This May we’re utterly delighted to be publishing Ella on the Outside by Cath Howe – a beautifully written middle grade novel with an incredibly authentic voice, hugely relatable characters and relationships (with real psychological depth), and a gripping story with heart and warmth. Part Jacqueline Wilson, part Anne Fine, this is a truly exciting debut.
And today we’re thrilled to share a very first look inside the book – AND offer you the chance to win one of three signed proof copies of the book.
These striking proofs have begun to appear on Twitter – and the response to the book so far has been fantastic:
Just finished reading ELLA ON THE OUTSIDE: a perfectly-pitched, thoughtful story with a big heart @NosyCrowBooks https://t.co/gNABuj85Vb
— Katherine Woodfine (@followtheyellow) March 10, 2018
“Charming, subtle & incredibly – suddenly – moving, Ella On The Outside is one of those delightfully unclassifiable ‘thank god it’s in the world books that @nosycrowbooks does so well. It’s due out on May 3rd & … it’s something to get on your radar now” https://t.co/DZwHiUv28Q
— LH ‘Daisy’ Johnson (@chaletfan) March 8, 2018
First holiday read done. A really thoughtful book; loved how art was depicted as an escape, and therapeutic. Also that cover is just pic.twitter.com/E4V3TZaaDk
— Library Mice (@librarymice) February 13, 2018
Just had the privilege of reading the proof of ‘Ella on the Outside’ by @cath_howe (@NosyCrowBooks pub 3rd May) and it’s absolutely wonderful – totally gripping story, real, vivid, brilliantly drawn characters and relationships and thought-provoking too. I couldn’t put it down. pic.twitter.com/FXDtskXgnS
— Helen Peters (@farmgirlwriter) February 9, 2018
An enjoyable read which is also challenging and thought provoking for the upper end of KS2 and into lower secondary @cath_howe @NosyCrow https://t.co/RftyX2ahte
— North Somerset CBG (@JustAboutBooks) January 23, 2018
‘Something to get on your radar now… Cath Howe’s writing is perfectly pitched. It captures that confusion of trying to do the right thing, trying to fit in, whilst all along not being sure what that right thing is’ – #EllaOnTheOutside @cath_howe https://t.co/aifqx52tZf
— Anne Clark (@AnneClarkLit) March 8, 2018
If you’d like to win one of these rare proofs of the book, all you need to do is follow the @NosyCrowBooks Twitter account and retweet this message. We’ll select our winners at the end of next week.
But even if you don’t manage to win one of these proofs, you can still read the book’s opening chapters – we’re sharing an exclusive preview today!
Here’s a look inside Ella on the Outside:
And here’s a bit more about the book itself:
Ella is the new girl at school. She doesn’t know anyone and she doesn’t have any friends. And she has a terrible secret. Ella can’t believe her luck when Lydia, the most popular girl at school, decides to be her new best friend – but what does Lydia really want? And what does it have to do with Molly, the quiet, shy girl who won’t talk to anyone?
A gripping story of secrets, lies and friendship from an exciting new voice in children’s fiction…
Ella on the Outside will be in shops from the beginning of May – you can pre-order the book here. And if you’d like to stay up to date with all of our book news, you can sign up to our books newsletter at this page, or with form below.
