Many of the folk fetching up in our #Booky100Keepers list are folk who can enviously wear both author and illustrator hats equally well, fantastically in fact.

Chris Riddell's books - whether he's illustrating his own writing, or helping otherwise godawful books lift themselves up a notch by providing illustrative genius - have been a mainstay of our "Book of the Week" slots since we started out back in 2010.

But it was the "Goth Girl" series that really caught C's eye - first read with me reading them aloud to her, then solo read on her own, the distinct cleverness of Riddell's drawing-in of pop culture figures fused with his glorious ink illustrations, coupled with the whole idea of producing gothic novels for middle grade, was just a huge huge lure.

Ada Goth lives with her eccentric father, Lord Goth in a rambling mansion with the most curious gardens. Riddell expertly draws us into the story of Ada and her ghostly companion, a tiny mouse named Ishmael, and the strange goings-on around Goth Manor. There's something deliciously dark about these books, drawing in influences as diverse as Frances Hodgson Burnett and Diana Wynne Jones, but underpinned beautifully by Chris's drawings (and of course his wonderful end-paper maps of Ada's amazing home).

The series goes from strength to strength, in fact they just get funnier as they go along - particularly for adults who will appreciate some of the humour that sails completely over their kids' heads.

Of course Chris is equally at home illustrating amazing books by other authors, including "The Sleeper and the Spindle" - a collaboration with Neil Gaiman, who needs no introduction at all - as one of the primary figures in fantasy fiction, and a god amongst men when it comes to spinning up amazing stories.

This one is more of a grown up fairy tale, a response to the rather antiquated views of the handsome prince rushing to save the sleeping princess from a thousand year snooze.

Woven with Chris's talent for drawing gorgeous fantasy bookscapes, but with a thoroughly modern and bang-up-to-the-minute exploration of what loves means, regardless of gender, this one is probably one to keep for when your kids are a bit older.

It's mesmerisingly good stuff though.



Chris has even managed to salvage an utter wreck of a celebrity book from being completely disastrous. Russell Brand's Trickster Tales was obviously meant to spin out into a story series, but the first book arrived to a deafeningly ambivalent reaction from the book-buying public.

That said, the best thing about "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" is the inventive way Chris draws up the characters from this rather self indulgent version of the classic fairy tale, proof positive that he can turn even a dog's breakfast into a book of the week.

Following Chris on Twitter is a joy - when he's tweeting about various book-type things or having a go at our dreadful government, his enviable talent shines through.

God I'd love to be able to draw like him.


Original Review Links: 

The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell (Bloomsbury)

Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse by Chris Riddell (Macmillan Children's Books)

ReadItDaddy's Book of the Week - Week Ending 7th November 2014 - "Russell Brand's Trickster Tales - The Pied Piper of Hamelin" by Russell Brand and Chris Riddell (Canongate Books)

ReadItDaddy's Book of the Week - Week Ending 23rd January 2015 - "Goth Girl - A Fete Worse than Death" by Chris Riddell (HarperCollins Children's Books)

Something Else by Kathryn Cave and Chris Riddell (Picture Puffin)

ReadItDaddy's Chapter Book of the Week - Week Ending 11th October 2019: "Guardians of Magic (The Cloud Horse Chronicles Book1)" by Chris Riddell (Macmillan Children's Books)

"A Kid in my Class" by Rachel Rooney and Chris Riddell (Otter-Barry Books)

A Great Big Cuddle - Poems for the Very Young by Michael Rosen, Illustrated by Chris Riddell (Walker Books)

"Fortunately the Milk" by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell / Skottie Young (Bloomsbury Publishing)

ReadItDaddy's Chapter Book of the Week - Week Ending 3rd August 2018: "Coraline" by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell (Bloomsbury Children's Books)

There has been much need for a creative response to the way the world has been shaping up over the last few years, which makes "Rise Up: The Art of Protest" by Jo Rippon even more timely.

Clad in a fantastic pride-wearing rainbow decorated cover, Jo shows some of the brilliant ways artists and designers respond to breaches of human rights, whether instigated by governments, individuals or organisations across the world.

With a foreword by Chris Riddell, himself no stranger to offering up brilliant cartoons and drawings raging against injustice and the political machinations of ne'er do wells, this is the sort of book that would be utterly fantastic as the basis of a school project in the arts or social sciences, describing how we humans deal with violations of our liberties.

Worked on in collaboration with Amnesty International, the international organisation working tirelessly to protect our basic human rights, and broken up into different sections, the book does not shy away from showing brilliant pieces of protest art about poverty, climate change, gender inequality or sexual preference. It showcases some of the most iconic posters, adverts and designs that artists have drawn up.

Sum this book up in a sentence: As folk who always look out for the amazing signs and placards people come up with for stuff like the Climate Change protests, or the anti-Brexit demonstrations, this book was definitely right up our street.

"Rise Up: The Art of Protest" by Joanne Rippon with a foreword by Chris Riddell is out now, published by Palazzo Editions (kindly supplied for review). 

This week's amazing Chapter Book of the Week is brought to you by a supreme talent in kidlit, a mighty storyteller and illustrator par excellence who brings a touch of style and dark humour to everything he creates.

"Guardians of Magic (The Cloud Horse Chronicles Book 1)" by Chris Riddell is very much cause for celebration, as is any new book Chris is involved in.

But it's his books as author and illustrator that have always garnered most of our attention - and ironically we had to put aside a re-reading of his thoroughly brilliant "Goth Girl" books to delve into this one.

The story opens with an atmospheric and immersive bookworld steeped in fantasy, reigned over by magical humans and mythical creatures. 

Sometimes books just fall through the gaps in our review schedule, to nestle unread beneath the mire and dust deep in the gutter of our blog's overspill bin.

Well, that's not actually what happened with "Fortunately, The Milk" by genius author Neil Gaiman and equally genius illustrator Chris Riddell (or fantastic artist Skottie Young if you're a US reader!). You see there we were, back in 2013, all geared up to review the very socks off this fantastic book. We waited and waited, we wrote about it lots, full of anticip..........ation and joy.

But the review copy never turned up. Now, I'm not going to have a go at Bloomsbury here as they do send us lovely things to review (though only 'propah' journalists get their middle grade / Harry Potter stuff).

This one really fell through the cracks, and after recently hearing many Twitter folk describing it as a brilliant example of a time travel story for middle graders, I thought I'd just better go and flippin' well buy a copy 6 years late.

So, was it worth the wait? Here's a thing. Sometimes when you've wanted to read something for ages, you can get so over-hyped about a book that when it finally arrives it can't possibly measure up to the hype. Thus was the case with "Fortunately, the Milk" which started out OK, but took a good few re-readings before I finally "got" it.

It's the story of an ordinary family. A mum, a dad, a couple of kids. As is the norm with children's books the mum is a hyper-powered corporate suit-wearing superhero who is nipping off to a conference, leaving the slightly hopeless but well-meaning dad behind to look after the kids.

She leaves behind a long list of chores for the dad - but chief amongst them is to go and get some more milk, after all no one wants to eat cornflakes with tomato ketchup on them do they? (C: I would!)

Unfortunately,  the milk. Yes, as you'd probably have guessed, Dad forgets to buy any but the next morning, before breakfast, he nips out to the corner shop to obtain the revered cow-juice. 

Our Chapter Book of the Week this week isn't exactly new, but it seems incredible to think that we haven't reviewed it on the blog before...

This one sneaked under our radar but is released today, and if there's one thing we love it's a poetry book kids can really identify with...

There's always room in your bookcase for poetry anthologies, but why should tinies miss out? Here's a book written and illustrated especially for bouncy little ones who love a rib-tickling rhyme or two!

We should start out with a warning. "The Sleeper and the Spindle" really isn't a children's book per se, but older children will relish the opportunity to read such dark fare so if they're already well versed with the brooding and dark imagination of Messrs Gaiman and Riddell, they'll be OK with this. It's definitely not a cosy bed-time read though, this.

"The Sleeper and the Spindle" weaves together a story that delves into the dreamscapes and darkest corners of a Brothers Grimm tale and fuses their rather morality-led storytelling with something that at once feels quite contemporary and full of exquisite little twists.

The story opens with a land slowly falling under a nefarious spell of sleep, and a queen who herself is newly awoken from a dark magic-tainted sleep herself. The brave queen is soon to be married, and laments the end of the life she knows (and loves) for a life of toil, child-bearing, unhappiness and 'married-ness' (owch!)


The queen is a fascinating character. Hewn from the same granite as Joan of Arc but with a delicate frail side, needing to pluck up all her courage to save her land from the dark spell and trace it to its nefarious roots. She enlists the help of a team of dwarves, the very same folk who were instrumental in freeing her from her dark sleep - and here Gaiman is expertly borrowing from so many other classic story themes to create something new and vibrant.

As the queen's mission begins she knows she's already running out of time. Her people are falling asleep in their droves, and when she finds the impenetrable source of the dark magic - a rose-thorn-encrusted tower - she starts to fall once again under the spell herself...


I can't really reveal too much of the story without revealing the big satisfying twist, delivered with a whump to the chest as the book draws to a close - Suffice to say that I remember seeing quite a lot of criticism levelled at this book (perhaps because of one particular amazing and gorgeous Chris Riddell illustration 3/4 of the way through the book that will leave you completely breathless - Those of you who've already read this will know the pic I mean).

Gaiman's writing is as tight as ever, no words are used lightly, and the themes that are explored here are dissected with precision and deft grace. Chris Riddell is the illustrator I'd most love to be able to draw like. His characters are beautiful, grotesque, expressive and astounding and fit this tale so well that you'd struggle to imagine anyone else illustrating this story.

I opted not to share this one with Charlotte - yet (I'd welcome debate on whether this was the wrong or right thing to do, and it was a decision purely to do with the darkness of the story and the way that I could imagine it sticking in a child's mind - particularly a child brought up loving 'fairy stories' - It certainly had nothing to do with the sapphic illustrative spread that seemed to get a lot of critics hot under the collar btw).

I am beginning to wonder if I'll ever find anything by Neil Gaiman that I don't take to (though some of his stuff does demand close attention and several 'readings' to properly appreciate his approach to storytelling - I could still fall either side of the fence with Neverwhere for instance). As for Chris Riddell, he never puts a foot wrong with me. I just can't get enough of his work.

Daddy's Favourite bit: The rich, sometimes rude descriptive language in this darkly delicious tale is perfectly complimented by exquisite ink drawings. Dark, twisty, fabulous storytelling.

You know we already fell in love with Chris Riddell's Goth Girl. Ada Goth is the sort of children's book character that you just can't help falling in love with and though we're late to the party with her second adventure, we're hugging ourselves with glee at how great "A Fete Worse than Death" is.

We pick up the story as a frisson of excitement fizzes around Ghastly Gorm Hall. It's time for the summer garden party, and competition is already heating up for this year's bake-off title (and you can bet that Chris includes some brilliant knowing nods to everyone's favourite cake-based TV show as well as a few other celebrity chefs thrown in for good measure!)

One person - or should that be one bear isn't quite as excited about the garden party as Ada and her newly found friends, the Attic Club. Marylebone the Bear (wink) - Ada's Maid in Waiting, is rather more concerned with matters of the heart. A mysterious marriage proposal has sent the normally erudite bear into a tailspin.

It's up to Ada and her pals in The Attic Club to lend cupid a helping hand, while avoiding the steely gaze of the nefarious indoor gamekeeper Maltravers.

Charlotte and I had to toss a coin to see who would get to read this first (I did the decent thing in the end and let her read through before stealing off with it). It's a sign of a great book that we are still giggling about it, and while discussing all the best bits, each of us got a batch of different story experiences from our read-throughs. Chris is a genius, creating a set of stories that are not only cross-generational (Charlotte knows enough about bake off to find Chris's amusing refs funny, while I can really dig all the nods to classic gothic and children's fiction).

This is so good, and now thanks to our lovely pal Anne-Marie over at child-led chaos we know that a third book is on the way, this time taking a wry poke at the beloved Brontes. We absolutely cannot wait!

"Goth Girl - a Fete Worse than Death" is available now from HarperCollins Children's Books. Do NOT miss it!

Charlotte's best bit: Her sheer and utter delight at the cake tasting!

Daddy's Favourite bit: So many genius observations, comic nuances and lovingly written tongue-in-cheek references that beg you to dive straight back in for another read through once you reach the end. Particularly loved the Nigella Lawson-alike though, oh yes!

(Kindly sent to us for review by HarperCollins Children's Books

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Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse by Chris Riddell

Trickster Tales - The Pied Piper of Hamelyn by Russell Brand and Chris Riddell

Lawks-a-Lordy! When Charlotte asked me who Russell Brand was, I had a bit of a quandary. How could I describe an actor, writer and comedian whose antics (on and off the pages of the red-tops) are not usually child friendly? (For info, I had to refer to him as one of the voices in "Despicable Me" and that still didn't really satisfy Charlotte's curiosity, so a little help here...?)

I've been intrigued by how Russell's first book for children would turn out, and when news leaked that Chris Riddell would be illustrating his set of "Trickster Tales" I was even more intrigued. An anarchic wit paired with an illustrative uber-meister? What could possibly go awry?

Nothing, is the short answer...and forgive me for being slightly more periphrastic with my language than usual for these reviews, I thought I'd try and emulate Brand's narrative in the retelling of the classic fairy tale, given a dark tweak of the neeps or two under Brand's locquacious pen.

The familiar tale of Hamelin begins with a description of the perfect town, where nothing goes wrong, everything is neat and tidy and ordered, and the townsfolk have little else to do all day but engage in fruitless competition over an atmosphere of tedious ennui. Everyone strives for perfection, so when a child is born who is 'less than perfect' in the eyes of the townsfolk, they reveal their hidden foulness, wanting to cast the child out. But his mother loves him, calls him Sam and defends him to the last, and so they make a life in Hamelin surrounded by scoffers, sneerers and ne'er do wells.

One particular ne'er do well is the biggest fattest bully-child in the town - who delights in picking on poor Sam. Along with the bully's compatriots (who are equally insidious), Brand really lets rip with his descriptions of these nasty tykes, sailing as close to the wind as the editors allowed (and boy oh boy, wouldn't you like to have seen the pitch meeting and the first draft of this book, if the final version is anything to go by?)

As the Townsfolk become more and more obnoxious, preparing for the "Prettiest Child" annual competition and parade, a plague of rats descends on Hamelin, ready to skitter amongst the perfection to wreak awful, terrible havoc. For a short while the rats rule the roost, but a mysterious stranger arrives - a Piper, with a simple remit.

"I can rid you of the rats" the Piper vows. "But I want paying in gold!"

I think it's worth pausing a moment here because you're probably more than familiar with the story, but I wanted to draw attention to Brand and Riddell's depiction of the Piper. Imagine if you can a cross between Alex from A Clockwork Orange, Noel Fielding and possibly even a smidgeon or two of Brand himself. Clad in pointy boots, a harlequin-esque jumpsuit, with hair as black as a crow's backside and a hat to match. He's exactly as you'd want the Piper to be orally and visually described. A saviour? Perhaps, but with the darkest blackest judicial heart beating silently under his cloak.

As the story unwinds, the Piper does as he is bid and rids Hamelin of the scourge. The Townsfolk (who, as we've already ascertained, are a nasty bunch bar Sam and his Mum) try to wriggle out of payment - offering the Piper a sandwich and nothing else. Needless to say, this isn't exactly a good move for a bunch of brainless nitwits and the Piper will be paid - or exact his terrible revenge!!

I'll leave you to discover the ins and outs of how the story plays out in Brand and Riddell's version of events, suffice to say that both of us could not put this book down. It's long for a children's book but we wanted to read it through - twice - before bed.

A note of caution though. Of all the celebrity-penned children's books we've seen while we've been compiling posts for this blog, this is the one that you can close your eyes for a second after reading a paragraph or two, and imagine Russell Brand himself writing it, reading it aloud and then arguing vociferously with editors and probably even with Chris over how exactly this book should look, feel and sound when it hits eager hands after purchase. Because of that, it's something that you'll probably want to read through yourself before letting your little ones loose on it. I can take or leave Mr B, but I do get pretty uppity about 'celebrity' books, and the veiled assumption that writing for kids is a piece of cake - anyone can do it. Of course, dear children's book blog reader, you and I know different.

There is also slight irony in the fact that Brand's latest "Grown Up" book Revolution is being described as long-winded, rambling and smug when this first Trickster Tale is also being slammed for similar reasons in the broadsheets.

It's not particluarly long winded, doesn't ramble and gets to the core point of the tale with a fair amount of style and aplomb. It's certainly not smug either, in fact it's easy to see how the whole idea of letting Brand put a modern spin on classic fairy tales could've suffered adversely under the wrong editorial hand.

And that, dear reader, is an impressive achievement for any author. It's actually quite tricky and delicious to read aloud, it's quite rude in places (not too much, but I would probably aim it squarely at children a couple of years older than Charlotte who can probably stomach all-too-descriptive passages about pierced nipples and slick poo) but it's undoubtedly stamped with Brand through and through.

Writing aside, Chris Riddell's illustrations are (as you'd expect) utterly and completely brilliant so if you really can't stomach the thought of Brand having his wicked way with your favourite fairy tales, at least let Chris's visuals talk to you in their anarchic inky tones instead. Some of the page spreads in this are truly glorious.

The only real 'no getting away from it' negative points I'd have to raise about the book are the fact that certain words are explained throughout the story in little box-out clouds - and there's also a glossary of terms at the back. Personally I'd have let children ask the meanings of the words of their parents - no better excuse to dig out a dictionary and increase your own vocabulary but a big fat hooray for at least leaving those lengthy complicated words in! There's also the fact that Brand played it fairly safe, merely adapting (an eventual set of) traditional tales rather than coming up with his own stories. Not such an easy gig after all, writing for kids!

Charlotte's best bit: There are several wordless spreads in the book as the piper weaves his musical magic, first on the rats and then on the townsfolk and they're just utterly brilliantly illustrated (though she also rather loved the 'roundabout language' (as she described it) in the story.

Daddy's Favourite bit: I'll be perfectly honest, I expected to hate this. "Yet another celebrity cashing in on what they think is an easy gig" was my first thought but I was won over in a matter of pages. It's ribald, rude, it's funny and it's hugely entertaining. Brand's writing is hectic, chaotic but always expertly constructed and beautiful to read aloud (you can definitely visualise the man himself reading it in your head!) Chris Riddell's illustrations are (as ever) utterly and completely perfect too. A belter! More please Mr Trickster sir, more please!1

(Kindly sent to us for review by Canongate Books)

Is 'different' good or bad? Do children grow up with an inbuilt sense when something's different or 'normal' and what is normal anyway? So many books have covered this tricky multi-layered subject in many different ways and here's a book that children will more readily identify with, picking out the core theme with ease and clarity.

For a child, introduction to 'different' happens early on, so having books that celebrate, shout "Vive la difference!" is definitely a very good thing.

Kathryn Cave and Chris Riddell have conjured up a world filled with fantastical creatures, though one is distinctly different from the others. Normally happy to live life in solitude, little "Something Else" is spurned by his peers whenever he tries to join in.

Then "something" turns up and turns "Something Else's" world upside down. "Something" is a little too different. Can the two find a common ground and perhaps even become friends? It doesn't seem so at first...

Delightful and whimsical, a perfect pairing Kathryn and Chris with Kathryn's cool way with nonsensical words mixing into the story, and Chris's sublime illustrations. We've said it once and we'll say it again, "different is groovy, baby!"


Charlotte's best bit: Aww Charlotte felt very sad for "Something Else" at first as he tried to fit in.

Daddy's Favourite bit: A great little tale with an important core theme, imparted expertly by Kathryn and Chris

Russell Brand. Soon to put his own spin on the Pied Piper of Hamelyn along with the awesome Chris Riddell

Sometimes, finding out about a new book can trigger emotions that are a bit like catching an attractive stranger's eye on the tube one morning, or receiving an anonymous note in your pigeonhole one valentine's day that simply reads "You're the one".

"Goth Girl" caught my attention a while back when Chris Riddell started to tease us with a few tantalising glimpses of a mysterious female character, and some truly luxurious illustrations for the book. We now know that the character was Ada, the brilliant central character of "Goth Girl" and those illustrations would appear throughout the book, offering luscious counterpoints to the story.

Ada is the only child of Lord Goth. She's shy and retiring, and her bombastic and distant father shares a huge house with her (which, from Chris Riddell's amazing map of the story locations, looks a lot like Basildon House, a fave National Trust haunt of ours). Ada's tale is tinged with tragedy, her gorgeous acrobatic mother died in an accident and her father's grief manifests itself as extreme grumpiness. Despite his best efforts to secure a nanny for Ada, Lord Goth finds the task trickier than expected and invites two other children to stay - to keep Ada entertained and out of trouble.

Riddell's love letter to many, many brilliant books and literary characters can be found throughout "Goth Girl" - there are deft  influences from novels like "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson Burnett - and a real flavour of gothic tragi-comedy.

Before long, Ada meets the mysterious Ishmael - a tiny ghost mouse who, along with her new housemates William and Emily Cabbage, uncover a nefarious plot hatched by Matravers, the gamekeeper, who wants to see Lord Goth cast out on his ear.

There's no doom and gloom here, despite the darkly gothic tones. Riddell's expertise is pulling together the absurd, the surreal and the tragic into a story (underpinned by his gorgeous artwork) that children and adults will find captivating. I joked on Twitter that I had the devil's own job prising this book out of Charlotte's hands when it arrived. I wasn't kidding. For days, though she couldn't read it herself, she'd show me bits she liked - and she made up her own little story to accompany the fabulous little wordless comic all about Ishmael that's tucked into the back cover of the book.

When I read the story to her, she wanted more - or at least to know that more books with Ada (and Ishmael of course) were planned. So come on Chris, how about it?

Beautifully presented, wonderfully illustrated and full of the sort of characters that you'd truly love to imagine once roamed the halls of our great stately homes looking slightly wan and peaky, "Goth Girl" is a must for anyone (like us) who would definitely be a Goth, if only we could grow enough thick black hair!

Charlotte's best bit: Ishmael. She fell in love with him the moment she saw the first illustration, and loved his squeaky little plaintive sighs - and of course the central part he plays in the story (which we won't ruin for you)

Daddy's Favourite bit: Always loved goth girls, and will definitely always love "Goth Girl" - It's utterly brilliant and we really truly hope this isn't the last we hear from Ada and Ishmael

(Kindly sent to us for review by Macmillan Children's Books)

US Cover (and slightly different name) for Neil Gaiman's marvellous "Fortunately, The Milk"

Ooh we're in a pickle. We really don't know which one we like best - but as Neil Gaiman puts it on his blog, he seems to have not one but TWO books coming out in September.

"Fortunately, the Milk" will be arriving stateside on September the 17th with artwork by the utterly brilliant Skottie Young.

Of course the UK does not miss out, we get this...

"Fortunately, The Milk..." with illustrations by Chris Riddell

Either way you're in for a bit of a treat. We've seen the Netgalley versions of the UK edition and Chris's illustrations are utterly wonderful. But we don't like to miss out, we really do want both so we'll have to pull in a few favours from our friends across the pond and try and make it happen.

"Fortunately, the Milk..."will be arriving on UK and Australian shores on - yes you've guessed it - September 17th!

Pick up a pinta or two and mark that date in your calendar. It's going to be awesome.

Coming on September 17th from Bloomsbury Publishing, Neil Gaiman's new children's book "Fortunately, The Milk" is going to be spectacularly huge, take our word for it.

Here, Neil gives you a tasty lactose-tolerant glimpse into what spurred him to write a children's book celebrating dads (hooray) and letting dads take centre stage in a heroic chase across time and space to grab a couple of pints of the fresh white stuff.

We've been lucky enough to see a preview of the UK version (with utterly brilliant illustrations by Chris Riddell, including one or two awesome cameos - not least of all the main character himself who looks a little familiar, shall we say?

We're massive Neil Gaiman fans here at ReadItDaddy (as you can probably tell from our recent reviews of "Crazy Hair" and our constant references to the genius that is "Coraline".

So hearing that the man with the crazy hair (well, he HAS got crazy hair!) is behind a new children's book is exciting news.

"Fortunately, The Milk" written by Neil Gaiman with illustrations by Chris Riddell, is coming from Bloomsbury very soon indeed. Weaving a tale of time travel, dinosaurs and...well, a bottle of red top - it's inherently the sort of thing we love Mr Gaiman for.

Don't just take our word for it though, listen to the man himself talking about the book over at Sci Fi magazine SFX's website. 

Neil Gaiman on "Fortunately, The Milk"


(Edit: The cover image previously included in this post was for the US edition, which will be illustrated by Skottie Young - Chris Riddell is illustrating the UK version - kthanks)