M. G. Leonard

Skip into the sunshine, for today is the first day of spring 😃 and next Thursday, Portly the Otter will swim into bookshops. Pre-order now for a heart-warming Easter read 🦦

I’m 6 episodes into Young Sherlock and bloody hell it’s good! It’s the best tv I’ve watched in ages. Congratulations to all who made it but especially Andrew Lane whose books the adaptation is based on. If you know a teenage boy, it’s a hard recommend. I’m watching with my son

#TheImpossibleGladiator by @MGLnrd Pub: @MacmillanKidsUK Just one of the MANY excerpts your 8-12 yr olds can read in this issue. #WRDMag is *FREE to download* or subscribe to buy a printed copy - Weblink in bio. A great way to discover new books… & there's WRDXtra for teens too! Proud to Support #GoAllIn2026 #NationalYearOfReading2026

Thanks to Millie Pritchett @MacmillanKidsUK for this copy of @MGLnrd #theimpossiblegladiator, having also sent us #thelengendofvikingthunder I am going to buy #huntforthegoldenscarab with our #wbd money. Fabulous series for school.

👀📚Check out my MARCH 2026 Children’s Books I’m Most Excited About video over on my YouTube channel. Please subscribe! 📖🌟Each month, I put together #ComingSoon videos previewing my most anticipated children’s books releases to bump up your TBRs! ➡️ youtu.be/-baUhk2uxKw?fe…

A look at some beautiful weevils in our beetle collection. 😍 The diversity of colours and patterns continues to amaze us, it's hard to believe that these are real! Which one is your favourite? Let us know 🪲

Always a joy to be a part of @kidslitfest They do such incredible work to inspire young people to read.

TEACHERS OF TOWER HAMLETS! What a top job you've done! Our FREE events with @MGLnrd @GuyBassBooks @TheSelinaBrown AND Maxwell A Oginni are fully booked. The top news is we still have spaces available at our other amazing venues around London so book now londonschoolslitfest.org

An authentic and enchanting return to the Riverbank. The Adventures of Portly the Otter (7+/9+) by @MGLnrd, Illustrated by Polly Dunbar, @FarshoreBooks Raise a generation of readers in your school: lovereading4kids.co.uk/book/978000866…

@lr4schools @FarshoreBooks Thankyou 😊🦦

Shelf Spotlight - Keeping schools thriving, not shareholders Ancient prophecy to modern technology and eco-adventures; reassuring picture books to enchanting and authentic reads. We're highlighting some splendid new reads that can earn you extra credit for your school library.

@exitthelemming @StephenMoss_TV @channel5_tv Oh lovely 🥰

Super excited about this new adventure. Such fun to make. Adrian Edmondson and me messing about and looking at birds. A new three-part series coming soon to 5. @channel5_tv

Just some of the wonderful Authors you'll find in this issue of WRDmag and WRDXtra: @philearle @mr_almurphy @JamesFoxWriter @yassmin_a @elisaupsidedown @EmilyH71 @adiba_j @natluurtsema @doyle_cat @RowanFoxwood @MGLnrd @RubyClyde @wd_rachel @vbatignole @samuelsedgman @sufiyaahmed @KatyHessel @misspowellpeeps @Rebecca_Stead @PiuDasGupta1 @JennyWriteMoore @alastair_ch @Loretta_Schauer @sarapennypacker @ActualBenMiller @gnorthfield @loxton_marilize @TheCallYA

I’m super excited to be at @hayfestival May 24th & 25th. Monday 25 May 11:30am - come with me to Ancient Rome & the Colosseum for THE IMPOSSIBLE GLADIATOR. Sunday 24 May 2:30pm I’ll be talking @susie_dent about words that bring us together. Booking: hayfestival.com

It’s just ONE month until my next murder mystery hits the shelves and this is my twistiest brain-melter yet… Join the graduates of Bathory College on Graduation Day and their reunion in 2025, when old grudges have deadly consequences… Pre-order now, out with @headlinepg 9 April

A couple more frames of an Otter on the River Clyde in Glasgow last Friday.

@theLucyStrange @yaba_badoe Yay! Congratulations Lucy 🫶🥂

Um, so a little bit of news . . . 😱

With new releases from Jamie Smart, Katy Hessel, Derek Landy, Liz Pichon, Julia Donaldson, Huw Aaron, Emma Swan, Michael Rosen and more, we're spoilt for choice when it comes to new children's books this February: waterstones.com/blog/the-water…

As it goes, there are many reasons why dung is so important to dung beetles - including all of the above! See how and why their lives centre around this smelly substance in this week’s Surprising Science! 🪲

With a brand new series from Jamie Smart with the Meglomaniacs and the return of the beloved duo Julia Donaldson & Catherine Rayner March is bursting with many marvellous reads! 🌻 Explore our favourites here: waterstones.com/blog/the-water…