Mostly Book Talk

In this episode we talk with Pépé Smit about her picture book Fred the Very Demanding Deer which is published by Scallywag Press and translated from Dutch. We were lucky enough to go to the launch at GOSH comics and met Pépé, loved the book and of course wanted to chat to her about the book and Fred. 

Pépé trained as a visual artist at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy and the Sandberg Institute. Her illustrations have appeared in several leading magazines and newspapers, but she has increasingly focused on creating picture books that make young c...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Sian Hardy, founder of the Literacy Hive. Literacy Hive is a comprehensive library of literacy resources for primary and secondary teachers categorised so that they can find the support they are looking for quickly and easily.

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For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Julie Taylor Education Lead at the Children's Literacy Charity which focuses on catch-up literacy interventions for disadvantaged children. Working in primary and secondary schools in areas of deprivation, they use expert tutors to support children to catch up...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Andrew McCallum, Director of the
English and Media Centre. The EMC is a charity which supports English & Media teachers and students through publications and classroom resources, online and in-person CPD, student magazines and research. Established in 1990, they...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we discuss the Pupil Library Assistant of the Year Award and are joined by Barbara Band, library consultant and Chair of Judges for the award and also by Olipher Grey who is a sixth form pupil who won the award last year.<...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Rachel Boden who is the lead children's book promotion and content editor at BookTrust. BookTrust is the UK's largest children's reading charity and they aim to empower families to experience the magic of reading. Their programmes span from...

We talk with Claire Linney about her Time Tub Travellers series, the third book of which is out at the start of October 2026. Inspired by reading Black Tudors: The Untold Story by Miranda Kaufmann, Claire started researching Black British history and the stories that are too often untold and hidden. She decided she wanted to bring these stories to life in a fun, adventurous way for children and the result is her Time Tub Travellers books.

Time Tub Travellers and the Silk Thief

Time Tub Travellers: Circus Mystery

Time Tub Travellers: Roman Rescue 

In this episode we talk with Abiola Bello - author, publisher and co-founder of the Diverse Book Awards. The third book in her Wild Magic series for younger readers is out and we talk about the success of the series - the first book just won the Sparks School Book Award prize and how kids love facts mixed in with their fiction.

Abiola is as ever very busy and we talk about her third book in the Marcus Rashford series and also a 'new adult' book coming out next year that she is on a deadline to...

Welcome back to the new school year - we hope you had a great summer. September always feels the time for fresh starts and we are back after a bit of summer break. We have an interview with Dean Atta about his picture book, Auntie's Bangles  (illustrated by Alea Marley)- a joyous take on loss and remembering. We also talk about his YA books and the middle grade project he is working on. All very exciting! Congratulations to him too on the publication of his adult debut, Big Man, which is out and available now (and you will h...

Fidan Meikle is a multi-award-winning Azerbaijani-British writer, linguist and translator.

We talk with her about her debut middle-grade novel, My Name Is Samim, which is a powerful novel that follows Samim, a thirteen-year-old boy, as he flees war-torn Afghanistan for a new life in the UK.  It highlights the experiences of young refugees and asylum-seekers, and has been a word of mouth success, winning the 2026 Jhalak Children's & YA Prize, the Federation of Children's Book Groups Award, several regional awards and included in the 2026 Read for Empathy Collection.

My Name Is Samim and its companion novel, M...

In this episode we have a feast of middle grade books! We talk first to Kristina Rahim author of the very popular The Doughnut Club, about her second book Max and Ella Stuck Together. 

Max has had a tough year starting secondary school. He has been bullied about having two mums and has lost his confidence. He is even finding it hard to enjoy the music that he used to love. He knows he risks letting his friends down if he has stage fright again at their planned performance and the idea that meeting his sperm donor d...

We talk with author Clare Pollard about her new middle grade book The Othernauts. Based on the story of Jason and the Argonauts, we follow Phoebe who is bored of life on the island where she lives and is desperate to escape. When a ship with Jason and the Argonauts comes into the harbour she acts quickly and joins their quest to find the Golden Fleece. Full of humour and with illustrations by Macha Yao this is a fun and entertaining take on a classic tale. 

You can find out more about Clare here. And find her c...

We talk to the chair of judges and the 2025 winner of The Klaus Flugge Prize for Illustration, Emma Farrarons. Emma won the prize in 2025 which is for the year’s most exciting newcomers to children’s picture book illustration. This year she is back as the chair of judges alongside illustrator Rob Biddulph, illustrator and course director for the MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art, Anglia Ruskin University, Shelley Jackson and co-owner of the The Book Nook in Hove, Vanessa Lewis.

Emma won th...

We talk to Bex Hughes about the upcoming Canterbury Children's Literature Festival which is on the 9th - 12th of July and also about Book Shop Crawl UK which hosts book shop crawls in cities around the UK.

You can find out more about all the exciting events on at the Canterbury Children's Literature Festival here.

And check out up coming book shop crawls here.

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In September 2026 all UK Secondary Schools will receive two copies of the book Scientists Making a Difference by Dr Shini Somara together with a pack of resources. This is a collaboration between publishers What on Earth!, the Gatsby Foundation and Imperial. We talk to teacher Jennifer Marchant who created the school resources to discuss the book, what schools will find in their pack and how they can be used within the science curriculum as well as in careers lessons.

There are linked resources online supporting the resources in the box and also CPD for teachers (starting in...

Join us as we talk to lead curators Alison Bailey and Laura Walker, of the British Library's Fairy Tales Exhibition. This interactive and child friendly exhibit is on until 23 August 2026 and covers many familiar tales as well as lesser known stories. 

They have brought together interactive displays, theatrical design, story sharing spaces, costumes and activities, as well as some great examples of early drafts and drawing ideas. There are beautiful books and artwork to see and plenty of hands on activities to keep children engaged.

Sensory packs can be picked up from reception and large p...

Join us talking to Mayo Agard-Olubo about his debut picture book, Kid Rex to the Rescue, illustrated by Diane Ewen. Max's imagination transforms him into the superhero Kid Rex, and he's ready to use his dinosaur powers to battle robots, dragons and even the evil king dust bunny. A fun bedtime story and definitely one for dinosaur fans.

Mayo's website can be found here.

His BBC Sounds appearance on Margins to the Mainstream can be found here.

The books we reviewed were:

Auntie's Bangles, by Dean Atta, illustrated by Alea Marley<...

Following on from episode 48 when we went through the Carnegie Medal for Writing shortlist together with expert Carnegie followers Alison Jewitt and Amy McKay, in this episode we go through the Carnegie Medal for Illustration shortlist and make some more ill fated predictions for the winners.

Alison Jewitt is an English teacher at the London Nautical City of London Academy has led a Carnegie shadowing group in her school for many years and this is her third year helping us review the list.

Amy McKay is the librarian at Ullswater Community College, Penrith. She leads...

Join us as we talk with author Malcolm Duffy about his YA book Dead Straight Line. This is his fifth book and is inspired by a teenage game of traveling in a straight line through, over or under obstacles. Rory pressures Yell into the game, with life changing consequences. The book explores risk taking, blame, guilt and shame as well as empathy and forgiveness. Written in a sparse and pacey style, it is an accessible read and will have wide appeal, including for Y8 and up boys that everyone struggles to find recommendations for.  

As well as d...

Together with expert Carnegie followers Alison Jewitt and Amy McKay we go through the Carnegie Medal for Writing shortlist and make our ill fated predictions for the winners.

Alison Jewitt is an English teacher at the London Nautical City of London Academy has led a Carnegie shadowing group in her school for many years and this is her third year helping us review the list.

Amy McKay is the librarian at Ullswater Community College, Penrith. She leads Carnegie shadowing at her school and has a long history with the Carnegies, having been the awards co-ordinator...

Join us as we chat with Cindy Wume, Taiwanese author and illustrator, about her new picture book, Home is a Hug. The book imagines all the different ways in which we can think about home. It has interactive elements with cutouts and flaps and lots of great details to seek out when reading it. 

Find out about her journey from Taiwan to Cambridge, her creative process and discover how her travels and personal stories shape her vibrant illustrations and stories.

We talk about:

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we talk to Lara Marshall, Libraries and Engagement Manager and Tom Norton, Information and Resources Officer at the RNIB.

RNIB, the Royal National Institute of Blind People, is the UK's leading sight loss charity. They offer practical and emotional support...

We talked to Jeffrey Boakye and tried very hard to stay on the topic of children's books (and mostly succeeded). We talked about his middle grade series which starts with Kofi and the Rap Battle Summer, his books on music - Musical Truth and Musical World and what he is currently working on.

We detoured into what everyone got up to in the 80s and 90s when there were only four TV channels and no mobile phones and then came back to children's books and why the diversity of both authors and main characters is on the...

In this episode we talk with poet Nicola Davies about the Centre for Literacy in Primary Poetry Award (CLiPPA). The CLiPPA is the UK’s leading prize for poetry for children and each year highlights outstanding new collections for the young and very young.

She takes us the through the 2026 Shortlist and we also talk about her her role as the Children's Laureate for Wales and quite a bit about birds too.

The CLiPPA Shortlist is as follows:

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Tom Harbour the CEO of Learning with Parents.

Learning with Parents is a charity whose vision is that every child is supported at home to fulfil their potential.  Working with schools, they support  families to have po...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Sarah Satha the Chair of Inclusive Books for Children.

Inclusive Books for Children is a charity whose vision is  for every child in the UK to grow up reading inclusive books. They want to nurture the n...

We talk to author Molly Harris about her new picture book Whirby, illustrated by Jacob Souva. Whirby is a robot and his favourite activity at school is bot battles, but in his excitement about getting ready he forgets to get any rest and recharge his batteries and when it comes to his turn in the competition he has no energy left. Can he recover and do what he really enjoys?

A great book for bedtimes with lots to look at in the pictures.

You can find out more about Molly Harris here and read Jacob's...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Louisa Farrow from The Federation of Children's Book Groups.

The Federation is a national voluntary self-funded organisation whose aim is to promote enjoyment and interest in children’s books and reading and to encourage the availability of...

In this episode we are joined by author Rashmi Sirdeshpande about her new books - Hari Kumar Ultimate Superstar (illustrated by Mamta Singh) which is a diary style middle grade and Super Uma (illustrated by Nakul P.) which is picture book with lots of sparkle and the all important unicorn.

Rashmi is as ever super busy with a number of new books coming up (details of the books mentioned below). She is also out and about doing festivals and events. The event she mentioned at the London Schools Literature Festival can be found here. She is also...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Imogen Bond from EmpathyLab

EmpathyLab develops, activates, and celebrates the power of stories to increase real-life empathy. Through reading, they help children and young people understand others, grow emotionally, and thrive. Through free events and resources...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Emma Bell, CEO of Chapter One.

Through their volunteer reading partners, Chapter One provide one-to-one reading support to nearly 3,500 children in Birmingham, Bradford, Doncaster, East Sussex, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Leeds, Peterborough, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Warrington and West...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how you can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Amy Lewis, Head of Coram Beanstalk.

Coram Beanstalk work with primary, secondary and virtual schools to enable children to grow a love for reading. They provide one-to-one in person reading support, giving children the help and...

For Part 6 we asked all our interviewees for one thing they would do to address the reading crisis. Properly funded libraries and librarians were unsurprisingly a strong theme, but also a rethink about how we position children's reading - how do we find the space for children to read and support children to experience the power and enjoyment of reading so they find their own routes into reading, and choose to do it. 

For this series we interviewed the following people (not all feature in every episode):

Dapo Adeola - Author a...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Andrea Reece who is the Managing Editor of the children's book magazine Books for Keeps.

Started in the 1980s, Books for Keeps is a treasure trove of information about children's books and authors. It includes reviews...

In this episode we talk with Nadia Shireen about the mad and upredictable world of Grimwood and book five in the series, Rock the Vote! which has recently come out in paperback. 

Listen in to find out where Nadia gets her ideas from, how she writes, why illustrations are so important and what Titus's best cake would be.

Nadia can be found on Instagram here

Her Grimwood books can be found here:

Grimwood

Grimwood: Let the fur fly!

Grimwood: Attack of the Stink Monster!

Grimwood: P...

In this episode we talk to author Sophy Henn about her new picture book I Want Everything! - which is about how sometimes it might feel like you want everything, but when you really think about it you probably don't... We also discuss the latest installment in her action packed and madcap Happy Hills graphic novel series, Cheesy Bob Strikes!

Sophy can be found on Instagram here

And the books we mentioned can be found through these links

I Want Everything!

Cheesy Bob Strikes!

Pizazz<...

In part 5 we continue looking at what works to support reading for pleasure, focusing more this time on opportunities for authors to engage with readers and the importance of wider family and community involvement and spaces to discover and talk about books.

For this series we interviewed the following people (not all feature in every episode):

Dapo Adeola - Author and the illustrator of many books including Look Up!, Clean Up!and My Dad is a Grizzly Bear.

Sita Brahmachari - Author of many books...

We are joined by author Sarah Crossan to talk about her new verse novel, Gone for Good. It is a read in one go thriller about the troubled teen industry. Sixteen-year-old Connie is kidnapped in the middle of the night and taken to a 'behaviour modification programme' at Silver Lake and quickly gets drawn into the mystery of where missing resident Belle has gone to.

We also talk about Sarah's thoughtful posts on social media about putting away our screens and reading for pleasure.

Sarah can be found on Instagram here.

...

In part 4 we hear more about what we should be doing to address the decline in children’s reading for pleasure. In this episode we focus on approaches in schools and how to involve staff and pupils in creating a reading for pleasure culture.

For this series we interviewed the following people (not all feature in every episode):

Dapo Adeola - Author and the illustrator of many books including Look Up!, Clean Up!and My Dad is a Grizzly Bear.

Sita Brahmachari - Author of many books in...

For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we're giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.

In this episode we are joined by Tanja Jennings, who is the joint Northern Ireland Representative on the Youth Libraries Group.

Information about the Carnegies can be found here.

Information about the Members' Fest can be found here.

The...