Introducing Neon Squid – a new non-fiction publisher for kids!

April 12th 2022

Neon Squid is a brand new KS1 non fiction books publisher for kids. We believe that the best stories in the world are the real ones – from Native American siblings who took the world of ballet by storm to a tiny frog that shares its burrow with a fearsome tarantula (and it turns out they make perfect flatmates). These, along with many more incredible stories, feature in our first six books – out now!

It’s really important to us that we pick intriguing topics that kids might not be familiar with, but that could spark an interest and encourage on-going reading for pleasure. In Tales of Ancient Worlds we shine a light on the field of archaeology. Readers will dive beneath the waves to discover an ancient Egyptian port city undisturbed for thousands of years, unearth a temple made of mammoth bones, and discover why on earth archaeologists got so excited when they found a fossilised Viking poo underneath a bank in York.

Animal Sidekicks, meanwhile, focuses on symbiosis – when different species form relationships. And some of these are right head-scratchers. Kids will meet the crab that wears an urchin as a hat, the bat that sleeps inside a plant, and the warthog that gets a good pampering from a team of mongooses! Along the way readers will learn the evolutionary reasons why these cool relationships have formed.

Anyone that has siblings knows that the relationship between them can be, well, complex at the best of times. In The Book of Sisters readers will whizz through history to discover the stories of incredible siblings, from the Zippel sisters who were tried for witchcraft in 17th century Sweden, to Cleopatra and her little sister Arsinoë, who got on so badly they went to war against each other! Along the way kids will also get an idea of what life was like in imperial China, during the French Revolution, and on the concrete tennis courts of LA in the 90s.

Our books are all written by incredibly talented individuals from diverse backgrounds. Stefan Milosavljevic is an archaeology YouTuber who presents his videos holding a spoon as a microphone (he assures us it helps with acoustics), while Jessica L. Ware is a bug expert who received a medal from the US President for her work on insect evolution. Meanwhile, Christle Nwora is a doctor who wrote her book in between shifts at a hospital during the height of the Covid pandemic! Despite their differences they have one key thing in common: an ability to create books about diversity by taking complicated subjects and explaining them in a fun way that is accessible to even the youngest of readers.

We know that not all readers enjoy books in the same way. Some love stories, while others prefer smaller fact nuggets. Others are more visual learners – so it’s vitally important to us that our illustrations reinforce the educational elements in the text. To do this we’ve cherry-picked some of the most talented artists from around the world. For example, Chaaya Prabhat’s vivid colours and sense of movement make you want to join a tiger for a stroll through a jungle, while Ginnie Hsu’s charming storybook style helps to demystify a trip to the hospital for nervous kids.

At the heart of all of our books is education – we want to inform kids about the world around them, the past, and what might be in store in the future. And if a kid that reads Tales of Ancient Worlds goes on to become an archaeologist themselves? Well, that would be a bonus.

Follow Neon Squid on Twitter @neonsquidbooks.

Browse Neon Squid books here.