Madame Badobedah and the Old Bones

(Paperback)

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Description

A timeless story for readers aged 5+ celebrating friendship, imagination and adventure, with exquisite illustrations, from a bestselling author.
Mabel lives with her parents in The Mermaid Hotel, by the sea. Mabel likes to keep an eye on the comings and goings of all the guests, particularly their most interesting guest and Mabel's best friend, Madame Badobedah. Madame Badobedah has pirouetted through pyramids, skated across rivers, swum with mermaids and even helped a Triceratops with a toothache.
In this new adventure, the duo set off on a mission to the Natural History Museum. And, just maybe, they will meet a dinosaur along the way

PRAISE FOR THE MADAME BADOBEDAH SERIES

"Illustrated with airy, light-hearted charm by Lauren OHara [...] This longer-form picture book taps astutely into the imaginative life of an adventurous child, is lovely both the read and listen to." The Guardian

"Swashbuckling and mysterious [...] I can't recommend it enough as a gift [...] it's a beautiful kids' book" Dolly Alderton

"Any imaginative child will warm to this funny, touching story of lonely only child Mabel. Beautifully illustrated, this is a joyous debut." The Daily Mail

"My favourite contemporary kids author" Evening Standard Magazine

a playful and beguiling voice The Observer

"Dahls engaging style teamed with Lauren OHaras gorgeous illustrations make it a book to remember." Press Association

"Innocence meets experience in this story thats as beautifully illustrated as it is told." i newspaper

"plenty of charm" The Daily Telegraph

"one of 2019s most exciting and imaginative picture books [...] Sophie Dahls debut for children is wonderfully eccentric and imaginative, and also tells a powerful tale of friendship [...]The pictures are also a pure delight." The Sun

Reviews

A real sparkler. * Jessica Love *
What a delight to join Mabel and her unlikely companion on another of their exciting escapades this time featuring friendly dinosaurs and my favourite museum. A charming and beautifully illustrated story, which is sure to leave young fossil-hunters everywhere in desperate want of their own Madame Badobedah to adventure with. * Jess French *
An absolutely gorgeous read. Poetic words and stunning illustrations. Madame Badobedah is becoming a legendary character in the world of childrens books. * Laura Dockrill *
Gosh! How I wish I could be a child again and have this story read to me. I would long to be Mabel with a friend like Madame Badobedah. Its exactly the kind of secret imaginary world that I love, with just the right amount of defiance and wit to balance the pearls of wisdom sprinkled within. The scenery is glorious, humorous and beautiful at the same time, with colours that soothe and dont overwhelm, despite their intensity. Now I just wish I could go and stay in the Mermaid Hotel! * Emma Chichester Clark *
A celebration of female explorers and friendship. * The Bookseller Buyer's Guide *

Author Bio

Sophie Dahl is the bestselling author of four books for adults, and three for children, and the writer of two BBC2 prime-time shows. Sophies first book for children, Madame Badobedah, was published by Walker Books in 2019. Her second, The Worst Sleepover in the World was published in November 2021. Madame Badobedah was nominated for a Greenaway Medal, selected as one of both The Guardians and The Sunday Times Childrens Books of the Year in 2019, and in the US, it was one of Amazon.coms Best Childrens books of 2020, and was awarded both a Junior Library Guild of America and a Parents Choice Gold Award. The sequel to Madame Badobedah, Madame Badobedah and The Old Bones was published in October 2023.
Dahl has written non-fiction essays for US Vogue, Vogue, The New York Times, The Guardian and The Sunday Times. She has judged the Womens Prize for Fiction and Vogues Young Talent Contest. She is also a contributing editor and monthly columnist at House and Garden magazine.
For more information go to www.sophiedahl.com or on instagram @mssophiedahl.

Lauren OHara is an illustrator from the north of England. As a child she loved reading fairy tales, painting insects and listening to her grandmothers stories. She studied art and illustration at Kingston University and then designed window displays and props for films. Laurens career as an illustrator began when she and her sister Natalia worked together on a picture book, Hortense and the Shadow. This was published in 2017 and followed in 2018 by The Bandit Queen.