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BfK No. 157 - March 2006

Cover Story
This issue’s cover illustration is from John Burningham’s Edwardo. Edwardo is this issue's Editor’s Choice. Thanks to Random House Children’s Books for their help with this March cover.

BfK No. 157 Articles

Editorial - March 2006

News and comment from the Editor.
Retrospective: The Endless Imagination of Joan Aiken

Peter Hollindale explores her legacy.
Going Solo

Sue Unstead on helpful handbooks.
Ted Hughes: Collected Poems for Children

Helen Taylor on the relevance of his work.
Reading Aloud with Michael Rosen

Michael Rosen on ways to children and books together.
Authorgraph No.157: Linda Newbery

Linda Newbery interviewed by Kate Agnew.
Take 3: Children’s Librarians

Revelations from Annie Everall, Ian Dodds and Clive Barnes.
Hal’s Reading Diary - March 2006

Roger Mills on reading and memory.
I Wish I’d Written… Junk

Cathy Hopkins chooses Melvin Burgess' Junk.
Good Reads: Swanmead Middle School, Ilminster, Somerset

Reviews from Swanmead Middle School, Somerset.
BfK Briefing - March 2006

News * Awards * People * Obituaries * Publications * Letters to the Editor
Useful Organisations No.43: Teen Critic

Information on teen critic, Edward Malnick, and a critique on a selection of young adult books.
Classics in Short No.56: My Friend Mr Leakey

Brian Alderson on J B S Haldane's My Friend Mr Leakey.

Editor's Choice

Edwardo
John Burningham
(Jonathan Cape)
5

Edwardo is the roughest, noisiest, nastiest boy in the whole wide world and it is not until some of his misdeeds go wrong (eg he pushes a boy backwards inadvertently saving him from being crushed by a falling lamp) and he finds himself being...

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New Talent

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
John Boyne
(David Fickling Books)
3

Described by its author as a fable, this book chronicles events in the life of a nine-year-old Berliner, Bruno, from his own (often mystified) point of view. Bruno knows his father is an important man and that is why the family must leave Berlin...

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All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 157

  • Under 5s
  • Ages 5-8
  • Ages 8-10
  • Ages 10-14
  • Ages 14+
  • Books About Children's Books

Under 5s

  • While You Are Sleeping
    Alexis Deacon
    5

  • Shoe Baby
    Joyce Dunbar
    5

  • Little Daughter of the Snow
    Arthur Ransome
    5

  • Edwardo
    John Burningham
    5

  • The Toolbox
    Anne Rockwell
    Harlow Rockwell
    5

  • Smiley Shark
    Ruth Galloway
    4

  • Orange Pear Apple Bear
    Emily Gravett
    4

  • Big Black Dog
    Caroline Glicksman
    4

  • Hugs on the Wind
    Marsha Diane Arnold
    Vernise Elaine Pelzel
    4

  • The Very Clever Crocodile
    Jack Tickle
    3

  • Muddlewitch Does Magic Tricks
    Nick Sharratt
    3

  • Little Monkey's One Safe Place
    Richard Edwards
    3

  • Baby Brains Superstar
    Simon James
    3

  • Storytime: First Tales for Sharing
    Stella Blackstone
    3

  • Meerkat Mail
    Emily Gravett
    3

  • Cave-baby and the Mammoth : Sally Sails the Seas : The Sand Dragon : Squelch! : Not-So-Silly Sausage : Nick's Birthday : Out Went Sam : Yummy Scrummy : Countdown! : One Wet Welly : Albert Liked Ladders : Billy on the Ball

    Vivien French
    Lisa Williams
    3

  • Splash! : Zoom!
    Sarah Garland
    2

  • The Starlight Baby
    Gillian Shields
    2

  • How to Build a House : Pip Likes Snow : Bird Watch : Molly is New : A Head Full of Stories : Elephant Rides Again
    Nick Turpin
    Barbara Nascimbeni
    2

Ages 5-8

  • The Princess and the Pea
    Lauren Child
    5

  • Little Tim and the Brave Sea Captain
    Edward Ardizzone
    5

  • Dotty Inventions and Some Real Ones Too
    Roger McGough
    5

  • Ice Bear
    Nicola Davies
    5

  • The Boy Who Grew Flowers
    Jen Wojtowicz
    4

  • Dear Bunny
    Michaela Morgan
    4

  • Indian Myths: Stories from ancient civilisations
    Shahrukh Husain
    4

  • The Lonely Tree
    Nicholas Halliday
    3

  • Rita in the Deep Blue Sea
    Hilda Offen
    3

  • Moonlight Mischief (Witch-in-Training)
    Maeve Friel
    3

  • Fig's Giant
    Geraldine McCaughrean
    2

  • Alfie Green and a Sink Full of Frogs : Alfie Green and the Magical Gift
    Joe O'Brien
    2

Ages 8-10

  • The Art Book for Children
    Amanda Renshaw
    Gilda Williams Ruggi
    5

  • The Carnival of the Animals : Poems inspired by Saint-Saens' music
    4

  • Home Front Heroes
    Jon Blake
    Penny McKinlay
    4

  • The Secret Life of Jamie B Hero.Com
    Ceri Worman
    4

  • Spymice - The Black Paw
    Heather Vogel Frederick
    4

  • Pharoah's Egypt
    Mick Manning
    Brita Granström
    4

  • Egyptian Diary: the Journal of Nakht
    Richard Platt
    4

  • ABC USA
    Martin Jarrie
    3

  • Billy Bonkers
    Giles Andreae
    3

  • Molly Moon's Hypnotic Time-Travel Adventure
    Georgia Byng
    3

  • Muslims in Britain
    Fiona Macdonald
    3

  • A Faith Like Mine
    Laura Buller
    3

  • Drift House: The First Vovage
    Dale Peck
    1

Ages 10-14

  • Something Invisible
    Siobhan Parkinson
    5

  • The Survival Game
    Tim Wynne-Jones
    5

  • The Web of Fire
    Steve Voake
    5

  • Blown Away
    Patrick Cave
    5

  • A Single Shard
    Linda Sue Park
    4

  • The Mob (The Crow Chronicles trilogy, Part 1)
    Clem Martini
    4

  • Turbulence
    Jan Mark
    4

  • Spy Girl: The Dark Side of Midnight
    Carol Hedges
    4

  • Malvolio's Revenge
    Sophie Masson
    4

  • CloudWorld
    David Cunningham
    4

  • Storm Thief
    Chris Wooding
    4

  • The Diamond of Drury Lane
    Julia Golding
    4

  • North Child
    Edith Pattou
    4

  • Chill Factor
    Vincent McDonnell
    3

  • The Lady Grace Mysteries: Gold
    Janet Burchett
    Sara Vogler
    3

  • The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
    John Boyne
    3

  • Powder Monkey
    Paul Dowswell
    3

  • House of Spies
    Griselda Gifford
    2

  • Ouch!
    Steve Cole
    2

Ages 14+

  • The Garden
    Elsie V Aidinoff
    5

  • Tamar
    Mal Peet
    5

  • The Magicians' Guild ; The Novice
    Trudi Canavan
    3

Books About Children's Books

  • Winning Books
    Ruth Allen
    3

  • Into the Wardrobe: C S Lewis and the Narnia Chronicles
    David C Downing
    3

BfK News

THE YEAR'S BEST POETRY FOR CHILDREN: CLiPPA 2019 SHORTLIST ANNOUNCED

The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) has announced the 2019 shortlist for their poetry award, CLiPPA (The Centre for Literacy in Primary Poetry Award). Children’s poetry is booming and there were a record number of entries for the CLiPPA, the only award for children’s poetry.

read more...
THE LITTLE REBELS AWARD SHORTLIST 2019

Little Rebels prize logoThe shortlist for the 2019 Little Rebels Award has been announced. Seven books have made the list with war and conflict recurring themes.

read more...
SHORTLISTS FOR 2019 CILIP CARNEGIE AND KATE GREENAWAY MEDALS

The shortlists for the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals have been announced. Selected by volunteer Youth Librarians from longlists of 20 books per medal, there are eight on each shortlist.

Alongside previously shortlisted authors and illustrators, there are newcomers on each shortlist, and as the poetry boom for young readers continues, three verse novels make the Carnegie shortlist by US authors Elizabeth Acevedo, Kwame Alexander and Jason Reynolds.

The 2019 shortlists are as follows:

read more...
BLUE PETER BOOK AWARD WINNERS 2019

The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q Raúf and The Colours of History by Clive Gifford, illustrated by Marc-Etienne Peintre, have been revealed as the 2019 Blue Peter Book Award winners.

read more...
LONGLISTS FOR 2019 CILIP CARNEGIE AND KATE GREENAWAY MEDALS ANNOUNCED

The longlists for the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals have been announced. Members of YLG have selected 20 books for each list from no less than 254 nominations.

read more...
WINNERS OF THE LAUGH OUT LOUD BOOK AWARDS 2019

Funny Women win the Lollies!

Lollies winners 2019

Elys Dolan, Emer Stamp and Tom Gates creator Liz Pichon have been named the winners of the 2019 Laugh Out Loud Awards, or Lollies.

read more...
HILARY MCKAY WINS COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD WITH ‘PERFECT’ NOVEL

Hilary McKay has won the Costa Children’s Book Award for the second time for The Skylarks’ War, a story following the loves and losses of a family growing up against the backdrop of World War One. The judges described The Skylarks’ War as ‘as perfect a novel as you could ever want to read’. She receives £5,000 and her book is now eligible for the ultimate prize - the 2018 Costa Book of the Year.

read more...
FAR FROM HOME WINS THE 2018 EDUCATIONAL WRITERS’ AWARD

The winner of the 2018 Educational Writers’ Award, the UK’s sole award for creative educational writing, is Far From Home: Refugees and Migrants Fleeing War, Persecution and Poverty by Cath Senker, a topical and richly illustrated book which sensitively examines the root causes of mass migrations of people in the 21st century.

Cath Senker wins EWA 2018

read more...
SHORTLIST ANNOUNCED FOR THE 2018 EDUCATIONAL WRITERS’ AWARD

Canvases, Codes, Clean Water & Empathy

read more...
COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD 2018: SHORTLIST ANNOUNCED

Costa have announced the shortlist for the 2018 Costa Children’s Book Award. In a record year for submissions, four novels have made it onto a strong shortlist.

read more...
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