets up and is willing to treat them, but is this too much of a coincidence?  It is up to the intrepid Peggy to save the day and find out what has been going on.

What a delightful series of stories for those who are just starting the reading journey.  The comic style illustrations provide an excellent flow to the stories and there is just enough text to keep the plots going at a quick pace.  I love the way that the illustrator has varied the layout of each of the frames and also the dazzling array of colours that we see.  The books combine adventure, friendship and a lot of humour, whilst also providing lessons about acceptable behaviour.  These are very highly recommended and I look forward to the next in the series, coming in June 2025.  It is called “Peggy and Stu hear something strange”

 

About the creators
Joel Stewart and Steve Roberts collaborate closely, both writing and illustrating the Tangletree series
together. Previously they collaborated on TV animation including Abney & Teal and BOT and the
Beasties.
Steve has also created DipDap and Twirlywoos for Ragdoll, which both won Children’s BAFTAs. Before
his work in television Steve was a freelance illustrator in comics.
Joel has also illustrated for Julia Donaldson, Michael Rosen, Michael Bond as well as his own picture
books.

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Woodwitch by Skye McKenna

Welbeck, 9781801300414

One of the highlights of 2022 was discovering the wonderful novel “Hedgewitch” by Skye McKenna.  In this we were introduced to the young Cassie Morgan and her discovery that she is part of a famous witch family and they welcome her into  a new home with them; a home that guards The Hedge, a wood that acts as a divide between this world and the world of faerie. This also starts her search for her mother, who disappeared years before   The only trouble with finding fantastic books is that it is difficult having to wait for any further adventures, but we have finally got the amazing second book in the series and I am delighted that I have been asked to take part in this blog tour.

Cassie has now settled to her life in the village of Hedgely, living with her Aunt Miranda and her two friends, Rue and Tabitha.  However things are still not straightforward and strange things start happening to people in the village; they appear to have been taken over by a spirit and are digging around, trying to find a mysterious treasure.  Mixed with this we have the arrival of an Irish witch called Aoife Early and then Carrie’s uncle arrives, bringing her cousin Sebastien to stay and it  is fair to say that the young man is less than happy at finding himself in a place without all of the modern amenities that he expects.

This is one of those multilayered stories where you have to stay focused on the varying strands of the story.  All of this adds to the mystery and the tension as the plot builds up to a very exciting climax.  There is a very satisfying blend of magic and reality, myth and legend, which the author has woven beautifully together.  It is really about family and feeling like an outsider, particularly when there is a lot of change. The dynamics between the various characters is fascinating and gives us a sense of what it is like to be a young person trying to understand what is going on around them.  There is also a sense that life is seen in black and white, without the multi- shaded elements that older people recognize, as they gain experience of the world.

One of the things that I love about Skye’s writing is her power of description.  There is a lyrical quality that draws the reader in and gives a sense of tranquility , calm and well-being, whether it is describing a special type of tea or or the trees in the Hedge.  However she can also use this skill to heighten tension and frighten us as we face some of the servants of the Erl King (the King of Faerie).  Her ability to change mood in the space of a few words means that the reader is constantly on their toes, waiting for the next situation to occur.  I must mention the illustrators for the cover and the two representations of the village and the main street, these add an additional layer to our understanding of the world the story is set in and allows us to follow the journeys that the girls go on as they try to solve the mysteries they find.

This is a delight of a book which I think has even surpassed the original tale, it is definitely worth five stars at least.  I can’t wait for the third book to appear in 2024 hopefully.  This book tells us that the title appears to be “Seawitch”, so I am going to spend the next year or so in eager anticipation of yet more adventures.

Portrait photography

Author

Skye McKenna grew up in a mining town in the Australian outback. Surrounded by the red dust of the Pilbara, she developed a healthy respect for wild things and wild places at a young age. Seeking adventures of her own, she travelled to the UK and fell in love with the British countryside.  Skye now lives in Scotland and works for a heritage charity, with whom she recently curated an exhibition on medieval magic. When she’s not reading and writing, she goes looking for stories in the hills and forests of her new home.

(Thanks to Skye and Welbeck for this information)

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The Butterfly Club: The Ship of Doom by M A Bennett

Welbeck Publishing, 9781801300049

Like many millions of people around the world, I have been a fan of time travel stories since I was a child.  Tales such as “Tom’s Midnight Garden” by Phillipa Pearce”, “The Ghosts” by Antonia Barber” and  “The Gauntlet” by Ronald Welch” introduced my generation to the possibilities of movement in time.  This sub-genre has become increasingly popular in the last generation or so and a basic search on websites such as Waterstones and Amazon will give you a plethora of titles for a wide range of age groups.  However there is one element that most of these books share, namely that the characters tend to find themselves going backwards in time and only a few authors have taken the heroes forward into an unknown future.  This new series manages to find a compromise with this situation, so read on, to find out how it was done.

The Butterfly Club is the title of the series and it gets its name from a premise that  states “if a butterfly flaps its wings in one part of the world, then there will be a much larger event happening on the other side of the world”  Basically, it is a case of “Cause and Effect” and although I can’t think of many titles that use this construct, a brilliant example of its use is “Mortal Chaos” by Matt Dickinson.  M A Bennett has used this idea to bring together a group of adults, many of them well-known, who are part of a secret organization that has managed to ‘discover’ the secret of time travel.  The young people at the centre of the events find themselves there because of their family links to the club.  Luna is living with her aunt, due to the ‘disappearance’ of her father; Konstantin is the son of a German member of the group, and Aidan is the son of an Irish engineer.  Whilst the story starts in 1894, the children are asked to travel forward to 1912, in order to ‘steal’ information about a new discovery called a “wireless radio” by Guglielmo Marconi.  they arrive at Southampton and manage to stow away  (with the time machine) on board a very fine vessel, one of the White Star Line ships.  By this point most of the readers will be getting a real sense of trepidation, which is only confirmed as the trio discover the name of their vessel, it is RMS Titanic!

What follows is a mix of an exciting adventure story as the intrepid children try to find the wireless, together with a traumatic build up to the events that befell the ship, crew and passengers.  The author uses the time machine to allow the children to re-live the day prior to the iceberg, so that they can try and prevent some of the small events, which then ended up having a profound impact on what happened.  On each occasion their attempts seem to be thwarted by a sinister figure, with a watch face in place of one eye; but who is he and what is his motivation in wanting the ship to meet its doom?

This is a fabulous read, with some fascinating sub-plots that will resonate with many readers.  The fact that they can only travel between their own time and 1969, means that they are limited in where they can visit.  However the additional premise, that the purpose of the club is to find more modern technologies and bring them to the 19th century, means that there is plenty of opportunity for adventure and even danger.  What we do discover is that each of the young people has a secret and as they gradually become friends they are able to share these secrets with the others.  It will be fascinating to see how these issues play out in the coming stories, but what I can say is that the friendships are only strengthened as the young people learn to support each other.

This is a stunning start to a new series and I cannot wait for the next title in the series “The Mummy’s Curse”; as a fan of Ancient Egypt since childhood this is going to be right up my street.  I am willing to bet that a certain pharaoh might be at the centre of this story, especially as 2022 celebrates the centenary of his tomb being discovered.  Thank you to Welbeck for allowing me to include this excerpt from the book, in order to further whet your appetite.

The Ship of Doom (The Butterfly Club series) by M.A. Bennett (£6.99, Welbeck Children’s) available now.

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