Foggie Toddle Books
Foggie Toddle Books is the bookshop dedicated to children’s literature in Wigtown. We stock a wide range of new books and a good collection of second-hand and vintage titles. There’s everything from crinkly newspapers and bath books for babies to the latest young adult releases. We always have a small selection of signed copies. Books can be ordered, and we provide a search service for any old favourites you cannot find on the high street.
We stock a range of toys, puzzles, postcards, greetings cards – specialising in small producers and local artists – and gift items from the region’s crafters and fairtrade products. Each month we showcase the work of an artist or crafter from Dumfries and Galloway in our second room.
We are stockists for Butterfly and Toadstool, Puffin Patchworks, Galloway Toons, Galloway Arts, Happy Snail Crafts, Evelyn Mackintosh, Will Gorman Art, KGR Glass Design, Machars Memories, South West Soaps, Blackhill Soaps, The Textile Twins and Elinora, amongst others.
Foggie Toddle Books is a member of the Booksellers Association.
Second Sands Publications
Part of the change-over to Foggie Toddle Books has involved the acquisition of the publishing company started by illustrator and author Pauline Paterson. She had produced the very popular children’s books The Trail of the Pointy Toed Pyjama Thief and Boo! Where Are You? Pauline decided to reorganise the structure of her business and offered the company to Foggie Toddle owner Jayne Baldwin. She was delighted to add Second Sands Publications to her new company and it has now become an imprint of Foggie Toddle Books. Jayne’s non-fiction book The Wrecking of the Orion about a maritime tragedy is the first book to be published under the Second Sands imprint of Foggie Toddle Books.
What does Foggie Toddle mean?
The bee and beehive on our logos probably give you a big clue! Foggie Toddler is one of the Scot’s word for bumblebee, others include dusty miller, bombard and in the north east of Scotland, foggie bummer. The most common species are the buff-tailed, early, white-tailed, red-tailed, common carder, tree, garden and heath bumblebee. Bees are vital to our planet as the predominant pollinators, pollinating a third of the food we eat and more than three quarters of flowering plants. Bees are in decline due to loss of habitat, deforestation, and the use of toxic pesticides. You can help by planting bee friendly flowers, create a bee shelter or insect house in your garden, make a bee friendly drinking station and stop using pesticides. Find more information at https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/
Our Team
Jayne
Becoming a bookseller was not part of my life plan, but that’s probably because I never really had one, but writing and books have always been with me. My Dad loved reading and telling stories, so I learnt to love books at an early age (mainly to do with ponies). As a grown up I became a journalist (which was the only thing I ever planned) and years later found myself working for a small publishing company after they published my first two books; training as a yoga teacher and having children is somewhere in the mix too. I had started my own publishing company with business partner, Shalla Gray, when the children’s bookshop in Wigtown became available and taking it on seemed the logical thing to do, although I had no retail experience. I discovered I just loved being a bookseller and five years on, I am very happy to now be the sole owner of the business relaunched (just as lockdown happened – not good timing) as Foggie Toddle Books.
My favourite children’s books.
Anything by the Ahlbergs – Love Burglar Bill and Peepo.
Owl Babies – Martin Waddell (makes me cry every time)
Noggin the Nog – Oliver Postgate (Now beautifully reissued)
Isabelle
I came to Wigtown in 2014 and love my life and the community here. My grandchildren aged between two and thirteen help to keep me in touch with the books they like. That’s my grandson Issac with me in the picture. My joys are my family, my cat, books, my garden and enjoying the varied social and cultural life of this neighbourhood. Foggie Toddle Books is a delight to work in. A relaxed, homely and colourful place. Very inviting to families and children. The books are so varied, fun and interesting and so are our customers. A truly international group of people, not just at Festival time.
My favourite children’s books.
Each Peach Pear Plum by A and J Ahlberg
Press Here by Herve Tullet
The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge
Lou
Hello, my name is Lou and I have lived in the Machars for a total of 27 years. I love to read, and paint and walk my collie dog Misty – who is deaf and a little daft.
My favourite children’s books.
My favourite read when I was a child was Alice in Wonderland and I own quite a few different copies of the book – my second favourite (because you can never choose just one) was The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.
Magghi
I’m a textile artist and set up my own business, Puffin Patchworks, in 2010 when I lived in Edinburgh where I’d spent many years working as a bookseller. I moved to Galloway and met Jayne when she visited my stand and rudely mistook my knitted rabbits for aardvarks! Despite this tricky start we became friends after Jayne commissioned me to create knitted mice to go with one of her children’s books. Jayne has stocked my work since opening her shop and last summer asked if I could step in to help during busy periods. Books have been such a big part of my life and I share that love of reading with my granddaughter Rosie.
My favourite children’s book is the Puffin (of course) edition of The 13 Clocks by James Thurber with illustrations by Ronald Searle.