Latest news with #childrensliterature
BBC News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Jacqueline Wilson: 'I don't want to return to Tracy Beaker as an adult because we'd learn about her sex life'
Celebrated children's author Jacqueline Wilson has said she "would feel very wary" of writing about her beloved character Tracy Beaker in an adult book because "it would seem inappropriate [as] we would learn about Tracy's sex life".Dame Jacqueline has touched on Beaker as an adult through the eyes of the character's daughter Jess in her children's books My Mum Tracy Beaker and The Beaker Girls. But having recently announced Picture Imperfect, an adult sequel to her 1999 children's book, The Illustrated Mum, it doesn't look like an adult book based on Beaker will follow suit."I don't want to go there. That's my girl [Tracy] who I made everything happen for," Dame Jacqueline told an audience at the Hay Festival. She added that she had said "no, I would never do that" before, when planning future writing projects, but noted she had sometimes changed her mind, "so who knows?"Dame Jaqueline's Tracy Beaker books were made into a popular TV series for the BBC. Beaker was a young girl who was placed in a children's home due to neglect and domestic violence. The author said that she did generally enjoy returning to some of her characters once they had grown up: "I've been thinking about it over the years, because I've invented so many different girls, and it's interesting to think what happens to them when you finish writing about them."Dame Jacqueline recently brought back Ellie, Magda and Nadine in her adult fiction book Think Again, a continuation of her Girls in Love novels. The much-loved author, who was made a dame in 2008, is known for writing about difficult and dark issues in accessible of her books, some of which explore topics such as suicide, mental health and divorce, are aimed at children aged between seven and foray into adult books has brought a new kind of satisfaction, she explained."I'm an obsessive writer but worry people think I'm churning that [same] stuff out again, so it's lovely to challenge yourself."She said she enjoyed seeing many of her audiences come along to see her at events "because they read my books as children"."The children are still keen but it's the mums that get really excited! It's like a sort of farewell tour that hopefully will go on." Writing in pyjamas Despite having written more than 100 books, Dame Jacqueline said she still felt anxious when writing."Always about halfway through a book, even now, you think 'I've got the hang of this with all these books that I've written', but I get that terrible doubt and worry about it and and it's just something you learn. Work through it, get to the end."One habit that must help is that she writes in her pyjamas in bed, once she's fed the cat and let the dogs out first thing in the morning. "That's the magic time, and it just works for me. Apparently Michael Morpurgo does exactly the same!"But it wasn't always so easy to pick and choose her times to Jacqueline said: "I was idiotic enough to be married at 19 and had a child at 21."My husband wasn't a terrible man in the slightest but it was an age [the 1960s] when men went out and did, and women did everything else."She said she "adored" her baby daughter but she would only sleep for two hours at a time. When she did doze off, Dame Jacqueline said she wanted to sleep too but used the short window available to write. She got a little more time when her daughter Emma went to nursery in the mornings."It gave me an urgency. I'd write for two hours and then concentrate on her in the afternoon." Now the writing challenges are different, with the threat of AI looming over the writing profession. But Wilson doesn't seem too worried about it."I take comfort from the fact that my partner's brother-in-law... asked some AI thing to write a story for his daughter in the style of Jacqueline Wilson, and then he sent it to us. And either I've been blissfully unaware and I've been writing garbage or.... it was just unbearably awful."
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
The best new children's books
It's often said that we're living in a Golden Age of children's literature. There are 10,000 or so new titles published each year in the UK, accounting for an astonishing one in three books sold. And as the numbers have boomed, the genres have multiplied – a change particularly evident in the last 10 years, since I began reviewing children's books for The Telegraph. Whereas once a novel might simply have been labelled a 'fantasy', today the sub-divisions range from 'eco-fantasy' to 'romantasy' and all things in between. Emerging authors have never faced so much competition. While the first Golden Age of Children's Fiction, which took off in the 1850s, was dominated by a handful of authors (JM Barrie, Robert Louis Stevenson and Lewis Carroll among them), today there are hundreds of household names in the field. With dozens of stunning new novels and picture books appearing each week, it's only frustrating that we can't give even more of them the coverage they deserve. So, with apologies for any omissions, here's our list of the essential new books to buy for today's young reader. The Scream of the Whistle ★★★★☆ by Emily Randall-Jones Any child who has raced through Roald Dahl 's The Witches, waiting to see if the Grand High Witch will succeed in her plan to turn all the children in England into mice, will tell you that young readers have a healthy appetite for the macabre. And Emily Randall-Jones will not disappoint them. Her first novel, The Witchstone Ghosts (2023), told the story of a young girl who can see the ghost of every dead soul, save for that of her father. Now comes The Scream of the Whistle – which may sound like a chapter from Malory Towers, but is being billed by Randall-Jones's publishers as a terrifying tale of 'paranormal horror'. Crikey, you might think. Will it be suitable for the recommended reading age of nine-plus? The heroine of the story is Ruby, who is miserable following her parents' separation. Until recently, the family lived in a house with sheet glass kitchen doors and a 'games cupboard that stretched to the ceiling'. But now Ruby and her mother and her older brother Sam have to move in with their grandmother, 'Gram', who lives in a cramped cottage in the run-down village of Melbridge. The local station is long closed, and the houses resemble 'ghosts of the long-dead railway village, made from stone as grey as storm clouds… The heart had long gone. Melbridge was a ruined shrine to something dead. The houses were its mourners.' Ruby longs to escape – and when she discovers that the disused railway line runs from Melbridge to her old home in Little Hampton, she decides to follow it on foot. An ancient steam train appears out of the mist, and a benevolent-looking Conductor offers her a free ride. ('Come along, miss. The Green Lady is waiting.') Ruby cannot resist. But The Green Lady is not all it appears – and no sooner has Ruby stepped on board than she finds herself transported on a ghostly journey back in time, where she's forced to confront her family's long-buried secrets. Was Gram's grandfather really to blame for the fatal train crash in 1925 that resulted in Melbridge's station's closure? And can Ruby turn back the curse that has shrouded the village ever since? One of the pitfalls of children's ghost stories is that the supernatural elements are so fantastic that they overwhelm the plot. But there's no such danger here. The action is brisk, and Randall-Jones keeps the focus firmly fixed on our nervous young narrator, ensuring that every ghoulish image is filtered through her eyes. ('In the dim light, the Conductor's eye sockets seemed to sink into themselves. As if they were empty. As if his head were only a skull… [then his] bony face turned human again. It did funny things, darkness.') The result is that this is more a story of derring-do than 'paranormal horror' – and all the better for that.
Geek Dad
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Dad
Stack Overflow: 6 Books for May
On this roundup list, we celebrate my usual favorites: board books, books in translation, migrant stories, and even an early reader graphic novel that I enjoyed a bit too much. Let's start with picture books: Cristina Plays by Micaela Chirif (Author), Paula Ortiz (Illustrator), Lawrence Schimel (Translator) Micaela Chirif is an award-winning Peruvian author of children's books and poetry, and I am glad that we are finally giving some space to widely recognized authors like her (it has taken far too long). In this book, Cristina is playing with a doll house that has a rabbit doll. Cristina will soon exchange her place in the doll's house with her doll, in a vivid dream that displays her imagination, dwelling in a poetic way on what children feel when involved in representational play. Cristina Plays is on sale since April 15, 2025. Publisher: Orca Book Publishers Pages: 36/ Hardback EAN/UPC: 9781459841178 Up next, the idea behind the book gives voice to dads: Love, Dad: Inspiring Notes from Fathers to Kids by Andrew Gardner (Author), Joel Warsh (Author), David Cooper (Illustrator) This illustrated take on parents' wishes is nice because it portrays a wide array of loving dads, something we don't get enough of: When you grow up, I hope you… …let your smile change the world …feel you are loved, in every cell of your body …learn how to help those who need a hand Eighteen fathers are asked to finish the sentence above, and the eighteen wishes have lot in common. They all wish for their offspring to do well, to be brave and kind, and to learn to help others. As parents, we wish the best for our kids, always, but we rarely get to say it, we are busy barking orders, giving advice, and trying to survive. This letter anthology helps parents go past that. Love, Dad is on sale since April 08, 2025. Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers Pages: 40/ Hardback ISBN: 9780593572160 Up next, an early reader graphic novel (I didn't know those even existed!). Pencil & Eraser: Lost and Frown! by Jenny Alvarado (Author) This is the second adventure of a pencil and eraser BFFs. I have to say that the first one, Pencil & Eraser: We Have a Dull-Emma! was hilarious, especially if you are very young, first starting in the world of comics (the page layout is early reader friendly) and love corny jokes. If you are not into corny jokes, this book is definitely not for you. The joke breaks that happen sporadically in the book are fabulously corny: What is a ninja's favorite juice? Fruit Punch! (You get the idea…). In the first novel, Pencil is dull and convinces Eraser to go on a sharpener-hunt throughout the school, having loads of adventures in the process. In the second book, they fall out of their owner's bag on their way to karate, and have to navigate the town to get there, with a fun stop in the Arcade! These two friends are fun, relatable, and you have to admit that eraser is the practical one of the pair, but she loves her partner's goofiness very much. Pencil & Eraser: Lost and Frown! is on sale since May 06, 2025. Published by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers Hardback | Pages: 80 ISBN: 9780593699812 Now for a beautiful book about solidarity: New Shoes for Leo by Lauren Agra Deedy (Author), Susan Gal (Illustrator) Susan Gal has made something beautiful for this book, rendering it in a soft light that warms everything it touches. And it is a warm story. A young Cuban American boy must help fill a box for relatives on the island, an endeavor migrant families do for every country in the world: they send clothes, medicine, and knickknacks to poorer relatives on their country of origin, sometimes monthly, to help those who are having a harder time than them. William's Mami and his Tía Ana ask him to help on a task for a young boy just about his age: find shoes for him to be shipped to Cuba. Cousin Leo, he will soon discover, has a lot in common with him. He also has freckles, loves baseball, and is loved very much by his close-knit family. But no one has the right size for him! What can William do to fulfill his task? William is about to learn a very important lesson about love and solidarity, just by fulfilling this apparently simple task. New Shoes for Leo is on sale since March 04, 2025. Published by Scholastic Press Hardback | Pages: 40 ISBN: 9781338770216 Now for a recently translated book: Newborns. How Baby Animals Come Into the World by Paulina Jara (Author), Mercè Galí (Illustrator), Lawrence Schimel (Translator) On this lengthy nonfiction book, there are 25 diverse ways to come into this world, from little tiny kangaroos that crawl to their mother's pouch being the size of a pea, and continue to grow there, to baby tadpoles, tiny newborn spiders and cougars, all of them unique and a testimony to the marvel of evolution. Some gestation periods are days; some are years. Some babies are born ready to fend for themselves, while others rely on their parents for months. The only thing I did not like where the illustrations. I feel that a quirkier, more detailed look at animal expressions and baby faces would have made the book more relatable to young readers. Newborns is on sale since March 11, 2025 Publisher: Orca Book Publishers Hardback | Pages: 64 ISBN: 9781459840348 Finally, this book inspired Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki: The Village Beyond the Mist by Sachiko Kashiwaba (Author), Miho Satake (Illustrator), Avery Fischer Udagawa (Translator) This book, which inspired a famous Miyazaki movie, has little in common with the story portrayed in the film. As a fan of Kashibawa's work, I would be doing her a disservice if I said that the story was not magical on itself, it truly is! She has an ability for magical tales as strong as Dianne Wayne Jones'. When a young Lina is sent all by herself to a place called Misty Valley, she is in for an adventure. The village is connected to different places and times, the town is not on any map, and the headmistress of the house looks like the witch in Spirited Away , but the adventures are very different. There is a magical bookstore that is in itself a gateway to all magical bookstores in the world, there is a Pastry Chef that deals with enchanted desserts, and there are centaurs, gnomes, and other types of quirky characters roaming about. Misty Valley is a place where you go when you need to learn something, and you would not be able to find it if you were not going to change by experiencing it. After 50 years of being a beloved classic in Japan, I truly celebrate its translation into English. The Village Beyond the Mist is available since May 27, 2025. Publisher: Yonder 160 Pages/ Hardback EAN/UPC 9781632063922 Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon! Ken Denmead Editor-in-Chief Matt Blum Managing Editor Z Associate Editors/GeekMom Partners Jenny Bristol Senior Editors Jonathan H. Liu, Patricia Volmer, Sophie Brown Associate Publishers* David Michael, Gerry Tolbert, Andrew Smith, Ray Wehrs, Joel Becker, Scott Gaeta, Beth Kee, Joey Mills, talkie_tim, Danny Marquardt, Adam Bruski, John Bain, Bill Moore, Adam Frank, Lacey Hays, Peter Morson, James Needham, Matt Fleming, Adam Anderson, Jim Reynolds, Seiler Hagan, Bryan Wade, Petrov Neutrino, Jay Shapiro Editor (Emeritus) Chris Anderson Contributors Paul Benson, Darren Blankenship, John Booth, Jenny Bristol, Rory Bristol, Robin Brooks, Tom Fassbender, Whit Honea, Rob Huddleston, Will James, Michael Knight, Joey Mills, Brad Moon, Anton Olsen, Skip Owens, Mariana Ruiz, Derrick Schneider, Tony Sims, Dakster Sullivan, Mark Vorenkamp *Thanks for your support on Patreon!
