Waterstones prize winner Elle McNicoll: ‘I never saw autistic girls in books’

The author was repeatedly told that no one wanted to read fun books with disabled heroes. Now she has won the £5,000 Waterstones children’s book prize for her debut, A Kind of SparkWhen Scottish author Elle McNicoll was first trying to enter the publishing world, she was repeatedly told that people didn’t want to read about an autistic heroine. “In job interviews, I was saying that I wanted to see more books with disabled characters in them that were not traumatic, boring or educational, but fun and full of life. A lot of the reactions were, ‘Waterstones don’t like books like that’,” she says.Now McNicoll’s debut novel A Kind of Spark has won the Waterstones children’s book prize. Published by tiny independent Knights Of, it follows Addie, an 11-year-old autistic girl, as she campaigns for a memorial to the witch trials that took place in her Scottish village. The novel has been praised by Waterstones’ booksellers as “eye opening, heart-wrenching, sad [and] inspiring”. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-07-01 05:01:05 UTC ]

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Douglas Stuart’s ‘Young Mungo’ Is on Scotland’s Highland Book Prize Longlist

The Booker Prize winner for 'Shuggie Bain,' Douglas Stuart, is on the new Highland Book Prize longlist of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. The post Douglas Stuart’s ‘Young Mungo’ Is on Scotland’s Highland Book Prize Longlist appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-12-14 21:04:19 UTC ]
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Religion Book Deals: Dec. 14, 2022

IVP will publish an illustrated collection of ‘Prayers for Life;’ Revell signs ‘Back Porch Theology’ podcaster Lisa Harper; WaterBrook lands a debut children’s book author; and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-12-14 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Internet man uses AI to create a children’s book in praise of AI and it is fatuous and ugly.

What the hell are we doing? All the best things are shutting down and people are out here using computers to make children’s books? Not to get too Jeff Goldblum on you, but just because you build a tool to do something doesn’t make it interesting or worthy. To wit, a product designer named... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-12-13 15:19:23 UTC ]
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The Top 10 Library Stories of 2022

PW looks back at the library stories that captivated the publishing world this year, and what they portend for 2023 Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-12-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Exclusive Cover Reveal: Here’s the cover for Elysha Chang’s A Quitter’s Paradise

Literary Hub is pleased to reveal the cover for Elysha Chang’s A Quitter’s Paradise, the first book on Sarah Jessica Parker’s imprint at Zando, forthcoming in June 2023. This debut novel examines the grief of a young woman desperate to detach from the reality of her mother’s death and... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-12-08 14:30:46 UTC ]
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England: ‘A (Very) Short History’ Wins the £25,000 Royal Society Science Book Prize

The paleontologist and evolutionary biologist Henry Gee wins the 2022 Royal Society Science Book Prize sponsored by Insight Investment. The post England: ‘A (Very) Short History’ Wins the £25,000 Royal Society Science Book Prize appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-11-29 20:32:49 UTC ]
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Tess Gunty’s The Rabbit Hutch is coming to the screen.

The Fall of Tess Gunty (I speak of Autumn, not ruination) continues apace with news that the Indiana author’s much-ballyhooed debut novel The Rabbit Hutch—the story of a group of residents of a low-income housing community in a fictional Indiana town over the course of one sweltering summer—has... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-11-29 16:36:13 UTC ]
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Make Yourself at Home: Meet the U.S. Team at Nosy Crow Inc.

The U.K. children’s book publisher spreads its wings into the North American market. (Sponsored) Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-11-28 05:00:00 UTC ]
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“You Can’t Hurt Like Me”: A First Look at ‘Bark On’

An exclusive excerpt and cover reveal for 'Bark On,' the debut novel by Mason Boyles. The post “You Can’t Hurt Like Me”: A First Look at ‘Bark On’ appeared first on The Millions. Continue reading at The Millions

[ The Millions | 2022-11-25 11:00:49 UTC ]
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Children’s authors of colour published in UK rose to 11.7% of market in 2021

BookTrust research shows, however, that the overall picture ‘remains far from representative’ with some writers and illustrators reporting tokenismNew research has found that 11.7% of children’s book creators published in the UK in 2021 were people of colour, up from 5.6% in 2017.Despite the big... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-23 06:01:50 UTC ]
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Book Deals: Week of November 21, 2022

The editor-in-chief of Electric Literature sells a debut novel to Random House, Europa takes on a novel by the director of the Turin Book Fair, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-11-18 05:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins union workers go on strike over pay ‘for as long as it takes’

Workers at the only ‘big four’ publisher to have a union authorize indefinite strike over low wages and diversityStephanie Guerdan started working in the children’s book department of HarperCollins Publishers six years ago. It was a dream job – just not a dream paycheck. The $33,500-a-year... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-10 18:03:45 UTC ]
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David Walliams recorded making derogatory remarks about BGT contestants

Exclusive: Britain’s Got Talent judge made sexually explicit comments about participant, leak showsThe Britain’s Got Talent judge David Walliams made derogatory and sexually explicit remarks about contestants during the recording of an episode of the ITV show, according to a leaked transcript... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-10 10:00:02 UTC ]
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Shanghai’s Children’s Book Fair Changes Venue Amid COVID Constraints

Moving its dates for a third time this year, the Shanghai Children's Book Fair is changing venue in an effort to host the event in December. The post Shanghai’s Children’s Book Fair Changes Venue Amid COVID Constraints appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-11-09 18:16:05 UTC ]
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On Harold of the Purple Crayon and the Value of an Imaginative Journey

For some frustrating reason, I’ve lost a lot of specific memories from my time as a young father; that period is now like a home from my past that I yearn to visit, but is always out of reach. And yet I can vividly recall the night I first read Crockett Johnson’s celebrated children’s book […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-11-08 09:53:17 UTC ]
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Drusilla Park Jones, founder of a former antique children’s book shop in Baltimore, dies

Drusilla Jones, who owned an antique children’s book shop in Baltimore, died of end stage Alzheimer’s disease and diabetic complications Oct. 20 at Charter Senior Living. The Lutherville resident was 82. Continue reading at Baltimore Sun

[ Baltimore Sun | 2022-11-04 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Book Riot’s Children’s Book Deals for November 2, 2022

Today’s edition of kids' book deals is sponsored by sponsored by Triumph Books`Triumph Books`https://www.triumphbooks.com/big-book-of-who-football-products-9781637272527.php?page_id=21`https://bookriot.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SI-Kids-Big-Book-of-WHO-Football-262x300.jpg.optimal.jpg` Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2022-11-02 15:07:08 UTC ]
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Your guide to free virtual literary events this November.

We love to be active and engaged members of the literary community. We also love to not leave our bed. Now you can do both! * 2022 Brooklyn Public Library Book Prize Celebration November 2 @ 7pm EST Hosted by Isaac Fitzgerald, this event will celebrate the winners of this year’s BPL Book Prize... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-11-02 13:30:38 UTC ]
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Louise Kennedy’s Debut Novel Taps Into Her Childhood Amid the Troubles

The book, “Trespasses,” captures the texture of life in Northern Ireland — details, objects and images that carry “incredible emotional weight.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-10-31 16:21:50 UTC ]
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Book Deals: Week of October 31, 2022

William Morrow bets on a debut novel from Victoria Benton Frank, Harlan Coben re-ups at Grand Central, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-28 04:00:00 UTC ]
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