O bliss! O poop-poop! O my!’ Little Portly has made it onto the @wainwrightprize Children’s Fiction shortlist! 🦦💚 This book is a bundle of joy & love for the world of the riverbank, illustrated by the incredible @pollydunbar published lovingly by @farshorebooks

The new edition of @writers_artists is OUT NOW. It contains an article by me about my journey to publication. This book helped me enormously. I can’t recommend it enough.

Time Keys 4 - Attack of the Sea Dogs by me & dramatically illustrated by @manuelsumberac is coming in September! Get 25% off this week by preordering from @waterstones with code SUMMER26! www.waterstones.com/book/attack-...

LOOKING FOR A SUMMER AUDIOBOOK FOR THE KIDS? I GOT YOU! @AppleBooks has chosen Hunt for the Golden Scarab for their FREE kids’ audiobooks collection celebrating the #NationalYearOfReading2026! Available in UK & Ireland for a limited time on Apple devices. books.apple.com/gb/audiobook...

It is with utter joy that I can say THE ADVENTURES OF PORTLY THE OTTER has been longlisted for the Wainwright Prize for children’s fiction. 🦦 I’m proud of this book that Polly Dunbar & I have created with the team at FarshoreBooks 🦦 Today I will be dancing like a wild-wooder!

CALLING ALL NATURE LOVERS! Are you holidaying in Wales this summer? Will you be near Pembrokeshire on Thursday July 23rd? If so then come and join me at Dr Beynon's Bug Farm for bug-a-licious fun to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Beetle Boy and The Bug Farm. www.mgleonard.com/events/2026/...

10th Anniversary BEETLE BOY Celebration at THE BUG FARM — M. G. Leonard

2026 is the 10th anniversary of Beetle Boy AND it is the 10th anniversary of the opening of the fabulous Bug Farm in Pembrokeshire. Dr Sarah Beynon - the entomologist wizard behind the Bug Farm - ...

mgleonard.com

Looking for something for your kids to read over the summer holidays? Hunt for the Golden Scarab is less than £3 on Amazon RIGHT NOW. That’s cheaper than 2 chocolate bars!

Thanks so much for all the support for my first Substack!💕 Part 2: #MindTheSilentGap out now! open.substack.com/pub/kidsstor... In the name of visibility mentioned in blog: #LucyStrange @chrismcguireauthor.bsky.social @garypanton.co.uk @mglnrd.bsky.social #emmaswan #gregjames #chrissmith

Part 2: Mind The Silent Gap

We don’t have a children’s book shortage. We have a visibility problem...

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It’s WORLD OTTER DAY! 🦦 If you love otters then why not read this story about plucky little Portly, the adventurous young mustelid from The Wind in the Willows. The book is written by me & beautifully illustrated by @pollydunbar It’s available at your local bookshop.

Hay Festival was a blast!

Happy 100th Birthday to the ultimate beetle boy 🪲. It will not be a surprise to learn that David Attenborough is an inspiration to me & someone I deeply respect & admire. I’ll be surprised if he isn’t the same for you. We are lucky to have him as a part of our species. 💚

I'm excited that Hunt for the Golden Scarab is included in #Bookbuzz Primary this year! Bookbuzz Primary is a fantastic initiative from @BookTrust to get Year 3-6s reading for pleasure & I'm pleased to be part of it. Find out more & sign up here: bit.ly/4tqHvqw

Two each from my children (when they were younger). A bit more popular than my usual! Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan Diary of Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinnell Adventures on Trains series by @mglnrd.bsky.social and Sam Sedgman

May is nearly here! I will be doing three festivals. Come along and share your favourite Roman facts, general love of books and we’ll adventure into the past together. All event details and links to purchase tickets are available through the event calendar on my website. 🤗🕰️🔑🎶

Today's review...'The Adventures of Portly the Otter @mglnrd.bsky.social illustrated by Polly Dunbar @farshorebooks.bsky.social As a Wind in the Willows fan, I absolutely loved this book- full of charm and character. #KidLitUK www.throughthebookshelf.com/reviews/the-adventures-of-portly-the-otter

The Adventures of Portly the Otter — Through the Bookshelf

Young otter pup, Portly is frightened of the river when he first sees it and is worried that he is not otter-like enough. However, as he meets the other creatures who inhabit the river and its banks, ...

throughthebookshelf.com

I am so excited to start reading Portly the Otter Untold Tales from The Wind in the Willows by @mglnrd.bsky.social. l loved the window art at the Suddenly on Sheaf Street bookshop in Daventry. It's a beautiful book. #amreading

PORTRAIT OF AN AUTHOR who has written 1 book, edited 1 book, published & promoted 2 books, in 14 weeks. Clothes model’s own. Maya wears ugg boots, tracksuit bottoms, nightgown & fluffy teddy bear hoodie. Hair = nest holding brain in. 🤣 Photographer = amused long-suffering husband

Happy Easter! It’s always nice to read a book whilst devouring chocolate. If you’re looking for an egg themed read, may I suggest CLUTCH? It’s an Easter holiday adventure. The Twitchers - bird-spotting detectives - try & stop an egg snatcher from pillaging a Spoonbill’s nest🪺

... Also for Books for Keeps 277 I talked to Polly Dunbar about illustrating The Adventures of Portly the Otter, by M G Leonard. "The scene with Pan, the stillness, I always felt was like childhood itself. Magical, but hard to grasp." @booksforkeeps.bsky.social booksforkeeps.co.uk/article/a-re...

All NEU 2026 conference delegates! Please sign in support of this Urgency Motion in defence of Librarians to fight against Censorship and the Far Right! forms.office.com/e/3vkBFUqCwK

We are loving this by @mglnrd.bsky.social Wonderful to meet new characters but also fantastic to reunite with familiar friends

I climbed into a boat and made a video introducing The Adventures of Portly the Otter: youtu.be/sZvrP_cq9YE

M. G. Leonard introduces THE ADVENTURES OF PORTLY THE OTTER - UNTOLD TALES FROM WIND IN THE WILLOWS

YouTube video by Maya G. Leonard

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#NewIllustrationOfTheDay. Spread by Polly Dunbar from The Adventures of Portly the Otter: Untold Tales From The Wind in the Willows, by M G Leonard. Portly (bottom right) spies on weasels, sly-eyed and exuberant, partying by moonlight in the Wild Wood. Farshore 26 March. @farshorebooks.bsky.social

Hooray! It’s publication day! Portly swims into bookshops for Easter storytelling, adventure having, & the joy of nibbling on a potted shrimp sandwich beside a river. It has been a joy to create this book with the wonderful Polly Dunbar & the smashing team @farshorebooks.bsky.social

The Adventures of Portly the Otter: Untold Tales from The Wind in the Willows is published tomorrow and The Telegraph is reviewing it… I got tearful at the headline. I love Kenneth Grahame’s story with my whole being and do so want to do it justice. 🦦

Big thanks to Anna Bonet and the iPaper for this review of The Adventures of Portly the Otter. Pre-Order NOW. Publishes this week.

Skip into the sunshine, for today is the first day of spring 😃 and next Thursday, Portly the Otter will swim into bookshops. Pre-order now for a heart-warming Easter family read 🦦

@andylaneauthor.bsky.social I’m six episodes into Young Sherlock and bloody hell it’s good. Bravo my friend. You must be delighted. It’s the best tv I’ve watched in ages. Congratulations 🙌 It’s wonderful to see a good adaptation and it utterly slaps!

a woman wearing a white hat is reading a book with a prime logo in the corner

ALT: a woman wearing a white hat is reading a book with a prime logo in the corner

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I’m super excited to be at @hayfestival May 24th & 25th. Monday 25 May 11:30am - come with me to Ancient Rome & the Colosseum for THE IMPOSSIBLE GLADIATOR. Sunday 24 May 2:30pm I’ll be talking with Susie Dent about words that bring us together. Booking: www.hayfestival.com

I hope you had a wonderful World Book Day. If your child dressed as one of my characters, I have a gallery on my website to celebrate them. You can @ me in a pic on socials or email it via my website. www.mgleonard.com/news/2026/3/...

Wonderful World Book Day 2026 — M. G. Leonard

World Book Day is such a wonderful celebration of reading books. I spent the week visiting schools all over the country, talking to young readers, conducting creative writing workshops and sharing my ...

mgleonard.com