Early December is delicious for its ‘glimmerings and promise of special things,’ a feeling that gathers a gladly expectant momentum as we approach the home stretch towards December the 25th. In A Children’s Literary Christmas edited by Anna James, all the sparkle of Yuletide is captured in a charming and thoughtful selection of festive writing. Whether its significance to you is religious or cultural, James has a story or poem in mind. From beloved classics to contemporary tales, this British Library gift book contains more delights than a box of Harrods’ crackers.

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Having languished in the British Intelligence vaults for eighty years, this TOP SECRET file is about to be revealed to wide-eyed young readers. Set during the darkest days of the London Blitz, it tells of one brave orphan’s battle against the might of the Nazi regime, with only an escaped gorilla and his tin-legged great-uncle Sid for company. Be prepared for espionage, a plot to bring Britain to its knees, and an awful lot of tickling, in Code Name Bananas by David Walliams.

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If the virulent events of 2020 have propelled you into a spiralling gloom, The Book of Hopes edited by Katherine Rundell, could be exactly what you need. This wonderfully uplifting collection of stories, poems and illustration is part of a Hope project, initiated by Rundell and intended to ‘kickstart the engine of delight inside the human heart.’ Her rallying cry to fellow creatives has led to an astonishing role call of talent, Anthony Horowitz, Jacqueline Wilson and Axel Scheffler, to name but a few of the hundred plus contributors.

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Touted as ‘Lemony Snicket meets Dorian Gray,’ and already snapped up by Warner Bros, there’s a real bookish buzz around The Beast and the Bethany by Jack Meggitt-Phillips. It is the macabre tale of Ebenezer Tweezer, a vain and frankly immoral 511-year-old gentleman, who has the glowing appearance and spring in his step of a young man. In true Wildean style, Ebenezer has entered a pact which guarantees him eternal youth. In exchange, he has to tend to something rather beastly in the attic, something evil, greedy, and potentially child-munching.

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Consider if you will, the life of the average superhero. It’s all well and good saving the planet from evil masterminds every other day and getting to wear a groovy outfit, but what really goes on behind closed doors? Pizazz by Sophy Henn takes us inside the mind of Pizazz herself, a young schoolgirl born into an extended family of famous superheroes and possessed of her own startling powers. In this lively and amusing comic-style story, we learn that her life is not all it’s cracked up to be.

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Scotland Yard are appealing for witnesses. Egyptian artefacts valued at over ten million pounds have been stolen from a locked display case and the world of antiquities is in uproar. Sounds like a case for The Adventurers, renowned band of 21st century mystery-solvers (Think the Famous Five armed with Google and GPS). The Adventurers and the City of Secrets by Jemma Hatt is a spirited crime caper through the streets of London. In this, the third book in the series, their mission is to track down two thieving master criminals via the city’s hidden trails and tunnels.

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The highly coveted Kate Greenaway Medal for illustration 2020 has been awarded to the magnificent Tales From the Inner City by Shaun Tan. Described by the man himself as ‘a strange book for strange times,’ this darkly beautiful collection of stories and paintings explores the dynamics of human and animal urban co-existence. City-dwelling animals, birds and fish live alongside us, submitting to our authority. Tan envisages what would happen if they tried to reclaim the cities and how humanity is inexorably entwined with the natural world in memory and spirit.

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When Yayoi Kusama was a young girl, she had a close encounter with a pumpkin. In later years, she would describe how it (literally) spoke to her in an animated manner, its radiant energy filling her with love. If you think that’s startling,  just wait until you hear how she feels about polka dots! This unusually sensitive girl would grow up to be one of the most famous artists in the world, and in Yayoi Kusama Covered Everything in Dots and Wasn’t Sorry by Fausto Gilberti, we learn about her amazing life.

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