Oxford Children's scoops second picture book from 'super-talented' Hodgkinson

Oxford Children’s has scooped Martha Maps It Out In Time, the second in the Martha Maps It Out series, from author-illustrator Leigh Hodgkinson.

Commissioning editor Jen Long acquired world rights from Caroline Walsh at David Higham Associates. Danish rights have also been sold. The picture book will be published in April 2024.

Martha Maps It Out, the first in the series, was Oxford Children’s bestselling picture book of 2022, selling more than 30,000 copies across six countries.

Martha Maps It Out In Time follows Martha as she steps back in time through her maps, encountering dinosaurs, mammoths and ancient sea creatures in her travels through the history of our universe.

Hodgkinson said: “I was inspired to write Martha Maps it Out in Time as I really wanted to explore the concept of time through a series of creative maps. Time is a big and tricky idea for children to get their heads around—but I hope that by seeing these differences in a creative, succinct and playful way will be a helpful springboard to start thinking about the natural history of our world, life as we know it and future possibilities.

Martha, of course, is full of curiosity about her world and has a huge imagination—so it was a joy to jump back into her shoes and create lots of new maps for this second book!”

Long added: “It was a real joy to work with the super-talented Leigh Hodgkinson and designer Rob Lowe on this second Martha adventure, and I can’t wait for readers to join Martha and Space Monkey on their fun and fact-filled journey through time!”