Children’s authors’ debt to JK Rowling: ‘She brought back storytelling’
As Harry Potter and the Cursed Child hits the West End, five writers reveal how Rowling changed their field• JK Rowling: ‘Harry Potter’s world is always in my head’Author of the Inkheart...
View ArticleHarry Potter and the curse of middle age: should fictional children ever grow...
JK Rowling’s beloved characters are taking to the stage as adults in The Cursed Child. But are fans ever ready for their childhood heroes to grow up? Leading authors have their sayAuthor of the Alex...
View ArticleFiction for older children reviews – half-dead and dead funny
Horrid Henry author Francesca Simon fleshes out her teenage queen of hell, while Frank Cottrell Boyce’s screwball comedy has depthYou might have thought a plucky tween hero who was half-dead would be...
View ArticlePhilip Pullman calls for UK to adopt EU plans to protect authors' royalties
His Dark Materials author has appealed for EU directive to be introduced in Britain, to block ‘unfair practices that currently prevent authors making a living’His Dark Materials author Philip Pullman...
View ArticleThe Horrid case of Henry: why authors need new rights legislation
The European Commission is looking to help authors who have lost the rights to their work. Horrid Henry creator Francesca Simon explains why the new measures should be applaudedI applauded when I read...
View ArticleAuthors stamp new library strategy 'too little, too late'
Val McDermid, Joanna Trollope and Francesca Simon among writers and campaigners questioning what the £4m Libraries Deliver plans will provideWriters including Val McDermid, Joanna Trollope and...
View ArticleTop 10 books for reluctant and dyslexic readers
From Wimpy Kid to Goth Girl, Tom Palmer shares his hand-on-heart recommendations of books to help encourage a lifelong love of readingRead top tips for dyslexic writers by Tom McLaughlinSee Dive In, a...
View ArticleHorrid Henry artist Tony Ross named UK libraries' most borrowed illustrator
In the first ranking of its kind, the Public Lending Right showed Ross clocking up more than 1m loans last yearTony Ross, whose images of the naughty prankster Horrid Henry and the ragamuffin Little...
View ArticleHay festival 2018: the Golden Booker, Akala, Tishani Doshi and more
In this special festival podcast, we take a tour of some of the events that have got people talking this week in Hay. We discover the novel that has knocked Midnight’s Children out of the running for...
View ArticleFrancesca Simon: how I turned The Monstrous Child into ‘Wagner for teens’
The Horrid Henry author’s YA novel about a smart-talking Norse goddess has become an opera – what will young audiences make of it?A few years ago, I was sitting on the New York subway when a voice...
View ArticleWorld Book Day 2015: what to wear
Great costume ideas here for World Book Day on 5 March. Share your best costumes and how you made them by emailing childrens.books@theguardian.com– we’ll add them to this gallery (and the best costume...
View ArticleWorld Book Day: children's authors get grilled by their own creations – video
To celebrate World Book Day, children from book groups at Heartlands High School in Wood Green, north London, and Monkton Prep school in Bath dress up as book characters Mr Gum and Polly, Ruby Redfort,...
View ArticleHorrid Henry's Krazy Ketchup by Francesca Simon - review
'One of my favourite Horrid Henry books'This book is one of my favourite Horrid Henry books. Henry has the last laugh with the hoax he plays on Peter‼ Henry puts chocolate over an egg and Peter eats...
View ArticleFamily books reviews - in pictures
This month our family reviewers have been thinking deep and looking long, from pondering the rules of summer to enjoying a seriously scrummy picnic… For serious topics and serious fun, here are their...
View ArticleSpiders in children's books - quiz
Why don’t you stop scuttling around on the world wide web and try our creepy crawly quiz?Continue reading...
View ArticleThe Children's Book Award – shortlist 2016
Horrid Henry, Michael Morpurgo and a vampire bat are honoured in the books prize chosen and voted for entirely by childrenMore amazing books are celebrated today as The Children’s Book Award 2016...
View ArticleWorld Book Day 2016's Biggest Book Show On Earth lineup announced!
A live Teen Fest will feature in next year’s Biggest Book Show On Earth event for the first time ever, along with a Guinness World Record quiz attempt and lots of events up and down the country2016’s...
View ArticleHorrid Henry's Revenge by Francesca Simon – review
‘Horrid Henry is my favourite. I like him because he is very rude and mean’Horrid Henry is very naughty on his family’s computer and lots of horrid things happen. I find the plot interesting. Horrid...
View ArticleAuthors share their reading resolutions for 2016 – now share yours!
From full digital detox, to ‘bookending’ each day to reading more books in translation, authors including Louise O’Neill, Meg Rosoff, Katherine Rundell, Philip Reeve, Francesca Simon, Juno Dawson and...
View ArticleBooks to get children through sports day
How can children learn to be ‘good sports’ about winning and losing at sports day? Books can help deal with the confusing and conflicting messages – and we’ve got ideas on which onesSports day is...
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