The Federation of Children’s Book Groups Blog

Making Poetry Fun by Roger Stevens

A brilliant blog post from poet Roger Stevens about developing a love of poetry and maintaining that love into adulthood! Children love poetry, why don’t adults? A truly interesting read! There were three questions relating to poetry on Pointless last night. Alexander Armstrong and Richard Osman spent a couple of minutes discussing how their generation […]

The Spots and The Dots by Helen Baugh

We are so pleased to share this fantastic blog post sharing some insight into the amazing book, The Spots and the Dots by author Helen Baugh! I haven’t written many books, but The Spots and the Dots means the most to me by far. The book is unusual, in that it has two covers and tells the […]

Q&A with Katherine Webber

The Revelry published on the 6th of January with much fanfare and anticipation. We are so excited to share a Q&A with Katherine Webber. It begs the question, How do you “friend”? Thank you to Katherine and Walker Books for this interview! The Revelry has an incredibly powerful message about friendship. Were you inspired by […]

Q&A with Jack Noel

Comic Classics is an excellent, accessible way to bring the Classics to a younger audience. Jack Noel kindly took the time to answer our questions and we think his replies, as well as his books, are brilliant! How did you get your start in children’s books and publishing? At the very start of my career […]

Worlds within Worlds by Amy Sparkes

The Tower at the End of Time is the sequel to The House at the Edge of Magic, and from Amy’s blog post, you can truly sense her enthusiasm for writing. This is a delightful post to read. One of my favourite things about The House at The Edge Of Magic series is creating the storyworld. New corners are discovered. […]

From the Windowsill to the Bookshelf by Lesley Parr

A wonderfully honest piece from Lesley Parr about the beginnings of her becoming an author. When I was a child, I often sat on my bedroom windowsill writing stories and poems. As a teen, I wrote many letters but, as I got older, life took over and the writing got a bit…lost. But, in 2011, […]

Fossil Research by Amy Raphael

A brilliant blog post from author Amy Raphael about researching fossils for her latest novel, The Ship of Cloud and Stars. When I started to write my second middle-grade novel, The Ship of Cloud and Stars, I had a vague notion of the story I hoped to tell. There would be a 12-year-old girl who […]

Building Children’s Confidence in their Creativity by Tasha Harrison

Clementine Florentine is a new middle grade book publishing today! Author Tasha Harrison has written us a brilliant blog piece about creativity in children! In my middle grade children’s comedy, Clementine Florentine, 10-year-old budding poet Clementine loses her self-confidence after her funny poem goes unacknowledged in the school poetry competition and is later made fun of […]

Inspirations for Viking Boy by Tony Bradman

Welcome to our first blog of 2022, written by the wonderful Tony Bradman. In this blog, Tony writes of wishing there was more historical fiction to read when he was younger and the ways in which Viking Boy is received by school children.   Great adventures can sometimes start in very ordinary circumstances. For example, […]

Q&A with Patrice Lawrence

Splinters of Sunshine is the latest novel from Patrice Lawrence and when given the opportunity to ask her a few questions, we were thrilled. Thank you for answering these so brilliantly, Patrice! Can you introduce us to your newest book, Splinters of Sunshine which is set around Christmas time, and the characters? Splinters of Sunshine is […]

The Santa List by Kieran Crowley

We are just days away from Christmas and what better time to share a Christmas story? Kieran Crowley has written an excellent blog for us to share about his book, The Santa List! When I visit schools, I’m often asked where writers get their ideas. It’s the third most popular question after ‘Are you rich?’ […]

Breaking News by Nick Sheridan

How do we help students distinguish between real and fake news?? Journalist and author, Nick Sheridan, has written a helpful book that was born out of necessity as the world was gripped by the pandemic and information was constantly changing. He wondered “what must kids make of all this?”. His blog piece is fantastic and […]

Frindleswylde by Natalia and Lauren O’Hara

A frosty tale written and illustrated by talented sisters, Natalia and Lauren O’Hara! We have a lovely Q&A to share with you today- Natalia was able to answer these questions and they are amazing! Answered by Natalia O’Hara What inspired the name ‘Frindleswylde’? I honestly have no idea! Lauren painted an icy, princely little boy […]

Evie’s Christmas Wishes by Siobhan Parkinson

We are excited to welcome Siobhan Parkinson to the FCBG blog today, sharing some insights into Evie’s Christmas Wishes. This charming book is truly special! The initial impetus for Evie’s Christmas Wishes came from Little Island. They wanted to make a very special picturebook for children from about three or four that would portray a […]

The Runaways of Haddington Hall by Vivian French

Vivian French shares her reasons for writing The Runaways of Haddington Hall and where some of her inspirations came from. This is an enjoyable step into the shoes of an inspiring author! My grandmother was born in 1887, and I’ve always been fascinated by what life must have been like then. Queen Victoria was on […]

Themes in Shadow Town by Richard Lambert

Richard Lambert shares the themes from Shadow Town, his gothic fantasy novel. Read on for a brilliant blog!! My gothic fantasy novel Shadow Town follows thirteen-year-old Toby who travels through a tunnel from our world into the land of Balthasar with his cat, Alfred. On arriving in a firestorm and unable to find their way […]

FCBGAsks James Mayhew

Our new monthly feature, FCBGAsks, features the incomparable James Mayhew this month! Once Upon a Tune is his latest creation and is a beautiful journey through famous stories and fantastic music. His answers to our questions are so wonderful and we cannot wait to see his secret project coming in 2023! You do an Illustration […]

50 Books from Holly Webb

We are so pleased to share a Q&A with Holly Webb as she celebrates 50 animal stories!!! What a fantastic achievement and we know how much these stories are loved! How does it feel to have 50 books being read, enjoyed and loved by children around the world? Amazing – and unexpected. It’s so exciting […]