Polly Plum: Brave Adventurer

Join Polly as she sets sail from Greenwich in search of adventure and thrills.  You'll meet singing pirates, a boastful ghost, and a very, very hungry walrus along the way. 

Adventure here we come!

Jonathan Sellars is an author and poet based in Greenwich. He adores stories and the power they hold. His picture book, POLLY PLUM: BRAVE ADVENTURER, was published by Royal Museums Greenwich in April 2022 and tells the tale of Polly, a young girl who overcomes the many obstacles thrown at her to find the adventure she so desperately seeks. Written in rhyme with beautiful illustrations by Giulia Casarotto, the book is funny and engaging and at the same time contains an important message about staying true to yourself via its strong female protagonist.
Jonathan also writes poetry for children. He has performed these on BBC London, at literary festivals, and has also started running poetry workshops in local schools after shadowing the established poets Justin Coe and Neal Zetter. While his poems primarily feature humour and rhyme like his picture books, he is always keen to make clear that they are not the most important aspects of poetry. Poetry for him is simply about the joy that can be had with words; the way they sound, the way they look on a page, the way they make you feel. It is very much up to the individual as to what they choose to build with them. Further to this, research by the National Literacy Trust has highlighted the significant benefits poetry brings to children’s lives in the way it fosters creativity, supports mental wellbeing, and encourages self-expression (particularly for disadvantaged students who consistently show higher engagement with poetry.

He is passionate about literacy for children and has volunteered for the charities Bookmark Reading and Ministry of Stories. His dream is to write for children full-time, as well as working to encourage as many children as possible to access the wondrous benefits of early years literacy. From a purely selfish perspective, Jonathan is an accountant by trade and he really doesn’t want to be for much longer.

Brought up in Northern Italy, Giulia Casarotto is a London-based illustrator. She has always dreamed of bringing her own fairy tales to life.

• By Jonathan Sellars and Giulia Casarotto
• Paperback
• English
• 32 pages