This Month - Jessie M. King - contributed by Adam

Jessie M. King is an illustrator's name I have heard many times since I started working at Stella Books but somehow I never seem to see any of her illustrations. Well, that all changed the other day when a copy of Mummy's Bedtime Story Book came into stock. It has one of those book covers which says to you "look at me!" with its bright colourful boards, yet having a certain essence about it which says "I am an old book". I find this an unusual combination as most of our pre-World War II children's books tend to either have bright pictorial wrappers or understated but elegantly decorated boards, not the brash colourful boards of this book. Anyway this has inspired me to do some research and try and find out some more about Jessie King. Read the Article

Featured Book - The Mouldy - contributed by Maria

My husband and I collect illustrated children's books. Anything that takes our fancy really, but we do have a few books in our collection which are illustrated by Nicola Bayley. Nicola is perhaps best-known for her stunning illustrations of cats and indeed her particular favourite is 'The Patchwork Cat' by William Mayne . However, the book that caught my attention was another by William Mayne called 'The Mouldy'.

Although very familiar with the beautiful pictures, I must admit I'd never actually read the story... read more.