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CONTENTS January 2019


2 Guest Editorial by Natasha Carthew


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3 Books of the Year: what we’ll all be reading in 2019, as chosen by editors


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7 Scallywag Press: meet the new kid on the block


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8 Make time for book blether, says Teresa Cremin of the Open University


Guest Editorial 234


Stories Matter, Class Matters by Natasha Carthew


When I was growing up in the eighties I was a fierce reader, but I was often left feeling unfulfilled when I finished reading a book, because where were the stories that featured kids that like me who lived in a council house with a single parent? Where were the children who were on free school meals and had to do the walk of shame past the rest of the school every lunch time?


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10 Authorgraph: Joseph Coehlo _________________________________________ interviewed by Charlotte Hacking


12 Ten of the Best books starring children from BAME backgrounds: chosen by Farrah Serroukh


16 Beyond the Secret _________________________________________


Garden? Rap Rhythm and Rhyme


18 I Wish I’d Written… Ross Welford chooses


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18 Good Reads chosen by Charlton Park Academy in London


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14 Windows into Illustration: Katie Cleminson


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I like to think about my own background when writing; no money, no transport, no visible prospects, in order to inspire others to believe we can change our own narrative. As an adult I still find it hard to find many working class characters in fiction that are truly typical of my childhood or the lower socio-economic world that children and teens have to negotiate in Britain today. I suppose it was why I take writing so seriously, especially when writing for young adults.


So why is class still the forgotten corner of diversity? _________________________________________


19 Two Children Tell: ‘Book, book!’: Nicholas talks about books


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20 Obituary: Anthea Bell remembered by Daniel Hahn


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21 Obituary: John Burningham remembered by Clive Barnes


22 Meeting Mike: introduced by Andrew Norriss


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23 Reviewers and reviews Under 5s (Pre-School/ Nursery/Infant) + Ed’s Choice 5-8 (Infant/Junior) + New Talent 8-10 (Junior/Middle) 10-14 (Middle/Secondary) 14+ (Secondary/Adult)


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32 Classics in Short No. 132 The Unlucky Family


_________________________________________ COVER STORY


This issue’s cover illustration is from A Year of Nature Poems by Joseph


Coelho, illustrated by Kelly Louise Judd. Thanks to Wide-Eyed Editions for their help with this January cover.


For starters there are not enough working class writers being published in this country and I really think we in the publishing world need to change that by talking about it and encouraging the support of low income writers by institutions and arts bodies in a more consistent, sustainable way. It’s so important that working class writers are encouraged to write to ensure that our stories are told and the characters we create come from a place of truth and are neither stereotyped or clichéd. There is no better place for children to start writing about their experiences than in school in order to build confidence and self- esteem. Social class should always matter when we read and think about contemporary realistic fiction and we need to provide the young adult reader with a sense of belonging by writing stories that empower instead of isolate.


In my career as a writer for both YA and adult fiction, I have found that there is not only a shortage of working class writers being published, there’s a shortage of working class folk working in publishing and the result is a tiny circle of influence; the stories that get published, that are told, come from higher up in society. It’s a distorted reflection of the country we live in. Source material isn’t beyond reach; it’s within every working class writer.


Literature that addresses socio-economic issues is important on a personal and political level. Children and young adults feel respected and validated and their self-esteem is enhanced when they see themselves and their wider communities reflected in books. It illuminates the complexity and human dimensions of social deprivation, and it’s important


Books for Keeps


January 2019 No.234 ISSN 0143-909X © Books for Keeps CIC 2016 Editor: Ferelith Hordon Assistant Editor: Ruth Williams Editorial assistant: Alexia Counsell Managing Editor: Andrea Reece Design: Louise Millar Editorial correspondence should be sent to Books for Keeps,


c/o The Big Green Bookshop, Unit 1, Brampton Park Road, Wood Green, London N22 6BG


2 Books for Keeps No.234 January 2019


because it’s often concerned with


the basic one


matter of development. Storytelling is


subject of


humanity’s oldest methods of possessing information


and representing reality and is incredibly important in telling stories of poverty, especially from a working class perspective in order to reflect and celebrate this forgotten corner of diversity.


In my new book Only the Ocean, Kel Crow is a voice that comes from the margins of society, socially isolated and literally isolated through her rural location, but she’s a fighter and she’s tenacious and that determination is what motivates her and drives her forward. These kinds of voices are rarely heard, and when they are, we hear them written by people who might not have experienced any kind of marginalisation themselves.


Without authenticity, readers are not getting a true account of what it’s like to be poor or socially isolated. It is about making culture belong to all of us. Inclusivity is beneficial to everyone in society in the long term. Ultimately that’s why it’s important. Telling stories about lived experience can trigger a different way of thinking about poverty and increase support for better policies.


We as writers, educators, school librarians and


publishing professional need to work together to change the story people hear, so they can think in a new way about poverty. The beauty of literature is that it provides a way for readers to explore new possibilities,


to learn about themselves and the


world around them.We need more compelling and believable stories with true representations of different economic backgrounds that can also provide some kind of hope, because our stories matter, class matters.


Natasha Carthew is a working- class writer from Cornwall where she lives with her girlfriend. She has written all her books outside, either in the fields and woodland that surrounds her home or in the cabin that she built from scrap wood. She has written two books of poetry as well as three YA books,


Winter Damage, The Light That Gets Lost and her latest Only The Ocean all for Bloomsbury. Her first book for adults All Rivers Run Free is published by Riverrun/ Quercus. She’s currently writing her second literary novel for adults and a new collection of rural poetry.


Books for Keeps is available online at www.booksforkeeps.co.uk A regular BfK Newsletter can also be sent by email. To sign up for the Newsletter, go to www.booksforkeeps.co.uk and follow the Newsletter link. If any difficulty is experienced, email addresses can also be sent to enquiries@booksforkeeps.co.uk*


Email: enquiries@booksforkeeps.co.uk


Website: www.booksforkeeps.co.uk *Email addresses will be used by Books for Keeps only for the purpose of emailing the Newsletter and will not be disclosed to third parties.


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