Chosen by our Guest Editor, Laura Ellen Anderson, as her Book of the Month, August 2024.
As soon as I saw the cover for this book, I knew I'd love it. I fell head over heels for the character of Colin the vampire straight away. Holly Swain has created such a unique picture book that is bound to become a favourite for years to come. It reminded me of the wonderful picture books I used to read as a child, filling me with nostalgic joy! Colin's Castle is gentle and hilarious, and the illustrations are full of so many wondrous little details. Colin is a utter DELIGHT.
When a vegetarian vampire moves into his dream castle, he soon discovers he has an unwanted house guest . . .
Colin's new castle is perfect in every way - apart from the DUCK.
The duck pops up when Colin's in the bath. When he's watching telly. When he's ON THE LOO. QUACK!
But where there's a will, there's a way. Colin has a PLAN. Will he succeed in banishing Duck from his castle and leading the bird-free life that he dreams of?
Holly Swain is a children’s book illustrator, living in Hove with her husband Matt and their two daughters. As a kid she always loved to draw, making up characters and their worlds. She used to have a huge roll of paper under her bed that she constantly drew on which gradually got smaller and smaller, by which time she was big enough to go to college. She studied Illustration at UWE Bristol and then did an MA in Brighton.
Colin’s Castle is her debut picture book as both author and illustrator.
