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Books for Keeps 132 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 132 - January 2002

Cover Story
This issue's cover is from Theresa Breslin's Remembrance. Theresa Breslin is interviewed by George Hunt. Thanks to Transworld Children's Books for their help with this January cover.

BfK No. 132 Articles

Editorial - January 2002

News and comment from the Editor.
New Teenage Lists

Julia Eccleshare on publishing for teens.
Windows into Illustration: Jez Alborough

Jez Alborough on his recent picture book, Fix-It Duck.
Why Babies Need Books

Susan Straub on using Owl Babies with teenage mums.
Inspiring 'Reluctant' Readers

Jane Gardiner on how Tim became a reader and Alison Forrest on a book that's anything but flat...
Authorgraph No.132: Theresa Breslin

Theresa Breslin interviewed by George Hunt.
Studying Children's Literature

Margaret Meek on the 'Contemporary Classics of Children's Literature' series.
The Craft of Writing?

Jan Mark on the role of the editor.
BfK Briefing - January 2002

News * Awards * Publications * Letter to the Editor
Useful Organisations No:19: Booktrust

Independent charity promoting books and reading via projects, including Bookstart and Children's Book Week, and several literary prizes.
I Wish I'd Written... Shadow the Sheepdog

Gaye Hiçyilmaz chooses Enid Blyton's Shadow the Sheepdog.
Good Reads: Beachborough

Reviews from pupils of Beachborough, Northamptonshire.
Classics in Short No.31: Moomintroll series

Brian Alderson on the Moomintroll series.

Editor's Choice

What Planet Are You From Clarice Bean?
Lauren Child
(Orchard Books)
5

Lauren Child does not put a foot wrong in this latest Clarice Bean picture book in which Clarice becomes an eco-warrior by helping to save a tree. A classroom project on the environment introduces us to Clarice's teacher and class mates - all...

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New Talent

Feather Boy
Nicky Singer
(HarperCollinsChildren'sBooks)
5

Bullied on the way to school and then tormented at school, 12-year-old Robert does not want to burden his hardworking single parent mum with his troubles. A school project working with people in an old people's home initially seems destined to...

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All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 132

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

Under 5s

  • Crossing
    Philip Booth
    5

  • Little Farmer Joe
    Ian Whybrow
    5

  • Five Little Fiends
    Sarah Dyer
    4

  • The Water Hole
    Graeme Base
    4

  • The Pear in the Pear Tree
    Pamela Allen
    4

  • Flop-Ear and Annie
    Guido Van Genechten
    4

  • Three Cheers for Ostrich!
    Francesca Simon
    4

  • Racing Bears ¦ Pudding Face ¦ Ness the Nurse
    Steve Lavis
    4

  • Old Bob's Brown Bear
    Niki Daly
    4

  • Bark, George
    Jules Feiffer
    4

  • Flora's Blanket
    Debi Gliori
    4

  • Babies like ME!
    Malachy Doyle
    4

  • Carlo Likes Reading
    Jessica Spanyol
    3

  • Bringing Down the Moon
    Jonathan Emmett
    3

  • Hen goes to Market
    Mark Birchall
    3

  • Toffee's New Friend
    Sally Chambers
    3

  • Silly Goose and Daft Duck Try to Catch a Rainbow ¦ Ten in a Bed ¦ Goodbye, Hello!
    Sally Grindley
    2

Ages 5-8

  • Bat Loves the Night
    Nicola Davies
    5

  • A Poem a Day
    5

  • What Planet Are You From Clarice Bean?
    Lauren Child
    5

  • One Tiny Turtle
    Nicola Davies
    4

  • Snow Dog
    Malorie Blackman
    3

  • The Glass Heart: a tale of three princesses
    Sally Gardner
    3

  • Rufferella
    Vanessa Gill-Brown
    3

  • Creepy Castle
    Colin Hawkins
    Jacqui Hawkins
    2

Ages 8-10

  • Ocean World
    David Orme
    Helen Bird
    5

  • A Christmas Carol
    Charles Dickens
    5

  • Snollygoster and Other Poems
    Helen Dunmore
    5

  • Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Life
    David Lambert
    Darren Naish
    Elizabeth Wyse
    5

  • Jim Hawkins and the Curse of Treasure Island
    Francis Bryan
    4

  • Midnight Blue
    Pauline Fisk
    4

  • Mr Majeika on the Internet
    Humphrey Carpenter
    4

  • Why Beethoven Threw the Stew
    Steven Isserlis
    3

  • Gold Rush ¦ Moon Landing ¦ The True Mystery of the Mary Celeste ¦ Titanic
    Valerie Wilding
    3

  • The House of Arden
    E Nesbit
    3

  • More Stories to Make You Think
    Heather Butler
    3

  • Funny Frank
    Dick King-Smith
    3

  • The Little Duke
    Charlotte M Yonge
    3

  • The Puffin Book of Stories for Ten-Year-Olds
    3

  • 100 Best Poems for Children
    3

  • The Children Who Lived in a Barn
    Eleanor Graham
    2

  • The Witch Trade
    Michael Molloy
    2

  • Out of the Ashes
    Michael Morpurgo
    2

  • The Driftway
    Penelope Lively
    2

  • The Nation's Favourite Children's Poems
    1

Ages 10-14

  • Gathering Blue
    Lois Lowry
    5

  • Feather Boy
    Nicky Singer
    5

  • The Pearl ¦ The Red Pony
    John Steinbeck
    5

  • Adults Only
    Morris Gleitzman
    5

  • The 14th Dalai Lama
    Whitney Stewart
    4

  • Song Quest ¦ Crystal Mask
    Katherine Roberts
    4

  • Sabrina Fludde
    Pauline Fisk
    3

  • The Usborne Book of Peoples of the World
    Gillian Doherty
    Anna Claybourne
    2

  • Shakespeare Stories: A Midsummer Night's Dream
    Leon Garfield
    2

  • Dr Franklin's Island
    Ann Halam
    2

  • Holly Starcross
    Berlie Doherty
    2

Ages 14+

  • And what about Anna?
    Jan Simoen
    5

  • Daughter
    Ishbel Moore
    4

  • Stargirl
    Jerry Spinelli
    4

  • Haiti: Land of Inequality ¦ Kurdistan: Region under Siege ¦ Tibet: Disputed Land ¦ Sudan: North against South ¦ Rwanda: Country Torn Apart
    Mary C Turck
    3

Books About Children's Books

  • The Reader in the Writer: The links between the study of literature and writing development at Key Stage 2
    Myra Barrs
    Valerie Cork
    5

  • Tintin: The Complete Companion
    Michael Farr
    3

BfK News

NATASHA FARRANT WINS 2020 COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD

Natasha Farrant

Writer and literary scout Natasha Farrant has won the 2020 Costa Children’s Book Award for Voyage of the Sparrowhawk, a book which the judges described as ‘pure heavenly escapism and a purely joyful read.’

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ROBIN WALKER WINS THE 2020 ALCS EDUCATIONAL WRITERS’ AWARD FOR BLACK HISTORY MATTERS

The winner of the 2020 ALCS Educational Writers’ Award is Black History Matters: The Story of Black History, From African Kingdoms to Black Lives Matter. Written by acclaimed Black historian, Robin Walker, the 2020 judges praised this accessible, comprehensive and inspiring book which provides a timely introduction both to Black history and the Black Lives Matter movement.

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IBBY UK nominate Marcus Sedgwick and David McKee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award 2022

IBBY UK has announced that Marcus Sedgwick and David McKee will be the UK nominations for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award.

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SHORTLIST FOR THE COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD 2020

Debut authors Darren Charlton and Jenny Pearson join Natasha Farrant and Meg Rosoff on the shortlist for the 2020 Costa Children’s Book Award.

The shortlist for the 2020 Costa Children’s Book Award has been announced. No less than 146 books were submitted and from those the judges have chosen a shortlist of four. They are:

Wranglestone by Darren Charlton (Little Tiger)

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BOOKTRUST’S REPRESENTS INTERIM RESEARCH & CLPE REFLECTING REALITIES SURVEY 2020

CLPE Reflecting Realities Report 2020

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SHORTLIST FOR THE 2021 BLUE PETER BOOK AWARDS REVEALED

The six books shortlisted for the 2021 Blue Peter Book Awards have been announced.

Blue Peter Book Award logo

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Happy National Non-Fiction November 2020

It’s National Non-Fiction November! Organised by the Federation of Children’s Book Groups, National Non-Fiction November is an annual celebration of the power of non-fiction to inspire children and celebrate readers who have a passion for information and facts. 2020 is the 10th anniversary of National Non-Fiction November.

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JANE PORTER AND MAISIE PARADISE SHEARRING 2020 LITTLE REBELS AWARD WINNERS

Jane Porter and Maisie Paradise Shearring have won the 2020 Little Rebels Award for their picture book The Boy who Loved Everyone. They will share the £2000 prize.

Little Rebels logo 2020

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OU AND MACMILLAN CHILDREN’S BOOKS LAUNCH BOOK CHAT SCHEME

The Open University (OU) is launching Book Chat: Reading with your Child, a resource which comprises three short films and support materials to help parents, families and carers read books conversationally and creatively to children. Working with Macmillan Children’s Books, the films use a selection of their picture books and a poetry collection to support families with reading to different ages of children.

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TOM PALMER WINS THE CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD 2020

Tom Palmer

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