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The Federation of Children’s Book Groups Blog
Leah Thaxton on the Editor’s Role in winning the Branford Boase Award
The winners of the Branford Boase Award for 2023 were announced on the 13th of July in a ceremony hosted at the CLPE Library in London. The winners of this prestigious prize were Christine Pillainayagam and her editor Leah Thaxton of Faber & Faber for Ellie Pillai is Brown. We were delighted when Leah took some time […]
Queen of the Gods by Katharine and Elizabeth Corr
Katharine and Elizabeth Corr share their passion for books in their guest blog today. Sisters and authors, they have written about their favourite books growing up and they encourage us to write down and take note of our own favourites! We are both hoarders. One of us is worse than the other, but we both […]
Emma Read on her love of libraries
We are delighted to share a guest blog from author Emma Read about her love of libraries. Many of our readers have a vested interest in libraries and reading so this will be a joyous blog to read. Author Emma Read on her love of libraries I’ve always loved a library. Growing up in […]
Secret Sister by Sophie McKenzie
We are so excited to share our Q&A with Sophie McKenzie. It is all about her newest book, Secret Sister. Read on to learn more about this story and about Sophie herself. Please tell us about your latest book, Secret Sister. Secret Sister is the story of Asha and Willow – twin sisters, separated as […]
The Bedtime Boat by Sital Gorasia Chapman
The Bedtime Boat by Sital Gorasia Chapman is a story that many children will find restful and restorative after a busy day. Recently, author Sital Gorasia Chapman answered a few questions about her book for us. Can you tell us a bit about your new book, The Bedtime Boat? It’s about a little boy, Chandan, […]
The CLiPPA Awards by Head Judge Chris Riddell
The winner of the CLiPPA, CLPE Children’s Poetry Award, was announced on Monday 10 July at a live poetry show on the Lyttleton stage of the National Theatre. US poets Ted Kooser and Connie Wanek were named winners for their collection of poems inspired by nature, Marshmallow Clouds(Walker Books), illustrated by Richard Jones. In a […]
The Beasts of Knobbly Bottom by Emily-Jane Clark
This new series by Emily-Jane Clark is sure to delight readers and have them giggling through the adventure. When given the chance to read the book and send some questions to the author, we jumped at the chance. Read on for the fantastic answers about vampire sheep and Knobbly Bottom! Where did the idea […]
A Story About a Story by James Burks
Agent 9 is a new graphic novel series published by Piccadilly Press. It’s creator James Burks sheds some light into his background and the creation of Agent 9 on our blog today. A Story About a Story by James Burks Hello. I want to tell you a story, but what type of story should I […]
Re-wilding your family and your phone by Nicola Davies
We have a very relevant and thoughtful blog from author Nicola Davies today. We are constantly competing with smart phones and technology but Nicola offers some ideas for balancing nature with technology. RE-WILDING YOUR FAMILY AND YOUR PHONE When I was bringing up my kids there were no smart phones and the only computer in […]
Poetry Booklists
The FCBG have always produced up to date and reliable book lists for different genres and styles of text. This month we are thrilled to share our recently updated poetry book lists. Ideal for teachers, librarians and parents to see what poetry books are highly recommended. Let’s start with Poetry Books for Younger Readers Please […]
Bite Risk by S.J. Wills
A compelling blog today from author S.J. Wills about reading stories with the element of danger and fear and why they are so popular. I remember having two main comfort reads as a child: Winnie the Pooh, and Something Wicked This Way Comes. It’s easy to see why I might have kept returning to A.A. […]
Izzy the Inventor by Zanna Davidson
Izzy the Inventor is a new series aimed at younger readers written by Zanna Davidson and illustrated by Elissa Elwick. Zanna Davidson has written a brilliant blog for us today about being an editor and an author for Usborne publishing. When I took a job as an editor at Usborne Publishing, I hadn’t really […]
Listen up all Bookworms by Andy Shepherd
Author Andy Shepherd has written a wonderful blog for us today about being a bookworm, loving audiobooks and not giving up on children who seem to be “non-readers”. We also have a fantastic giveaway of all the books in her series for one lucky winner! Listen up all Bookworms – Andy Shepherd author of ‘The […]
Engaging Parents with Reading for Pleasure by Rachael Rogan
Rachael Rogan is the Founder of the BookTastic Book Festival and she has written an informative blog for us all about engaging families with Reading for Pleasure. Why it’s essential to engage parents in the importance of reading for pleasure Rachael Rogan, Founder, BookTastic Book Festival The world is awash with reports on reading […]
Finding your Flicker of Courage by Lu Fraser
Mavis the Bravest is a chicken with plenty of fears and she teaches young readers that it is ok to be worried and scared for that is where bravery comes from. Check out the blog today from author, Lu Fraser, about where the idea for Mavis came from! Finding your Flicker of Courage Lu […]
Windrush and the Windies by Cheryl Diane Parkinson
Today marks the 75th Anniversary of the arrival of the ship, HMT Empire Windrush into the UK. With nearly 500 passengers aboard, these people would become known as the Windrush generation. We have a fascinating blog from author, Cheryl Diane Parkinson about the Windrush arrival and her book, Last Girl In. Windrush and the Windies […]
Greenwild Q&A with Pari Thompson
Q & A’s allow us the opportunity to “meet” an author or illustrator and hear the background to their work, the inspirations and sometimes the challenges. It also allows us to hear their hopes for their books. Recently, we asked debut author, Pari Thomson about her book, Greenwild. Tell us about Greenwild! Greenwild is the […]
Debut Feature- Introducing Karin Akesson
Welcome to our inaugural Debut Feature! The world of children’s literature is a welcoming and bustling community of talented authors and illustrators. Being a new author or illustrator in this community is something special and we want to highlight new voices each month! This month, we welcome Karin Akesson, author and illustrator of The Rainbow […]