children's & YA recommendations on the go
A new book in the Bunny vs Monkey series! Some of the comics in this book were originally published as Bunny vs Monkey: The Floating Cow Catastrophe.
There’s a new animal joining Bunny and the gang. Ai – a supersonic, super-fast aye-aye! But how will Ai fit in to the Woods? What mischievous schemes is Skunky cooking up? And will Monkey ever stop trying to hit her with a stick?
Follow Jamie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamiefumboo/
Karen is just an average thirteen-year-old from New Jersey who loves to play video games with her friends and watch movies with her mom. But when she moves to Greece to live with her eccentric, mysterious father, Zed, suddenly everything she thought about herself – about life – is up in the air. Starting a new school can be difficult, but starting school at Mt. Olympus Junior High, where students are gods and goddesses, just might take the cake. Especially when fellow classmates start getting turned to stone. Greek mythology . . . a little less myth, a little more eek! And if Karen’s classmates are immortal beings, who does that make her?
Follow the illustrator Juliana Moon on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julianamoon/
Follow Stephanie Cooke on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hellocookie/
Harvey Awards 2019 Category Winner
“Tamaki explores the nuances of both romantic and platonic relationships with raw tenderness and honesty. Valero-O’Connell’s art is realistic and expressive, bringing the characters to life through dynamic grayscale illustrations featuring highlights of millennial pink…a triumphant queer coming-of-age story that will make your heart ache and soar.” —Kirkus, starred review
“Relatable, heart-wrenching, and often funny… Black-and-white panel illustrations with pink accents provide additional characterization and feature a cast diverse in race, gender identity, and body type.” —Horn Book, starred review
“Tamaki and Valero-O’Connell do bring to life an artful narrative of relationships–old, new, harmful, and healing–and what happens when you learn to navigate them.” —School Library Journal
Follow Mariko Tamaki on Instagram: https://instagram.com/marikotamaki
Follow Rosemary Valero-O’Connell on Instagram: https://instagram.com/hirosemaryhello
The Beano is celebrating its 80th Anniversary.
According to a report in The Independent, “The Beano … now sells more than 37,500 copies a week, or 1.86 million copies a year. In a comic market which has dropped by approximately 10 per cent in the same period, these figures are somewhere in the region of miraculous, yet simple testimony to publishers DC Thomson’s knowledge of their market. “Online traffic has grown 900 per cent in the last year,” says Stirling. “Two million kids use the site, which is the number of kids who read the comic itself back in the 1950s.”
This week’s anniversary issue is guest-edited by David Walliams.
Iain Sawbridge, chief marketing and content officer at Beano Studios, told The Independent he thought the Beano success is partly down to the fact that much of the entertainment industry still hasn’t found a way of replicating what The Beano got right more than 60 years ago. “The reality is, the media industry doesn’t ‘think kid’ enough” he says. “So children aren’t always getting the entertainment experiences they deserve in broadcast or digital environments, and the digital world where older kids now spend most of their time isn’t made for 6 to 12s.” That strikes me as very true.
He goes on.. ““Gaming, YouTube and social media are largely designed for 13 and over, and yet children now spend more time online than on television. Why aren’t there more places made for them, with content they love and environments that are safe? That’s why we created beano.com and our YouTube channel, to complement The Beano comic.”
Long live The Beano in all its forms.
The Observer has reported on the resurgence of Dennis the Menace:
Viewing data this week will show the cartoon series Dennis & Gnasher Unleashed has become the top show on the BBC’s children’s channel CBBC in its first week, and the 10th most-watched programme in the country among children aged six to 12, alongside The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing.
It is a lifeline for Britain’s longest-running comic, founded in 1938, which has seen weekly sales slide from 2m in its 1950s heyday to around 35,000 today. As well as a new website, app and TV venture, there are plans for live shows, merchandising, partnerships and even films and fashion tie-ups.
If it all seems a million miles from the days when Biffo the Bear and Lord Snooty ruled the comic’s pages, then that’s because it is.
“It’s about recreating the characters for the 21st century and getting into the zeitgeist of children across the UK,” says Emma Scott, chief executive of Beano Studios, set up last year by the comic’s publishers, Dundee-based DC Thomson, to steer the brand into the digital era. “What we’re trying to do is galvanise the love and the affection, and the very high trust levels that we have among parents.”
>>> https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/dec/03/dennis-the-menace-beano-dandy-minnie-the-minx
A rather undervalued master of comic verse, Colin West divides this collection into seven sections, which include “Funny Folk”, “Curious Creatures” and “Vicious Verses” – contains both older and newer verse.
photo taken on ACHUKA’s recent visit to the Phoenix
With a string of celebrity endorsements from Britain’s best loved children’s writers, including Philip Pullman, Michael Morpurgo and Jacqueline Wilson, the success of The Phoenix marks the welcome return of the classic British comic. Launched in 2012, and rated ‘the second best comic in the world’ by Time Magazine, 30th October 2015 will be a defining moment for The Phoenix when it publishes Issue 200; the first independent comic in the country to reach that issue since 1969.
“The Phoenix Comic is such a treat. Each week, there are stories and illustrations to appeal to all tastes. The stories are funny, thrilling, colourful and a joy to read. It truly is a comic for everyone. Here’s to the next 200 issues and beyond. Happy reading!”
MALORIE BLACKMAN, Children’s Laureate 2013-2015
“I love the Phoenix. It stimulates the mind, sharpens the appetite, refreshes the soul. It celebrates that wonderful marriage between words and pictures that gave birth to the comics form at the very beginning of the twentieth century, and which has produced so much delight ever since. Its blend of excitement and wit and sheer raucous fun is exactly what readers need today and will go on needing as long as human beings love stories. Viva The Phoenix!!”
PHILIP PULLMAN
“Happy 200th issue Phoenix ..wishing you many many happy returns and hoping that today is as packed with fun and brilliance as … well as a copy of the Phoenix!”
FRANK COTTRELL BOYCE
“I don’t know if you can describe how I feel when I see a new Phoenix. It’s like there’s a big firework inside me and it goes off, and I just have to read it.”
MATHILDE, AGED 8
A milestone in the history of the British comic, The Phoenix 200th issue celebrations will include an array of exciting new comic strips, exclusive strips from young Phoenix readers, new partnerships and involvement from the most celebrated names in British publishing. As well as endorsements and support from children’s authors including Philip Pullman, Malorie Blackman and Frank Cottrell Boyce, issue 200 will feature an exclusive front cover created by Children’s Laureate, Chris Riddell and a trail for a new strip launching in 2016 called Philip Pullman’s John Blake by Philip Pullman and Fred Fordham.
Alongside established favourites like Mega Robo Bros by Neill Cameron, The Adventures of Von Doogan by Lorenzo Etherington, Corpse Talk by Adam Murphy and Evil Emperor Penguin by Laura Ellen Anderson, Issue 200 of The Phoenix will feature two new series; a new action comedy called Battle Suit Bea about a girl who finds a robot-suit from Bunny Vs Monkey artist Jamie Smart; St. Georgia and the Ends of the World by Robin Boyden, a story set in a medieval world and featuring Georgia, a genius inventor girl plus two exclusive strips from young Phoenix readers, Jordan Vigay, 14 and Jonny Toons, 11 who are already creating their own comics inspired by The Phoenix. Their involvement will launch a new Phoenix Search for a Star competition where a young Phoenix reader will see their story published in the magazine in early 2016. Entries are open from Issue 200 and will close by the end of November. Further information will be available on www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk
Tom Fickling, Editor of The Phoenix says: “One of the most important things to us at The Phoenix is to encourage children to use their imaginations to create their own comic stories. Jordan and Jonny are both young talents who have a passion for making comics and I’ve lost count of the amazing number of things they’ve sent in or shown me. Issue 200 is a chance for us to support them and inspire other children to get creating!”
The Phoenix is also delighted to announce a new partnership with children’s charity READATHON, which encourages millions of children to read and raises money for children in hospital through its sponsored reading event in schools. Copies of The Phoenix will be inserted into Readathon schools kits with special subscription rates and a free prize draw that will include comic workshops and goody bags of Phoenix Presents books titles. In addition, The Phoenix will announce a designated comic artist who will take the Readathon in Residence role working with children in a hospital for one year.
Tom Fickling, Editor of THE PHOENIX says: “Readathon have a long and proud heritage of helping children to develop the reading habit. As raising literacy levels for all children is a central goal for The Phoenix I can’t think of a better partner for us to work with. Comics are a great tool for encouraging reluctant readers and research shows that reading leads to a happier and healthier life. So it is vital we establish the reading habit when we are young!”
Justine Daniels, Chief Executive of READATHON says: “We are delighted to be partnering with The Phoenix, a beacon in children’s comics who, like us, recognises there are all sorts of ways for children to start a life-long love of reading. At Readathon, we believe that reading should be fun and that all reading is of value. The Phoenix is a fantastic comic that sparks a child’s imagination and makes reading fun. We encourage pupils to read whatever they fancy when taking part in Readathon’s sponsored read, and for some children, comics are just the ticket.”
The 200th issue also sees The Phoenix being stocked in WH Smith for the first time and the launch of a loyalty scheme for those children who buy the comic weekly from independent booksellers and a twitter takeover by Phoenix artists using the #HappyPhoenix200 hashtag.
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Philip Ardagh interviewed for the Guardian by members of the Imagine children’s festival “ideas cloud”:
Literature did wonders for my early vocabulary By the age of five, I was writing couplets that featured the word “alas”. I suppose I had a way of speaking that was not always suitable for my age. It made me stand out at school – and not in a good way.
School can be hell I was bullied from the age of seven, and I had to share a classroom with the main bully, my nemesis, for the next nine years. I was made fun of, stabbed with pencils in the back. It was all pretty unpleasant, and made me very anxious, very scared. I didn’t talk about it to anyone, I didn’t ask for help; I just thought that this was what life was. I coped by reading; books were a window to another world.
Jeremy Strong has just published his 100th book:
The author of My Dad’s Got an Alligator and The Hundred Mile an Hour Dog explains why author and script-writer Spike Milligan is to blame for everything silly in his books!
via My inspiration: Jeremy Strong on Spike Milligan | Children’s books | theguardian.com.
As a child one of the books I kept dipping into was the Faber Book of Nonsense. It was full of delightfully silly stuff by the likes of Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll. Evidently my interest in humour began at an early age. In the 1950s, when I was aged aged six-10 or so, my family didn’t have a television so we listened to the radio a lot. My parents loved the funny programmes and one of them – The Goon Show – really caught my imagination.
It was so ridiculously silly. The man who wrote The Goon Show was Spike Milligan and when I was a bit older I discovered he wrote for children. Silly Verse for Kids, and Badjelly the Witch were two such books and in them I found that same, very silly, utterly crazy humour, so if you read one of my books and find yourself thinking “that is SO stupid!”, you can blame Spike Milligan. He was a comic genius who used not just words but sound effects too and often accompanied his poems with daft drawings, as in A Book of Milliganimals. He pushed away any barriers surrounding humour and made almost anything possible.
The English speaking world has largely been denied the genius that is [Andre] Franquin and his awesome anti-hero Gaston Lagaffe. Though there are few English translations of the comic a fan has created an unofficial translation for you to get familiar with this lovable character.Check it out here:
http://web.yongsai.net/comics/gaston-lagaffe/gaffes-and-gadgets/
And also Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Franquin
https://plus.google.com/108338929749999649440/posts/BdLLY854J5Q = Google+ post by +Morten Rand-Henriksen
