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Books for Keeps 125 - the children's book magazine online

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BfK No. 125 - November 2000

Cover Story
The anarchic hero of many daring adventures, William, as depicted on our cover by Thomas Henry in one of his effective, humorous pen and ink illustrations, is now a period piece. A William de nos jours illustrated by Tony Ross and aimed at a younger audience stands alongside him. This new William will be featured in adaptations of the stories by Martin Jarvis. Richmal Crompton, author of the William books, is the subject of this issue's Authorgraph. Thanks to Macmillan Children’s Books for their help with this November cover.

BfK No. 125 Articles

Editorial - November 2000

News and comment from the Editor.
Books for Giving

Joanna Carey on beautiful gifts for Christmas.
Authorgraph No.125: Richmal Crompton

Richmal Crompton assessed by Mary Cadogan.
Adults Reading Children’s Books

Margaret Meek on reader responses, adult and child.
BfK Briefing - November 2000

News * Publication * Letter to the Editor * Awards
Useful Organisations No.12: The Historical Association

Offers journals, e-mail newsletter, lectures, events and discounts on books and visits.

I Wish I’d Written… The Emperor’s Egg

Richard Platt chooses Martin Jenkins and Jane Chapman's The Emperor's Egg.
Good Reads: Orchard County Junior School

Reviews from pupils of Orchard County Junior School, Dibden Purlieu, Southampton.
Classics in Short No.24: The Wizard of Oz

Brian Alderson on L Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz.

Editor's Choice

Sea-Cat and Dragon King
Angela Carter
(Bloomsbury Publishing PLC)
4

'It is a little known fact that cats live at the bottom of the sea,' Carter tells us in this agreeable little book that must surely have started life as a bedtime story with its slightly disjointed quality to the telling. Sea-Cat knows he is...

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New Talent

Rain
Manya Stojic
(Chrysalis Children's Books)
5

'It was hot. Everything was hot and dry' begins this exciting, heat filled picture book which has the animals of the savanna excitedly passing on the news to each other that the rain is coming. Porcupine can smell it, the zebras can see it, the...

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All Children's Book Reviews in BfK No. 125

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

Under 5s

  • Cat in the Dark
    5

  • Rain
    Manya Stojic
    5

  • Are You a Ladybird?
    Judy Allen
    Tudor Humphries
    4

  • I'm Sorry
    Sam McBratney
    4

  • The Scarecrow's Hat
    Ken Brown
    4

  • Nothing Scares Us
    Frieda Wishinsky
    4

  • A Coat of Cats
    Jeri Kroll
    4

  • Clever Tortoise
    Francesca Martin
    4

  • Rosie's Room - A first flap book about sight; Hattie's House - A first flap book about sound; George's Garden - A first flap book about touch; Peter's Party - A first flap book about taste
    Mandy
    Ness
    4

  • The Bear Went Over the Mountain; Number One, Tickle Your Tum
    John Prater
    4

  • Hey Diddle Diddle
    Ailie Busby
    4

  • My Stepfamily; Rosie's First Day at School
    Rosemary Stones
    3

  • Spirit of Hope
    Bob Graham
    3

  • A New Room for William
    Sally Grindley
    3

  • Where Are You, Blue Kangaroo?
    Emma Chichester Clark
    3

  • Clown, Bear and Rabbit
    Tony Maddox
    3

  • 1,2,3; abc; Things that go; Animals
    2

Ages 5-8

  • Swallow Journey
    Vivian French
    5

  • What Did I Look Like When I Was a Baby?
    Jeanne Willis
    5

  • The Boy Who Became an Eagle
    Kathryn Cave
    5

  • Rude Rabbit ¦ Crazy Cow
    Colin Hawkins
    Jacqui Hawkins
    5

  • Aldo
    John Burningham
    5

  • Stone Age Bone Age!
    Mick Manning
    4

  • Sea-Cat and Dragon King
    Angela Carter
    4

  • Pa's Poopy Chair
    Niki Daly
    4

  • Wow! It's great being a duck
    Joan Rankin
    4

  • Living with Epilepsy; Living with Down's Syndrome
    Patsy Westcott
    3

  • Robert Crowther's Amazing Pop-Up House of Inventions
    Robert Crowther
    3

  • Rita in Rocky Park; The Monster Muggs
    Hilda Offen
    3

  • Here Come the Heebie Jeebies and other Scary Poems
    3

  • Princess Elizabeth, Are You a Traitor?; God Bless Queen Victoria!
    Stewart Ross
    2

  • Goldilocks and the Three Bears; The Three Billy-Goats Gruff; Jack and the Beanstalk; The Donkey that Sneezed; The Magic Doctor; The Pied Piper of Hamelin
    Val Biro
    1

Ages 8-10

  • Leonardo and the Flying Boy: A Story about Leonardo da Vinci
    Laurence Anholt
    5

  • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
    J K Rowling
    5

  • The Seeing Stone
    Kevin Crossley-Holland
    5

  • Art Fraud Detective
    Anna Nilsen
    4

  • Alexander Graham Bell; Marie Curie; Thomas Edison; Michael Faraday
    Anita Ganeri
    3

  • Wilma's Wicked Revenge
    Kaye Umansky
    3

  • Pictures in my mind; Walking on Air
    Joan Poulson
    3

  • The Mum Trap; Your Dad, My Mum
    Ruth Symes
    3

  • The Dummy's Dilemma and Other Poems
    John Mole
    3

  • Crab-boy Cranc; The Dragon Ring
    Julie Rainsbury
    3

  • A Pond in a Meadow; A Clearing in a Forest
    Sally Morgan
    2

  • Playing on the Edge
    Neil Arksey
    2

  • Pompom; Juggler
    Michaela Morgan
    2

  • The House With No Name
    Pippa Goodhart
    2

  • The Hat Trick
    Terry Deary
    2

  • A Witch in the Classroom!
    Ghillian Potts
    2

  • The Worst Class in the School
    Colin Fletcher
    1

Ages 10-14

  • Warlands
    Rachel Anderson
    5

  • Who's Who in Science and Technology
    Bob Fowke
    5

  • Chambers School Dictionary; Chambers School Thesaurus
    5

  • Heaven Eyes
    David Almond
    5

  • Pow
    Martin Booth
    5

  • Finding Joe
    Anthony Masters
    5

  • Never Again
    Martin Gilbert
    4

  • Balloon House
    Brian Keaney
    4

  • Undercover Angel
    Dyan Sheldon
    4

  • A Far Away Place
    Harriet Graham
    4

  • Warriors of Alavna
    N M Browne
    3

  • Shylock's Daughter
    Mirjam Pressler
    3

  • Sea Hawk, Sea Moon
    Beverley Birch
    3

  • Terminal Chic
    Chloë Rayban
    3

  • Tell me I'm Ok, really
    Rosie Rushton
    3

  • Septimus Similon, Practising Wizard
    Kathryn Cave
    3

  • Bound for America
    Elizabeth Lutzeier
    3

  • A Look at Life in the Sixties; A Look at Life in the Seventies
    R G Grant
    2

  • Burger Wuss
    Matthew T Anderson
    2

  • Trip of a Lifetime
    Eric Johns
    2

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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