"The most important periodical in the world of British children's books."
Sir Philip Pullman, CBE, FRSL
BfK 263 November 2023
This issue’s cover illustration is from The Snow Girl by Sophie Anderson, illustrated by Melissa Castrillón. Thanks to Usborne for their help with this Christmas cover.
Leo is bemused – he feels increasingly separated from the world and he is prey to bizarre experiences: a hawk hovers endlessly in the sky, apparently frozen. A runner is similarly and permanently held in mid-stride-and only Leo sees these conundrums. However, it’s not just the world which seems odd to him, but his own body, too. His limbs spasm or freeze and no-one, not even doctors, can explain why. His childhood m …
Leo is bemused – he feels increasingly separated from the world and he is prey to bizarre experiences: a hawk hovers endlessly in the sky, apparently frozen. A runner is similarly and permanently held in mid-stride-and only Leo sees these conundrums. However, it’s not just the world which seems odd to him, but his own body, too. His limbs spasm or freeze and no-one, not even doctors, can explain why. His childhood memories have vanished from his mind and it is only at someone’s prompting that they return to him. Even then, we – and Leo – are unsure of their authenticity and thus flickers of uncertainty begin to communicate themselves to the reader. In the midst of these anomalies Leo’s parents go on holiday for two weeks and his eccentric Uncle Toby, a celebrated poet and bon viveur, comes to keep him company – a watchful eye …
‘When most fathers shuffle away to the great shed in the beyond, their kids inherit things like their LP collection, a carefully curated selection of humorous postcards or a dicky bladder. I inherited a world.’ So says Rhianna Pratchett about her father, Terry. Together with children’s author Gabrielle Kent, a self-described resident of the Disc since her school days, Rhianna has created Tiffany A …
View Full InterviewIt’s a happy tenth birthday to Flying Eye Books, a publisher consistently bringing us intriguing, original and distinctive books. Sam Arthur, Co-Founder/Creative Director looks back, and forward. The story I tell ab …
TikTok, mystical beasts, romantasies (no, us neither), it’s been another busy and exciting year in children’s publishing. Fads aside, which are the books that really stood out and which are the books we’ll be readin …
From the origins of life to the mysteries of the unexplained, Sue McGonigle selects recently published non-fiction that could find a place under the Christmas tree. The Natural World What’s Wild Outside your Door? b …
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Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.
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