Foggie Toddle Books Excited to Announce a Delightful New Scots Language
Foggie Toddle Books invites you to a tasty treat! ‘Yum’, a story written in the melodic Scots language by Susi Briggs and brought to life by Charlotte Brayley’s vibrant illustrations, has just been launched.
It is a feast for the eyes, ears, and imagination!
At the heart of Yum lies the endearing tale of Jenny, a wee girl who, while enjoying her sandwich in the garden, encounters a hungry mouse, a curious crow, and a caterpillar (a hairy oobit), all hoping for a bite. But instead of keeping the sandwich to herself, she kindly shares it with her new friends!
Susi Briggs was appointed the Galloway Scots Scriever at the start of this year and has taken up a year-long residency with the National Library of Scotland to promote the richness of the Scottish language. Susi shares her journey of crafting “Yum” and its connection to her childhood memories and love for the Scots language. “I wid like young readers and their faimilies tae see Scots wirds wrotten doon and tae ken it isna too hard tae read or unnerstaun. I hope the story will foster guid will in sharin wi ithers tae.”
The decision to publish Yum was influenced by Susi’s previous works, including Wheesht, Nip Nebs, and Nip Nebs and the Last Berry all of which have received acclaim for their contribution to Scots literature and were all short listed for the annual Scots Language awards. By adding Yum to the Foggie Toddle Booklist, publisher Jayne Baldwin aims to offer young readers more original Scots stories, filling a gap in the market for literature targeted at very young children.
Making her debut as a children’s book illustrator, Charlotte Brayley found inspiration for the central character from her own daughter. Charlotte, who is based in Perthshire, said: “Jenny was inspired by my hilarious and courageous daughter, Freya. I took inspiration from her spirit of adventure and her joy of exploration. Her dishevelled dirty blonde hair along with trademark dungarees! I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to create a book that stands out from the crowd and captures what I hoped – joy and the colour of a Scottish garden in full bloom.”
Publisher and bookseller, Jayne Baldwin, expressed her excitement for Yum stating, “I hope the book will appeal to parents of young children, it is aimed at the pre-school age group. It has cute characters and bold, simple illustrations. The simplicity of the story also makes it attractive to nonScot speakers. Both Wheesht and Yum are very engaging stories that are great fun to read.
“As a small independent publishing house, we are enormously grateful for the support of the Scots Language Grant and the Scottish Book Trust. We would not have been able to publish the book and give an opportunity to a new illustrator without the grant.”
To celebrate the release of Yum, author Susi Briggs has been presenting the book to young and old across southwest Scotland including a special reading at the Kirkcudbright Book Festival with further events throughout spring. Yum officially launches at the Big DoG festival in Dumfries on Sunday 24 th March, with a signing at the town’s Waterstones bookstore at the end of the month.
Readers eager to get their hands on Yum can order the book now through the Foggie Toddle website www.foggietoddlebooks.co.uk or from independent bookshops all over Scotland.
