I remember Charles on Jackanory stiff and stuffy - he would certainly get his grandchildren straight to sleep!
That's what we need.
My favourite bedtime book is by Adam Mansbach which has been read aloud by various well-known people. My very favourite reading of it is by Noni Hazlehurst who used to present Play School in Australia.
The Bench is already reduced on Amazon. It says it's suitable for children aged 1-7. I can't imagine any 7 year old being the slightest bit interested .... or, in fact, any child at all.
I remember Charles on Jackanory stiff and stuffy - he would certainly get his grandchildren straight to sleep! There was also Sarah Ferguson's Budgie The Little Helicopter which even got it's own series!
2000 copies of 'The Bench' are being distributed FOC, to schools and libraries in the USA "to help nourish the community through learning and connection"!!!!
It gets my goat too Fanny. There are some truly beautiful children’s books around, and probably a whole lot more that never get to see the light of day.
Over the past couple of years I've become extremely fond of HM; I know that it's connected to my Nan's frailty and recent death. They were contemporaries.
The whole children's book thing really gets on my goat. It is such a specialised thing, and all and sundry think that they can have a crack at it. It's so patronising of both young readers and those who write books for them
Does anybody remember Prince Charles’ attempt at becoming a children’s author? It was called The Old Man of Lochnagar and he got a famous artist to do the illustrations. Pity he didn’t get an illustrator who would have been grateful for the chance to earn some money and get some publicity, but he didn’t.
I was in a well known bookshop yesterday looking for a special book to mark the birth of a new baby in our family. I saw 'The Bench' and didn't even consider it. Found a lovely signed edition of Michael Morpugo and Emily Gravett's book 'A Song of Gladness'- both talented authors and Emily a talented illustrator.
I'm getting rather fed up of some celebrities/royals writing children's books when other authors have to work extra hard to get noticed. Do they really write them I wonder?