After having to cancel my book week events at Kaikorai Primary School due to COVID, I was finally able to visit today to make up for lost time. It was wonderful to be back at the school where my own mancub had been a pupil and to see their brand new hall. I started my day with the Juniors and …
It’s Bad Panda 2 day!
Bad Panda: The Cake Escape is officially out in the world today! Lin the panda is on a mission to find her missing best friend, Fu – but has he been stolen by the boy who was looking to add to his sinister collection of stuffed animals? And can Lin and her zoo friends find him before it’s too late? …
Workshopping with Otago Literacy Association
Today, I was invited to run two workshops with the Otago Literacy Association. First up were a group of Year 5 and 6 from lots of different primary schools across Dunedin. We created brand new Bad Panda plots and talked about reasons why you might fall in a canal. Next, I got to speak to teachers from around Dunedin. We …
A double shortlisting!
I am thrilled to bits to see that Torn Apart has been shortlisted for the incredible Historical Association’s Young Quills Award! This means the world to me as the partition of India rarely features in young historical fiction so I’m so thankful to see Torn Apart feature on this incredible platform. You can have a look at the full shortlist …
World Book Day with DRAKE the Bookshop
Thank you to DRAKE the Bookshop for inviting me to be part of their World Book Day extravaganza. I kicked off the day of author events, with a reading of My Mum is a Lioness. This was the first time I was reading the book at an event, made all the more special by the fact that it’s only a couple of days …
It’s 2022!
What a bearilliant start to 2022! Not only were Bad Panda AND My Dad is a Grizzly Bear shortlisted for the Books for Topics Books of the Year 2021 but My Dad is a Grizzly Bear WON it’s category for EYFS Best Classroom Read-Aloud. Thank you to Books for Topics for all your support. I’m chuffed to bits for both …
Bad Panda with Neobael
It’s my final event of 2021! Thank you to everyone who has adapted to virtual visits during the pandemic – you’ve made this technophobe’s year! I know these events are not the same as in-person events but I’ve been thrilled to see how engaged and interactive pupils have been so THANK YOU very much to all who have come along …
The Blue Peter Book Awards 2022
Bad Panda has been longlisted for the Blue Peter Book Awards 2022! I’m pleased as punch that Bad Panda is on such a fantastic longlist alongside some of my absolute favourite books of the year – a total honour!
Bad Panda at Wokingham Children’s Book Festival
I was flying solo without my partner-in-books, Sheena Dempsey, at Wokingham Children’s Book Festival today. Despite a couple of Powerpoint hitches, I had a fantastic time, ably assisted by Gemma and Sally from Wokingham Town Council. I talked about the inspiration behind Bad Panda and shared some tricks and tips for planning stories. We heard about pandas in orchards, pandas …
Bad Panda at Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Libraries Children’s Book Festival
Thank you so much to all the schools who joined Sheena and I for Bad Panda fun today with dlr Libraries. We were asked heaps of brilliant questions about making Bad Panda and were so impressed with the pupils drawings of Lin after their drawalong tutorial with Sheena.