Laura Shallcrass

Reviews: Five New Picture Books

This week writer and former Sapling co-editor Thalia Kehoe Rowden has some thoughts about a number of books that could do with better rhyme and rhythm, but is delighted with one new title. In a country that has produced such…

Book Awards: The Picture Book Award Finalists

We’re always trying to keep things fresh and interesting in our awards coverage, whether that’s remixing what we do with which category or coming up with something new altogether. For 2021’s Picture Book Award finalists, we decided to put the…

Book Awards: the illustration finalists

This year we’re kicking off our NZCYA Awards coverage with the Russell Clark Award for Illustration finalists! We have some exclusive insights into the process of creating the illustrations for each book, including storyboards, mood boards, working sketches, hand cutting…

A trio of recent books to help anxious kids

Stories and books can be highly effective tools in helping children identify and manage tricky emotions. Sarah Forster and Nida Fiazi interview author-illustrators Laura Shallcrass, Kieran E. Scott, and Emma Pascoe on the topic of their latest releases: anxiety. Read…