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Selection Box by Molly Arbuthnott
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Molly Arbuthnott is a teacher, author, editor and academic from Perthshire in Scotland. She is passionate about the promotion of children’s literature. With a solid understanding of literature and the ability to read, she believes you can take on the world.
She uses her experiences from life as inspiration for her writing. Teaming up with four fantastic illustrators has helped her to breathe life into the stories. Each story is loosely based on family or friends who have been important in her life whilst also trying to tell stories in an honest and gentle way, singing praise to the things we must celebrate in our world. Teaching children to look out for others, work as a team and not be afraid of doing the right thing that is important. Such lessons might then filter through and be reflected in the way we live in the magical world around us.
Here’s a look at our video chat:
Each book teams up with the charity which is associated with the theme of the book in some way. Part of the profits from the book sales are then donated to the designated charities.
Possessing an affinity for the world of books, Molly often finds herself at bookstores, libraries, schools and book festivals throughout the UK and across the globe, sharing interactive and engaging writing and storytelling workshops. Her, podcast ‘My Favourite Books,’ engages both young and not so young to chat about common book interests.
Molly is keen to ensure young minds through smart innovation see nature in its most natural format and once they have seen that natural beauty the world has to offer, then right from an early age they will start to understand how important it is to protect earth’s delicate balance, plus respect and appreciate it more. Some of her books open this burning emotion of hers to young kids to explore and contemplate.
The Books
Oscar the Hebridean Cat
llustrated by Agnes Treherne
Oscar the Hebridean cat is a story of love, courage and spirit set on a Scottish Hebridean island. Oscar and his feline companion, Mercy are on one of the local ferry boats that connect the isles together. Like most cats coming across a mouse ultimately ends up in a game of cat and mouse, but on this occasion the chase ends up on a nearby island. Their adventure on the island brings them to a beach where the locals are raking for cockles when they spot Morag a young girl raking on her own totally oblivious to the incoming tide. They set about rescuing her and that’s the enchanting story within this endearing book.
The charity that Molly supports with some of the proceeds from the sale of this book go to Wilderness. www.wildernessfoundation.org.uk a charity working to keep people healthy and our planet wild.
Angus The Robin I
llustrated by Maude Smith
This is a story about hope and the power of simple gestures that help children with the loss of a loved one. Everyone needs a daisy in their lives.
Angus is an ordinary robin defending his patch and going about his daily chores, when one day an old man by the name of Robin who lives nearby and collects the newspapers befriends Angus by bringing birdseed. When he goes home, he always picks a daisy for his wife; but one day the old man doesn’t come which confuses Angus instead his wife Martha comes who explains to him that her husband Robin has passed away as he hadn’t been well. It’s a story of warmth and compassion around a time of sadness.
The Charity that Molly supports with some of the proceeds from the sale of this book go to The Daisy Garland www.thedaisygarland.org.uk a charity that supports young children with Epilepsy.
David the Pizzly Bear
Illustrated by Camilla Seddon
This story came about after Molly had attended a conference where Sir David Attenborough gave a talk and in that speech the topic around the plight of pizzly bears arose. A pizzly bear is a cross between a polar bear and a brown grizzly bear, it was a fascinating talk. So, she decided to write a story for children about a pizzly bear and of course named the character David after Sir David Attenborough. It’s a story to show children that being different to those around you is perfectly okay.
Here we have David a whitish pizzly bear, all his friends are brown grizzly bears, his mum was a brown grizzly bear, but his father was a polar bear. David would get upset that he was different to his friends, but his mum would always tell him he was perfect. His father from what he could remember about him was a fearsome hunter who had once killed a walrus and pulled off one of its tusks. That tusk was the last thing his father had given to him which was now round his neck as a whistle so that he could blow it especially when he got into difficulty. The story also covers off how he and his friend Daniel got into difficulty out on the ice having snuck out in the middle of the night under his mother’s nose having warned him about the dangers of being out on the ice pack. What happened to David and Daniel well you’ll have to read the book.
The charity Molly has chosen to support with some of the sale proceeds from this book is Practical Action www.practicalaction.org.uk an organisation that takes practical action against poverty and the environmental crises to start the big changes today’s world urgently needs.
Effie the Midge
Illustrated by Malgorzata Natanek
The story here is to show young children that with determination and belief even the smallest creatures can make a big difference.
Effie is a little midge with a big heart and an even bigger dream. Unlike her friends, she doesn’t want to bite people. Determined to find a better way, Effie experiments with fruits, flowers and plants creating beautiful colourful ‘haze’ bottles. Sadly, her ideas are ignored at the midge conference and disaster strikes. But a twist of fate turns her spilled colours into something rather special!!!
The charity Molly has chosen to support with some of the sale proceeds from this book is Bug Life www.buglife.org.uk an organisation dedicated to the conservation of all invertebrates.
Other Books by the Author
Oscar the Italian Cat
Oscar the Ferry Cat
George and the Steam Museum
Simon the Sloth
Conrad the Spider
Athena the Cheetah
Peanut the Hamster
Oscar the London Cat
Eddie the Duckling
Eddie the Duckling Early Years
Eamonn the Bat
Jenifer the Goose
The Goldfinger Squeak
Our Lockdown Book
Social Media Sites & Website
Please visit Molly’s webpage there you’ll learn more about who she is and explore all the books she has written. You can get any of her books from there.
Webpage: www.mollyarbuthnott.co.uk
Instagram: www.instagram.com/molly_arbuthnott_books
Facebook: www.facebook.com/mollyarbuthnottbooks
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/molly-arbuthnott-8b528764
Tiktok: www.tiktok.com/mollyarbuthnott@mollyarbuthnott search Molly Arbuthnott
Wiitia: www.wikitia/mollyarbuthnott.com
Awards:
Eamonn the Bat: The People’s Book Prize 2026 winner for Best Achievement
Molly has three books nominated for another The People’s Book Prize in 2027 they are Oscar the Hebridean Cat, Angus the Robin and David the Pizzly Bear, please support Molly to achieve these prestigious awards by going to The People’s Book Prize website and voting for her books. www.peoplesbookprize.com
Publishers for the four books we have talked about in this podcast interview.
Candy Jar Books: www.candyjarbooks.com ‘
Podcast info
This podcast is available to listen to on all major social podcast platforms search Talking Books hosted by J T Crowley. The video is available on YouTube search Talking Books hosted by J T Crowley, and now on Roku and Amazon Fire Stick streaming devices plus Apple Tv. Download the Experts and Authors app on your television or visit: www.Expertsandauthors.tvonline and click TALKING BOOKS.
Molly, I wish you all the best in your new adventures and once again thank you for giving me another interview to talk about four of your fabulous books. I wish you every success with them and look forward to working with you in the future.