My piece for Books for Keeps about the vital importance of speaking truth to young readers… “I was born in colonial South Africa, where my birth certificate, issued in the middle of World War 2, included a category ‘Race’. I was classified ‘European’, although 6000 miles away from Europe.… Continue reading
My piece for Great School Libraries. Do look at their website if you don’t already know it! The last time I was in an actual school library was before our first covid lockdown in March 2020. Since then, I have talked with hundreds of young readers ‘online’, most of them sitting in their own classrooms… Continue reading
Yesterday evening I ‘attended’ an engrossing online event to celebrate Libraries Week. Hosted by Annie Everall of Authors Aloud UK , it was a chance for a bunch of us authors to share personal memories of ‘My Library, My Books and Me’. But while the others – Anthony McGowan, Jasbinder Bilan, Philip Ardagh, Bali Rai,… Continue reading
Looking for one positive thing that came out of our lockdown from March, it’s this. My eldest granddaughter and I began reading together, every morning for half an hour. Living over 100 miles apart, we Skyped. For a while previously, I had been reading to her at bedtime. “Call Nanny,” she could say over the… Continue reading
It’s now autumn and my summer was spent with family, writing and some book events in schools and libraries (from Truro to South London). In spring (as you can read further down), I was looking forward to visiting Shropshire for their Teenage Book Award. The long journey north was made wonderfully worthwhile by meeting dedicated librarians as well as students and ’sister’ authors Liz Laird and Sita… Continue reading
In April, I spent many hours reading entries for Tower Hamlets School Library Service Creative Writing competition. The theme was ’We need to make some changes around here’. Three months later, I have enjoyed meeting the writers behind the prize-winning stories and poems. It was lovely seeing so many proud family members too at the event,… Continue reading
My winter hibernation ended with visiting a couple of primary schools for the Tower Hamlets’ Library Service creative writing competition This is My Dream. With the help of Authors Aloud UK, a number of writers have offered workshops in Tower Hamlets as part of a project that explores human rights and that also involves young… Continue reading
For my e-interview with the Letterpress Project, click here. This year’s World Book Day got me out of my ’writing hole’ to meet young people in Caterham, Farnborough, Cobham (all south of London) and in Birmingham. It was such a pleasure sensing their enthusiasm and openness to entering the new worlds that books can offer.… Continue reading
In January, I began (in earnest) to sort through 40 years of papers for archiving. For a glimpse of the personal challenge, read ’Parting from papers’ on my blog. The picture below shows Sarah Lawrance and Kris McKie from Seven Stories in Newcastle as they begin to pack up my files on 12 February. 18 March 2015… Continue reading
In April, Rhodes University in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, honours Neil Aggett’s memory and legacy with the launch of its Neil Aggett Labour Studies Unit (NALSU) in the Institute of Social and Economic Research, along with the first Annual Neil Aggett Lecture and a Colloquium. The three days bring together labour and social justice activists who… Continue reading
