She published her first book in her 40s and became the biggest selling author of the past decade in any genre – The Gruffalo alone has sold 13m copies. How did this former busker make it so big?The room where the children’s author Julia Donaldson writes – the heart of her vast picture book empire – is down a winding staircase, in the cellar of her grand white house in Steyning, West Sussex. Her desk looks out on the street at knee height. “I’m thinking of writing a book about legs,” Donaldson said, as she showed me around the house this summer. Children from the nearby school often wave in at her as they pass. Donaldson is well known in Steyning, due to her frequent signings at the local bookshop. She and her husband, Malcolm, a retired paediatrician, recently bought the local post office to save it from closure. But elsewhere she can walk the pavement without being recognised. “I got a letter the other day for Jacqueline Wilson,” Donaldson told me. “It said: ‘You’re my favourite author!’”If you are not someone who spends much time with young children, you may only be dimly aware of Donaldson’s work – although you will probably be familiar with her most famous creation, the Gruffalo. If you have children, however, you will know her as a cultural juggernaut whose influence among children is perhaps only surpassed by the works of Disney and CBeebies. Donaldson, who is 72, has written more than 210 books: chiefly picture books, but also poetry, plays, a 60-part phonics... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2020-12-17 06:00:31 UTC ]
Margaret Ferguson has edited children’s books for over 30 years, and is now the publisher of Margaret Ferguson Books/Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers. She talked with three-time Caldecott Honor winner and MacArthur Fellow Peter Sís, about the process of editing a picture book and how... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2014-06-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A picture book by comedy star David Walliams, his first in the format, is one of 24 titles for children that are in contention for this year's Booktrust Best Book Awards. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2014-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Rolling Stone Keith Richards is to publish a picture book with illustrations by his daughter.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-03-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jeremy Dooley created a new book--and an original font--to tutor tots on typeface.They say necessity is the mother of invention, but new parenthood isn't bad for coming up with new ideas either. "After my son was born, I found that his very simple books started me thinking about a lot of basic... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2014-01-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new book provides a more comprehensive look at reproduction. Imagine a picture book that explains where babies come from--but never references gender. What Makes a Baby is described as "a book for every kind of family and for every kind of kid," which means it doesn’t matter if parents are... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2013-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sally Gardner has won the prestigious Carnegie Medal for "Maggot Moon;" Levi Pinfold won the Kate Greenaway Medal, which awards excellence in illustration, for his picture book "Black Dog." Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster Children's in both the UK and US will be publishing a picture book... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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MacLachlan, author of 'Sarah, Plain and Tall,' said she was inspired to write a picture book after talking with her friend, an illustrator who lives in Newtown. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-02-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Collins' book, which will be based around her own experiences with a father in the military, will be released this fall. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-11-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's publisher Nosy Crow has partnered with John Lewis to create a picture book of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Adam Mansbach's picture book 'Go the F--- To Sleep' is now available in a kid-friendly version called 'Seriously, Go To Sleep.' Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oxford University Press has signed Carnegie Medal-winner Philip Reeve and new picture book... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jacqueline Wilson's updated version of E Nesbit's children's classic Five Children... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 21/10/2011 - 08:20 Penguin is promising a "whole year of celebration" for Sue Townsend next year to mark the 30th anniversary of the publication of her most famous creation's diary. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 06/04/2011 - 09:13 Gardners will look to create a mobile phone app for Hive after its official launch. The book wholesaler has been working with e-consultancy firm Tangent One to build the Hive website, which will sell books directly to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 18/02/2011 - 08:29 The case for the importance of libraries to children's reading is backed up by the latest library loan figures released by the Public Lending Right (PLR), which show children's authors dominant among the most borrowed... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Puffin is to publish a new picture book by The Very Hungry Caterpillar author Eric Carle, his first in four years. The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse will be published in October 2011, in a global, simultaneous publication with Philomel, a Penguin Young Readers... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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