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Books for Keeps 172 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 172 - September 2008

Cover Story
This issue’s cover illustration by Mick Inkpen is from a new Kipper title, Hide Me, Kipper! (978 0 340 97045 4, £10.99 hbk). Mick Inkpen discusses his work here. Thanks to Hodder Children’s Books for their help with this September cover.

BfK No. 172 Articles

Editorial - September 2008

News and comment from the Editor.
Book to Screen

Julia Jarman on translating story into film.
Windows into Illustration: Mick Inkpen

Mick Inkpen explains the thinking behind his illustrations.
Proust and the Squid: The story and science of the reading brain

Henrietta Dombey explores Maryanne Wolf's application of neuroscience.
Authorgraph No.172: Anne Cassidy

Anne Cassidy interviewed by Julia Eccleshare.
Peter Dickinson and the Hazards of Storytelling

Brian Alderson assesses Dickinson's oeuvre.
Peter Dickinson: some information on his books for children

Brian Alderson provides further information on Dickinson's oeuvre.
BfK Briefing – September 2008

Awards
Obituary: David Self

Geraldine Brennan remembers David Self.
Hal’s Reading Diary – September 2008

Roger Mills is trying not to push Hal to read.
Good Reads: Holy Trinity CE Primary School, Cheltenham

Reviews from pupils of Holy Trinity CE Primary School, Cheltenham.
I Wish I’d Written… Coraline

Joanne Harris chooses Neil Gaiman's Coraline.
Laureate Log - September 2008

Michael Rosen meets DCSF Early Years people and goes on tour.
Classics in Short No.71: Anne of Green Gables

Brian Alderson on L M Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables.

Editor's Choice

Mr Pusskins and Little Whiskers
Sam Lloyd
(Orchard)
5

In this the second book about the relationship between Mr Pusskins and his owner Emily, peace and harmony are disturbed by the arrival of (from Mr P’s point of view) an unwelcome intruder. Emily presents Mr P with a ‘fabulous surprise’, a demure...

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New Talent

The Mysterious Benedict Society
Trenton Lee Stewart
(Chicken House)
4

‘Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?’ asks a newspaper advertisement. Many children apply. While written questions have to be answered, the exam also involves putting the children in situations which test them in ways...

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All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 172

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

Under 5s

  • Not a Box
    Antoinette Portis
    5

  • Mr Pusskins and Little Whiskers
    Sam Lloyd
    5

  • Grumpy Cat
    Britta Teckentrup
    5

  • The Growing Story
    Ruth Krauss
    5

  • Emily Goes to Market
    William Mayne
    5

  • Elmer and the Big Bird
    David McKee
    5

  • Chicky Chicky Chook Chook
    Cathy MacLennan
    5

  • Wriggle Piggy Toes
    John Agard
    4

  • The Very Funny Fish
    Jack Tickle
    4

  • Tweedle Dee Dee
    Charlotte Voake
    4

  • Big Yellow Sunflower ¦ Little Green Frog
    Frances Barry
    4

  • Ha Ha, Baby!
    Kate Petty
    4

  • The Teazles' Baby Bunny
    Susan Bagnall
    3

  • The Smallest Samurai
    Fiona French
    3

  • I Love Korky
    Teddy Slater
    3

  • Darkness Slipped In
    Ella Burfoot
    3

  • Lulu's Shoes
    Camilla Reid
    2

Ages 5-8

  • Grandpa's Boat
    Michael Catchpool
    5

  • Aunt Nancy and the Bothersome Visitors
    Phyllis Root
    5

  • Ten Frogs: A book about counting in English and French
    Quentin Blake
    4

  • The Snow Leopard
    Jackie Morris
    4

  • Bubbles in the Bathroom ¦ Shadows in the Bedroom
    Susan Martineau
    4

  • Leon Spreads His Wings
    Wendy Lee
    4

  • The Faraway Island
    Dianne Hofmeyr
    4

  • Meggie Moon ¦ The Wish Cat
    Elizabeth Baguley
    3

  • Whizz-Bang Winnie
    Laura Owen
    3

  • Pirate Princess: Poppy
    Judy Brown
    3

  • The Land of the Dragon King and other Korean stories
    Gillian McClure
    3

  • Just One Peaceful Pond ¦ Just One Quiet Pine Tree
    Chris Butterworth
    3

  • Hansel and Gretel
    The Brothers Grimm
    3

  • Elfa and the Box of Memories
    Michelle Bell
    3

  • Can Anybody Hear Me?
    Jessica Meserve
    3

Ages 8-10

  • Space
    Carole Stott
    4

  • The Mysterious Benedict Society
    Trenton Lee Stewart
    4

  • Warrior King
    Sue Purkiss
    3

  • My Parents' Divorce
    Julia Cole
    3

  • Grk Smells a Rat!
    Joshua Doder
    3

  • Dinosaur Hunter
    Jen Green
    3

  • Angel Boy
    Bernard Ashley
    3

  • 101 Ways to Save the Earth
    David Bellamy
    3

Ages 10-14

  • The Ropes: poems to hold on to
    5

  • Before Green Gables
    Budge Wilson
    5

  • Young Samurai: The Way of the Warrior
    Chris Bradford
    4

  • Strange Hiding Place
    Graham Marks
    4

  • Show Me the Money
    Alvin Hall
    4

  • Ginger Snaps
    Cathy Cassidy
    4

  • Everything I Know About You
    Belinda Hollyer
    4

  • Atlas of Exploration
    Anita Ganeri
    Andrea Mills
    4

  • Vortex
    Chris Ryan
    3

  • Spy Girl: Dead Man Talking
    Carol Hedges
    3

  • The Roar
    Emma Clayton
    3

  • Puppet Master
    Joanne Owen
    3

  • One Small Step
    P B Kerr
    3

  • The Night of the Burning
    Linda Press Wulf
    3

  • Kid Swap
    Michael Lawrence
    3

  • The Fire Eternal
    Chris D'Lacey
    3

  • Eye of the Sun
    Dianne Hofmeyr
    2

  • Beijing
    Richard Platt
    2

Ages 14+

  • Rain
    Kate Le Vann
    5

  • The Ghost's Child
    Sonya Hartnett
    5

  • Red Spikes
    Margo Lanagan
    4

  • The Last Free Cat
    Jon Blake
    4

  • Hush: A Slave Princess' Tale
    Donna Jo Napoli
    4

  • From Somalia, with love
    Na'ima B Robert
    4

  • Creature of the Night
    Kate Thompson
    4

  • The Luxe
    Anna Godbersen
    3

  • Generation Dead
    Daniel Waters
    2

BfK News

A Passion for Picture books

‘Although interest in the art of the picture book seems to have grown greatly in recent years, study of the field has remained polarised in its nature and perceptions,’ claim the authors of an important new book, Children’s Picturebooks: The art of visual storytelling.

Books for Keeps invited co-writers Martin Salisbury and Morag Styles to explain their aim to bring together ideas from the world of literature and education with ideas from the field of art and design.

read more...
BLOOD RED ROAD WINS 2011 COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD

For the second year in succession, a debut novel has won the Costa Children’s Book Award. The 2011 prize went to Jason Wallace for his novel Out of Shadows; this year’s prize has gone to Moira Young for her book Blood Red Road.

Set in a dystopian future world, Blood Red Road tells the story of 18-year-old Saba, a tough young woman who embarks on an epic quest to rescue her twin brother when he is kidnapped by four mysterious horsemen.

read more...
Behind the Bookshelf

A new way of bringing authors into the classroom – and a special competition for Books for Keeps readers.

read more...
2011 Educational Writers’ Award Winner Announced

The winner of the 2011 Educational Writers’ Award is Moon: Apollo 11 and Beyond…The Ultimate Guide to Our Nearest Neighbour by Stewart Ross.

The Educational Writers’ Award was established in 2008 by ALCS and The Society of Authors to celebrate educational writing that inspires creativity and encourages students to read widely and build up their understanding of a subject beyond the requirements of exam specifications.

read more...
Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize winner announced

The winner of the 2011 Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize is How the World Works, an interactive opus that uses illustrations, pop ups, flaps and more to make children think about the impact of human actions on our environment, while encouraging respect for the natural world.

read more...
Muslim Writers Awards 2011

Na'ima B Robert's Far from Home (Frances Lincoln) has won the Published Children's Book category of the Muslim Writers Awards.

The Awards were held at the Globe Theatre on Tuesday 22nd November and acknowledged dramatists and young journalists as well as authors.

read more...
2011 Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize

After a two year gap when, due to funding issues it was not awarded, The Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize 2011 will be awarded on Thursday 1st December, thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor.

The prize celebrates the books that best communicate science to young people aged up to 14 and there are six books on the shortlist. They are:

The Icky Sticky Blood and Snot Book by Steve Alton and Nick Sharratt (Bodley Head)

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Liz Pichon and Peter Bently: Roald Dahl Funny Prize Winners

Winners Roald Dahl Prize 2011 2Tuesday 8th November saw the fourth annual Roald Dahl Funny Prize ceremony, which again took place at the Unicorn Theatre. This year Chair, and instigator of the prize, Michael Rosen was joined on the judging panel by author and broadcaster Grace Dent, illustrator Tony Ross, Horrid Henry creator Francesca Simon and journalist/scriptwriter Danny Wallace.

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PIRATE CATS AND DOODLING SCHOOLBOY WIN THE 2011 ROALD DAHL FUNNY BOOK PRIZE

Roald Dahl Winners 2011Peter Bently and Liz Pichon have been announced as winners of the 2011 Roald Dahl Funny Book Prize. 

read more...
FIRST SLA INFORMATION BOOK AWARD: WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Adrian Dingle’s book How to make a Universe with 92 Ingredients (Scholastic) and The Life and Times of William Shakespeare by Kirsten McDermott and Ari Berk (Templar) were announced winners of the first SLA Information Book Award at a celebration event in London last night, Wednesday 2nd November.

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