News — recommendations

The summer is already drawing to a close and we’re all readying ourselves for crisp autumn days here at Willoughby. The holidays always felt so long and stretched out as a child but now, in the mere blink of an eye, the kids are back at school, with uniforms ironed and pencils sharpened. Reading as a child and reading as an adult are wildly different experiences. The very memory of phonics, diaries filled with diligent notetaking by teachers and parents, as well as reading aloud in turns, may send a big jolt of fear down your spine. These were also...

With the summer holidays having drawn to a close and the new term already begun, it’s time for thoughts of new resolutions, new stationery and new regimes to emerge. Perhaps your children’s routines and habits have gone gloriously out of the window for a summer of running free and you are worrying about the routine of the school term? Or perhaps it is your own inner child, remembering the feeling of the discipline that a new term brings that turns thoughts toward re-establishing habits and routines? One habit that it always make sense to establish, especially for children, is reading....

Unbelievably, we're already halfway through the year and all of a sudden it's summer. Here at The Willoughby Book Club we've been planning our summer jaunts for a while, and can't wait to dig our toes into the sand or the grass, take a deep breath of fresh air and begin to relax. And what better time for reading than on holidays? As booklovers, we need to put serious thought into what we take to read on our holidays, because there's nothing worse than having reading time but nothing to read (or the 'wrong' title)! Some of us will be...

Tarot cards are the new ‘thing’, aren’t they? You can spot them in gift shops and high-end boutiques. Traditionally designed sets sit beside novelty ones, sporting images of artists, drag queens, and cats. You can find them as easily as finding a pack of incense or a dream catcher. The first documented tarot card deck originated in Northern Italy between 1440 and 1450. Since then, tarot imagery and lore has inspired countless numbers of people from all walks of life. You’ll find them as inspiration for tattoos and art. It has also been a crucial part of some creative practices....