GET OUT OF THE WATER!! Sharks spell trouble, unless of course they're in the employ of the one and only Elle McNicoll, who's heading to the island on the back of one with snacks aplenty and aplenty to say about her writing life. Since making a huge splash with 'A Kind of Spark' Elle has established herself as one of the most exciting writers back in Blighty, and a brilliant advocate for better representation of neurodiversity in children's books. Frank and Nadia are mustard-keen to hear about her latest, 'Keedie' that once again takes us to the Scottish streets of Juniper.

I hear that whistle blowing - the beautiful sound of a train emerging from beneath the waves with the fabulous M.G. Leonard aboard, ready to scatter joy with her fabulous snack choices and fascinating insights into her seemingly endless list of endlessly brilliant books - including Beetle Boy, the Adventures on Trains series and The Twitchers books. She's been translated into over forty languages but sadly, as yet, not the native language of the Island of Brilliant. Perhaps that's about to change.

Nadia has made the most of her extended Christmas break, but Frank’s been sleeping it off. For a month. He needs to get his act together sharpish, though, because there is a rip in the space time continuum just above one of the palm trees, and Christopher Edge, author of bestseller ‘The Escape Room’ and the forthcoming ‘Black Hole Cinema Club’, is hurtling towards the island at the speed of light, all the way from Eccles. Before he arrives Frank and Nadia discuss Truckers by Terry Pratchett and new wonder-book ‘The Final Year’ by Matt Goodfellow. 

Emily Drabble from Booktrust is back with her pick of the crop of new children’s books, this month featuring:

The Pandas Who Promised by Rachel Bright and Jim Field published by Hachette

Time Travellers: Adventure Calling by Sufiya Ahmed published by Little Tiger

Fright Bite by Jennifer Killick published by Farshore

Safiyyah’s War by Hiba Noor Khan published by Andersen

Look Out! Hungry Lion by Paul Delaney published by Harper Collins