Candy Jar Books

18/11/2025

A new review from Sarah's Little BookShelf 😃

Book Review 📖

Title:

IVOR the Engine 🚂
By:

Oliver Postgate

Pictures by:

Peter Firmin

What is the story about? 📖

Have you met Ivor? 🚂

Ivor the Engine wasn’t feeling right. Ivor’s driver, Jones the Steam, felt like he just wasn’t pulling right. What was wrong with Ivor? 😢

After a trip down the main lines and a thorough check over by the chief engineer and his assistants, they couldn’t find anything physically wrong with Ivor. It was at this point that Jones the Steam realised, Ivor must be experiencing a deeper problem.

Could the key to Ivor’s happiness lie in the village choir? 🎵

This edition of Ivor the engine is a reproduction of the original book written by Oliver Postgate back in 1962, alongside a TV broadcast of Ivor’s adventures.

It is a heart-warming tale of a little engine who wants to sing.

Ivor is new to us in our house but both my son and I enjoyed this story.
It’s beautifully written, well paced and has lovely colourful illustrations.

As we read the story my son was concerned as to why Ivor was feeling sad. As the story progressed and focused on the community coming together to make Ivor happy, we were left at the end of the story with a feeling of happiness around those who cared for Ivor. The message we took from the story was that with the help of people around you, any dream is possible. Even a train joining a choir. 🚂 🎵

If your little one loves trains, warm characters, colourful illustrations, and a happy ending....then this story is for them 💜

18/11/2025

Big thanks to BookBrunch for sharing our news!

45 years on and The Christmas Raccoons is back, but in book form 🥳

Read more here: https://www.bookbrunch.co.uk/page/article-detail/candy-jar-books-steps-into-evergreen-forest-with-the-christmas-raccoons/


Chris McGuire Kids' Author
The Raccoons

Chris McGuire reimagines the 1980 holiday special, with themes of teamwork, kindness, and environmental awareness

15/11/2025

Exterminart! has been posted - https://mailchi.mp/2cade057e47b/exterminart-has-been-posted The limited edition paperback of Exterminart! by Andrew Skilleter has now been posted. If you have ordered, you should be getting your copy soon.

01/11/2025

📚Dyma lyfrau'r mis, mis Tachwedd! | Our November Books of the Month!

🔹Dant am Ddant - Cefin Roberts
🔹Arwyr Chwaraeon Cymru - James Stafford
🔹Truth Like Water - Carys Shannon
🔹Copter Duck and the Curse of Dark Wood - Paul Banthorpe

📚Ar gael nawr o'ch siop lyfrau leol.
📚Available now from your local bookshop.



Gwasg y Bwthyn | Y Lolfa | Parthian Books | Candy Jar Books

31/10/2025

🚨NEWS: 'The War Between the Land and the Sea' is coming DECEMBER 2025! ⛰🌊

The brand-new Doctor Who spin-off will launch in the UK on BBC iPlayer this December, and on Disney+ internationally in 2026!

30/10/2025

30/10/2025

✨ From cheeky adult humour to magical middle-grade adventures, playful picture books to inspiring biographies, there’s something for everyone this Autumn 🍁

📚 Our New Titles include:

* Sir Henry Cooper by Ralph Oates 🥊
* Books Have Feelings Too by Jeff Chegwin 🤪 (Available from bookshops 3rd November)
* The Christmas Raccoons by Chris McGuire Kids' Author🎄
* The Toilet of Doom by Michael Lawrence 🚽
* Copter Duck! And the Curse of Dark Wood by Paul Banthorpe 🦆
* The House of Justino by Chris Stratton ✨
* Shy or Show-Off? by Omri Stephenson 🐾

💛 Support your local bookshop and grab these treats today — every copy you buy helps independent shops thrive, and keeps the magic of stories alive.

Big thanks to the Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru / Books Council of Wales for making these titles available in your favourite bookshops

P.S. All books are currently pre-order only on Amazon, to be released in November, giving bookshops the advantage of early availability 🌞

P.P.S. All books are also available from the Candy Jar website 🍬

📸 Tag us in your Candy Jar haul!

The Raccoons

15/10/2025

Look what arrived in the post! 🏣

Myself and Marshmallow are so excited to receive some new books to read. We love it when the postman drops us off a book package.

Look out for the reviews of these three books over the next few weeks, especially around Halloween time. 🎃

Me and my son are already half way through Crooks and Nannies!! A NAUGHTY begining!

Reviews will be completed soon 🤗

05/10/2025

Celebrating 20 Years of Doctor Who Christmas Specials in One Book! - https://mailchi.mp/62d3c20ce8b3/drwhochristmasspecials From Daleks, to Cybermen, to snowmen, to Father Christmas, the Doctor has been a holiday staple for twenty years, and now fans can celebrate every festive adventure in this Candy Jar book.

“Writing this with my son Ben, the biggest Doctor Who fan I know, has been an absolute joy,” says book editor Baz Greenland. “The specials have become a national tradition. This book is for anyone who loves Doctor Who and Christmas.”

25/09/2025

🚨 BREAKING NEWS: Releasing Today from Candy Jar Books! 🚨

We’re excited to announce the official release of TWO brand-new titles that promise mystery, adventure, and a whole lot of imagination! 🎉📚

Sue Palmer's The Shell Secret and Lucy McCaul's Benton and Hawthorne Investigate 🥳

Both books are available at all your favourite bookshops from TODAY thanks to Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru / Books Council of Wales, as well as from our website:

https://www.candy-jar.co.uk/books/

07/09/2025

JON PERTWEE INTERVIEW & 4 DAYS LEFT OF SUMMER SALE! - https://mailchi.mp/8222cf80641c/jonpertweeiv Just Sarah: More Than Fifty Years of a Doctor Who Companion from Candy Jar Books will include a long-lost interview with Third Doctor actor, Jon Pertwee. In the interview, Jon spoke about how much input he had in Doctor Who; the success of The Paradise of Death; and his hopes for The Spare Part People, a Doctor Who story he co-wrote which he aimed to get published as a novel.

21/08/2025

Latest News! - https://mailchi.mp/e7e4fa043423/justsarah Candy Jar Books is pleased to announce Just Sarah: More Than Fifty Years of a Doctor Who Companion, a celebration of the much-loved character played by Elisabeth Sladen.

The collection covers not only Sarah’s time with the Third and Fourth Doctors (Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker, respectively), but also her comeback during the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) era, and spin-offs, K9 & Company, Big Finish’s Sarah Jane Smith audio series, and CBBC’s The Sarah Jane Adventures.