Author & Illustrators

Marisa Morea Books

British Museum: So You Think You’ve Got It Bad? A Kid’s Life in a Medieval Castle

Non-fiction

Packed into a handy new pocket-sized paperback format, this fun-filled entry in the popular So You Think You’ve Got It Bad? series offers upper KS1 and lower KS2 children a gruesomely funny introduction to medieval life, told directly through the eyes of its youngest citizens. I think this format is a great size to hold and hits the sweet spot well for primary children.

Developed in consultation with the British Museum, the book delivers historical information in bite-sized chunks. From castles, knights and clothing to medieval medicine, entertainment, the Norman Conquest, the Battle of Hastings and the crafting of the Bayeux Tapestry, it covers a wealth of topics in one.

By encouraging pupils to directly compare their own modern daily routines with the bizarre and entertaining realities of childhood in the Middle Ages, this accessible title creates a bridge to the past, bringing a period that can often feel remote vividly to life.

Gruff Justice

Marisa Morea & Ross Montgomery

Picturebook

Inspired by the traditional tale of the Three Billy Goats Gruff, this wonderful book tells the story of Big Goat Gruff, who has been accused of taking a bite out of the farmer’s birthday cake. Whilst this greedy goat has a reputation for eating food from all around the farm, this time he is not the culprit, but he must find the real guilty party to prove his innocence!

This light-hearted story is full of humour and gentle references to traditional tales, which young readers will gain great pleasure in spotting.

Part of the Little Gems range, this book is perfect for early or struggling readers, with its font-friendly feel, engaging pictures and manageable amounts of text to read.

Little Mouse is Absolutely, Completely, Totally Fine!

Marisa Morea & Sharon Hopwood

Picturebook

This book is about lots of different mice experiencing different situations and how those situations have made them feel. For example, there is a mouse on a fair ground ride and he is feeling queasy while another mouse on the same ride is uneasy about going on. The book has mice experiencing lots of different situations that the children themselves might go through. This provides lots of opportunities to discuss how the mice are feeling and why they might feel that way. It could really help children that are finding it difficult to discuss this own feelings as they relate to the mice.

The book would also be brilliant to help children when learning about adjectives and expanded noun phrases. Each of the mice are described using an expanded noun phrase. There is some great descriptive vocabulary that could be shared with the children and the meaning discussed to extend children’s knowledge of words. It would be easy to use this book as a basis for children to create their own with different scenarios or animals. This is a suburb book with many uses in the classroom.

Porky Pies

Marisa Morea & Ross Montgomery

Chapter book, Dyslexia-friendly

Tia and her mum start an adventurous new life on Gull Haven Island, finding lots of animals who need their help along the way.

Tia’s mum has a new job as the vet on Gull Haven Island and there are a lot of animals who need her help.

When she’s called away to help a sickly cow on a nearby island and gets trapped there in a storm, Tia has to step up and care for the animals staying in the surgery. It’s a big responsibility and then she has to deal with a mysterious creature that washes up on the shore after the storm.

Their new life on the Haven Islands is clearly going to be full of adventures!

Particularly suitable for readers aged 7+ with a reading age of 7.

So You Think You’ve Got It Bad? A Kid’s Life in a Medieval Castle

Chae Strathie & Marisa Morea

Non-fiction

Part of Nosy Crow’s list of publishing in collaboration with the British Museum, developed in consultation with some of the world’s leading experts on medieval history.

A kid’s life in a medieval castle might sound like fun, what with all those cool battles and massive feasts, but actually life for kids could be pretty hard. In this hilarious book, written by award-winning author Chae Strathie, children will learn just how tough life really was, from getting stuck in a siege and living next to a poo-filled moat to having teeth yanked out with pliers… and even eating live blackbird pie!

Probably the first book about medieval times to feature talking cats and bottom burps, this is a must read for kids with a passion for horrible history!

Brought to life with rich, humorous illustrations by super-talented Marisa Morea.

Other titles in the series include: Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, Aztec Age, and Prehistoric Times.

So You Think You’ve Got it Bad? A Kid’s Life in the Aztec Age

Chae Strathie & Marisa Morea

Non-fiction

Part of Nosy Crow’s list of publishing in collaboration with the British Museum and developed in consultation with one of the world’s leading experts on the Aztecs.

A kid’s life in the Aztec Age might sound like fun, what with all that brilliant sunny weather and exciting festivals, but actually life for kids could be pretty hard. In this hilarious book, written by award-winning author Chae Strathie, children will learn just how tough life really was, from being jabbed by cactus spikes to snacking on maggots . . . and even wearing jaguar skins!

Probably the first book about the Aztec Age that involves wedgies and skateboards, this is a must read for kids with a passion for horrible history!

Brought to life with rich, humorous illustrations by super-talented Marisa Morea.

Other titles in the series include: Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, Prehistoric Times.

So You Think You’ve Got It Bad? A Kid’s Life as a Viking

Chae Strathie & Marisa Morea

Non-fiction

This children’s information book offers a humorous and informative introduction to daily life in Viking times and has a high appeal to readers in KS2.

Through words and pictures, the book compares modern-day life for children to different aspects of daily life for the Vikings, including clothes and hairstyles, education, family life, animals, food and hobbies. The book sets itself apart from the myriad of other non-fiction texts about the Viking world, as each topic is viewed through the eyes of a child. Did you know, for example, that Viking children had to share a bedroom with farm animals?

This is part of Nosy Crow’s popular ‘So You Think You’ve Got it Bad’ series, with the other titles focusing on Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece.

Sheep School

Marisa Morea & Ross Montgomery

Chapter book, Dyslexia-friendly

A thwarted thespian must use his talents to save his flock from a woolly situation in this hilarious gem from bestselling children’s author Ross Montgomery.

William the lamb just can’t stand still. His feet are always tapping, ready to dance, and he loves nothing more than bursting into song. But his talents aren’t always appreciated at Sheep School. Cast out of the flock, he wanders miserably away only to witness the rest of the sheep being captured by the Big Bad Wolf. Can William find a way to put his artistic skills to use to save the day?

So You Think You’ve Got it Bad? A Kid’s Life in Ancient Greece

Chae Strathie & Marisa Morea

Non-fiction

Published in collaboration with The British Museum, this children’s information book offers a humorous and informative introduction to daily life in Ancient Greece.

Through words and pictures, the book compares modern-day life to different aspects of daily life for the Ancient Greeks, including clothing, education, jobs, pets, food and pastimes, viewing each topic through the eyes of a child.

An enjoyable information text that would appeal to children in KS2, this is the kind of book that helps young readers move beyond hard facts and begin to reflect on what life might have felt like for those living in ancient times.

So You Think You’ve Got It Bad: A Kid’s Life in Ancient Egypt

Chae Strathie & Marisa Morea

Non-fiction

This is a book in a series from The British Museum that looks at children’s experiences in different historical periods. The format is designed to look at different aspects of Ancient Egyptian life (for both rich and poor) and compare it to today’s lifestyles, including fashions, homes, education, food, entertainment and medicine.

The book will be well-placed in classrooms covering the topic of the Ancient Egyptians.. The book also covers the topic of historical sources as it links what we know about the Ancient Egyptians to the paintings and carvings of the day. Like all good research books aimed at children, it covers the topic of poo(!) and how the Egyptians dealt with their waste, which is something that my classes have always wanted to know about!

A gorgeous and fun Egypt-themed children’s book that will add value to any classroom or library.