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Find out about Children's Laureate events and news
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News and Events
Watch a video about Michael Rosen's Scottish tour
In May Michael travelled around Scotland on the Scottish Friendly Children's Book Tour, organised by the Scottish Book Trust. He visited Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Aberdeen and Inverness and kept a video diary of his trip.
Roald Dahl Funny Prize shortlists announced
The shortlists for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize were announced on Monday 8 September.
Michael said "It was a joy and a half to sit round a table, knee-deep in funny books, talking about them with a group of clever, humorous and thoughtful people. Almost all children love funny books, it's what helps hook them into the reading habit. Parents are always on the lookout for funny books to read to their children or to give them as surprises and presents. Now, with these 12 titles, pared down from hundreds that we received, we have the cream of this year's crop."
Find the shortlists here
Edinburgh International Book Festival
Michael travelled to Edinburgh to take part in three events in the Book Festival. He chaired a Big Picture panel event with illustrators Polly Dunbar, David Lucas and Catherine Rayner, hosted an A-Z of Poetry show with Carol Ann Duffy, her musician John Sampson and Tom Pow, and performed at an A-Z show for schools with Dilys Rose and Tim Turnbull.
There was also time for a cake to celebrate the Children's Laureate in Scotland, with Book Festival and Scottish Book Trust colleagues, who organised Michael's tour round Scotland in May.
Mass storytelling in Camden
Michael led around two thousand nursery and primary school children in a performance of We're Going on a Bear Hunt on 9 July.
Children chanted and sang their way across rivers and through forests in Camden as part of a synchronised storytelling event, aimed at encouraging children and their families to discover the joys of reading. Readings also took place at more than 50 other venues across the borough including libraries, primary schools, children's centres and nurseries.
Michael said: "What an amazing and delightful idea that thousands of people were singing or chanting 'Bear Hunt' at the same time. Books are fun and it's great to help children discover this in whatever ways we can think of."
Hay Festival 2008 and Red House Children’s Book Award
Michael performed his one-man family show to a packed audience at the Hay Festival on 31 May.
He also attended the Red House Children’s Book Award ceremony at the festival, where in a speech he said, ‘How wonderful to be celebrating rather than being anxious about SATs. It shows the children's book world is full of ideas and flourishing. And for the record I never said that Harry Potter was boring.’
This year’s winner of the Red House Children’s Book Award is Derek Landy for his debut novel Skulduggery Pleasant .
Find out more
The Roald Dahl Funny PrizeA new prize for the funniest children's books of the year has been announced by Booktrust in association with Children's Laureate Michael Rosen. Michael said:
'If there had been a prize for funny books when Roald Dahl was writing, he would have won it with every book he wrote! That’s why this award was named in his honour.
'Children love funny books but when adults draw up lists of the best books they nearly always leave the funny ones out. When I became the Children’s Laureate, I said that my job should be as an ambassador for fun. That's why I came up with the idea of this funny prize, all part of the job!” Find out more
Michael Rosen’s A-Z of Poetry Tour
Throughout 2008 Michael is going on tour with the best children’s poets in the UK. Catch them around the country at these family and school events. Find out more
Events
October
1 Children's Bookshow event with Anushka Ravishankar, Oxford Playhouse Find out more
8 Nonsense / Michael Rosen and the Homemade Orchestra at the Corn Exchange, Newbury Find out more
12 The Word event at the Polka Theatre, London Find out more
18 Family event at the Cheltenham Literature Festival Find out more
21 Canterbury Festival event Find out more
25 Nonsense / Michael Rosen and the Homemade Orchestra at the Guildford Book Festival Find out more
November
23 Nonsense / Michael Rosen and the Homemade Orchestra at the London Jazz Festival Find out more
28 Wessex Children's Bookshow event Find out more
December
10 Schools event at Southport Arts Centre Find out more2009
February
27 Keynote speaker at Creative Sparks Conference: Igniting the Desire to Read and Write
April
20 & 21 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat: 250 Years of Poetry for Children'. Conference at the British Library
American Ambassador for Children's Books
Jon Scieszka, author of The Stinky Cheese Man, has been announced a National Ambassador for Young People's Literature in the USA. It will be a two year post from 2008-2010, based on the model of our own children's laureate. Read an open letter from Michael Rosen to his new US counterpart. Find out more
Michael Rosen announced as the fifth Children’s Laureate at a ceremony at BAFTA, Piccadilly, London at 11.30 am Monday 11th June 2007.
"I think poetry for children needs to be saved from the cold dissection table of right and wrong answers and put back into rooms and halls full of wonder, compassion, haunting, laughter, music and rhythm. We need to hear its many voices, many cultures, many sounds. So I'll be trying to find ways of spreading the excitement of poetry as widely as possible whether that be through books, performances, festivals, internet, conferencing or however. This is about wide and diverse participation. Diverse Verse for all!" Michael Rosen
The award winning author and poet Michael Rosen is the fifth Children’s Laureate and the first poet to receive the award. Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty and chair of the selection committee, presenting Michael Rosen with the Children’s Laureate Medal and a bursary of £10,000, said:
"As the mother of a five-year old, it was a particular joy to be involved in the prestigious award of Britain's Children's Laureate. Michael Rosen was our clear and enthusiastic choice. His gift for capturing the language and imagination of children on and off the page will make him a wonderful champion for the young and their literature."
Michael Rosen, who will be the Children’s Laureate for the next two years (2007-2009), responded:"I hope that I'll be able to boost all children's reading for pleasure but also to give a special lift to the wonderful diverse world of poetry for children. I see my job as Children’s Laureate being an ambassador for fun with books."
For event details and more information see Michael’s website:
Press enquiries to:
Nicky Potter T: 020 8 889 9735 M: 0771 5587948E: nicpot@dircon.co.uk
All other enquiries to:
childrenslaureate@booktrust.org.ukFor full details see www.childrenslaureate.org
