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Books for Keeps 106 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 106 - September 1997

Cover Story
This issue's cover is from Lynne Reid Banks' novel Angela and Diabola, discussed by Stephanie Nettell. The artwork is by Klaus Verplanke. Thanks to HarperCollins for their help in producing this September cover.

BfK No. 106 Articles

Editorial – September 1997

News and comment from the Editor.

Boys Read Less Than Girls: True or False?

Deborah Maby examines gender preferences in relation to reading.

Authorgraph No.106: Brian Jacques

Brian Jacques interviewed by Julia Eccleshare.

Going for Gold

Brian Alderson looks at the Carnegie Medal's track record in its Diamond Jubilee year.

Angela and Diabola

Stephanie Nettell investigates Lynne Reid Banks' new novel about good and evil.

Publishing Profiles No.5: The Publicity Director

Liz Attenborough goes behind the scenes in publishing.

The History of Children’s Books, No.3: Eminent Victorians

John Rowe Townsend examines the period from the mid-nineteenth century onwards.

BfK Briefing – September 1997

News * Best Seller Charts * Publications * Awards * Letters to the Editor

Good Reads: Kowloon Junior School, Hong Kong

Reviews from pupils of Kowloon Junior School, Kowloon, Hong Kong.

Classics in Short No.5: Tom’s Midnight Garden

Helen Levene on Philippa Pearce's Tom's Midnight Garden.

Editor's Choice

Romanichal Gypsies

Thomas Acton
David Gallant
(Hodder Wayland)
5

The Romanichals (descendents of the gypsies who left North India about 1,000 years ago and the local travelling craftspeople who survived the persecution of 1550-1650 in England) make up more than half of the whole Traveller population in Britain...

read more

New Talent

All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 106

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

Under 5s

  • John Joe and the Big Hen

    Martin Waddell
    5
  • The Lighthouse Keeper's Cat

    Ronda Armitage
    David Armitage
    5
  • Baba

    Ruth Brown
    5
  • Nearly But Not Quite

    Paul Rogers
    5
  • Pigs Aplenty, Pigs Galore!

    David McPhail
    5
  • Connie Came to Play

    Jill Paton Walsh
    5
  • It Takes Two; How Did I Begin?

    Karen Wallace
    Ross Collins
    4
  • Big Machines on the Farm; Big Machines in Town

    Steve Cox
    4
  • My Pony Ride

    Lisa Kopper
    4
  • Loving

    Ann Morris
    4
  • There Might Be Giants

    Hilda Offen
    4
  • Jack and the Beanstalk

    4
  • The Topsy-Turvies

    Francesca Simon
    4
  • Nothing but trouble

    Gus Clarke
    4
  • Sonny's Wonderful Wellies

    Lisa Stubbs
    3
  • Dinosaur Roar!

    Paul Stickland
    Henrietta Stickland
    3

Ages 5-8

  • Tex the Cowboy

    Sarah Garland
    5
  • Master Track's Train

    Allan Ahlberg
    André Amstutz
    5
  • How's Harry?

    Steve May
    4
  • Dog on a Broomstick

    Jan Page
    4
  • Mr Bear and the Bear

    Frances Thomas
    Ruth Brown
    4
  • Sam's Duck

    Michael Morpurgo
    4
  • Michael

    Tony Bradman
    Tony Ross
    4
  • Scaly and Snappy; Colourful and Bright; Strong and Stripy; Swift and Silent; Brown and Furry; Big and Bulky

    Moira Butterfield
    3
  • A First Bible Story Book

    3
  • Little Mouse Grandma; Tricky Tricky Twins

    Julia Jarman
    3
  • Jackomoora and the King of Ireland's Son

    Bryan MacMahon
    3
  • The Magnificent Mummies; Mouse Flute; Owl in the House; Delilah Digs for Treasure; Runaway Fred; Keeping Secrets

    Tony Bradman
    2
  • The Bad Good Manners Book; A Pig's Book of Manners

    Babette Cole
    2

Ages 8-10

  • Incredible Plants

    Barbara Taylor
    5
  • Being Friends; Feeling Shy; Telling the Truth; Feeling Angry

    Althea
    4
  • Pop-o-Mania

    Barbara Valenta
    4
  • The Dragon Upstairs

    Geraldine Kaye
    4
  • Delilah Alone

    Jenny Nimmo
    4
  • The Dad Library

    Dennis Whelehan
    4
  • Spider Pie

    Anne Cassidy
    4
  • Matthew's Goals; Biker; The Listener; Otherworld; Captain Hawk and the Stone of Destiny; Roller Madonnas

    Michael Hardcastle
    4
  • A Family from Bosnia; A Family from Ethiopia

    Julia Waterlow
    3
  • Barley Hall: A Day in a Medieval Town House; Fishbourne: A Day in a Roman Palace

    Charles Kightly
    3
  • Tales of St Patrick

    Eileen Dunlop
    3
  • Forever Amber Brown

    Paula Danziger
    3
  • Grandfather's Old Bruk-a-Down Car

    John Agard
    3
  • Alice's Birthday Pig; Alice's World Record

    Tim Kennemore
    3
  • Viking at School; Pirate Pandemonium

    Jeremy Strong
    3
  • William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

    2

Ages 10-14

  • Telling It Like It Is: Young Asian Women Talk

    5
  • The School Bag

    5
  • Freedom of Speech; Workers' Rights; Freedom of Belief; Rights in the Home

    Philip Steele
    5
  • Romanichal Gypsies

    Thomas Acton
    David Gallant
    5
  • The Closing March

    Lynne Markham
    5
  • The Lottie Project

    Jacqueline Wilson
    5
  • A Girl Named Disaster

    Nancy Farmer
    4
  • Lizzie's Leaving

    Joan Lingard
    4
  • Slavery from Africa to the Americas

    Christine Hatt
    4
  • Chandra

    Frances Mary Hendry
    4
  • Music on the Bamboo Radio

    Martin Booth
    4
  • Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

    J K Rowling
    4
  • Water Wings

    Morris Gleitzman
    4
  • Boys behaving Badly!

    Jeremy Daldry
    3
  • Help! My Family is Driving Me Crazy!

    Kathryn Lamb
    3
  • Which way is home?

    Ian Strachan
    3
  • Bullies Don't Hurt; Charlie's Story

    Anthony Masters
    3
  • A Short Stay in Purgatory

    Alan Durant
    3
  • The Dorling Kindersley Illustrated Family Bible

    3
  • Eastern Europe; Israel

    Patrick Burke
    3
  • Spring Break; The Carver

    Barbara Steiner
    3
  • The Swap and Other Stories

    George Layton
    3
  • A History of Ships from Log Rafts to Luxury Liners; A History of Inventions from Abacus to Atomic Power

    Fiona Macdonald
    2
  • The Sea Serpent

    Frankie Calvert
    2

BfK News

DANIEL MORDEN WINS 2013 TIR NA N-OG ENGLISH AWARD

The Welsh Books Council has announced Daniel Morden as winner of the 2013 Tir na n-Og English Award for his collection of stories Tree of Leaf and Flame (Pont Books).

Morden’s first book, Weird Tales from the  Storyteller, was shortlisted for the Tir
na n-Og English-language award in 2004 and he won the award in 2007 for Dark Tales from the Woods.

read more...
ROYAL SOCIETY YOUNG PEOPLE’S BOOK PRIZE 2013 SHORTLIST

The Royal Society has announced the shortlist for their 2013 Young People’s Book Prize, naming the six books the judges consider best communicate science to young people.

Professor John Goodby FRS, Chair of the judges described the shortlist as eclectic, but enthralling.

The six books shortlisted by the judges are:

Build the Human Body by Richard Walker (Templar Publishing)

In the judges’ words: ‘A hands on, fun kit to help learn about the human body, accompanied by a well-illustrated, concise, clear book.’

read more...
SARAH GARLAND WINS INAUGURAL LITTLE REBELS CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD

Sarah Garland has won the first Little Rebels Children’s Book Award for Azzi in Between, which tells the story of a family forced to fell their homeland and settle in a strange and unfamiliar country. The book is based on the author’s own experience of working among refugee families and is endorsed by Amnesty International.

read more...
2013 BRANFORD BOASE AWARD: THE SHORTLIST

‘Seven outstanding debuts, eight really interesting authors, doing really interesting things’

The shortlist for the 2013 Branford Boase Award has been announced. The Branford Boase Award is given annually to the author of an outstanding debut novel for children. Uniquely, it also honours the editor of the winning title and highlights the importance of the editor in nurturing new talent.

read more...
2013 CLPE Poetry Award: Winner

CLPE AwardThe 2013 CLPE Poetry Award has been won by George Szirtes for  In the Land of the Giants, illustrated by Helen Szirtes (Salt Publishing). Szirtes was presented with the award by last year’s winner Rachel Rooney at a ceremony at CLPE on the evening of Tuesday 30 April.

read more...
THE 2013 CLPE POETRY AWARD SHORTLIST

Weight of WaterFour outstanding poetry books are shortlisted for the 2013 CLPE Poetry Award. Established in 2003, the annual Poetry Award encourages and celebrates outstanding new children’s poetry.

 

 

 

 

 

The four books on the shortlist are:

read more...
2013 ENGLISH 4 – 11 PICTURE BOOK AWARDS: THE WINNERS

The winners of the 2013 English 4 – 11 Picture Book Awards have been announced. Established in 1995, the awards are presented annually to the best picture books of the previous year, in four categories, Fiction 4 – 7 and 7 – 11 years, and Non-Fiction 4 – 7 and 7 – 11 years.

From a 15 strong shortlist, the winners are:

Fiction 4 – 7 years

Hippospotamus by Jeanne Willis illustrated by Tony Ross (Andersen Press)

Fiction 7 – 11 years

read more...
IBBY Announces the 2014 Hans Christian Andersen Award Nominees

The nominees for the 2014 Hans Christian Andersen Award have been announced.

The Hans Christian Andersen Award is the highest international distinction given to authors and illustrators of children's books. Awarded every other year by IBBY, the award recognizes lifelong achievement and is given to an author and an illustrator whose complete works have made an important, lasting contribution to children's literature.

For the 2014 Awards 29 authors and 31 illustrators have been nominated from 34 countries. They are:

read more...
New Little Rebels Children’s Book Award: Shortlist Announced

The shortlist has been announced for The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award, a new award for radical children’s fiction.

The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award recognises fiction for ages 0-12 which promotes or celebrates social justice and equality. It is awarded by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB) and administered by Letterbox Library. Wendy Cooling, Bookstart co-founder & editor and author Elizabeth Laird are both judges.

The four books on the inaugural shortlist are:

read more...
School Library Association Information Book Award 2013 Short List Announcement

The School Library Association has announce the shortlist for the 2013 prize. The Information Book Award is an annual event, in its third year its aim is to reinforce the importance of non-fiction whilst highlighting the high standard of resources available.

The judges - a panel of experienced librarians, SLA board members and a member of Peters Bookselling Services - have produced what they describe as ‘a strong and very varied selection of titles for the shortlist’. These are

Under 7s

read more...
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