Andersen Press

I had such a lovely time at @wstonestaunton for the Waterstones Children’s Book Festival yesterday! We read my latest picture book, The Butterfly House, then did a super-cute butterfly-themed crafting activity, and it was great to see so many kids (and parents!) engaged with reading and inspired to make art. Big thanks to Poppy and the rest of the bookselling team at Waterstones Taunton for making me feel so welcome and hosting a fantastic festival, and of course to everyone who came along. (Also scroll along for a pic of me looking utterly thrilled at having met the actual, definitely real Gruffalo) 😊🦋 My next event will be for The Butterfly House at @wychwoodfestival on Saturday 30 May, where I’ll also be taking part in a draw-off with some other fantastic illustrators, and then I’ll be at @southgatekidslitfest on Saturday 11 July, so make sure to check both of those out and come along if you’re free 🌸🎉 #thebutterflyhouse #harrywoodgate #andersenpress #waterstoneschildrensbookfestival @andersenpress @waterstones_kids

Celebrate the wonderful world of sport with Luna Loves Sport, the sixth book in the Luna Loves... series by award-winning Children's Laureate @josephcoelhoauthor and beautifully illustrated by @fiona_lumbers ⚽ 🏀 🎾 About the book: Luna doesn’t think she’s very good at sports, but she decides to give everything a go. From football and basketball to swimming and hurdles, Luna and her friend Abiola discover that you don’t need to be the best to enjoy trying new sports . . . can they overcome their doubts together, and even have fun along the way? Comment below which sport would you or your child love to try? 💕A special thank you to all the wonderful creators who helped make this video possible @jenzobooks @asiddorn @thekidsbookstagrammer @posyandthepages @biglittlec_literarycorner #LunaLoves #ChildrensBooks #InclusiveBooks #DiverseBooks #SportsDay

✧ ꜱᴛᴏᴘ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ᴛᴏᴜʀ ✧ “You have to lose yourself to find yourself, and sometimes, that’s the most terrifying journey of all.” — This Boy I Hardly Know ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs: I finished this one last night and I’m still processing the atmosphere Lisa Heathfield created. It’s one of those rare stories that feels incredibly quiet yet carries so much weight. The way she explores the gaps between people—the things we don’t say—kept me turning pages way past my bedtime. It’s haunting in the best way possible, and I found myself tracing back over sentences just to soak them in. Truly a standout read that doesn’t shy away from the messy parts of growing up. A massive thank you to Lisa Heathfield for writing such a stunning story. I’m also so grateful to the @andersenpress and the @instabooktours for inviting me to be a part of this journey and allowing me to share this book with all of you! QOTD: Have you ever read a book that completely changed how you look at the world? #ThisBoyIHardlyKnow #book #BookTour #YALit #BookRecommendations Keywords: Emotional Contemporary YA, Identity, Character Driven, Bookish Community, Reading Wrap Up

🥥🥭🪷 This Is Who I Am Takeover 🥥🥭🪷 Today I'd (@ruchi.mm ) like to tell you 3 things that make me ‘me’: 1. My parents: My love of art, music and language comes from them. I have been drawing all my life, and I realise it is because they always silently provided the space and resources for it. They taught me to be free, humble and conscious of my social responsibility. 2. Forests: I wouldn’t be me without my love for the wilderness. I don’t know where it come from, but it has been a constant almost all my life, and the wild continues to fill me with wonder and intrigue. Without the natural world, it would be as if a part of me was missing. 3. Reading: I wouldn’t be me without the books that I have read and the ideas that came from them. I love a good classic with a large emotional range, and descriptions that bring a world to life in my mind. A lot of Marathi literature is also part of my diet, although most of those books live at my parents’ home. Mostly a fiction reader, the hopeful dreamer in me has books to thank for her existence. Needless to say, one of the main things that make me ‘me’ is the culture I grew up in. This is something that can’t be fit into a neat list and includes an extended family, friends, teachers and the very plural and multilingual city of Mumbai that raised me. It also includes my education in the UK, and the wonderful people who came into my life then. We are all products of our surroundings, to some degree, and constantly evolve and change. This is Who I Am written by @rashmiwriting talks about exactly these plural identities, and I hope children enjoy reading it! This Is Who I Am is out now in paperback! 💛 #ThisIsWhoIAm #ChildrensBooks #RashmiSirdenshpande #RuchiMhasane #AndersenPress

Save the date for the most colourful day of the year 🌈🐘 Elmer Day is back on 23rd May, celebrating kindness, friendship and embracing what makes us all unique. We’ll be celebrating in our favourite way… with plenty of patchwork colour 🧦 And of course, you can get your socks via the link in our stories with 10% of the RRP going to @kidscape to help support their important anti-bulling work #ElmerDay #Elmerthepatchworkelephant #DavidMcKee

We're delighted to share that Henry the Artistic Dog by @justin.worsley has been shortlisted for the 2026 @klausfluggeprize for the most exciting and promising newcomer to children's picture book illustration! A huge congratulations to all the authors and illustrators shortlist 🎉 #KlausFluggePrize #AndersenPress #PictureBooks

🥥🥭🪷 This Is Who I Am Takeover 🥥🥭🪷 One of my favourite illustrations is the one where our little protagonist is performing a classical Indian dance form. I have closely seen Indian classical music being played, practised and enjoyed, thanks to my parents’ love for it. I respect what it takes for a child to be learning music or dance (be it from India or western forms of classical arts). Swipe to see my niece practising and performing the Odissi dance form as a child, and my parents’ harmonium that lived in our home. Classical arts are deeply joyful and rewarding, and also cultivate discipline and structure. I firmly believe such artistic practice nurtures the soul. So it was very special for me to be able to celebrate these arts in a book about cultural identity. This Is Who I Am is out now in paperback! 💛 #ThisIsWhoIAm #ChildrensBooks #RashmiSirdenshpande #RuchiMhasane #AndersenPress

10 days to go until Elmer Day! 🌈🐘 To celebrate, we’re excited to share the 32nd Elmer story, Elmer and the Tug of War, written by David McKee and illustrated by his dear friend @marysiamilewski 💛📚 About the book: It’s elephants versus hippos in the jungle tug of war! But what happens when neither side can win? Thankfully, Elmer has an idea… When the hippos challenge the elephants to a game of tug of war, all the animals are excited to find out who will. win. But when the teams start to pull, no one moves! Days later, they are still competing and the other animals have lost interest, but luckily Elmer has a plan that will finally end the game… A funny story with a subtle lesson that winning isn't everything. Out in hardback this September! #ElmerDay #DavidMcKee #Elmerthepatchworkelephant #childrensbooks #PictureBooks

🥥🥭🪷 This Is Who I Am Takeover 🥥🥭🪷 When I move on to the final work, I redraw with pencils to make the main drawing, and create colour washes and textures with pastels on separate papers. Sometimes I draw on translucent tracing sheets to add specific details and scan those in. I then use these to build up the colour in layers. Swipe to see how it looks as it adds up! #ThisIsWhoIAm #ChildrensBooks #RashmiSirdenshpande #RuchiMhasane #AndersenPress

🥥🥭🪷 This Is Who I Am Takeover 🥥🥭🪷 Hello everyone! I am @ruchi.mm and I will be sharing some behind-the-scenes work for our new book, This Is Who I Am, written by the lovely @rashmiwriting . To me, this book is the story of any child who feels that they belong to more than one country or one culture. It is a celebration of being mixed, of being included and of including others. I enjoyed drawing all the little things that give the little protagonist her identity. The artwork is made with pencil and pastel. The initial drawings are all in pencil. Some, like thumbnails, are just for me to ‘think’ my first thoughts on the paper. These slowly evolve into more elaborate drawings, and change quite a bit. Some drawings make it to the final and some change as we go along in our picture book journey. This Is Who I Am is out now in paperback! 💛 #ThisIsWhoIAm #ChildrensBooks #RashmiSirdenshpande #RuchiMhasane #AndersenPress

🚨MISSING! Have you seen this elephant? 🚨 🌈 On Sunday, our beautiful knitted Elmer postbox topper was STOLEN from New Oxford Street 🔍 Detectives on the hunt to help #FindElmer have received information that he was last spotted at Mount Pleasant Junction 🐘 If you have seen Elmer or have heard of his whereabouts, drop us a DM! ❤️This is not a hoax, we miss our patchwork pal who was delighting passers by of all ages in time for #ElmerDay

🥥🥭🪷 This Is Who I Am Takeover 🥥🥭🪷 Children's author @rashmiwriting introduces her brand-new picture book This Is Who I Am, wonderfully illustrated by @ruchi.mm , a beautiful poetic celebration of shared heritage. About the book: When people ask her where she is from, this little girl says she has a foot in two worlds: one in India, the country of her heritage, and one in the land her parents came to on a plane. But she is so much more than that – she is the memories, the music, the tastes, sights and sounds of both of those worlds, she is their shared history, and the people who fought for their freedom . . . but most of all, she is proud to be herself. A poetic story about a little girl with Indian heritage who discovers all of the amazing things that make her who she is. This Is Who I Am is out now in paperback! #ThisIsWhoIAm #ChildrensBooks #RashmiSirdenshpande #RuchiMhasane #AndersenPress