Julia and the Shark is deep, beautiful and true. The art shines and the writing soars. A classic from cover to cover' Eoin Colfer

Perfect for upper primary children, this is a moving story, based on true events, with many thrilling moments of danger and adventure. The Arctic landscape is brought to life vividly in dazzling prose and stunning blue artwork. The need for both animals and people to migrate is explored in a thoughtful, sensitive way, as is the mother/daughter relationship. A real triumph. Around this time last year, I had the pleasure of reviewing Julia and the Shark; the first collaborative efford of Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Tom de Freston. It combined Kiran’s powerful storytelling with Tom’s beautiful monochromatic illustrations with a single accent colour to create one of the best and most memorable middle-grade novels I’ve read recently. I remember thinking; I wouldn’t mind if the would make this a “brand”. Well, my wish was answered with this spiritual sequel, about to release on October 13th. Then Miso and Leila’s worlds meet, in an icy, treacherous environment, and Leila needs to make a brave, dangerous decision.A captivating tale that glistens with wonder. Leila and Fox will always have a home in my heart' Sophie Anderson

Based on the true story of an Arctic fox who walked from Norway to Canada in seventy-six days, a distance of two thousand miles, this compelling, emotional and beautifully illustrated story is perfect for readers of any age. Orion) Leila and the Blue Fox is a sort of sequel to Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Tom de Freston’s Julia and the Shark. This was highly praised by Bookwagon and many others and was an all-round success. Leila is a stand-alone story, but builds on all the elements that made Julia so superb. This is an extraordinary book - wild and beautiful and perfect. The mess and tangle of humanity is so brilliantly contrasted with the wild spirit of nature' Katya Balen Come with an Arctic fox on a breathtaking journey...an enthralling story from the bestselling, award-winning creators of Julia and the Shark . This is a perfect gift for 9+ fans of The Last Bear and A Wolf Called Wander.Leila and the Blue Fox is a complete standalone story, but takes all the elements that made Julia so great, and builts upon it. Again, we have a layered tale of a young protagonist dealing with a tough personal situation at home, parallelled with a story of our natural world and one of the endangered animals within it. Again, we have stunning (equally layered) illustrations with the single accent-colour, to bring the story and atmosphere to life. And again; all these elements together add up to more than the sum of its parts, and make an impactful story about a potentially difficult topic approachable to young readers and adults alike. This time, instead of themes of mental health like in Julia’s story, Leila takes on migration; both natural- and human alike. The authors writing allows the imagination to see the story, with the settings being described beautifully and the characters written so well they become likeable and real. Leila and her Mum fled fighting in Damascus . Upon arriving in the UK, Leila was left in the care of her Aunt and Cousin while her Mum took employment in Norway conducting scientific research. Fox is walking, endlessly walking, searching for food. Meanwhile, Leila is travelling to Norway to see her mother, whom she hasn’t seen for six years. She’s trying not to remember another journey she’s made, years before, from Damascus to the UK. Now it’s summer in the Arctic Circle and the bright, endless sun threatens to shine a light on the awkwardness between Leila and her mum.

A captivating tale that glistens with wonder. Leila and Fox will always have a home in my heart’ Sophie Anderson Kiran Millwood Hargrave was born in Surrey in 1990, and her earliest ambition was to be a cat, closely followed by a cat-owner or the first woman on Mars. She has achieved only one of these things, but discovered that being a writer lets you imagine whatever you want.Leila and the Blue Fox is an easy recommendation for me; if you’ve read and loved Julia and the Shark, you’ll be sure to love Leila’s story aswell. If you haven’t read Julia yet, but enjoy the same brand of hard-hitting middle-grade that transcends age-range as I do; I guess you have two beautiful books to add to your TBR instead of one. This poignant novel, breathtakingly brought to life through Kiran Millwood Hargrave’s lyrical prose and Tom de Freston’s haunting monochrome illustrations, is an important exploration into the themes of migration, movement and conservation. With strong links to the science, geography and PSHE curriculums, and featuring a confident female protagonist, children will relate to the highly relevant issues portrayed. This novel also has close connections with the first novel by this pairing, Julia and the Shark. Links and themes: