Our lovely latest issue – Storytime Issue 28 – with a striking Selfish Giant cover got a little lost in the Christmas kerfuffle. I feel I may have done it a disservice by not shouting about it more, so I hope this blog post makes up for it.
Flying fairy cat by Benedetta Capriotti in Storytime Issue 28
A traditional Celtic folk tale called Fairy Cakes leads Storytime Issue 28. It’s a gentle story, ideal for any child who is unnerved by tales with terrible baddies. And it features cake! Plus Benadetta Capriotti illustrated the best fairy-powered flying cat ever!
For laughs, in our Famous Fables section, we have Donkey Do, Donkey Don’t. Almost every culture has a version of this moral tale, so its message clearly has wide appeal. It’s deftly illustrated by Mike Moran, and we love the donkey’s comical expressions.
The Maiden and the Moon is a tale from snowy Siberia. It features a talented musician, the moon who falls in love with her and the magical reindeer who helps her escape the moon’s clutches. It’s a great introduction to Chukchi culture, and Kadi Fedoruk provided wonderful illustrations with gorgeous colours.
We’re very lucky to have George Ermos illustrating for us again. He previously illustrated The Boy Who Cried Wolf in Storytime Issue 14. This time round, he has brought the classic fairytale, The Fussy Princess, to life. There are versions of this story all over Europe, including Shakespeare’s Taming the Shrew. This was a tricky tale to tackle but, hopefully, we’ve given it the Storytime treatment and toned down any out-moded messages in the original.
We also feature Jack Frost – a poem by Gabriel Setoun. Imaginative, magical, and a great explanation of where Jack Frost finds his inspiration. David Pavon‘s illustrations are great fun.
The Selfish Giant sees the error of his ways in Storytime Issue 28. Art by Sebastia Serra
We love an Arthurian legend and, having featured The Sword in the Stone in Storytime Issue 13, now seemed the right moment for Arthur to win Excalibur. The Lady of the Lake features another wonderful take on Merlin too. Plus an ethereal but child-friendly Nimue in Pablo Pino‘s illustrations.
Finally, that brings us to The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde. Unlike our usual extracts in Brilliant Books, readers get the whole story. It’s every bit as heart-warming and life-affirming as a winter story should be. Sebastia Serra (who also illustrated Sinbad’s First Voyage in Storytime Issue 17) provided the artwork.
All this plus our usual free downloads, resource packs and lesson ideas for schools. There are also puzzles, drawing, an awesome game, book recommendations and a fairy cake recipe for fairy bakers everywhere!
Traditionally, our Storytime Christmas issue came out in November. Originally, this was to follow suit with other magazines in the retail space. However, as we no longer have to comply with these strange rules, from 2017, the Christmas issue will land in December. When we’re all good and ready to face the festive season! An additional benefit is we’ll no longer have a December issue that doesn’t get enough fuss in the festive fun – hurrah to that!
I hope you’re enjoying Storytime issue 28. If you’ve only just subscribed and missed it, you can pick it up from our back issue shop. It’s well worth a read!
Happy New Year to you all! There are super stories and amazing adventures ahead!
