Countdown to Christmas: Advent calendar and gift ideas

01 December 2020

As advent begins, I wanted to remind you that my Scratch advent calendar is open once more. It contains projects and resources for each day of advent, many of them from my books Scratch Programming in Easy Steps and Cool Scratch Projects in Easy Steps.

If you're looking for Christmas gifts, my shop has been updated with links to Bookshop.org, which supports independent book stores in the UK by giving 10% of your sale price to them.

This year, I'd especially recommend:

• 100 Top Tips: Microsoft Excel: For the price of a couple of coffees, this book might just change your life! If you're a regular Excel user, it contains tips that will improve your productivity and help you to get more value from your data. This slim book fits in a stocking!
• Scratch Programming in Easy Steps: Updated for Scratch 3 with several new projects, this book takes you from the basics in Scratch up to creating a sophisticated arcade game. The book covers a wide range of Scratch features, including the new support for speech, micro:bit, and Raspberry Pi Sense HAT.
• Cool Scratch Projects in Easy Steps: This book showcases more advanced Scratch projects, including a drum machine, 3D projects (using the glasses included), and a maze maker. The book is based on Scratch 2, but the projects work with Scratch 3.
• Mission Python: This book shows you how to build a space adventure game using the Python programming language. Along the way, you'll learn all about Python features such as lists and dictionaries, as well as the Pygame Zero library used for the graphics and sound.
• Earworm: My novel for adults shows what happens with artificial intelligence (AI) and the music industry collide. It makes a great gift for a music fan, taking you on a journey from the record company board room, through the studio, to the stage. With a number of cameos from names you know, the book is fun and thought-provoking.

You can find free chapters from all these books here.

If you're looking for more Scratch resources, earlier this year, I launched my Scratch articles hub, and Press Play, a sound pack for your Scratch projects.

I wish everyone a peaceful and happy conclusion to this most difficult of years.

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