In the Reading Corner

Neuroscientis https://justimagine.co.uk/review/the-boy-who-didnt-want-to-die/ t and Holocaust survivor, Peter Lantos, has written a children's book about his childhood experience of being sent, aged 5 years old,  with his family from Hungary to Bergen Belsen.  In this episode, he talks to Nikki Gamble about his reasons for writing a children's book, his experiences, and his hopes for fut...

Berlie Doherty is one of our foremost fiction writers for children and young adults. She is a double recipient of the Carnegie Medal with her novels Granny was a Buffer Girl (1986) and Dear Nobody (1991). She is also the author of the popular middle-grade novel Street Child and its sequel, Far From Home, which are read extensively in primary schools. Berlie has written many more books for children...

Emily Gravett achieved instant success with the publication of her debut picture book, Wolves   - a university project that was awarded the Macmillan Prize and was published by Macmillan Children's Books. It won the Kate Greenaway Medal in 2005. Since then, Emily has produced many well-loved picture books, including Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears , Meerkat Mail ,  The Odd Egg , Monkey...

Neurodivergent teenager, Libby Scott tells us how she came to be a published author and her partnership with author Rebecca Westcott. Libby and Rebecca talk about co-authoring, the importance of own voices literature and their latest book All the Pieces of Me. About All the Pieces of Me Year 9 can be tough for everyone, but for Tally,  it feels even tougher. Make-up, boys, social media, GCSE prep...

Kelly Yang is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Front desk series, two YA novels and a non-fiction book about the Chinese American experience. in 2019, she was awarded the Asian Pacific American Award for Literature and the Parents; Choice Gold Medal, along with several other accolades. Kelly immigrated to America when she was 6 years old and grew up in Southern California, where she...

David Atherton is a food writer and presenter. In 2019, he won The Great British Bake Off on Channel 4 and has since been featured on Steph’s Packed Lunch , ITV’s Good Morning Britain , and the BBC’s Blue Peter . In 2022, David partnered with the North York Moors National Park for four short travelogues exploring the region as the “capital of cakes”. In 2020, David released the first in a series o...

Peter Kalu is a poet, fiction writer and playwright. He was a member of  Manchester, UK’s Moss Side Write black writers workshop and has had nine novels, two film scripts and three theatre plays produced to date.   With writers Melvin Burgess and Tariq Mahmood, Peter has written one story in what will be a triptych of novels set in a dystopian near future England ruled by white supremacists. Peter...

Kandace Chimbiri (writing as K.N. Chimbiri) started as a self-published author. She didn’t grow up wanting to be a writer. However, she was greatly disturbed by the lack of diversity in children’s books, particularly in Black history.  In 2009, Kandace set up her own one-woman publishing house to address this inequity. Over the next decade, she researched, wrote, published and distributed four Bla...

Newcastle-born author, Malcolm Duffy, has a background in advertising.  And has won numerous awards for copy, press, TV and radio. He worked for Comic Relief as Creative Director, creating campaigns for Red Nose Day and Sport Relief. He has written three novels for young people.  His debut novel Me Mam. Me Dad. ME.  dealt with domestic abuse and won several awards, including Sheffield Children&apo...

Greg Jenner is a public historian specialising in public engagement. He's an author and award-winning podcaster. His smash hit podcast 'You're Dead to Me' pairs up top comedians with top historians to deliver funny, fascinating summaries of the most interesting subjects from global history. He has worked on the Horrible Histories and Corpse Talk the animated show based on the g...

Naturalist, eco-journalist and activist Sarah Roberts is the author of three children's picture books about environmental concerns. Somebody Swallowed Stanley addressed the problem of plastic waste in the oceans and Somebody Crunched Colin looked at the issues of the careless disposal of crips packets. Sarah's latest book, Somebody Woke Wilson, looks at a more complex topic - the need to...

Nyanda Foday was Birmingham's Young Poet Laureate 2016-2018, and is inspired by the impact that words can have to create, unite, explain and enjoy. She strives to connect with others where she can by sharing and listening to others’ work. Joelle Avelino is a Congolese and Angolan illustrator and animator. She graduated from the University Of Hertfordshire in 2012 with a BA (Hons) in Illustrat...

Scottish author Juliette Forrest is the award-winning author of Twister ,  The True Colours of Coral Glen,  and The Night My Dream Came Alive. Twister was a Sunday Times Book of the Week and chosen by The Guardian as the one must-read kid’s book of the summer. It was longlisted for the Branford Boase Award and won Calderdale Book of the Year. The True Colours of Coral Glen was picked by the Evenin...

Sophie McKenzie is the undisputed queen of the teen thriller. After being made redundant from her job in 2003, she started a year-long 'Writing for Children course' at the CityLit Institute in London. She finished her first novel, Girl Missing, at the beginning of 2005; it was then published by Simon & Schuster Children's Books in 2006. Sophie joined Nikki Gamble  In the Reading...

Philip Ardagh is one of the funniest children's writers, and Ben Mantle is a well-loved illustrator. The combination of talents produced the explosively hilarious Bunnies on the Bus, which provided a much-needed laugh for children and families during lockdown. Now they have produced another riotous story, Bunnies in a Boat , so it was a huge pleasure to invite them both to The Reading Corner....

Named after nature writer Alfred Wainwright, the  Wainwright prizes are awarded to the work which best reflects Wainwright’s core values and include a celebration of nature and our natural environment or a warning of the dangers to it across the globe. In 2022 for the first time, a children's prize is awarded. Naturalist Dara McAnulty and founder of the Outdoor Guide Gina Bradbury Fox joined...

A. M. Dassu is an English writer of fiction and non-fiction. In 2017, Dassu won the international. We Need Diverse Books mentorship award. Her bestselling debut novel, Boy Everywhere,   was published in October 2020 and was shortlisted for the 2021 Waterstone's Children's Books Prize.  Az talks about the book in the previous In The Reading Corner episode. In this episode, she talks with...

Frances Hardinge is a British novelist whose debut novel, Fly by Night , won the Branford Boase Award in 2006 ( awarded to the writer and editor of the best debut children's novel). In 2015 she won the 2015 Costa Book Award for her novel The Lie Tree, the first time a children's book was awarded the overall category since Philip Pullman's The Amber Spyglass in 2001. Her latest novel...

Naomi Walmsley runs Outback2Basics with her husband, Dan. She has a passion for teaching young people Stone Age education and Bushcraft, and she also runs some workshops for adults. Naomi says, 'I like to think my writing reflects my own experiences, linking nature with education and imagination.' She has co-authored Forest School Adventure and Urban Forest School with Dan. Her most rece...

Petr Horacek is a children's picturebook creator with a background in fine art. He was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia and at the age of 15 attended the High School of Art in Prague, where he developed skills in printing, photography, sculpture and painting. After working for a design agency, he went on to further study at the Academy of Fine Art and was awarded his Master of Fine Art degree i...

SF Said is a British children's writer with a Middle Eastern background. He was born in Beirut and spent his early childhood in Jordan. His first novel, Varjak Paw , illustrated by Dave McKean, was published in 2003. It was the winner of the Nestle Smarties Book Prize. The sequel, The Outlaw Varjak Paw , won the Blue Peter novel. His third book, Phoenix , was shortlisted for the Guardian Fict...

Angela Sangma Francis, writing as Sangma Francis, worked as an in-house editor and writer for publisher Flying Eye before branching out as a full-time author. Her two books, Everest and Amazon Rive r provide a fresh approach to physical geography. She joined Nikki Gamble In The Reading Corner to tell us all about it. It is the highest spot on planet Earth, known to many as the roof of the world, a...

Ian Livingstone is the co-founder with Steve Jackson of the phenomenally successful Fighting Fantasy Series .   Fighting Fantasy, which employs role play and board game strategies in the printed book, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. Two new titles,  Secrets of Salamonis and Shadow of the Giants, will delight faithful fans and new converts too. Ian is also co-founder of Games Worksho...

Manon Steffan Ros is a Welsh novelist, playwright, games author, scriptwriter and musician (being one half of the acoustic duo 'Blodau Gwylltion'). She is the author of over twenty children's books. Llyfr Glas Nebo, won the 2018 Prose Medal at the National Eisteddfod and the 2019 Welsh Book of the Year Award. It is her first novel to be translated into English (by the author) Manon...

Rashmi Sirdeshpande is a lawyer turned children's author who loves taking big ideas and making them accessible and exciting for young readers. Rashmi writes non-fiction picture books that ignite children's curiosity and fictional stories that crackle with imagination. When she's not playing with words, you'll find her on her yoga mat twisting herself into all sorts of shapes. R...