Why I commissioned...DIGGING IN THE DARK

Twitter style summary: Josh's geeky cousin Malcolm is obsessed with archaeology and constantly digs stuff up. So why is he avoiding new TV series Iron Age Britain?

Hilda Offen is a fantastic author/illustrator who's long-established career incorporates a Smarties Prize winner (Nice Work Little Wolf), several picture books and first readers as well as a recent shortlisting for The Roald Dahl Funny Prize for The Galloping Ghost.

Digging in the Dark is a book that follows in the same vein as The Galloping Ghost, but this time, instead of plagiarised poetry, it's Josh's cousin's obsession with archaeology that gets him into trouble. "Archaeology?" I hear you say. "That sound pretty safe territory..." But not in Hilda's hands.

When cousin Malcolm comes to stay it takes Josh, his sister Izzy and his mum by surprise. His parents turned up, left him and the ran off - what's all that about? But Josh is a well-brought up boy and tries his hardest to make Malcolm feel welcome. He shouldn't have bothered. Malcolm, is pretty hard to like, not only because he's downright rude, but also because despite professing to love history, he quite obviously has no idea what he's talking about. And another thing - there's a new TV series called Iron Age Britain starting where contestants have to live on a remote Scottish Isle as Celts, something that sounds right up Malcolm's street, but whenever it's about to come on, Malcolm finds a way to switch it off.

Hilda's writing is gently witty and the first draft of this book had me smiling and chuckling right off the mark. Combined with her classic line drawings, this is a great read for a keen 7+, with plenty of familiar schoolground settings and a Josh's-eye-view look into slices of history that this age group have already encountered.

Hilda Offen knows exactly how to put together a book, she's in touch with her young readers, a delight to work with and her writing style is fresh and accessible. Part of her continued success lies in the fact that she has spent many years visiting schools and spending time with her readers, and continues to do so even when she could probably afford a little laurel sitting. You can catch her at Imagine Children's Festival on Saturday 18th February at 12-1pm and between 2-3pm where she will be in the Imagine Craft Pavilion. (I might be there too with certain little Catnipper...)

Every book of Hilda's reads like a classic and Digging in the Dark is no exception. There's a reason why Catnip has been publishing Hilda's work since the company started.

Why I Commissioned...TILLY TIPTOES

Twitter-style summary: Strange things are going missing backstage at The Grand Ballet. But aspiring ballerina Tilly Tiptoes is on hand to track down the culprit…

Written in the first person, experienced writer Caroline Plaisted brings fresh perspective to the ever-popular pink and sparkly ballet genre. As someone whose parents danced with The Royal Ballet and who spent many hours backstage helping out, Caroline is perfectly placed to bring life behind the curtain to light.

This was a series bought ‘on spec’. This means that we saw sample chapters and proposals for the first few books and contracted the series based on these. What I loved about Tilly was the voice (as always - it's all about the voice, people). Many ballet books for this age group are written in the third person, but in this instance the first-person perspective really animated the activities for me. The narrative is infused with Tilly’s infectious enthusiasm and helter-skelter approach to life, and the stories really sizzle as a consequence. We chose to add illustrations by Hollie Jacobs to bring out certain aspects of the text and her simple, slightly naïve line drawings match the tone of the book perfectly.

Tilly Tiptoes and the Grand Surprise is the first in the series, where we encounter vile Veronica – Tilly’s nemesis in her ballet Extras class, held on site at the fictional Grand Ballet – and Jessie the wardrobe mistress with whom Tilly spends most of her time, marvelling at the stunning costumes and lending a helping hand where she can. Plus we are introduced to SPOILER ALERT Giselle the cat who has been stealing clothes in order to nest with her newborn kittens. Guess who ends up taking a kitten home at the end of the book…?

There are plenty of deft touches that ballet fans will appreciate – not only are we given insight into how the ballet actually works on a day-to-day basis but each book in the series is set around a particular ballet, the ‘poster’ for which is featured on the front cover. Throw in some sparky scenes in which Tilly can provide wish-fulfilment for the reader (I’m fond of Veronica’s public shame when she professes to think that the lead male dancer is very handsome only to discover he’s none other than Tilly’s dad – totally mortifying for Veronica and totally gratifying for Tilly) and you’ve a charming, enjoyable read.

Why I commissioned... WILLA AND OLD MISS ANNIE

Berlie Doherty is a double Carnegie Medal winner for Granny was a Buffer Girl (now published by Catnip) and Dear Nobody but this book for younger readers was also highly commended in 1995 – perhaps because it is utterly wonderful.

We publish much of Berlie's backlist, as well as her new Peak Dale Farm series, and Willa and Old Miss Annie was a combination of the two – a backlist book that feels consistent with her new series. As with Peak Dale Farm, this book, a collection of three stories that read as chapters, is illustrated by Kim Lewis and her classic style accentuates the events of the stories perfectly.

The stories tell of the unusual friendship between young Willa and her elderly neighbour, Miss Annie. The pair are united by their love of animals, specifically a goat, a pony and a fox. Berlie is an author who knows the importance of honesty in the relationship between author and young reader and shows no fear in holding a mirror up to human nature. As a consequence Willa and Old Miss Annie touches upon the cruelty that can arise from ignorance and selfishness yet gently demonstrates how relationships can be forged in misunderstanding only to grow into something rewarding. As with everything Berlie writes the language is both perfectly clear and perfectly clever with gentle wordplay forming an integral part of each storyline.

Everything I’ve read by Berlie has been a pleasure but when I first read this, it delighted me beyond my expectations. But you have been warned: I cried. Yes, I am a big softie.

Why I commissioned...DETECTIVE BROTHER

Detective Brother is the third book in Pete Johnson's Jamie's Amazing Cape series for 7-9 year olds. The first was a re-issue of his excellent Bug Brother, but at Catnip we don't do things by halves (or thirds in this case) and we loved the characters in Bug Brother so much that we commissioned Pete to write two brand new adventures for them, Invisible Brother and this.

Written in the first person from Jamie's perspective I think any reader can instanty identify with Jamie's relationship with Harry. Jamie's a good kid, the sort of son parents would be perfectly happy with if it weren't for his younger but – grr – taller brother, Harry, who's always winning sports trophies, squealing on Jamie when Jamie tells him to go away and generally bugging his brother. When Jamie discovers a magic cape that grants him 7 wishes a day (but not necessarily every day – it's a tempermantal magical object), he thinks this should change things. It doesn't. Harry is still just as much of a pain as before, more so in fact because, like younger brothers everywhere, he wants what his older brother has.

I love this series for the chuckle-worthy bickering between Jamie and Harry – Pete Johnson captures the perfect tone for squabbles and his dialogue is used to great effect set against a narrative that glides along at exactly the right pace. As the cape causes more trouble than it's worth you're drawn into off-the-wall adventures where the characters behave just the way the reader might. Jamie's sensible bestie, Reema (who is shock horror a girl), provides "brilliant ideas" to get the boys out of trouble and into (slightly batty) Aunt Nora's good books.

Lively line-drawn illustrations by Mikes Gordon and Philips add that little bit of visual humour, helping along the imagination and providing that all important break for the slightly timid reader.

A series with excellently empathetic characters and one of the key elements for a book aimed at this age: a direct line to the funny bone.

Why I commissioned...GHOULS RULE

Twitter-style summary: Tumbledown B&B/ancestral hall is threatened by devious investors and destructive guests. Cue the Bogey-Mandeville ghosts to the rescue!

There's always room for humour on a children's list and The Ghosts of Creakie Hall series, of which Ghouls Rule is the second book, delivers just the right amount of bonkers to engage a young audience (and any parents reading along).

Karen Wallace is an experienced author whose characters exist in that wonderful parallel universe populated by goodies and baddies, where unlikely alliances (in this case between sensible children and long-dead, irresponsible ancestors) are forged to save something precious (i.e. a tumbledown B&B/ancestral hall). Karen simultaneously excites and educates the reader with wonderfully phrased descriptions: His face had the hard, determined look of a questing weasel is my personal favourite, although there are many to choose from.

We chose to keep the original illustrations by the talented Tony Ross (best known for bringing Horrid Henry to life). There's no improving on his interpretation of the spooky but kooky Bogey-Mandevilles and their modern-day misunderstandings.