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Sally Hughes

@salboreads

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📚 Book lover
📘Library volunteer
🐕‍🦺 Dog parent
🌿greener planet vegan
📚#mindfulmonday #childrensclassicsclub #childrensbooksunday

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#compassionforourplanetstack

Dear friends I am asking for your help again as I launch my third annual stack challenge in aid of Compassion in World Farming @ciwf I have been raising money and awareness about the plight of farm animals in memory of my beloved mother who has a birthday on 17th July. CIWF was her favourite charity. I’ll be honest with you, each year when I post, I am conscious of some trepidation. I don’t mind about losing followers, but I frequently receive abuse when talking about farm animals. This, however, is nothing to the abuse that they receive on a daily basis. There has never been a more important time to campaign against intensive farming. Appetites for meat have grown alarmingly over the last few decades and intensive farms are springing up everywhere. Animal welfare has plummeted, the environment has suffered and rivers polluted by agricutural matter. Without a reduction in animal agriculture we cannot stop the warming of our beloved planet. Animals are living in cages for the whole of their life; pigs are being gassed. In this terrible heatwave animals are being transported without water, with many thousands dying in transit. I will be donating £50 to CIWF to support their work.

In addition this year I also want to highlight the campaign by @anima.org.uk which is asking @pret to keep its promise of 8 years ago to stop selling Frankenchickens in its stores. Frankenchickens are broiler chickens which are bred to slaughter weight in just 35 days. I don’t need to explain how that rapid growth affects these poor animals. Theirs is a life of abject misery. I will be contributing £50 to this campaign. You can help by pledging to boycott Pret until it makes good on its promise.

Farm animals are sentient beings who experience pain and fear every bit as much as our pets.

I would love you to highlight the plight of farm animals, to shout out for compassion and to help the fight against climate change by building a stack with the tag #compassionforourplanetstack Your stack can be green books, or books which highlight what you love about this planet. Thank you so much.

Which book would you choose?
 With love
Sally💚 by @salboreads

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12 days ago

Sir Michael Morpurgo is one of Britain’s best-loved storytellers. He founded the Children’s Laureate with his friend, poet Ted Hughes, and was himself Children’s Laureate between 2003-2005. In his role as Laureate he travelled across the Uk to encourage all children to rediscover the pleasure of reading and to explore creative writing.

Morpurgo has written over 150 books which mainly focus on themes of war, peace, nature and the connections between animals and humans.

Last year members of the #childrensclassicsclub chose Michael Morpurgo as our featured writer for July and August 2026. You are invited to join us as we celebrate the writing of this national treasure. There are no set books, absolutely no requirements to read any particular book or any number of books. Perhaps you’ve always wanted to read the incredible War Horse, some of his nature writing or his retelling of Black Beauty. Anything goes.

Comment below if you would like to join us.

#childrensclassicsclub #michaelmorpurgo by @salboreads

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a month ago

Blue Book of Nebo

The story is set in post-apocalyptic Wales and told through a blue diary shared by 12 -year old Dylan and his Mum as they struggle to survive in the deserted town of Nebo.
 In 2023 this book became the first translated book to win the Carnegie Medal for Writing. Translated from Welsh by the author herself, this YA novel explores the human capacity to find new strengths when faced with the need to survive. Judges praised this book as ‘expertly realise,’ ‘heartbreaking’ and ‘rich with Welsh heritage.’ ‘The chair of judges, librarian Janet Noble, said of Ros’s novel: “The world-building and distinct voices of the two main characters, the son and his mother, are expertly realised and the reader is compelled to question their own relationship with the modern world.’ (The Guardian)

This book has sat on my shelf for far too long and I am very excited to be reading this with #ChildrensModernClassics in July.

We will be reading this story throughout July. Our discussion takes place in a chat group set up on Instagram.
This is a lovely relaxed group. We don’t read to a schedule and keep the discussion spoiler free until the final discussion on the last Sunday of the month - July 26th.

Comment below if you would like to join us. Everyone welcome 💙 by @salboreads

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a month ago

An unpublished novel by a favourite writer has been discovered - who would you like it to be?

We have only two books left by our beloved Whipple. I wish there were more. The Lockwoods might be my favourite so far. With apologies to Robin, I rushed off the starters’ block and finished this in record speed. I could not put it down.

This is the story of two families, the Lockwoods and The Hunters. When Mr Hunter dies his family are left in poverty, having to make huge adjustments to their lifestyle and relying on Mr Lockwood for financial advice. The Lockwoods delight in crowing over the Hunters’ poverty. An early scene sees the Hunters invited to a post Christmas meal to eat the clear ups and to admire the gifts the Lockwoods have received. As the Hunters leave the house, the maid switches off the outside light so they have to walk away in darkness. This sets the tone for the balance of power between the families throughout the book. Mrs Hunter is ever grateful for Mr Lockwood’s advice, but her daughter Thea resents the way Mr Lockwood determines their fates; when they leave school; which career they will follow. Thea is admired by Oliver Reade who is determined to win her heart. He is working class; she doesn’t think him good enough.

This has a lot in common with They Knew Mr Knight. Both feature cold businessmen who the reader is desperate to see fall from grace. It gets under your skin as you bristle at the condescension and injustice. Early on something happens - no clues here - and this fact gets buried over the years as Whipple keeps you on tenterhooks until right at the end for the truth to reappear - masterly! As always Whipple’s characterisation is superb and invokes strong feelings in the reader. I loved Thea’s strength and independence, but most of all I loved Oliver who goes on a journey to improve himself. There is a wonderful scene where he visits the Director of Education
“How long will it take for me to get educated?’ He asked.
‘All your life.’…

Oliver is a powerful counterbalance to Mr Lockwood. Astute, kind and a true friend. He shows that integrity and business acumen are not determined by class.

Oh for more l by @salboreads

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2 days ago

Review and UK Giveaway

‘to hope that here, in this place and on this island, I will find what I have been neglecting, what’s been lost.’

This is my third and my favourite stay at Flora’s House. If you ask me which book I would spend my holiday in, it is this one. Something about this series has seeped into my veins. Each time I read one of these books I have felt transported to Harris, living alongside the occupants in this special holiday cottage. This series has been my happy place and I don’t want it to end..

On this visit we meet Liza - or is it Miranda? It’s clear from the offset that this holiday is something of an escape, a respite from a high powered job. Whilst desperate to make changes, she lacks confidence and conviction. When she bumps into Jamie and his aunt in a supermarket carpark, she earns the nickname ‘Tesco’ and it is the start of a relationship which will help both of them review their pasts and refocus on their future.

Perhaps because it was summer and my last visits were Christmas and Spring, Harris felt particularly beautiful this time. Added to which we see the island through the lens of Jamie who is a photographer, and Liza who paints wildflowers. I was captivated by the descriptions of flora and fauna, by the countryside that they explored together. Oh how I want to visit Harris! The gentle blossoming ‘romance’ between them is so tenderly done and the ending left open but laden with possibility.

These books are a tonic, a burst of joy. They are the best way to travel vicariously!

U.K. Giveaway - I have an extra copy of Summer at Flora’s House courtesy of the very lovely @freya_north_author If you would like the chance to visit Flora’s House this summer in this gorgeous book, please comment below. Let me know the fictional setting in which you would like to spend summer. Please tag 2 people who would like to read this.

This giveaway is not affiliated with Instagram or any other company. You must be happy to share your address with me. I will not ask for any other details and you will not be contacted by any other account. Giveaway closes at 19:00 (BST) on 29th July 2026. by @salboreads

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4 days ago

📗Two For Tuesday 📗

Imagine there were no bookstagram, where would you head for book recommendations?

My daughter @carysreads and her boyfriend Tom are avid readers. I love that our household is full of bookish conversation and reading inspiration. Last week we had a wonderful chat about the first 6 months of 2026, our favourite books so far this year and recommendations for each other.

Tom’s favourite book was The Road, but for me his recommendation was The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. Tom said this reminded him of To Kill a Mockingbird but he felt it was better. Set in the Deep South, this book was published when the author was just 23 and tells the story of John Singer, a lonely deaf-mute and a group of people who are drawn to his unique nature.

Carys’ favourite book was We do Not Part by Han Kang but she did not recommend it for me. Instead she chose Zorrie by Laird Hunt. Waterstones website tells me, “Spanning an entire lifetime, a life convulsed and transformed by the events of the 20th Century, Laird Hunt’s extraordinary novel offers a profound and intimate portrait of the dreams that propel one tenacious woman onward and the losses that she cannot outrun.”

I am hoping to read both of these in August.

I have recommended The Blue Book of Nero to both of them. by @salboreads

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5 days ago

Mindful Monday
on Listening…

“…between what is said and not meant, and what is meant and not said, most of love is lost.’ Kahlil Gibran

I posted briefly about World Listening Day on Saturday and it was clear from the comments that people had a lot to say about the lack of listening. Listening is so many things - it is attention, it is patience, it is respect ..In today’s world listening is diluted by technology which offers so many distractions; it struggles in an increasingly polarised world where we don’t want to hear the other side; in a world full of noise, it is difficult to be heard. It is often said that people listen in order to reply rather than to understand. I have often felt that my own anxiety around talking stems from a lack of confidence in people listening. I feel the need to say things really fast, conscious of the listener’s attention span. In large groups I rarely feel able to talk, conscious of competing voices.

There are few greater gifts than our attention, but it seems that we are less willing to give it. I have noticed so many people are wearing headphones these days it is a rare occasion to actually see ears! Epictetus said, “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” I wonder what that ratio looks like now.

And listening has wider meanings. I think of listening when i am reading posts on Instagram. As everyone is jostling for attention, working their way around the algorithm, true engagement is the holy grail and to be prized. People write comments at a hundred miles an hour; how often do we really listen to what a person has written, and how often do we really listen to our reply before posting a comment.

My own mindful focus around listening has been on attention. I am taking time to listen to my comments before responding to someone’s post; I am putting my phone out of reach when I am talking to people; I am listening to understand rather than reply. The latter involves me not feeling that I have to come up with an answer, to resolve a problem, or to do anything more than just listen. Attention is enough.

Come tell me what you think. I am listening xxx by @salboreads

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6 days ago

Children’s Book Sunday

What would your goal be if you were named Children’s Laureate? What activity would you arrange for the National Year of Reading?

It’s such an exciting time to be reading children’s literature! Here are some of my recent highlights!

📗I received a beautiful proof of The Neverfear by Katherine Rundell. It’s the third in the fabulous Impossible Creatures series. I’m very excited to read this latest episode which involves fearsome giants, treasure and bandits! Huge thanks to @bloomsburychildrens Creative Circle for my copy.

📗Patrice Lawrence was recently named Children’s Laureate. In her role she plans to use her appointment to highlight how reading helps communities “connect and cohere” in “times of fragmentation”. As I hadn’t read anything by her I added some preloved copies to my shelf and started by reading Needle. Loved it! I think it’s a perfect choice for the #ChildrensModernClassicsclub schedule next year.

🌱This week @wainwrightprize revealed its incredible longlists. I hope to read most of the children’s fiction list and have started by listening to The Monsters at the End of the World. This is one of my favourite literary prizes; full of inspiration, beauty and story.

📘Talking about the end of the world, I recently found my book of 2026 (so far) in Blue Book of Nebo. I managed to find preloved copies of 3 other titles by the author.

#childrensclassicsclub is now well into Summer with Morpurgo. I love this tradition established by the wonderful @lydiareadsandreviews of focusing on one children’s author for 2 months. In previous months we’ve focused on Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton and Noel Streatfeild- all writers with extensive back catalogues. I’m looking for authors for future years. All suggestions welcome!

#childrensbooksunday #childrensmodernclassicsgroup #childrensclassicsclub michaelmorpurgo childrensfiction by @salboreads

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6 days ago

❓Today is World Listening Day. Which character’s voice would you like to hear?

I have spotted three stacks for a cause this week - including the one I launched. I love bookstagram for its generosity and for raising important awareness through these stacks. Today I am posting a #GBMBookStack for @eugeniachuauthor who is raising awareness and funds for the Glibioblastoma Research Organisaion in memory of her beloved Father who passed away from this devastating disease. GBM is the most aggressive, deadliest type of brain cancer. Check out her post for further details. Please build grey stacks and tag her in your post.

Today on World Listening Day i am thinking of all the sounds I can’t hear anymore: my Mum’s voice; Pippin’s bark. I am also thinking of alll the things I love listening to -
music
trickling water
a violin
the aria from The Magic Flute
wind rustling in the trees
laughter

There are 154 numbered titles in the @persephonebooks collection. Wouldn’t it be a wonderful project to read them all! by @salboreads

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8 days ago

It’s my Mum’s birthday. I am 3 years away from the age at which she died, and very conscious that she didn’t have long enough. I am so very lucky to have had her influence in my life. She was my best friend, my comfort, my inspiration, the only person who sent me a card with ‘hello cupcake’ on it. I have probably told you most of the stories about her, but the truth is that there aren’t new ones to tell.

She and her sister were known as ‘The Battling Battersbys’ for the fierce way that they played table tennis. My Mum was fierce in many other ways, in her defence of animals, in her defence of the vulnerable and in her opinions! It was really hard to sway her if she didn’t like something!
 Mum was my earliest and greatest influence on my reading. Her parents didn’t believe in education for girls so she worked on the buses to fund herself to get through the qualifications she needed to go to university. She brought us to love and value education, reading and music. At university she discovered Steinbeck and the magic of lying in a darkened room listening to music.

She went through a number of author phases. She would take an author and read everything by them; their writing; biography/autobiography and their letters. Whilst she was in one of these phases she would insist on reading snippets, sharing plot details and taking us to museums or landmarks around an author’s life. In particular I remember her passion for Great Expectations - hence my love. I remember her phases: D H Lawrence; Katherine Mansfield; Vita Sackville West and Virginia Woolf; Bennett; Thomas Hardy and Arthur Conan Doyle. She didn’t just read fiction; often becoming passionately interested in some random subject. At one stage she became fascinated by submarines. When she was on an isolation ward for treatment for several weeks we pretended she was on a submarine and wrote long letters and recorded tapes to entertain her whilst she was on ‘her trip.’

There isn’t a day when I don’t think of her, miss her, and feel grateful that she was my Mum. It is my dearest hope that she is running around with Pippin somewhere above the clouds.

❓Which non reader would you like to inspire to read? by @salboreads

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9 days ago

At the heart of this wonderful and engaging novel are two sisters, Ferangiz and Farida. With very different personalities, circumstances have kept them together in Balthazar House, the old family home. When Menaz, beloved by both sisters, falls in love as the result of her mother Farida’s match making, a war of wills erupts and spills out across days, weeks and years. Ferangiz is determined to oppose the relationship. As the battle rages, the author explores what has brought these sisters to these entrenched positions, and where love really lies.

I read this with my wonderful friend @literarylawgirl . We left voice messages for each other every day sharing our thoughts, our favourite quotes and our pure joy in this beautiful book. I cannot compare this novel to anything else, I haven’t read anything quite like it. However, the narrative voice with its gentle humour, wry commentary, and observations felt not dissimilar to my beloved Trollope who I was reading alongside this. The author has such a gift for characterisation. I really felt I came to know the aloof and intimidating Ferangiz and the warm and family- centred Farida. I absolutely loved the determined and loving Menaz who so wants to heal the family rift. The author has a wonderful lightness of touch which steers us through tragedy and comedy, through the heartache of untimely death, and a marriage to a rather hairy man! Ferangiz’s obsession with astronomy was genius! And I rarely talk about the stuff which goes on under the covers, but boy can Sonia write about sex! The chemistry absolutely fizzles and her references to certain male anatomy made me howl with laughter!

This was a 5 star read for me. I felt totally drawn into the world of these sisters, I could see Ferangiz’ verandah and I sat down to the family meal each evening. I so wanted to get these sisters in a room and attempt some mediation! Reading this was an absolute joy. Huge thanks to @sonialakshmanauthor for my copy.

❓Which fictional character would you choose as your sister?

Swipe for some quotes. by @salboreads

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10 days ago

“Nature is not a ‘nice to have’; it is critical national infrastructure.” — Prof. Nathalie Seddon.

On Friday I went with Mr Salboreads and Carys to watch The People’s Emergency Briefing. It was hard, but probably not hard enough. There were a lot of people there, but definitely not enough. It covered quite a lot of ground but there were some significant ommissions. This is saving the world kind of time. This is press conference and emergency kind of time. It is a call to arms, to hope, to united endeavour. The statistics mentioned in the film were devastating and they pointed to the end of human life..

Spending 50 minutes watching a film about the dying of our planet was undoubtedly hard and mood changing. There were several comments about the effect on mental health. One in particular struck me coming from a lady who referred to her anxiety. She said that her instinct had been to shut everything out and ignore what was happening, but watching this film had helped her understand all that is possible, and the ways for communities to unite. She said ignoring everything had been more scary for her. What was inspiring was the energy of others who had formed groups and community initiatives.

Attending the briefing made things feel more real, more imminent and more dangerous.

Last week my sister and I visited our local nature reserve. There were dragonflies, bees and butterflies darting amongst the wildflowers, birds flitting around the lake. There was such a sense of beauty and tranquility.. And I thought as I so often do of Mary Oliver’s words, “It is a serious thing just to be alive on this fresh morning in this broken world.” and her words of advice, “Love yourself. Then forget it. Then, love the world.” It is time for humans to switch their love to the world, to nature, animals and wildlife.

As always I come back to my wonderful friend @bernadetterussell who taught me that hope is in action. That action feeds hope. There is so much that we can do. Isn’t this wonderful and beautiful planet worth every bit of our energy and endeavour.

“The future is not yet written and we all have the power to shape it” Bernadette Russell. by @salboreads

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13 days ago