The Greatest Show on Earth is HERE!

Posted on April 27, 2022 by Mini

I’m so excited to be able to share with you my new book, The Greatest Show on Earth.

This book began in the Oxford Museum of Natural History, about 10 years ago. I was hanging out with my small son Herbie, and admiring the iguanodon skeleton, when I realized I didn’t know how long ago it was that the dinosaurs went extinct. Or even how old the Earth actually was.

Well, I discovered it’s 4.6 billion years old. But what does that 4.6 billion year timeline look like?

I wanted to tell the whole 4.6 billion years roller-coaster ride story of life on Earth in one book, so my readers could see ALL of this amazing and incredible story. I wanted my readers to be able to see each piece of the story at a glance, but also be able to dive deeper in to discover the unfolding inventions of evolution. I hope this book can bring Earth’s WHOLE story to young readers – in the company of Rod the Roach and his insect Troupe.

So come and take your seats for the ENTIRE history of Planet Earth, as we take a whistle-stop tour: from the birth of Earth, to the age of bacteria; from the era of dinosaurs to the moment of people…and beyond!

Find out more about The Greatest Show on Earth here.

Make your own Insect Theatre!

Make your own cut-out theatre and Troupe, and see what happens! Click here to visit the Greatest Show Make & Do page.

The Book of Not Entirely Useful Advice

Posted on April 27, 2022 by Mini

Brought to you by the Onion Power of AF Harrold with scribblings by me, this book has something for everyone and not entirely useful advice for every occasion.

Spring 2020

Posted on April 27, 2022 by Mini

Welcome to Sketching Weakly!

Well Spring is really Springing, and here at Sketching Weakly we’ve been trying to learn to recognise more birds. At the top here you can see some of the birdlife from the cover of Money-Go-Round – written by Roger McGough with pictures by Mini.

If you want to do a bit of bird-spotting out & about or in your garden, here’s a handy Spotter’s Guide to download and print.

Click on the images below to download a pdf.

Spotter’s Guide Front

Spotter’s Guide Inside

You might be feeling like making something. Here at Sketching Weakly we’ve been trying out making flying birds.

Herbie made realistic ones and Mini just made them up. Here they are being made:

If you want to make some, here’s a pdf you can print out.

Bird Template

And it’s 75 years since the publication of Astrid Lindgren’s much loved book Pippi Longstocking. Mini has been doing new pictures for the paperbacks of the three Pippi books, and they’re out now.