Books

Books for bright sparks – a top school librarian’s picks

Magdalen College School in Oxford is one of the top academic successes in the UK. Where better to tap up for smart suggestions on the best books to captivate kids?
Home schooling help: Stratford Lit Fest & the RSC

Stratford Literary Festival and the RSC have created FREE online home schooling content with top UK authors and actors including Michael Rosen.
The best cookbooks to buy now

Sick of making the same seven dinners, week in, week out? Or just a sucker for tempting pictures of food? If any of the above apply, we’ve got you covered.
Best new children’s books for 2020

Looking for stocking fillers? Or perhaps just a gift that keeps giving once Christmas is long gone? Look no further - here are the best books for every age, from tiddlers to pre-teens.
Best coffee table books for Christmas

Ahh, the coffee table book - the perfect blend of form and function. Here are some of the best releases of the year to add to your Christmas list...
10 best books for teenagers

Trying to inspire your teenagers to put down the devices and pick up a boo? The booksellers at The Cobham Bookshop have these suggestions.
Culture queen! My August highlights

A whole month of lolling in the sun (hopefully) requires a whole host of entertainment. Here are the culture picks I'll be soaking up this August, from must-see art to new albums
Culture vulture: my July hitlist

Missing the theatre and live venues? OMG, me too. Until normal service resumes for the arts world (your guess is as good as mine), here's my personal culture planner for July - podcasts, books, music and theatre. I'll budge up on the sofa, come and join me.
Need a new lockdown read?

It's Independent Bookshop Week so support your local purveyor of fine literature by popping in and buying one of these super summer reads. All come recommended by the Muddy crew.
Culture vulture: my June hitlist

Less time propping up bars means more time enjoying the creative arts right?! Here's what I'm loving this month.
Kids driving you nuts? The best parenting books

And we all thought parenting was hard BEFORE lockdown. Jeez! We've got five brilliant new books that promise to help.
10 of the best gardening books

Fancy getting all green fingered in the garden but don't really know where to start? Here's a helping hand with 10 terrific tomes to add to your reading list.
Read these new releases this month

After a little escapism? With flights grounded, we're reaching for the next best thing - a good book! Here are seven sizzlers to add to your reading list.
The Surrey Cook Book

A new cookbook celebrating some of the best foodie venues in Surrey has just launched - and Muddy Stilettos has a sneak preview of some of the recipes. Read on chef!
Read THESE this month

Reasons to be cheerful: spring has sprung and a brilliant new batch of March books has arrived. Gather around, and let Muddy's pro-bookworm Kerry Potter tell you a story.
The 5 best books out February

Muddy's pro bookworm Kerry Potter has got five Feb fancies for your delectation. Read all about 'em - and then win the lot!
The best children’s books of the year

From toddlers to teens, we've got the 16 best kids' reads of the year, as picked by our favourite local book shop.
The 10 dreamiest coffee table books

Clear space on your coffee table! Muddy's books editor Kerry Potter has 10 sexy, shiny visual feasts for your delectation.
Q&A with Gruffalo author Julia Donaldson

The Sussex resident, starring in a show for half term, talks books, performing, fave local attractions and buying a post office
Need a juicy new read?

Muddy's bookworm Kerry Potter has glorious celeb gossip, literary big-hitters and a must-read on relationships this month. Read all about her October picks - and then win the lot!
Muddy Book Club LIVE!

Tickets for our Muddy Book Club Live at Henley Literary Festival next month are selling like hotcakes. Be there or be square!
June’s juiciest reads

June's best new books are a corking bunch, including Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert's breathtaking new novel. Check out Kerry Potter's reviews - and then win the whole lot!
Need a brilliant new read?

A stunning debut novel, a futuristic thriller and an exquisite memoir are among books editor Kerry Potter's marvellous May picks. And you can win the lot!
April’s best new books

Quick, spring-clean your bedside table or Kindle to make room for Muddy books editor's Kerry Potter's awesome April picks.
Real-life Reads

Muddy's pro-bookworm Kerry Potter is all about real-life stories this month. Well, the truth is often stranger than fiction, after all.
Is this the new Girl On The Train?

‘Please make a list of every possession you consider essential to your life‘ so begins The Girl Before, a psychological thriller by J.P. Delaney, out this month and already destined for the silver screen in a film directed by Ron Howard. I was given an advance copy by Nash at the lovely Much Ado Books which has a shelf […]
The 20 books we can’t wait to read (part 2)

So we’re picking up where we left off with Hungerford Bookshop owner Emma Milne-White’s 20 ‘can’t wait to read’ books of the year. This is Part 2 of her list with her final choices from 11 to 20. In case you missed it, Part 1 was published last week. So, kick back and enjoy (I’m afraid I can’t transport you […]