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Books for Keeps 177 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 177 - July 2009

Cover Story

This issue’s cover illustration features Kevin Brooks (photograph by Charles Shearn) and his latest book, Killing God. Kevin Brooks is interviewed by Brian Alderson. Thanks to Penguin Books for their help with this July cover.

BfK No. 177 Articles

Editorial – July 2009

News and comment from the Editor.
Last Laureate Log - July 2009

Michael Rosen reflects on his Laureateship.
Windows into Illustration: Emily Gravett

Emily Gravett explains the thinking behind her picture book, Dogs.
Ten of the Best Board Books for Babies

Rosemary Stones chooses ten outstanding titles.
Prehistory and the ‘Chronicles of Ancient Darkness’

Hannah Sackett on the impact of novels set in prehistoric times.
Authorgraph No.177: Kevin Brooks

Kevin Brooks interviewed by Brian Alderson

Forum: Helping the Teachers of Reading

Alison Kelly describes work with students at Roehampton University.
BfK Briefing – July 2009

Awards * Events * News.
Hal’s Reading Diary – July 2009

Roger Mills ponders on how to encourage tenacity in Hal.
I Wish I’d Written… Island of the Blue Dolphins

Caroline Lawrence chooses Scott O’Dell’s Island of the Blue Dolphins.
Good Reads: Woldingham School

Reviews from pupils of Woldingham School, Surrey.
Classics in Short No.76: Mind Your Own Business

Brian Alderson on Michael Rosen’s Mind Your Own Business.

Editor's Choice

John Burningham
John Burningham
(Jonathan Cape)
5

Children’s book illustration’s equivalent of the Three Tenors has long been the trio of Blake, Briggs and Burningham, three illustrators whose creative genius has been central in transforming picture books for children into works of art that...

read more

New Talent

Devil's Kiss
Sarwat Chadra
(Puffin)
4

Not being a fan of The Da Vinci Code I doubted whether I would enjoy a novel whose heroine, Billi SangGreal, is the first female member of the Knights Templar. Within a few pages, however, Chadda had swept me into the hidden and...

read more

All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 177

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

Under 5s

  • Baby Pie
    Tom MacRae
    5

  • First the Egg
    Laura Vaccaro Seeger
    5

  • I Don't Want a Cool Cat
    Emma Dodd
    4

  • Love Your World
    Dawn Sirett
    3

  • What Shall I Make?
    Nandini Nayar
    3

  • Where's the Bus?
    Eileen Browne
    James Croft
    3

  • SNAP!
    Margaret Mayo
    3

  • One More Hug for Nutmeg
    Caroline Jayne Church
    3

  • On Our Way Home
    Sebastien Braun
    2

  • Maisy Bakes a Cake
    Lucy Cousins
    2

Ages 5-8

  • A Little Guide to Trees
    Kate Petty
    Jo Elworthy
    5

  • Tales from around the World: A Classic Collection
    5

  • Flabby Cat and Slobby Dog
    Jeanne Willis
    4

  • Are You Sad, Little Bear?
    Rachel Rivett
    4

  • Being Angry
    Julie Johnson
    3

  • Pirates Ahoy!
    Sophie Smiley
    3

  • The Littlest Pirate
    Sherryl Clark
    3

Ages 8-10

  • Clementine
    Sara Pennypacker
    5

  • George's Secret Key to the Universe; George's Cosmic Treasure Hunt
    Lucy Hawking
    Stephen Hawking
    Christophe Galfard
    4

  • The Underneath
    Kathi Appelt
    4

  • Tales from the Keep: Wag and the King
    Joan Lennon
    4

  • Moon
    Stewart Ross
    3

  • Mohammed's Journey: A Refugee Diary
    Anthony Robinson
    Annemarie Young
    3

  • Seven Sorcerers
    Caro King
    3

  • 6 Feet Deep
    Rose Impey
    3

  • The Raven Mysteries, Book 1: Flood and Fang
    Marcus Sedgwick
    3

  • Bodyswap: the Boy who was 84
    L P Howarth
    3

  • A Bit of a Hero
    Gervase Phinn
    3

  • Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport
    3

  • The Easter Angels
    Bob Hartman
    3

  • Agent Amelia: Spooky Ballet!
    Michael Broad
    2

Ages 10-14

  • Greenpeace
    Sean Connolly
    5

  • Fever Crumb
    Philip Reeve
    5

  • Love Aubrey
    Suzanne LaFleur
    5

  • Evolution Revolution
    Robert Winston
    4

  • Are We Running Out of Energy?
    Christiane Dorion
    4

  • Skulduggery Pleasant: The Faceless Ones
    Derek Landy
    4

  • The Joshua Files: Ice Shock
    M G Harris
    4

  • The Vanishing of Katharina Linden
    Helen Grant
    4

  • Bloodline Rising
    Katy Moran
    4

  • Devil's Kiss
    Sarwat Chadra
    4

  • The Book of a Thousand Days
    Shannon Hale
    4

  • Tim, Defender of the Earth
    Sam Enthoven
    4

  • Gullstruck Island
    Frances Hardinge
    3

  • Tuck
    Stephen R Lawhead
    3

  • The Pickle King
    Rebecca Promitzer
    3

  • If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
    Pseudonymous Bosch
    3

  • Sharp Shot
    Jack Higgins
    Justin Richards
    3

  • A Lazlo Strangolov's Feather and Bone
    Lazlo Strangolov
    3

  • The Runaway
    Angela McAllister
    3

  • The Well Between the Worlds
    Sam Llewellyn
    2

  • The Secret Ministry of Frost
    Nick Lake
    2

  • Spartan Warrior: Legacy of Blood
    Michael Ford
    2

Ages 14+

  • Everything Beautiful
    Simmone Howell
    5

  • Bonechiller
    Graham McNamee
    4

  • The Forest of Hands and Teeth
    Carrie Ryan
    4

  • Dido
    Adèle Geras
    4

  • If I Stay
    Gayle Forman
    4

  • Iraq
    Geoff Barker
    3

  • The Ask and the Answer
    Patrick Ness
    3

  • Bye Bye Birdie
    Shirley Hughes
    3

  • Nicholas Dane
    Melvin Burgess
    2

Books About Children's Books

  • John Burningham
    John Burningham
    5

  • The Hidden Roads: A Memoir of Childhood
    Kevin Crossley-Holland
    3

  • Death, Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Adolescent Literature
    Kathryn James
    3

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)

read more...
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.

read more...
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