Shirley Hughes is a national treasure

There's just something so reassuring about Hughes' colourful drawings of the day-to-day activities that you know inside out . . . Words and pictures merge seamlessly . . . Hughes is a magical storyteller with an instinctive understanding of the mind of the pre-schooler . . . She makes the ordinary extraordinary

I am reminded of something John Diamond wrote: 'This, here, now, is what happiness is. Enjoy it'. To me, the work of Shirley Hughes says something very similar

This book was utterly unputdownable - I loved each and every second of time I spent reading it! I was torn between wanting to find out what happened and not wanting the book to end!

A page turning story that kept you hanging on edge

I think that the Beast Awakens is a fabulous read because it lulls the reader into a never ending journey through the magical kingdom, the Shole, and the people involved

Publication of a new Lockwood and Co. adventure must qualify as one of the literary events of the year. Jonathan Stroud not only writes like a dream, he creates some of the most inventive, most exciting storylines around.

I enjoyed it so much, I hope there will be yet another book soon to follow in this fabulously told series.

I love this series so much, the characters are funny . . . the ghosts are awesome.