The Castle Library

We explore the history of mythology, from Norse sagas to Scottish folklore to the ancient legends of the British Isles, is stuffed with creatures that didn't make it into the mainstream

By Chris Livemore There is a moment, when you walk through the gatehouse of a genuinely old castle with a small child, that is unlike almost anything else you can experience. They actually go quiet. Not bored quiet. Not tired quiet. Proper, full-body awe quiet. It's amazing. The sudden realisation that this enormous stone place has been standing for nearly a thousand years, which is older than the Aztec Empire. That real people lived here, argued here, defended it, built it,

By Chris Livemore I can't lie. This one was entirely my fault and I’m not even able to partially shift the blame. Nobody asked me to explain what a shield wall was. Nobody knew what a shield wall was. Nobody cared what a shield was. Nobody except me. My two eldest children were perfectly happy hitting each other with sofa cushions — randomly, enthusiastically, and without any tactical structure whatsoever. I introduced the tactical structure. And then they joined forces. It

By Chris Livemore In an earlier blog I clearly established, with well-documented evidence and equal measures of relief, that I am categorically not from the olden days (hooray) - this is despite my daughters ongoing insistence (she's not going to do well at Christmas this year). The medieval period ended five hundred years ago. I was not there. I was not even close to being there. That is well-evidenced. Jack the Good Knight, however, absolutely was. Initially, Jack lived som

It was a Saturday morning. The coffee hadn’t quite kicked in. There hadn't been much sleep for the last week or two (or come to think of it, since January 2021 - must be a coincidence that my eldest was born then). I was attempting to hand a new picture on the wall by the stairs. It dropped. It partially broke. DIY is not my strong point. Before my brain had time to intervene, a few words came out of my mouth that absolutely should not have done, lucily all of my children we

I'll be honest. I didn't initially set out to write a children's book series with a mission. I didn't even set out to write a children's book. I just wanted to make up some stories where I could make bedtime more fun for my children and connecting with them. The next thing I knew I had written five full stories, had half written another seven/eight quests for Jack the Knight and his friends (not to mention a few stories for an astronaut themed series) have a folder with nearl