Books for Keeps 213 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 213 - July 2015

COVER STORY
This issue’s cover illustration is from Crowns and Codebreakers (The Marsh Road Mysteries) by Elen Caldecott. The illustration is by Nathan Reed. Thanks to Bloomsbury Children’s Books for their help with this July cover.

Digital Edition
By clicking here you can view, print or download the fully artworked Digital Edition of BfK 213 July 2015.

BfK No. 213 Articles

Editorial 213

Comment from the editor

Life's Too Short

Life’s Too Short for long books says Barrington Stoke MD Mairi Kidd

Ten of the Best:books about other places

Daniel Hahn selects books to take you ‘elsewhere’ this summer.

AN INTERVIEW WITH LOUIS SACHAR

Graham Marks to the bestselling author about his new book Fuzzy Mud.

Windows into Illustration: William Grill

The Kate Greenaway Medal Winner says illustration is all about communication

Brenda, Books and Full-Frontal Publishing

Queen of Teen Brenda Gardner of Piccadilly Press looks back over 30 years of publishing for children

Drawing with words, writing with pictures: children who make comics

Get children hooked on drawing through cartoons says Hannah Sackett

Authorgraph 213 Elen Caldecott

Elen Caldecott interviewed by Amanda Mitchison

Happy Birthday, Little Island!

Ireland’s first Children’s Laureate Siobhan Parkinson on creating her children’s list Little Island

CLiPPA Poetry Award 2015

The 2015 CLPE Poetry Award by Roger McGough

I wish I’d written: Guy Bass

Guy Bass chooses

Good Reads 213

Good Reads chosen by pupils at Manor High School, Oadby, Leicester

Book Events for Children – This Summer’s Highlights

This summer’s best events for children chosen by Clare Burkhill-Howarth of Book Events for Children

Two Children Tell: The Wiz-a-Woz and Nicholas

The real and the pretend in stories.

INFECTING TEACHERS WITH THE READING BUG!

Joy Court praises the UKLA (United Kingdom Literacy Association) Book Awards

Classics in Short No. 112

The Old Woman who found ... what?

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: AN INTERVIEW WITH CARINA AXELSSON

An interview with the author of the Model Under Cover series.

LAUREN CHILD RETROSPECTIVE: MOTTISFONT HOUSE

Clive Barnes visits the first retrospective exhibition of Lauren Child's illustrative work.

AN INTERVIEW WITH CLiPPA WINNER JOSEPH COELHO

Ferelith Hordon speaks to poet Joseph Coelho.

A Q&A INTERVIEW WITH C.J. DAUGHERTY, ABOUT THE SECRET FIRE

The best-selling author of the Night School series talks about her new series and collaborating with another author

Editor's Choice

This is Not a Love Story

Keren David

(Atom)

What is it about Amsterdam that inspires authors? First we had Postcards from No Man's Land; now Keren David visits that city in her latest novel...

The Baby

Lisa Drakeford

(Chicken House Ltd)

The party is a great success in Olivia's opinion- too many people (not all invited), too loud music, too much alcohol, - even Jonty, her boyfriend, is in a good mood. Then she finds her best friend, Nicola, in the bathroom - and she is giving...

Under 5s
Ages 5-8
Ages 8-10
Ages 10-14
Ages 14+

Under 5s

Black Cat, White Cat

Silvia Borando

5
Heather Has Two Mummies

Leslea Newman

5
There’s a Bear on My Chair

Ross Collins

5
Help! The Wolf is Coming!

Cedric Ramadier

5
Soon

Timothy Knapman

4
The Cloudspotter

Tom McLaughlin

4
Betty goes Bananas in her Pyjamas

Steve Antony

3

Ages 5-8

Footpath Flowers

JonArno Lawson

5
It's a Groovy World, Alfredo

Sean Taylor

5
What the Jackdaw Saw

Julia Donaldson

5
A Tower of Giraffes - Animal Bunches

Anna Wright

5
Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion

Alex T Smith

5
The Most Wonderful Thing in the World

Vivian French

5
Katie and the Starry Night

James Mayhew

4
Don’t Forget Tiggs!

Michael Rosen

4
Eddie’s Tent and How to Go Camping

Sarah Garland

4
Sardines of Love

Zuriñe Aguirre

4
The Paradise Bird

Marcus Pfister

4
The Cleo Stories: The Necklace and the Present

Libby Gleeson

3
Sixteen String Jack and the Garden of Adventure: Where Peter Pan Began

Tom Pow

3
Millie’s Chickens

Brenda Williams

3
Have You Seen My Monster?

Steve Light

3
That Naughty Meerkat

Ian Whybrow

3
Dinosaur Police

Sarah McIntyre

3

Ages 8-10

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler

E L Konigsburg

5
A Tower of Giraffes - Animal Bunches

Anna Wright

5
Mad About Monkeys

Owen Davey

5
Catching Falling Stars

Karen McCombie

5
The Bolds

Julian Clary

5
My Brother Is a Superhero

David Solomons

4
The Hero's Tomb

Conrad Mason

4
Stop Those Monsters

Steve Cole

4
Car-jacked

Ali Sparkes

4
Uncle Gobb and The Dread Shed

Michael Rosen

4
Dara Palmer’s Major Drama

Emma Shevah

4
Pucker Power: The Super-powered Superpug

Kevin Stevens

4

Ages 10-14

Binny in Secret

Hilary McKay

5
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler

E L Konigsburg

5
Too Close to Home

Aoife Walsh

5
Whistling in the Dark

Shirley Hughes

5
Minus Me

Ingelin Rossland

5
The Year It All Ended

Kirsty Murray

4
Sun Thief

Jamie Buxton

4
The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow

Katherine Woodfine

4
In Darkling Wood

Emma Carroll

4
Dead End Kids: Heroes of the Blitz

Bernard Ashley

4
50 Things You Should Know About the Second World War

Simon Adams

4
Song For A Scarlet Runner

Julie Hunt

4
The Potion Diaries

Amy Alward

3
To Hold the Bridge

Garth Nix

3

Ages 14+

Blood & Ink

Stephen Davies

5
This is Not a Love Story

Keren David

5
Nest

Esther Ehrlich

5
A Small Madness

Dianne Touchell

4
The Year It All Ended

Kirsty Murray

4
The Baby

Lisa Drakeford

4
Concentr8

William Sutcliffe

4
All My Secrets

Sophie McKenzie

4
House of Windows

Alexia Casale

2

BfK News

CRESSIDA COWELL LAUNCHES NEW LAUREATE INITIATIVE IN SUPPORT OF SCHOOL LIBRARIES AND CALLS ON PM TO ACT

‘How can a child become a reader for pleasure if their parents or carers cannot afford books, and their primary school has no library, or that library is woefully insufficient?’

Life-changing Libraries logo

A new mentorship scheme for underrepresented authors launches today, 30 March. All Stories offers fourteen mentorships delivered by expert children’s book editors.

The shortlists for the prestigious CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals are announced today, 18 March. The awards are the UK’s oldest for children and young people.

This year’s judges praised their shortlists for ‘offering hope and escapism during lockdown’ through explorations of freedom, the great outdoors and journeys through the natural world.

The Jhalak Prize has announced the longlist for the inaugural Jhalak Children’s & Young Adult Prize.

Award-winning author and activist, Onjali Raúf takes up the post as the new Writer in Residence for BookTrust, today, International Women’s Day. She takes over from Smriti Halls.

Onjali Q Raúf

The longlist for the 2021 CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals have been announced.

CKG Logo

LONGLIST ANNOUNCED FOR 2021 KLAUS FLUGGE PRIZE

Klaus Flugge Prize logo

Finish a story started by Branford Boase Award winner Liz Hyder

The Henrietta Branford Writing Competition, the annual competition for young people which runs in conjunction with the Branford Boase Award, is now open.

Every two years, IBBY invites nominations for its international List of Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities. Nominations are made by IBBY national sections and the final list is selected from these by the IBBY Documentation Centre of Books for Young People with Disabilities, based in Toronto. Because of its international content, the list is unique in the children’s book world. It is a huge voluntary undertaking as every country is encouraged to submit up to twelve titles across the three categories.

Books for Keeps 213 - the children's book magazine online

Digital version – browse, print or download

BfK Newsletter

BfK No. 213 Articles

Editor's Choice

This is Not a Love Story

New Talent

The Baby

All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 213

Under 5s

Black Cat, White Cat

Heather Has Two Mummies

There’s a Bear on My Chair

Help! The Wolf is Coming!

Soon

The Cloudspotter

Betty goes Bananas in her Pyjamas

Ages 5-8

Footpath Flowers

It's a Groovy World, Alfredo

What the Jackdaw Saw

A Tower of Giraffes - Animal Bunches

Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion

The Most Wonderful Thing in the World

Katie and the Starry Night

Don’t Forget Tiggs!

Eddie’s Tent and How to Go Camping

Sardines of Love

The Paradise Bird

The Cleo Stories: The Necklace and the Present

Sixteen String Jack and the Garden of Adventure: Where Peter Pan Began

Millie’s Chickens

Have You Seen My Monster?

That Naughty Meerkat

Dinosaur Police

Ages 8-10

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler

A Tower of Giraffes - Animal Bunches

Mad About Monkeys

Catching Falling Stars

The Bolds

My Brother Is a Superhero

The Hero's Tomb

Stop Those Monsters

Car-jacked

Uncle Gobb and The Dread Shed

Dara Palmer’s Major Drama

Pucker Power: The Super-powered Superpug

Ages 10-14

Binny in Secret

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler

Too Close to Home

Whistling in the Dark

Minus Me

The Year It All Ended

Sun Thief

The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow

In Darkling Wood

Dead End Kids: Heroes of the Blitz

50 Things You Should Know About the Second World War

Song For A Scarlet Runner

The Potion Diaries

To Hold the Bridge

Ages 14+

Blood & Ink

This is Not a Love Story

Nest

A Small Madness

The Year It All Ended

The Baby

Concentr8

All My Secrets

House of Windows

BfK News