"The Guri and Gura series, six children's books about two loveable mice with hearts of gold, has entertained generations of Japanese children since its debut in 1963. Today, the success of the series, with its subtle promotion of traditional values, shows no sign of abating..."
The English translators speak about two books in this highly successful Japanese series...
News: Harry Potter book 6 title revealed?
According to Internet reports, a zealous fan has apparently learned the title of JK Rowling's sixth Harry Potter book...
Weekly book reviews and literary analysis from the Times Literary Supplement
Charles Butler has a letter published on the Letters page of this week's Times Literary Supplement, in which he asks what 'J.C.', author of the TLS N.B. column, has against Mark Haddon. Butler cites a column from February in which J.C. expressed exaperation at the 'phenomenon of adults finding solace in stories intended for kids' on seeing so many adults reading The Curious Incident of the Dog In The Night-time. Butler's letter continues:
"Now (NB, June 11 2004) J.C. complains because Haddon has won the ?4,000 McKitterick Prize, despite having earned (it is implied) quite enough from his book already. It?s a strange criticism: I don?t remember any complaint from J.C. when, for example, the well-heeled Ian McEwan won the W.H. Smith award (worth rather more than the McKitterick) with his bestseller Atonement. Or is this a rule that applies only to those J.C. thinks of as children?s writers?"
Incidentally, the same N.B. column (June 11th) reported the outcome of the Sagittarius Prize, awarded to a novel 'by a debutant over sixty'. Also worth ?4000, and awarded this year to The Two Pound Tram by William Newton, it is sponsored by Terry Pratchett, who is also very generously sponsoring this year's Branford Boase Award, to be announced this coming week. Hats off to the normally behatted Mr Pratchett!
See the Main Picture Gallery...
Megan Larkin, who previously worked for Orchard Books and has been a consistent fan of the colour pink (remember the UK jacket for Spinelli's Stargirl?) wore pink shoes to launch the new Usborne Fiction List at an event packed full with authors, agents, booksellers and reviewers, despite the clash with the TV broadcast of England's quarter-final.
Champagne flowed freely in the courtyard at Dartmouth House, home to the English Speaking Union, where a bouyant Peter Usborne gave an upbeat assessment of his company's current turnover. "We're on a roll," he said. Which is good news for the authors signed up for this autumn and next year.
Larkin has come up with an interesting mix of UK and US books. Notably missing at this stage, however, is new young talent.
Linda Newbery, initiator of the group protest to my stand on peer reviewing in The Guardian, tells me that all three Historical House titles are now being published at the same time, in November.
Also exceptionally bouyant on the evening, and deservedly so, was Justin Somper, obviously well-pleased with another successful launch. Somper is handling publicity and key promotion for the list, and will be setting in motion an ACHUKA interview with Rodman Philbrick, whose Freak The Mighty gets its first UK release on the Usborne list.
See the Main Picture Gallery...
I'm heading off to Dartmouth House, Mayfair, for the launch party of Usborne's new fiction list this evening, and had expected to find the first six titles, which begin publishing next month, featured on the Usborne website, but I can locate no information about them at all, which is strange. Just as well I have the handsome 'Fabulous New Fiction' box of distinctive pink proofs, which include Polly's March by Linda Newbery (the opening book in The Historical House sequence, with titles by Ann Turnbull and Adele Geras to follow) and a first UK edition of Rodman Philbrick's Freak The Mighty. First to publish, though, are Princess Ellie to the Rescue by Diana Kimpton and A Turn In The Grave by Bowvayne [jacket images as yet unavailable on Amazon].
New content added to this superb Argentine site...
ic Liverpool - Honour for police chief, actress and media guru
"HONORARY fellowships will be presented to Merseyside's finest, Liverpool John Moores university has announced.
Among the fellows are ... ... Screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce will have his contribution to film recognised ... ... Wirral-born children's author Shirley Hughes, daughter of stores magnate T J Hughes...."
The Dick Staub Interview: G.P. Taylor, Dracula's Former Vicar - Christianity Today Magazine
The Dick Staub Interview: G.P. Taylor, Dracula's Former Vicar
Quite a substantial interview, with further online references. Useful G. P. Taylor resource.
Michael Morpurgo, interviewed by The Times after his Children's Book Award win, criticises teachers for their ignorance of and lack of interest in contemporary children's books:
?Time and time again, there are instances of a writer going into a school and the teacher even doesn?t come, leaving it instead to a teaching assistant. This shouldn?t happen even once. There are far too many teachers teaching our young children who don?t love books.?
This is his Top Ten books to turn children on to reading:
Montmorency
Eleanor Updale
Crime and adventure in Victorian era
(For readers aged 10 plus)
Goodnight, Mr Tom
Michelle Magorian
Wartime evacuee meets bitter old man
(10 plus)
George?s Marvellous Medicine
Roald Dahl
The classic jovial romp
(6 plus)
Journey to the River Sea
Eva Ibbotson
Funny and true South American adventure
(8 to 12)
The Gruffalo
Axel Scheffler and Julia Donaldson
Fable of imaginary and real fears
(3 plus)
Northern Lights
Philip Pullman
Heroine fights evil in fantasy adventure
(10 plus)
Kit?s Wilderness
David Almond
Boy in mining community with dying grandfather
(11 plus)
The Rattle Bag
400 poems and rhymes selected by Seamus Heaney and Ted Hughes
(0 to 100)
The Sheep-Pig
Dick King-Smith
Wonderful fable where pig and sheep swap roles
(6 plus)
Tom?s Midnight Garden
Philippa Pearce
Ghost and time-travel story
(10 plus)
Utusan Malaysia Online - Entertainment
"In a rare victory for French books, which sometimes have a hard time making it on the international market, the British publishers of the Harry Potter books have bought up the rights for a French-language children's tale for over 100,000 euros... ..."
German Town Mounts Own Pippistock | Culture & Lifestyle | Deutsche Welle | 06.06.2004
With more than 753 people decked out as one of the country's favorite children's book and film characters, the town of Mayen sought to set a world record for Pippi Longstocking impersonators...
Guardian Unlimited Books | Review | Michael Morpurgo: Lessons in survival
The Guardian prints an edited extract from a lecture Michael Morpurgo gave at the Royal Society of Arts.
The Church of England Newspaper
The Church of England Newspaper files a report on G. P. Taylor's transatlantic success.
A Yorkshire vicar who was challenged by a parishioner to write an alternative to Harry Potter now has seen his book reach the top of the best seller list in America.
| N.B. ACHUKA's Auction of a true 1st UK proof (Faber) of Shadowmancer ends TODAY, 7.30pm UK time. |
Playing the role of author - The Washington Times: Entertainment - June 04, 2004
Row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream. Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily ... celebrity children's books are such a scheme....
An acidic look at the spate of children's books by celebrity authors and the motives (monetary and psychological) at play.
"The Legend of Nezha, a very popular cartoon book based on an ancient Chinese folktale, has replaced Harry Potter and became the best-selling children's reader in the Beijing Bookstore Building, the largest bookstore in Beijing..."
