I listen to Zakia's BBC radio show Dream Time every Sunday night on 6 Music. I knew she loves folklore as much as I do, so when I heard she'd written a book, I had to read it. Even though it's a very personal book, I felt her quest mirrored some of the things I've been grappling with over the past few years, such as the legacy of Empire and the relationship between Christian and Pagan. It's great to have a book showing folklore as something that can unite us rather than divide us.
**LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2026**
'I've been waiting for a book like this.' FLORENCH WELCH 'Hopeful and inspiring, Finding Albion is a vital quest for more authentic stories of Britain.' CAROLINE LUCAS 'Finding Albion is the book we all need in 2026.' WEIRD WALK 'A profoundly inspiring meditation upon the lost soul of Britain... I loved every word.' MATTHEW GREEN
Zakia Sewell is on a quest for another Britain. Traversing the length and breadth of our island from Somerset to Scotland, she's seeking out a different story - one that lies beyond divisive national myths and symbols.
I picked up this book, partly because of the queer/BIPOC representation, and partly because I love the Golden Age of Sail (and mermaids!) I'd previously read Maggie Tokuda-Hall's short story "Shark Week" in Mermaids Never Drown, so it was great to read a full-length novel by the same author. I feel this book does something really original with mermaids - and witches, and pirates - as well as telling a great story about love and friendship.
In a world divided by colonialism and threaded with magic, a desperate orphan turned pirate and a rebellious imperial lady find a connection on the high seas. Aboard the pirate ship Dove, Flora the girl takes on the identity of Florian the man to earn the respect and protection of the crew. For Flora, former starving urchin, the brutal life of a pirate is about survival: don't trust, don't stick out, and don't feel. But on this voyage, Flora is drawn to the Lady Evelyn Hasegawa, who is headed to an arranged marriage she dreads. Flora doesn't expect to be…
I bought this at a book sale, which is why I didn't get Volume 1 (it wasn't there). But I've wanted to get into the Sad Ghost Club since I first heard about it. I felt so seen! As a young person, I described myself as following my crush around, "like a sad, little ghost" and had no friends at uni, writing in my diary that I needed a "Sad, Pathetic No-Mates Club". I wish this book and its series had existed back then.
I think Socks' experience of thinking their friend won't want them if they have another friend is so relatable, and the portrayal of depression is so accurate. It's such a gentle, uplifting book.
We wanted to create a space where anyone who is feeling sad or alone could come and feel ... well, not so alone. Welcome ... to the Sad Ghost Club!'
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A heart-warming series about friendship, compassion and finding your kindred spirits, now with all five volumes available!
Welcome to Vol 2 - The New Ghost!
When two strangers meet at a party and realise they both feel different from everyone else there, they start The Sad Ghost Club - a secret society for the anxious and alone, a club for people who think they don't belong.
Two boys. One meek, one rebellious. Both discover a power that will set them free…or sever them.
In a highly structured eighteenth-century society, the city-state of Angelio is known for two things: its music and its guardian, the Archangel Michael.
At Angelio’s music school—nicknamed the Cage of Nightingales—castrato singer Carlo is destined for fame at the opera…at the price of his freedom. Charity pupil Tammo hates the school and the restrictive future it offers, dreaming instead of escaping to live in the woods to charm birds with his flute.
When Tammo meets Carlo, their lives change forever. With the Archangel’s help, they are granted the power to fulfil each other’s deepest desires—but every gift demands a price.
As music opens doors to a glittering world beyond the Cage, the bond between them is tested by ambition, longing, and the fragile promises they have made. And their choices will shape not just their futures, but that of Celestina—a young aristocrat who will become entwined in their lives in ways neither of them can foresee.
Cage of Nightingales is a story of found family, and queer identity—featuring a tender portrayal of an asexual, nonbinary eunuch at its heart.
