While parents and teachers often focus on what children should be reading, Norfolk author Samantha Mattocks believes the most important thing is that they are reading at all.

“Reading is the greatest gift you can give to children,” she said. “It broadens the mind, it opens up new worlds, and it teaches them – from grammar to the world around them.

"And it literally can be reading anything: graphic novels, comic books, picture books, chapter books, novels. They all count, and they are all important in a child’s development.”

The Kindness of Mister Mishkins, written by Samantha Mattocks and illustrated by Gerda Smit, was published on September 17,2026 (Image: Mosaic Street Publishing)

Samantha recently released The Kindness of Mister Mishkins, the third instalment in her illustrated Magical Mister Mishkins series.

The books centre on a ginger cat who runs a mysterious apothecary that can only be found by people who need help overcoming their fears and worries.

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