Book Review: Share Some Secrets @ChristiGabbitas @nspcc #NSPCC #safeguarding #children

Synopsis:

Share Some Secrets, is a story that encourages children to think about the secrets they should and shouldn’t keep, encouraging them to speak out without fear, by giving praise. The story is also available on audio and free to download. Synopsis: The story begins with Mum, (Emily) telling the family about a surprise party for Granny, and that it’s a secret that she would like them all to keep. Billy notices that Milly is always quiet, after their Uncle has visited. Billy encourages Milly to share her secret which she eventually shares with her teacher. The issue is addressed and Milly is praised by the teacher and her family. The story ends with a surprise party for Granny.

My review

Share Some Secrets by Christina Gabbitas

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I am glad to be able to review and share my opinion on such an important topic handled with great kindness and sensitivity. The message of Share Some Secrets is implied through picture rhyming audio and in paperback (for ages around 5 – 8 year old.) The emphasis is on praise – encouraging the child to come forward and share their secret and not to be afraid to do so.

The publication has been endorsed by the NSPCC and Barnardo’s.

In the story Milly is finding is hard to say what her secret is but with the help of her kind brother Billy she manages to get the help she needs.

The illustrations by Ric Lumb accompanying the text enhance the message well. Making it easy for young children to understand how important it is to speak out – even if that secret is embarrassing or distressing – or involves a person in a position of trust, such as a family member.

The story ends on a happy note and there is a short but all important reminder at the end about how important it is to share your secret.

This should be used as a teaching aid in all schools so that children can understand that is okay to speak out and to get help.


My recommendation: Highly recommended. 5 stars

Thank you to the author Christina Gabbitas for gifting me a copy. I happily give my unbiased and considered review.

I have also reviewed another title from Christina Gabbitas – No More Knives.

Link to the review for No More Knives: https://mjmallon.com/2020/11/30/book-…



View all my reviews

https://www.christinagabbitas.com/share-some-secrets/

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My #Review of Poetic Rituals by Ritu Bhathal

 

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Delve into a book of verse exploring different topics and different genres, all with a RITUal twist.
A collection of poetry drawing on the experiences of the writer, ranging from matters of the heart, love for the family, situations in life and some verses written with a humorous twist.

My review

Anyone that follows this blog will realise just how much I love poetry. I enjoy writing it, and reading it too.

Ritu Bhathal’s collection of poems is accessible, easy readable poetry that warms the heart and keeps you smiling. It would appeal to everyone. It’s not high brow, it’s very down to earth, human and touches upon so many topics that readers will relate to – such as the trials and tribulations of bringing up children, family life, and relationships. It’s very witty, and made me smile in lots of places.

The chapter headings give you an excellent indication of the breadth of poems covered:

Family Rituals, (children, motherhood, being a daughter and sibling, even a few poems about cats!)

Life Rituals – Life, Different cultures, Christmas and positivity – and Ritu’s poem But I Smile Anyway that is the title of her blog: https://butismileanyway.com/

Rituals of The Heart. Tender first love and sizzling passion too !

Rituals to make you Smile. Lots of witty ones in this section!

Would I recommend it?

Indeed I would. I rate it 4 stars, a very lovely collection of poems.

 

DISCLAIMER: “As of 13th September 2017 we are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”
My opinions are my own and any reviews on this site have not been swayed or altered in any way by monetary compensation, or by the offer of a free book in exchange for a review.

Amazon UK Buying Links -kindle : http://amzn.to/2xqb7rE

Amazon UK Buying Links – paperback: http://amzn.to/2yU1xks

Have you read Ritu Bhathal’s Poetic Rituals? Do comment if you have.

Bye for now,

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Poetry Inspired by the Dragon Chronopage – Colleen’s Weekly #Poetry Challenge No. 50 #Haiku #Tanka #Haibun: VOICE & WATCH

I’ve had a fantastic week, on Monday I met the esteemed inventor Dr John C Taylor, OBE.

What an experience, Dr Taylor is an extraordinary person. He is an inventor, pilot, adventurer, photographer, architect and philanthropist. After meeting him it’s no wonder that I’d be inspired to write a Tanka poem about one of his amazing Chronopage inventions. He has three in total, the Corpus Chronopage below resembles a grasshopper and features on the front cover of my novel.

Here I am with Dr Taylor by the Corpus Chronopage in King’s Parade, Cambridge.

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Below is the Midsummer Chronopage, a huge mythical fly-like creature with intricate wings and a sting in its tail.

http://johnctaylor.com

http://www.johnctaylor.com/the-chronophage/midsummer-chronophage/

And the interactive Dragon Chronopage does everything a dragon should short of breathing fire and flying away.

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Here’s a close up of the dragon’s shiny blue tongue with pearl!

http://johnctaylor.com

and now for the eye!

http://johnctaylor.com

http://www.johnctaylor.com/the-chronophage/dragon-chronophage/

Isn’t the Dragon Chronopage fabulous?

Using Colleen’s prompt words this week – voice and watch – I wrote a little Tanka poem. I used statement instead of voice and I kept watch even though I had chronograph.

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Before I tootle off I’d just like to say that Dr Taylor has some magnificent stamps that you can order and collect featuring his wonderful inventions – all proceeds go to the Teapot Trust – a worthy charity – art therapy for children with chronic illness:  http://www.teapot-trust.org/

Here’s the link to order @DrJCTOBE  stamps: https://www.iompost.com/stamps-coins/collection/invention-and-innovation-dr-john-c-taylor-obe/

All funds received by Dr Taylor from sales of these stamps will be donated to the
Teapot Trust.

To read more about Dr Taylor’s Philanthropic work here’s a blog post I discovered about his professorship of innovation: https://venitism.wordpress.com/2017/04/28/professor-of-innovation/

To join in Colleen’s weekly poetry challenge follow the following link:

https://colleenchesebro.com/2017/09/12/colleens-weekly-poetry-challenge-no-50-haiku-tanka-haibun-voice-watch/

Many thanks to the lovely Tina Fotherby at Famous Publicity for emailing me the wonderful images of the Dragon Chronograph and Midsummer Chronograph.

Photography Credit: Dragon Chronograph, Midsummer Chronograph – Dr John C Taylor, OBE.

If you’d like to vote for me in the WritersDB first line and cover contest here’s the link to my blog post about that: https://mjmallon.com/2017/09/08/please-vote-for-me-in-authorsdb-first-line-contest/

Bye for now dearest clock and dragon lovers don’t forget to leave a fiery message below.

Much love,

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Colleen’s Weekly #Poetry Challenge # 35 – PAST & FUTURE

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I had a disturbed sleep last night waking up at 5am. I managed to get back to sleep and awoke again at 7am. I checked my twitter feed  and discovered the horrifying news about the terrorist attack in Manchester. I cried. I couldn’t cope with the sad news about another attack especially one which struck at our young people. This is cruel, beyond comprehension.  I contemplated the morning and realised how beautiful a day it was. A single bird remained atop a tree, not moving so I picked up my mobile phone and captured it. Seconds later it flew away. If only those young people could have flown away. If only that man hadn’t done what he did.

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How ironic. The sun shone, but how could this be? How are we to continue when such atrocities happen? I suppose the answer is we have no choice; we have to, or the terrorists will win. So, I wiped my tears and tried to do something positive. I went for a walk. I hadn’t planned to take photos, but I did.   I’m sharing these at the end of my post, as a way to heal heartache. Life has to go on, but sometimes (being a parent,) you can’t help but feel the pain of such a devastating loss. To lose a child. This shouldn’t happen. Ever.

So today I am dedicating my Tanka to all the youngsters who lost their lives in Manchester, to their families and friends and to those who are still missing. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

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This is in response to Colleen’s challenge: https://colleenchesebro.com/2017/05/23/colleens-weekly-poetry-challenge-35-past-future/

Here are my photos of Emmaus, a charity for the homeless near me. It’s a great place to go to for a cup of tea and cake. There is a garden, ample parking places and everything you buy goes towards helping the homeless. I bought several new mugs, and a couple of other things, and snapped photos of their recycled art sculptures, their hens roaming in the garden, bee area, and several quirky bits and pieces. It helped. A little.

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Take care, stay safe.

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Ronovan Writes Weekly Haiku Challenge

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I really feel in the mood for a Haiku Challenge this week. It’s been ages since I’ve joined in Ronovan’s challenge, sigh, I seem to be struggling to keep up with all the things I want to do, such is life. Never mind I’m here now at this present moment ready to write some haiku. Yippee!!

The challenge words this week are rain and lightning. Very fitting.

On one day this week I was on playground duty in the local primary school supervising the kids at lunch time, except it started raining so we had to have wet play… no this isn’t some kind of water fight as the name would suppose … it’s when the kids have to stay inside when it’s raining. Not the most desirable outcome for us adults or the children. Children need to let off steam… Especially, when the Year 6’s have their Sats…So I was really pleased for them and for myself!!! Ha Ha ….that it stopped raining and they were able to go out and play ball and run around a bit.

The first haiku is with the kids in mind:

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Puddle Temptation

Enormous puddles

Draw kids near sweet temptation

Lightning burst they run

 

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The above photo is of my hubby getting very wet in Brighton – he’s very fond of thunderstorms so this haiku is for him!!

 

Rain Cleanses The Soul

Rain cleanses the soul

Lightning palpates heart’s desires,

Thunder struck we yield.

© Marjorie Mallon 2016 – aka, Kyrosmagica. All Rights Reserved.

Hope you enjoyed my haiku.

To finish off here’s a word spiral that I discovered how to do via Vashti – Do pop over to her blog to see her fabulous word heart graphics and haiku from last week: Vashti Vega Haiku and Graphics! and also Ritu did a post too : Ritu – Creating A Spiral Word Graphic

Festisite Text Layout – Spiral

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Here’s the link to Ronovan’s Blog to join in the challenge: Ronovan Writes Haiku Challenge

Have a lovely Saturday.

Bye for now,

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

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Ronovan Writes Haiku Challenge#87 Class and Firm

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Ronovan’s prompt words this week, class and firm seem to be very appropriate judging by my new part-time role working in a primary school.

It’s been quite a week. We’ve had rain, fog, cold days, mishaps, sharing issues, arguments, little fights and then…. one day this week the fire alarm went off during the lunch break and the little ‘uns were very upset. They thought their school was about to burn down, and they wanted their mummies! So I did my best to reassure them that this was not the case and it was just the kitchens getting too hot!! Poor wee mites, when you’re little every drama ends up being a major crisis of disproportionate proportions.

It didn’t help that just before the fire alarm went off one of the little girls hurt her lip, adding even more drama to an already raging inferno!

So the Monkeying Around haiku below is with them in mind…. sometimes, I’d advocate a fair old dousing of over imaginativeitis – only in extreme cases you understand!  But if all else fails a big hug from mum is always a good idea:

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MONKEYING AROUND

Raging school drama,

Classes monkeying around,

Firm, but fair dousing!

 

Oh and today I came across one of many little cherubs. This one with curly blond hair and the brightest blue eyes,  but even little cherubs can be challenging! This little fellow only responds to the words kind hands when he’s been a bit naughty – kind hands involves putting your little hands up in the air and proposing kindness to your  fingertips… miraculously it seemed to work, perhaps he is a bit theatrically inclined. I hope when I ask him to do it again his hands oblige!

I mentioned it to my youngest daughter and she laughed and admitted that she was really naughty in reception!!! In fact she was so naughty that she used to have to stay in sometimes as they wouldn’t let her out to play! And I thought she was an angel, us mothers, huh!!! She sounds like a cherub too….

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BE KIND

A little cherub,

Not naughty just challenging,

Firm words then kind hands.

 

Do pop over to Ronovan Writes, to join in with the haiku weekly challenge fun:

https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2016/03/07/ronovanwrites-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-87-classfirm/

 

Hope you liked my haiku.

Have a lovely weekend, have fun, but remember no monkeying around!

Bye for now,

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

 

 

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Ronovan Writes Haiku Challenge No: 86

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The prompt words this week from Ronovan are Flash and Dance.

I’ve just started a part-time job in my girls’ old primary school, a bit of a change from my last job working in John Lewis over Christmas!  On Monday I was on supervisory duty in the playground mainly keeping an eye on the kids playing on the climbing frame. On my first day there were kids leaping on kids, a boy with two scrapped knees, a girl who got bark in her eye, and a group of year four girls who came and introduced themselves to me and told me all about the play they were in. They were telling me about their parts, how many lines they had or proudly boasting that their part was a baddie! How outrageous! All in all it was quite entertaining… So I said that my two children used to go to their primary school too and I asked them to guess my daughter’s ages. The first one said, ‘ twenty five! ‘ I said, ‘Do I look that old?’ Then of course the next girl said,’forty five,’ but after that the numbers started to come down, thank heavens! Cheeky devils !

It brought back a conversation I had with my youngest daughter recently. I asked her what she liked to do in the playground when she was at primary school, she said skipping, and playing games but she mainly just danced with her best friend! How very theatrical, and artistically inclined, she’s not changed a jot – she still loves to dance. Her friend likewise is still keen on performing, just recently I watched her acting, and singing with The Young Actor’s Company  in their sell out performance at Cambridge Junction.  Jack Drum’s Entertainment will be playing in Oxford on the 5th of March, and London on 7th March at Bloomsbury Theatre. To find out more about this play being performed by such a talented group of young actors, follow the link:   

https://www.facebook.com/JackDrumsEntertainment/

I can’t say that I saw anyone dance in the playground apart from a tiny hint of a dance when one of the year four girls did a little bit of dancing from the show, just before she got called to have her lunch. That was the moment I was waiting for…… but it was gone in a blink of the eye.

So this week’s haiku is inspired by my daughter’s love of dance:

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Primary dancers

Playground extravaganza

A duo flashdance

Here’s the link to Ronovan’s blog so you can join in the haiku challenge:

https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2016/02/29/ronovanwrites-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-86-flashdance/

It’s good to know that there are some theatrical types in the playground, but perhaps that’s enough melodrama for now!

Bye for now,

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

 

 

 

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Writer’s Quote Wednesday: Michael Morpurgo.

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This week I’m thrilled to be joining in Colleen’s Writer’s Quote Wednesday.
Here’s the link to find out how to join in this open community of quote enthusiasts: http://silverthreading.com/2015/09/16/writers-quote-wednesday-george-carlin/
My contribution for Colleen’s Writer’s Quote Wednesday is this gem of pure wonderment from Michael Morpurgo.

Encouraging young people to believe in themselves and find their own voice, whether it is through drama, writing or art is so important in giving young people a sense of self-worth.   Michael Morpurgo.

I absolutely believe this is true, and the photograph below, (which I’ve edited with Michael Morpugo’s quote,) is taken from my youngest daughter’s art work when she was still at primary school.

It is nice to keep a copy of these little artistic endeavours on my blog as they bring back memories of when the girls were little, that seems such a long time ago now! Both of my daughters are pretty arty, my eldest enjoys writing, art, and drama, and my youngest writing, dance and photography (which I would include too in the quote!) Being creative seems to run in our family! In fact my grandfather and my uncle had a photography business in Edinburgh.

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Here’s a trio of Georgina’s artwork from primary school, the one on the left and right remind me of batik, The middle one is very colourful and exotic too! Batik is a technique of wax-resist dyeing applied to whole cloth, or cloth made using this technique. It is found in various countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Nigeria. More about Batik on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batik

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The photo below is one of my eldest daughter’s artwork pieces that she did when she was studying GCSE Art.
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Author’s Bio – Goodreads

Michael Morpurgo is the author of many books for children, five of which have been made into films. He also writes his own screenplays and libretti for opera. Born in St Albans, Hertfordshire, in 1943, he was evacuated to Cumberland during the last years of the war, then returned to London, moving later to Essex. After a brief and unsuccessful spell in the army, he took up teaching and started to write. He left teaching after ten years in order to set up ‘Farms for City Children’ with his wife. They have three farms in Devon, Wales and Gloucestershire, open to inner city school children who come to stay and work with the animals. In 1999 this work was publicly recognised when he and his wife were awarded an MBE for services to youth. He is also a father and grandfather, so children have always played a large part in his life. Every year he and his family spend time in the Scilly Isles, the setting for three of his books.

I hope you like the quote from Michael Morpurgo that I have featured for Writer’s Quote Wednesday this week, and the magical artwork too!

If you are artistic or creative and would like to be featured on this blog, I will be posting artistic, photographic, writing, poetry, creative, and dramatic pieces, (written accounts for the drama please!) by youngsters in the age group 11-18. So do get in touch if you are interested in featuring, leave a comment below.

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx
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Writer’s Quote Wednesday: Isaac Asimov

It’s Writer’s Quote Wednesday, via Colleen at Silver Threading.

Here’s the link to her blog if you’d like to join in her open invitation to take part in Writer’s Quote Wednesday: http://silverthreading.com/2015/06/24/writers-quote-wednesday-silver-inspiration/

 

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It is the writer who might catch the imagination of young people, and plant a seed that will flower and come to fruition.
– Isaac Asimov

Such wonderfully inspiring words from Isaac Asimov. Let’s take this dandelion, blow gently and scatter its tiny but powerful seeds of creativity far and wide. If we can nurture the imagination of our youngsters then indeed we have achieved something worth celebrating.

Writing for children and young adults is so inspiring and exciting too. This is the age when there are so many possibilities, and opportunities for growth. That’s not to say that there aren’t a multitude of difficulties too, growing up is never easy, and the teenage years can be particularly challenging. So many issues can and do rear their heads, bullying, gender and sexuality, peer pressure, these are just some of the obvious ones that come to mind. But if we allow children and young people a chance to dream beyond their current capabilities then who knows what they can achieve? My husband is always saying, “Reach for the stars,” to my two daughters, it may sound a bit over the top but it’s such sound advice. Yes, reach for those twinkly stars!

Do what you love, follow your dreams, and enjoy life to the full. Those stars may seem far away but with hard work and dedication, encouragement and belief in yourself those stars may not be as far as you think.

DREAM BIG…….

 

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About Isaac Asimov (Courtesy of Goodreads)

Isaac Asimov was a Russian-born, American author, a professor of biochemistry, and a highly successful writer, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books.

Professor Asimov is generally considered the most prolific writer of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards. He has works published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey Decimal System (lacking only an entry in the 100s category of Philosophy).

Asimov is widely considered a master of the science-fiction genre and, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, was considered one of the “Big Three” science-fiction writers during his lifetime. Asimov’s most famous work is the Foundation Series; his other major series are the Galactic Empire series and the Robot series, both of which he later tied into the same fictional universe as the Foundation Series to create a unified “future history” for his stories much like those pioneered by Robert A. Heinlein and previously produced by Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson. He penned numerous short stories, among them “Nightfall”, which in 1964 was voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America the best short science fiction story of all time, a title many still honor. He also wrote mysteries and fantasy, as well as a great amount of nonfiction. Asimov wrote the Lucky Starr series of juvenile science-fiction novels using the pen name Paul French.

Most of Asimov’s popularized science books explain scientific concepts in a historical way, going as far back as possible to a time when the science in question was at its simplest stage. He often provides nationalities, birth dates, and death dates for the scientists he mentions, as well as etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Examples include his Guide to Science, the three volume set Understanding Physics, and Asimov’s Chronology of Science and Discovery.

Asimov was a long-time member and Vice President of Mensa International, albeit reluctantly; he described some members of that organization as “brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs” He took more joy in being president of the American Humanist Association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov’s Science Fiction, a Brooklyn, NY elementary school, and two different Isaac Asimov Awards are named in his honor.

 

Hope you enjoyed Writer’s Quote Wednesday.

Thanks for stopping by.

Please do leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you.

 

kk

Marje at Kyrosmagica xx

 

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