I confess that I’ve always harboured a little inverse snobbery about the work of the much lauded Michael Morpurgo. It dates back to an event by Mr Gum author Andy Stanton, who spent a considerable part of his act falling over and saying, ‘You don’t get this with Michael Morpurgo!’ What you did get, as … Continue reading
In my recent review of Laura Carlin’s Ceramics I was remided of an exhibition curated by the then Children’s Laureate Quentin Blake at the National gallery in 2001. Tell me a Picture placed fine art next to the work of some of the world’s greatest illustrators – an unusual concept even today, and one which came … Continue reading
Michael Foreman’s very first picture book as both author and illustrator, the Perfect Present had originated as a story for the Christmas issue of the Observer magazine. This was the early 1960s, a time of innovation in children’s illustrated books which happily overlapped with the creation of newspaper Sunday supplements. It was an ideal launch … Continue reading
Earlier on the advent calendar I told you about the Puffin Post at Christmas, this week another children’s book magazine, the Storyteller. Between 1983 and 1985 this anthology collected together new and classic short stories with some great illustrations with a cassette tape to boot. Inevitably there were the Christmas specials, with a few real gems … Continue reading
A is for Alderley Edge. Throughout his life Alan Garner has drawn on the landscape and legends of Alderley Edge, the place that has been home to his family for many, many generations. It has become more than just a dramatic backdrop though, its hills, rivers and most of all its stones have become the defining character of his writing, providing a link throughout his stories, and a connection with the deep history of the area. Continue reading
Tom Fobble’s Day is the last part in a quartet of books inspired by Alan Garner’s working class family, who lived at Alderley Edge, a hill of Arthurian legend in Cheshire. It is crafted with such symmetry and beauty that you gasp, just as much as its hero as he takes his maiden journey down … Continue reading
