Children's book of the week - Sunday Times - Times Online
Sunday Times Children's Book Of The Week
The Road Of Bones by Anne Fine
This book is subtle, stimulating and morally complex, but it is also evocative and convincing: we feel keenly the chill of both soulless hegemony and its frozen wastes. NICOLETTE JONES
I trust Nicolette Jones judgement more than I do Amanda Craig's [see below].
I've opened up a discussion topic on this, over at ACHUKACHAT.
The ACHUKACHAT forum will be a bit quirky for a day or two while the suggested simplicifications take effect. Once complete, new members will have to make a request to register.
Starbucks to sell Random House kids' audio books - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):
Starbucks will sell "The Velveteen Rabbit" and "The Night Before Christmas" audio books, which are narrated by actress Meryl Streep. "The Velveteen Rabbit," written by Margery Williams, will go on sale at Starbucks on Aug. 29, and "The Night Before Christmas," by Clement C. Moore, will go on sale Nov. 7. The books will be available only at Starbucks stores for four months before being available at traditional retail outlets, Starbucks said... ...
Highly Recommended blog!
The Edge of the Forest:: May 2006 :: Main
The Edge of the Forest - a children's literature online monthly
Horowitz's Fiction: Stranger Than Truth
Anthony Horowitz feature / interview in the Washington Post
Harry Potter’s German cousins - Books - Times Online
Amanda Craig profiles Cornelia Funke:
Funke’s intense seriousness, shot through with quicksilver humour (her name means “spark”), represents a distinctively German sensibility that has almost been forgotten on these shores....
Recommended
I've just discovered Shoo Rayner now has a blog. He started it because he was commissioned to write an article about blogging. Currently his blog is mainly recording progress on his self-build bottom-of-the-garden studio-shed, but I sense the blog bug has bitten deep and that even when this studio is complete Shoo will still be blogging.
Scan down a little way and yuo can enjoy Shoo letting off steam about phonemes and 'literacy'.
The May edition of Darren Shan's monthly online newsletter. Here's an author who really knows how to nurture and look after his fanbase. Read all about the special Top Trumps cards promotion due to start soon in Waterstone's.
The latest issue of TEEN TITLES (Issue #35) - the lavishly-produced magazine about Young Adult books produced by the City of Edinburgh Council - is the bigges yet: a 48 page issue filled with the usual mix of reviews and interviews (Paul Bajoria, Catherine Forde, Catherine Webb, Mary Hooper) and author factfiles, all colourfully illustrated with large book jacket reproductions.
To enquire about subscribing to Teen Titles, phone 0131 469 3328 or contact Paul Beryman.
I admire the way there is no attempt to cosmeticise the often less-than-flattering adolescent reviews. Here's one boy's comment on the Carnegie-shortlisted Tamar by Mal Peet: "I seriously hated this book. There is absolutely nothing to grab you in the first ten pages. The plot is very difficult to follow. Dull."
It's all about Alfie - Books - Times Online
Once upon a time, a little boy got locked in his house – 25 years later, he’s still small, still getting into scrapes. His creator, Shirley Hughes, talks to Jane Wheatley...
ACHUKACHAT
ACHUKACHAT has 770 registered users but there have been very few posts to the forum in recent weeks. I've just spent 30 minutes weeding out spammers who register simply to include a website address in their user details. This is a job I have to do fairly frequently. And, frankly, I 'm beginning to ask myself, 'Why bother?'
Use it or lose it, as they (rather unattractively) say.
It's the end of a Bank Holiday weekend, so am not in attractive mood ;)
