Auntie's Bangles: A moving, lyrical picture book about love and loss
By (Author) Dean Atta
Illustrated by Alea Marley
Hachette Children's Group
Orchard Books
13th January 2026
United Kingdom
Children
Non Fiction
Childrens / Teenage personal and social topics: Families and family members
Hardback
32
Width 253mm, Height 281mm
A moving, lyrical and uplifting picture book about love and loss, written by multi-prize winning poet Dean Atta and illustrated by the award-winning Alea Marley.
Beti and his cousin, Rama, used to have sleepovers, play games and dance around. But nothing is fun anymore now that Auntie is gone - everything feels . . . quiet. Beti remembers how Auntie's bangles used to jingle-jangle as she cooked delicious meals, as she turned the pages in their favourite book and especially as she danced. Slowly, by finding joy in these memories, Beti helps Rama to find light and love in the world even after loss.This gentle and sensitive introduction to grief, with an uplifting message, will open up important conversations and help little ones to find their own way to remember and celebrate someone they've lost.Dean Atta (Author)
Dean Atta is the author of YA novels-in-verse The Black Flamingo and Only on the Weekends. Named as 'one of poetry's greatest modern voices' (Gay Times). The Black Flamingo was a top-selling debut of 2020 and was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize, CILIP Carnegie Medal, The Jhalak Prize and The YA Book Prize. The Black Flamingo was also awarded the prestigious Stonewall Book Award and the Carnegie Shadowers' Choice Award 2020, and sold to the US in a five-way publisher auction.Alea Marley (Illustrator) Alea Marley is an award-winning illustrator of picture books. She loves creating whimsical scenes that are filled with patterns, texture, and bursts of colour! Alea's favourite mediums to work with are chunky pencils, watercolour crayons, and digital brushes. She was born in the UK with Barbadian roots.