book bingo for settings to print out and featured some great books which we encouraged settings to stock and to use with families.”
These early experiences and associations with reading underpin Camilla’s approach both as a champion of Early Years reading and as a book creator. “I’m massively interested in interactivity because it draws young children in and gives a sense of participation. I loved the first times when my children did something like roaring, reaching out and picking things up.” As an extension of this, Camilla has become passionate about lift-the-flaps. “In Where’s Mr Lion? part of a series published by Nosy Crow, I used very simple felt flaps. They add such a lot to a question-and-answer format and give moments of delight through engagement. They can be a real catalyst for parental pleasure at engagement enabling positive affirmation.”
One of Camilla’s most familiar series is Pip and Posy, illustrated by Axel Sheffler and also adapted for television. Pip and Posy, celebrate their fifteenth anniversary this year. ‘There’s lots of interactivity in the text. Each situation is very familiar, in The Super Scooter there are lots of refrains to join in with like Careful Posy,’ or ‘Oh dear!’ when falling off scooter.
Young children need really exciting stories where bad stuff happens and where there is challenge and drama, but where this is simply told. Each of the books is about 150 words long and has a very pared down vocabulary and lots happening and happy endings. Helping young children to navigate experiences like friendships.”
Camilla will be speaking at the Youth Libraries Group annual conference this year, themed around creating communities. How important does she feel libraries and librarians are as part of the Early Years ecosystem? “They are massively important and more so than ever. There aren’t as many of them now so each works even harder for even more people. We are in a tough economic time. What a library offers in terms of being able to take books out, as a place to go, a place to discover new books and to meet other people, is huge. It doesn’t require you to spend money. Librarians are impressive and I’m in awe of their passion for what they do.”
The idea of community is one that Camilla believes in strongly and alongside her many other endeavours, Camilla is setting up a book festival this year. “I’m setting up a tiny book festival in Wantage outside Reading. It will take place for a day and there are seven or eight authors coming to do events. The library is coming along and will have a table. A metric of success will be if we can get all the kids who aren’t signed up to libraries to join!”. PEN&INC
Spring-Summer 2026
PEN&INC. 7
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