Caryl Hart's Blog, page 8

Whiffy Fun at Hillsborough Library

Staff and Hillsborough Library in Sheffield have created their very own Whiffy Wilson activity. Here are some photos of little ones having lots of fun getting Whiffy Wilson dressed!

You can download the activity from my website here:  

Have you created any activities linked to my books? Do get in touch via my website to let me know.. or post some pictures on twitter and tag me @carylhart1  

Many thanks to Zeyd Kateregga for sending them through.

Find out more about Sheffield libraries events here.

Albie Outfits for World Book Day

I have really truly arrived as a name in children's publishing.  How do I know? Because children have been dressing up as their favourite characters from some of my books for World Book Day! Hip Hip Hooray!  

Sending a really huge thank you to everyone who tweeted pictures of their little ones, to all the parents who made the effort to take part. 

Caught Reading for World Book Day

Parents running the children's book club at Windmill Hill School, Sheffield asked me to take part in their Caught Reading campaign.  So I said YES!  They made a lovely poster with answers to all their questions to display at school.  Here it is, if your interested!

Being an author is not just about writing books. At least...

Being an author is not just about writing books. At least, it isn't for me. It's about loving the people I am writing for. It's about making them feel special, and doing my very best to give them something they will enjoy and remember.  It is about inspiring imaginative play and helping children develop a love of books and reading.  It is also about helping parents create special moments with their children and giving them a helping hand with the difficult job of parenting.
I get lots of tweets from parents telling me that one of my books is their son or daughter's favourite and that they have read it every bedtime for the last three weeks.  It fills me with great pride to know that something I have helped create means so much to somebody. When I think back to my own favourite bedtime stories as a child, it is with very fond memories of special time with a parent.  These moments are so precious and I feel immensely proud to be a part of this special time for families across the UK.
I sometimes get a batch of letters too, from school children who have read some of my books.  Like the ones pictured that came a couple of days ago from a group of young children at St George's Infant School and Nursery in Colchester.  
Their teacher, Deborah Laughlin, emailed in advance, asking permission to send the letters.  She said, "I work as a Nurture Leader at a primary school in Colchester Essex. The children in my group love your stories, (we read a different one almost daily). They are so enthusiastic and ask lots of questions, some of which I can't answer, therefore I was wondering if it would be possible for the children to write to you?"
The letters arrived last week, along with an email from Mrs Laughlin telling me that the children had walked to the post box and posted the letters themselves.  They were all very proud of their achievement! I have now written back with a little something to keep in their classroom.  
It is wonderful to see teachers going the extra mile like this for their children. And it is wonderful for me to feel that my work has inspired these children enough that they want to sit down and do some writing. Never underestimate how much effort it takes young children to write something.  They have a huge amount to think about: letter formation, spelling; getting their meaning across; sentence structure etc.  It really is very hard work - even holding the pencil for a long time can be tiring.  So motivating children can be a challenge at times.
But getting a reply to a letter they have written is hugely satisfying to a child - heck, it's hugely satisfying to ANYONE if you feel that the person you are writing to is important! It makes us feel special.  It makes us feel like we matter. It makes us feel empowered that we can communicate our thoughts and that someone else will understand us and take us seriously.  And as writers, mentors, educators and heroes to these children, we should recognise the importance of writing back.
They asked some brilliant questions too:
Why isn't there a rainbow in How to Catch a Dragon?Why are there no princesses?How old is Albie?
In doing so, they have given me food for thought - I will definitely ask Ed Eaves to add a rainbow or two to our next book.

Knock Knock Dinosaur!

Knock Knock? 
Who's at the door?
YIKES! One real live dinosaur!!

It's fun to find a T-Rex on your doorstep, but when all 54 of his friends arrive, it's time to panic!

This playful dinosaur counting book is jam-packed with chaos and silliness and is great fun to read out loud.

This is the first book I've published with super-fantastic illustrator Nick East and it's a blinder! Nick has set the bar very high for this, the first in a new Knock Knock series published by Hodder Children's Books.  

There are dinosaurs EVERYWHERE!  

Get your hands on a specially signed copy from my online bookshop or pick one up from your local bookstore or online.  

Watch out for more Knock Knock titles out later this year!  YIKES!!

The Princess and the Christmas Rescue

The sofa and mince pie adverts are on the telly, shops are pumping out seasonal music and last year's Christmas pudding has been opened to make way for this year's... and so we can't avoid it for very much longer.  Christmas is coming.

But fret not.  This year, we have created for you the perfect Christmas or pre-Christmas gift! It's cheaper than a trip to Starbucks and bursting with more wonderful pictures and rhymes than you would ever find in a John Lewes ad. 

Yes, it's the latest Princess Book from me, Sarah Warburton and Nosy Crow and I think you'll like it! (Well, I HOPE you will!)

We introduce yet another feisty, independent, clever Princesses who takes matters into her own hands to find solutions to her problems.

This book features Princess Eliza, who is brilliant at inventing things. She makes all sorts of gadgets and gizmos to keep herself busy in her crystal palace at the top of the world.  She only lacks one thing... Princess Eliza does not have any friends and she doesn't really know how to make any either.

Then, one day, she stumbles across Santa's workshop.  Santa is poorly and the elves are in a tizzy.  Luckily Princess Eliza gets out her rubber bands and paperclips, scissors and glue and has soon made some whizzy contraptions to help the elves.  Can she help get everything ready in time for Christmas?  And will she make any friends along the way?  

Well, this IS a Christmas story!

Find it in all good bookshops or buy a signed copy from me via my website.

Buy a signed book here

Happy Shopping!

Diversity in Books

Over the past ten years I have spent a lot of time in schools, whipping children up into a frenzy of excitement about books and reading and writing.  It has been nothing but joy for me to see faces light up and hands shoot up bursting with ideas.

There is no doubt in my mind that books can inspire children. Books can give children a different perspective on life and can really open up their imaginations and truly raise their aspirations across the board.

I often have teachers approach me at the end of the day telling me about a child in their class who has written a story that takes up a whole page.  A child who had barely ever written a sentence up until that day.  I can't tell you how truly satisfying this is.

But visiting schools has also opened up my eyes to a world I had no idea existed.  A world I am shocked and saddened to discover is all too common.

I was in a school a couple of weeks ago in area two stone throws from some of the biggest mansions and richest footballers-wives' haunts.  An excellent school filled with bright images and a brand new library.  A school were 78% of parents are unemployed, and 68% have NEVER had a job.

Two years ago, when the current headteacher arrived, he began asking children about their aspirations. What did they want to be when they grew up?  Of the some 400 children in school only two... TWO wanted a job. One wanted to work at the local Co-op.  The other wanted to work at ASDA because it was further away and a job there would mean she had to learn to drive a car.
Another child, a boy, seven years old said his dad told him he had to get a girl pregnant so he could get a house.

Are you shocked?  You should be.

These are children who rarely leave their estate.  Many have few or no books at home.  Few visit the library because it is an hour away.  And what is more shocking is that this is not unusual.  I have visited scores of schools in similar situations.  And we wonder why these children have no aspirations?

Over the past two years, this school has worked tirelessly to bring in working adults to talk to children, they have created a beautiful library at the heart of the school where children are bombarded with books.  They walk through book shelves to access their classrooms. They walk past books to get to the hall.  Any child excluded from a classroom for poor behaviour will be sat next to a bookcase, from which they are free to pick up a book and read.  And over the past two years aspirations have started to improve.

During my visit children told me they wanted to be:  an author or a dancer, a firefighter, a footballer, a kangaroo, a doctor.  This is progress, and yet I do wonder just how many of these kids will break free from the cycle they are in and pull themselves up enough to lead more fulfilled lives.  Perhaps that is a white middle-class judgement, perhaps their parents feel they DO have fulfilled lives.  I don't want to patronise or judge, but I can't help thinking that these children deserve more.

At the other end of the spectrum, I have worked with children in private schools who are so disciplined and so channelled in their thinking that they find it hard to let go and have fun.  One four year old told me he wants to be a banker AND a lawyer.  Four years old!

Which brings me to the point of this piece.

Children need role models.  They need to see a world beyond the end of their own street.  They need to see and identify with lives that are different from their own. Books give them that.  And I feel now, more than ever, how important it is for the books we make to reflect the diversity of the culture we live in.  Children need to identify with the characters  they are reading about.  They need to be able to imagine themselves in the shoes of the characters they see and read about.  They need books to be relevant and accessible no matter what their own background may be. No matter what their home life may be like. No matter what their parents expectations may be.

For me, a vital part of creating books that really speak to children are the illustrations.  I admit that when I first started writing, the thought didn't even enter my head.  Because the only people I ever really met were white, middle-class people like me.  But having spent so much time in schools, some with up to thirty languages spoken, my eyes have been well and truly opened and I now make it clear with all my editors that I want my books to reflect at least some of the great diversity of race, culture and socioeconomic backgrounds of the children (and parents) that I'm writing for.

So I am very proud to be working with Lauren Tobia on a first experiences series for Walker Books. Lauren has a fantastic track record of creating beautiful, culturally diverse illustrations.  This series is no exception and I'm absolutely thrilled to be part of this project.

I hope that when you read my other books, you might notice that I include both male and female characters. I include characters with different skin colours and from different socio-economic backgrounds.  Most of this is hopefully subtle.  I'm not about producing in-your-face messages. I just want to create books that children from all backgrounds will love and identify with.

And I hope other authors and illustrators, editors and designers will work more and more to do this too.

How to Save a Superhero is Here!

What on earth is Albie up to now?  He's supposed to be tidying his bedroom, but when someone steals his last puzzle piece, things get a bit hairy.

Can Albie save his new friends Scoot and Rascal from the clutches of The Collector?

Will he manage to tidy his room before Mum's timer goes off?

You'll find all this and more in Albie's latest adventure!

PLUS... Get your hands on loads of AWESOME How to Save  a Superhero activities - They;'re all FREE!!

Take me to the Superhero Activities

How to Save a Superhero is gorgeously illustrated by the Ed-the-Incredible Eaves and published by the totally Supertastic Simon and Schuster.   Get your signed copy now in Caryl Hart's Online Bookshop.

The Princess and the Giant East Midlands Award WIN!!

UPDATE!!!

WE WON the Geoffrey Trease Prize for Children's Writing! 

This is an extra, discretionary award only rarely given, so we are extra-super pleased to have won it!!

Thank you to everyone at the awards, and to Sarah Warburton for her outstanding illustrations and to Nosy Crow for publishing it!

I'm over the moon to bring you more award news! This time it's a little closer to home.

The Princess and the Giant has been shortlisted for the East Midlands Book Award.  This is a regional award open to writers based in the East Midlands. It's the first time a picture book has ever been shortlisted so getting this far is totally amazing!

There are six books in all, including novels by Steven Dunne, Tom Preston, Jonathon Taylor, Jess Green and Eve Makis.  Winners will be announced at Lowdham Book Festival in June.

The prize is £1000 so keep your fingers crossed and Sarah Warburton and I might just get a fancy afternoon tea out!

The Princess and the Giant is illustrated by Sarah Warburton and published by Nosy Crow. Find out more here.

Find out more about the East Midlands Book Award

The Princess and the Presents wins Magnolia Award

I am delighted to announce that The Princess and the Presents, published by Nosy Crow and illustrated by Sarah Warburton, has won the Magnolia Children's Choice Award for the State of Mississippi USA!
The Award aims to "introduce the children of Mississippi to current children's literature and instil a love of reading."

Lindsay Beck, Secretary, and PreK-2nd Selection Committee Chair for the Award, said, "Your book was a hit with our committee and I can also say as a school librarian, who went through the voting process with all of my students, that it was a hit with them too! Please accept my congratulations on behalf of the committee and the children of Mississippi."
I am planning a skype session with Ms Beck's class so watch this space for photos and more!
Find out more about the awards here.
Find out more about The Princess and the Presents