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Books for Keeps 171 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 171 - July 2008

Cover Story
This issue’s cover illustration by James Mayhew is from Katie and the British Artists. James Mayhew discusses his work here. Thanks to Orchard Books for their help with this July cover.

BfK No. 171 Articles

Editorial - July 2008

News and comment from the Editor.
Katie’s Picture Show

James Mayhew on books which teach about art via a story.
Age Guidance

Caroline Horn explores the issues.
Illustrators in the Picture: the top ten ‘new’ picture book artists

Joanna Carey on the UK's 'top ten' new illustrators.
British Children’s Fiction in the Second World War

Nicholas Tucker discusses a recent history.
Authorgraph No.171: Jerry Spinelli

Jerry Spinelli interviewed by Jeanne Clancy Watkins.
Laureate Log - July 2008

Michael Rosen launches the Funny Prize amidst school visits.
Letter to the Editor - July 2008

Mary Sutcliffe on teacher training.
Good Reads: Wycombe High School

Reviews from pupils of Wycombe High School, Buckinghamshire.
Obituary: John Bell

Brian Alderson remembers John Bell.
I Wish I’d Written… Ottoline and the Yellow Cat

Paul Stewart chooses Chris Riddell’s Ottoline and the Yellow Cat.
Hal’s Reading Diary – July 2008

Roger Mills is thrilled that Hal has read a whole book by himself.
Classics in Short No.70: Just William

Brian Alderson on Richmal Crompton's Just William.

Editor's Choice

Harris Finds His Feet
Catherine Rayner
(Little Tiger Press)
5

Harris is a ‘small hare with very big feet’ and a loving grandad to introduce him to the world and encourage him to set out confidently on his own.

That Beatrix Potter came into my mind when I was thinking about Catherine Rayner’s...

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New Talent

Eliot Jones, Midnight Superhero
Anne Cottringer
(Scholastic)
5

A quiet boy by day, Eliot is transformed at the stroke of midnight into a superhero. He retrieves the queen’s stolen jewels, confronts escaped lions, prevents a ship from being wrecked and saves the planet from extinction when a meteor threatens...

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All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 171

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

Under 5s

  • You're Not So Scary, Sid!
    Sam Lloyd
    5

  • Snap!
    Mick Manning
    Brita Granström
    5

  • Posy
    Linda Newbery
    5

  • The Odd Egg
    Emily Gravett
    5

  • Minty and Tink
    Emma Chichester Clark
    5

  • Harris Finds His Feet
    Catherine Rayner
    5

  • The Squirrel Wife
    Philippa Pearce
    4

  • The Perfect Bear
    Gillian Shields
    4

  • Fine As We Are
    Algy Craig Hall
    4

  • Beware of the Frog
    William Bee
    4

  • Is This My Nose?
    3

  • I'm Not Cute!
    Jonathan Allen
    3

  • I don't want a posh dog
    Emma Dodd
    3

  • Counting in the Sea 123!
    Sue Hendra
    3

  • Conker and Nudge
    Adria Meserve
    3

  • The Old Animals' Forest Band
    Sirish Rao
    2

Ages 5-8

  • Say Hello
    Jack Foreman
    5

  • Eliot Jones, Midnight Superhero
    Anne Cottringer
    5

  • The Witch's Children Go to School
    Ursula Jones
    4

  • The Sacred Banana Leaf
    Nathan Kumar Scott
    4

  • Round About Six
    4

  • Horse
    Malachy Doyle
    4

  • The Wizard's Warning
    Hilda Offen
    3

  • Josh and Jaz have three mums ¦ Morris and the Bundle of Worries ¦ Picnic in the Park ¦ Spark learns to fly
    Hedi Argent
    3

  • Max the Missing Puppy
    Holly Webb
    3

  • Littlenose the Leader
    John Grant
    3

  • The Lion Book of Wisdom Stories from Around the World
    3

  • The Extraordinary Adventures of Ordinary Basil
    Wiley Miller
    3

  • Flotsam and Jetsam and the Grooof
    Tanya Landman
    2

Ages 8-10

  • The Savage
    David Almond
    5

  • Grow It, Eat It
    5

  • The Hundred-Towered City
    Garry Kilworth
    4

  • Bearkeeper
    Josh Lacey
    4

  • My Sister Jodie
    Jacqueline Wilson
    3

  • The Great Snake: Stories from the Amazon
    Sean Taylor
    3

  • Gervelie's Journey
    Anthony Robinson
    Annemarie Young
    3

  • Firestorm: Dragon Orb
    Mark Robson
    3

  • Earth Matters: an encyclopedia of ecology
    3

  • Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire
    Derek Landy
    2

  • Greek Myths and Legends
    2

  • The Battle for Gullywith
    Susan Hill
    2

Ages 10-14

  • A World Away
    Pauline Francis
    5

  • Sovay
    Celia Rees
    5

  • Once Upon a Time in the North
    Philip Pullman
    5

  • Waste and Recycling
    Fiona Macdonald
    4

  • Traitor!
    John Pilkington
    4

  • Toby Alone
    Timothée De Fombelle
    4

  • Selina Penaluna
    Jan Page
    4

  • Message in a Bottle
    Valerie Zenatti
    4

  • Lost Riders
    Elizabeth Laird
    4

  • The Last of the Warrior Kings
    Sarah Mussi
    4

  • The Knife of Never Letting Go
    Patrick Ness
    4

  • Hugging the Rock
    Susan Taylor Brown
    4

  • Divided Loyalties
    Dennis Hamley
    4

  • Crash
    Jan-Andrew Henderson
    4

  • Bloodline
    Katy Moran
    4

  • Three's a Crowd
    Sophie McKenzie
    3

  • Musicians
    Michael Johnstone
    3

  • M is for Magic
    Neil Gaiman
    3

  • Just Henry
    Michelle Magorian
    3

  • Inside Out: Children's poets discuss their work
    3

  • I am Rembrandt's Daughter
    Lynn Cullen
    3

  • Blue Flame
    K M Grant
    3

  • Blood Ties
    Sophie McKenzie
    3

  • The Great Famine ¦ War and Change: Ireland 1918-1924
    Feargal Brougham
    Caroline Farrell
    2

  • The H-Bomb Girl
    Stephen Baxter
    2

  • Hazel's Phantasmagoria
    Leander Deeny
    2

Ages 14+

  • Ostrich Boys
    Keith Gray
    5

  • The Amethyst Child
    Sarah Singleton
    5

  • Accidental Friends
    Helena Pielichaty
    4

  • A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl
    Tanya Lee Stone
    3

BfK News

ONJALI RAÚF BECOMES WRITER IN RESIDENCE FOR BOOKTRUST

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

read more...
LONGLISTS ANNOUNCED FOR 2021 CILIP CARNEGIE AND KATE GREENAWAY MEDALS

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

CKG Logo

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LONGLIST ANNOUNCED FOR 2021 KLAUS FLUGGE PRIZE

Klaus Flugge Prize logo

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NOW OPEN: 2021 HENRIETTA BRANFORD WRITING COMPETITION

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.

read more...
TWO UK ENTRIES ON IBBY LIST OF OUTSTANDING BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

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.

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LONGLIST FOR THE 2021 BRANFORD BOASE AWARD

The longlist for the 2021 Branford Boase Award has been announced. Set up in memory of award-winning author Henrietta Branford and her editor Wendy Boase, one of the founders of Walker Books, the Branford Boase Award is given annually to the author of an outstanding debut novel for children.

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NATASHA FARRANT WINS 2020 COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD

Natasha Farrant

Writer and literary scout Natasha Farrant has won the 2020 Costa Children’s Book Award for Voyage of the Sparrowhawk, a book which the judges described as ‘pure heavenly escapism and a purely joyful read.’

read more...
ROBIN WALKER WINS THE 2020 ALCS EDUCATIONAL WRITERS’ AWARD FOR BLACK HISTORY MATTERS

The winner of the 2020 ALCS Educational Writers’ Award is Black History Matters: The Story of Black History, From African Kingdoms to Black Lives Matter. Written by acclaimed Black historian, Robin Walker, the 2020 judges praised this accessible, comprehensive and inspiring book which provides a timely introduction both to Black history and the Black Lives Matter movement.

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IBBY UK nominate Marcus Sedgwick and David McKee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award 2022

IBBY UK has announced that Marcus Sedgwick and David McKee will be the UK nominations for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award.

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SHORTLIST FOR THE COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD 2020

Debut authors Darren Charlton and Jenny Pearson join Natasha Farrant and Meg Rosoff on the shortlist for the 2020 Costa Children’s Book Award.

The shortlist for the 2020 Costa Children’s Book Award has been announced. No less than 146 books were submitted and from those the judges have chosen a shortlist of four. They are:

Wranglestone by Darren Charlton (Little Tiger)

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