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 ]
Random House buys a children’s book from Jimmy Kimmel, Sourcebooks lands a buzzy thriller by an indie bestseller, Atria spends six figures on a literary debut, and more in this week's notable book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-07-19 04:00:00 UTC ]
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As publishers vie to persuade us to pack their titles for the holidays, we chart the evolution of the ’beach read’Summer reads, beach reads, holiday reads … at this time of year, the publishing world works itself into a sweat trying to force its novels into our carry-on luggage, or over the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2019-07-14 07:00:23 UTC ]
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Pamela Dorman pays up for a debut novel by a former publicity director at Penguin Books Canada, and Princeton University Press lands a big book on the gender pay gap in this week's notable book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-07-12 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Surely the book missing from every child’s bedtime routine is an alphabetical retrospective of Metallica. No? Well, we’re getting one, anyway. The heavy-metal band is filling that presumed void by releasing an illustrated children’s book titled “The ABCs of Metallica” this fall — introducing... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-07-11 17:25:00 UTC ]
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God, Metallica is getting dangerously close to grandad-rock* (Lars Ulrich is 55), but it’s obviously a very rock and roll thing to keep fathering kids until you die (what’s up Rod Stewart). And look, everyone knows that parenthood does weird things to your brain, like making you think your... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2019-07-11 15:22:05 UTC ]
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Little, Brown imprint Piatkus has landed the “smart and funny” debut novel from Hannah Tovey in a two-book deal. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-09 16:51:11 UTC ]
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Cressida Cowell, author and illustrator of the How to Train Your Dragon series and the Emily Brown picture books, has been crowned the Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2019-2021. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-09 08:31:07 UTC ]
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The Society of Authors has launched a £5,000 book prize for ‘quirky’ illustrated books for children aged 0-7. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-01 18:13:35 UTC ]
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Titan Books will publish the supernatural-themed debut novel by Cambridge University librarian and writer Marian Womack as part of a two book deal. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-01 17:49:35 UTC ]
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Last year, I read R.F. Kuang’s debut novel The Poppy War. I found myself flung backwards in time to August ... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2019-06-28 10:41:44 UTC ]
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Muhammad Khan and his editor Lucy Pearse have won this year’s Branford Boase Award for a debut novel for children or young people with I Am Thunder (Macmillan Children’s Books). Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-27 15:50:48 UTC ]
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Rachel Syme writes on “The Saga of Baby Divine,” Bette Midler’s best-selling autobiographical children’s book, from 1983. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2019-06-25 19:00:00 UTC ]
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Juliet Escoria’s “Juliet the Maniac” sees the life of a bipolar teenager in gut-wrenching fragments. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2019-06-24 09:00:07 UTC ]
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Sarah Larson writes about the illustrator Gyo Fujikawa, whose children’s books celebrated the beauty and power of the natural world and the earthly pleasures of the people walking around in it. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2019-06-21 19:01:35 UTC ]
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Naomi Fry writes about Judith Ker’s children’s book “Mog the Forgetful Cat,” and also about “The Tiger Who Came to Tea.” Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2019-06-20 09:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins Children’s Books will this October start publishing a young fiction series set in a magical werewolf world. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-20 00:29:34 UTC ]
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The host of NPR's "Pop Culture Happy Hour" podcast has written her debut novel, the romantic comedy "Evvie Drake Starts Over." Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2019-06-19 22:05:02 UTC ]
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Children’s booksellers “out in public” encounter their young customers everywhere. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-06-19 12:00:26 UTC ]
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Hachette Books Ireland has snapped up an "incredible" debut novel by Irish journalist Sophie White about the world of Instagram influencers. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-17 14:38:06 UTC ]
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Raymond Antrobus and 70-year-old debut novelist Anne Youngson are among the winners of this year's £100,000 Society of Authors' Awards. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-17 02:12:28 UTC ]
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