Our Story
Inspire a life-long love for reading…
Reading has always been an important part of my life. As a child I enjoyed listening to stories at bedtime and the tales created by my parents on holiday but I often couldn't find my way into some difficult or boring stories that I was offered at school. As I grew up I found the stories I loved and went on to study English Literature at University. When I began my teacher training, it was English lessons that I spent hours planning and researching and stories that captured the imagination of the little people in my care.
Now I am able to share the years of research with you. Chestnut Books is all about finding inspiring children to really love reading. We want our children to see themselves represented in the books they read, to discover a world beyond what they know and to be transported on magical adventures that they will remember for a life-time. As a parent I want my child to love the books they read and as an educator I want more than this... I want them to learn, to be curious and to be challenged. Every collection I create aims to strike this balance. Every book has been carefully chosen. I hope you love reading them!
I founded Chestnut Books out of a love for children's literature and a passion for helping children to develop a love for reading. Before having my children, I spent eleven years as a Primary School teacher and seven of those as Head of English responsible for over 900 children. I went on to advise in local primary schools and the question I was most often asked was how to engage children in reading. The key to this is to choose the right stories.
After having my own children, I found I wanted to spend more time at home and this gave me the perfect moment to leave my teaching career and set up Chestnut Books. My children love reading and I was spending hours trawling the internet and bookshops to find the perfect books for them. Having spent so much time recommending books to older children and seeing them suddenly engaged and eager to read, I wanted to do the same for my children & their friends.
