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Books for Keeps 119 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 119 - November 1999

Cover Story
This issue's cover is from Patrick Benson's new picture book, The Sea-Thing Child by Russell Hoban. Patrick Benson is interviewed by Joanna Carey. Thanks to Walker Books for their help in producing this November cover.

BfK No. 119 Articles

Editorial - November 1999

News and comment from the Editor.
Books for a Real Christmas

Stephanie Nettell recommends books for giving.
Authorgraph No.119: Patrick Benson

Patrick Benson interviewed by Joanna Carey.
The Children’s Books of the Century

Rosemary Stones on the most important writers, artists, poets and books of the century chosen by BfK's readership.
Fin de Sièclism

Brian Alderson on children's books at the turns of the 18th and 19th centuries.
BfK Briefing - November 1999

News * Awards * Prediction Chart * Events * Obituary * Letters to the Editor
I Wish I’d Written... Josephine and Pobble and Mimi and Apricot Max

Jean Ure chooses Adèle Geras’s Josephine and Pobble and Mimi and Apricot Max.
Classics in Short No.18: Struwwelpeter

Brian Alderson on Heinrich Hoffman's Struwwelpeter.

Editor's Choice

Hair in Funny Places
Babette Cole
(Jonathan Cape)
5

The workings of the pituitary gland have seldom had such a wittily upfront version of their activities presented to young readers as in this entertaining picture book. Narrator Ted (a large teddy bear) explains to his (female) owner how her...

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New Talent

Songquest
Katherine Roberts
(Thorsons)
4

Rialle is top of the class at school and school, as in the Harry Potter books, is not of the usual kind. Rialle is being trained to be a singer, one who can use the Songs of Power which control emotion and memory, to proper...

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All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 119

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

Under 5s

  • My First ABC Book
    Jane Bunting
    4

  • Little Frog
    Christopher Gunson
    4

  • Big Brother, Little Brother
    Penny Dale
    4

  • God's Quiet Things
    Nancy Sweetland
    4

  • Simply Delicious!
    Margaret Mahy
    4

  • Old Hushwing
    Alan Brown
    4

  • Mr Wolf's Pancakes
    Jan Fearnley
    4

  • The Hollyhock Wall
    Martin Waddell
    4

  • Where is Maisy?; Where is Maisy's Panda?
    Lucy Cousins
    3

  • Well Done, Little Bear
    Martin Waddell
    3

  • Mr Bear's New Baby
    Debi Gliori
    3

  • Geraldine's Baby Brother
    Holly Keller
    3

  • Peek-a-Moo!
    Marie Torres Cimarusti
    3

  • Coming to Tea; Going Swimming; Going to Playschool; Doing the Garden
    Sarah Garland
    3

  • Sally's Fantastic Counting Book
    Paul Dowling
    3

  • Mine!
    Hiawyn Oram
    3

  • "Just One More Story"
    Dugald Steer
    3

  • The School Trip
    Nick Butterworth
    Mick Inkpen
    3

  • Sports Day
    Nick Butterworth
    Mick Inkpen
    3

  • Don't Dawdle Dorothy!
    Margrit Cruickshank
    3

  • Touch and Feel Puppy
    2

  • Runaway Rabbit
    Ron Maris
    2

  • The Clothes Book
    2

  • Reading is Fun with Dr Seuss
    2

  • One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish; The Lorax
    Dr Seuss
    1

Ages 5-8

  • Wish You Were Here (And I Wasn't): A Book of Poems and Pictures for Globetrotters
    Colin McNaughton
    5

  • Clockwise: A first look at time; The Case of the Missing Caterpillar: A first look at the life cycle of a butterfly; The Earth is Like a Roundabout: A first look at night and day
    Sam Godwin
    4

  • The Flight of the Snow Goose
    Deborah King
    4

  • In the Street; In the Home
    Kath Cox
    Pat Hughes
    4

  • My Granny's Great Escape
    Jeremy Strong
    4

  • Roald Dahl
    Emma Fischel
    3

  • Royal Blunder; Royal Blunder and the Haunted House
    Henrietta Branford
    3

  • Harry the Poisonous Centipede
    Lynne Reid Banks
    3

  • Roll Over Roly
    Anne Fine
    3

  • Bessemer
    Michael Ponsford
    3

  • Noah's Ark
    Mary Auld
    3

  • Dogblaster; The Queen's Birthday Hat
    Andrew Martyr
    Paula Martyr
    3

  • Mummy, Mummy, Where Are You?; Pay Up, Or Else!
    Ann De Bode
    Rien Broere
    3

  • Dancing Maddy
    Clare Jarrett
    3

  • The Wonky Donkey
    Jonathan Long
    Korky Paul
    3

  • Maya, Tiger Cub
    Theresa Radcliffe
    3

  • Artists; Writers
    Jillian Powell
    2

  • The Magnificent I Can Read Music Book
    Kate Petty
    Jennie Maizels
    2

  • The Firework Maker's Daughter
    Philip Pullman
    2

  • Fairy Tales From Far and Wide
    Fiona Waters
    2

  • Supermum
    Mick Manning
    1

  • The Witch of Blackberry Bottom
    Dick King-Smith
    1

  • Delilah Alone
    Jenny Nimmo
    1

Ages 8-10

  • Rainforest; The Wayland Atlas of Rainforests
    Kathryn Senior
    5

  • The Little Ships
    Louise Bordern
    5

  • Hair in Funny Places
    Babette Cole
    5

  • The Aztecs
    Peter Chrisp
    4

  • Two Weeks with the Queen
    Morris Gleitzman
    4

  • Elidor
    Alan Garner
    4

  • My Second-Best Friend
    Geraldine Kaye
    4

  • Home and School; Sport and Leisure; Travel and Transport; Work and Industry
    Neil Morris
    3

  • William and the Wolves
    Kathryn Cave
    3

  • Wallace & Gromit: A Grand Day Out
    Nick Park
    3

  • 3D Rocks and Minerals
    Cally Oldershaw
    3

  • Invisible!
    Robert Swindells
    3

  • Fitzwizo and the Good Ghost Guide
    Linda Pitt
    3

  • The Girl Who Went to the Underworld and The Girl Who Loved Food
    3

  • MacPelican's American Adventure; The Stone in the Sword
    Scoular Anderson
    3

  • What I Believe
    Alan Brown
    Andrew Langley
    2

  • We Come from South Africa
    Alison Brownlie
    2

  • Exploring Ancient Greece
    John Malam
    2

  • P.S. Longer Letter Later
    Paula Danziger
    Anne M Martin
    1

Ages 10-14

  • Tell Me No Lies
    Malorie Blackman
    4

  • Fields of Home
    Marita Conlon-McKenna
    4

  • Bumface
    Morris Gleitzman
    4

  • Gift of the Gab
    Morris Gleitzman
    4

  • The Moon King
    Siobhan Parkinson
    4

  • The School From Hell
    Yvonne Coppard
    4

  • Songquest
    Katherine Roberts
    4

  • The Eclipse of the Century
    Jan Mark
    4

  • Time; Weather
    Dr Mike Goldsmith
    3

  • Turning to Stone
    John Brindley
    3

  • Just in Time: Stories to Mark the Millennium
    3

  • The Brontes; Charles Dickens
    David Orme
    3

  • Buried Fire
    Jonathan Stroud
    3

  • Safe Harbour
    Marita Conlon-McKenna
    3

  • Ragga to Riches; The Big Diss
    Yinka Adebayo
    3

  • Fugitive
    Catherine MacPhail
    3

  • Missing
    Theresa Breslin
    3

  • The Thing that Came from Jason's Nose!; Animal Avengers
    Tony Bradman
    2

  • How to … Build a Rocket; How to … Build a Time Machine; How to … Split the Atom
    Hazel Richardson
    1

Ages 14+

  • The Guns of Easter; A Winter of Spies
    Gerard Whelan
    4

  • Stones in Water
    Donna Jo Napoli
    4

  • Censorship: Changing Attitudes 1900-2000; Poverty: Changing Attitudes 1900-2000
    Scarlett McGwire
    4

  • Leonardo
    Andrew Langley
    4

  • Virtual Sexual Reality
    Chloë Rayban
    3

  • Does Anyone Round Here Ever Listen?
    Rosie Rushton
    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

read more...
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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