A M Dassu is a writer and magistrate based in the heart of England.  She is the Deputy Editor of SCBWI-BI's Words and Pictures magazine and is a Director of Inclusive Minds.  A. M. Dasu won the international We Need Diverse Books mentorship award in 2017.  She has used her publisihing advances for Boy Everywhere to assist Syrian refugees in her city and has set up a grant to support an unpublished refugees/recently immigrated writer.  Am Dassu can be followed on Twitter @a_reflective  or through her website.  We are delighted to welcome A M Dassu to the blog and are excited to be able to feature a preview of chapter one from Boy Everywhere which publishes in October.

Refugee week was founded in 1998 to encourage an understanding of why people seek safety and to celebrate the contributions of refugees. Unfortunately, over two decades later, xenophobia is still rife and the arrival of refugees and immigrants to this country is still questioned and frequently opposed.

The theme for this year’s Refugee Week is to Imagine and this is exactly what I did five years ago when I first began writing BOY, EVERYWHERE.

In 2015, I put myself in the shoes of a thirteen-year-old boy who lived a happy, normal life; who made plans with friends, had the potential to play for the school football team, an iPad, a PlayStation, a great school, weekends at the mall to look forward to, and I imagined what it would feel like to lose it all.

BOY, EVERYWHERE, was inspired by a news interview that showed refugees in muddy camps wearing Nike trainers and holding smartphones, and talking about what they’d left behind. Looking around my comfortable living room, I realised how similar their lives were to ours in the West and how easily a civil war could bring the same fate upon any of us. I had been supporting refugees by setting up fundraising campaigns to provide food and aid for many years but I knew this wasn’t enough. I wanted to do something long-lasting by sharing their incredible achievements, culture and backgrounds. So I started writing a story about a boy who once had everything.

I have been honoured to spend time with some of the most amazing people, who had been left with no choice but to leave Syria. Among them were English graduates, department store buyers, teachers, doctors and architects, and all of them had to start anew. Through BOY, EVERYWHERE I wanted to focus not only on the arduous journey a refugee takes to get to safety, but also what and who they leave behind and how difficult it is to start again. I wanted the focus to be on who they were and are, their identities as Syrians, not just the temporary political status attributed to them in their new country.

My hope is that this book helps to challenge stereotypes and break down barriers in our society. In a world where we are told to see refugees as ‘other’, I hope you will agree that ‘they’ are also ‘us’.

With love and hope,

A. M. Dassu 

Chapter 1

It all started going wrong during English. It was the last lesson on Thursday before the weekend, we’d just finished reading To Kill a Mockingbird and Miss Majida stood at the whiteboard going through some comprehension questions. I was scribbling them down, my head resting on my arm, when Leila tapped me on my shoulder from behind and handed me a note.

Are you coming ice-skating tomorrow?

I’d started writing back when the door flew open and Mr Abdo, our principal, burst into the room.

I shot up from my desk the second he entered and straightened my shoulders. Everyone’s eyes were fixed on Mr Abdo, their faces blank.

‘Pack your bags. You’re all to go home,’ he said, rubbing the creases on his tired, worn face. ‘See you back here on Sunday morning.’

We didn’t need telling twice. Everyone slapped their books shut and the room erupted into noisy chatter. My best friend Joseph turned to me and our eyes locked in confusion. ‘Your parents and guardians have been called and are on their way to collect you,’ Mr Abdo added, loosening the knot in his tie, his lips thin and tight, lines deepening across his brow. ‘But why, Sir?’ asked someone from the back of the class. ‘There’s been a bombing. This is not a drill, eighth grade. We need to get you all home. You know the protocol.’

A collective gasp rose from the room.

Through the sash windows the sky was a clear blue. I couldn’t see any smoke. Everything looked  normal.  The old orange tree stood firm in the sunlit courtyard, the gold crescent moon on top of the mosque’s minaret gleamed in the distance. Behind it the red, white and black striped flag on top of the church tower fluttered gently in the breeze, cars were hooting their horns, the newspaper seller was still shouting out to people passing by his stall.

Where had the bomb gone off? Panic prickled through me as I thought of home. I wished phones were allowed in school so I could just call to see if Mum, Dad and Sara were okay. I grabbed my bag to get my iPad, but remembered it wasn’t in there. ‘Joseph, get your tablet out,’ I said. ‘Just want to check what’s happened – I forgot my iPad at home.’

‘They won’t have bombed anywhere near us, Sami. Don’t worry,’ said Joseph, pulling his tablet out of his bag and swiping to log in. ‘What shall I type?’ he asked, leaning in towards me.

‘Google ‘bombing in Damascus’.’

After a second, he pursed his lips and said, ‘Nothing’s coming up.’ He showed me the error message – the internet was down again for the second time that day. I felt my shoulders tense and quickly reminded myself that it was usually the outskirts of the city that were bombed. Most   of Syria was torn apart because of the war, but no one had gotten close to Damascus.

‘Your mum and dad are at work, right?’ Joseph asked, his eyes focused on my forehead. I realised I was sweating and wiped the back of my arm across my face.

‘Yeah, Dad’s at the hospital but Mum worked from home today because Sara wasn’t feeling well. They should be at the

mall now,’ I said, glancing at my Swatch. ‘She’s picking up my football boots before the trials.’

‘Well, no one’s ever bombed the centre. The government’s always on high alert – just chill, bro,’ said Joseph, lightly pushing his fist into my shoulder before turning to put his tablet away.

He was right. But every time there was a bomb alert,    I couldn’t help worrying. Damascus is safe, I told myself. I took a deep breath, gathered my books and packed them into my bag while Mr Abdo spoke to Miss Majida. She had her hand over her mouth and looked like she was about to burst into tears.

A backpack pushed past my arm, followed by another – everyone was already leaving.

‘They’re doing you a favour, Sami, you weren’t gonna pass the English test later anyway.’ I turned to find George grinning at me. ‘Neither were you, sucker,’ he said, pushing into Joseph. Even at a time like this, George couldn’t help being an idiot. Maybe it was his way of showing he wasn’t nervous like me, but it was so annoying.

‘You’re the one that’s gonna fail, loser,’ said Joseph, sticking his face into George’s.

‘Shut up! You’re so fat, the only English letters you know are K, F, C,’ George sneered at Joseph, then turned to me, raising his eyebrows and running his hands through his hair. So dumb, I thought. George still hadn’t got over Joseph coming from a non-English-speaking school. The class babble and sound of scraping chairs made it hard to think of a quick response but I had to stick up for Joseph, whose cheeks were now the colour of tomatoes. I rolled my eyes at

George. ‘We’ll see… K, F and C are still three more letters than you know. Did you stay up all week thinking of that one?’ His grin grew, so I added, ‘Shall I use smaller words to make sure you understand what I’m saying?’ It wasn’t the greatest comeback but I couldn’t think of anything else. ‘Loser,’ I muttered, as I watched him get tugged away by his mini fan club, which consisted of exactly two friends.

Joseph and I joined the stream of kids leaving the classroom. Mr Abdo was now speaking to Miss Majida at the door, but she stopped talking the second I drifted towards it.

Joseph clutched his backpack, his head lowered. He was unusually quiet. Ugh. George had got to him again.

‘You want to go to Damer’s for ice cream after the trials?’ I asked to cheer him up.

‘Yeah, of course, man!’ Joseph said, his eyes sparkling with excitement. ‘Then we can go again tomorrow after ice- skating.’ He grinned.

Mr Abdo marched past us. ‘Hang on,’ I said to Joseph and ran to catch up with him.

‘Erm, Sir, we’re supposed to be going to football after school, where shall we wait?’ I said, wondering if Mum had collected my football boots.

He picked up his pace and strode into the classroom next door to ours and started talking to the teacher inside. I shrugged my shoulders at Joseph as he caught up with me. We rushed down the central stairway of the school behind the swarm of students and flowed into the large reception area, where our physics teacher, Miss Maria, was ushering everyone out of the side exit. I slowed down as I spotted Joseph’s dad in a smart dark-grey suit, sitting on

the deep-buttoned green leather sofa with his head in his hands. No one else’s parents were inside, which was odd. The dark wood-panelled walls where the president’s portrait hung made him look even gloomier.

‘Baba?’ said Joseph. His dad looked up.

‘Ah, Sami, come here.’ Joseph’s dad stood up and reached out to hug me first. Weird. I went to him feeling awkward, and as he embraced me tightly I felt my heart begin to race.

He pressed my head against his shoulder and ruffled my hair, then released me and grabbed Joseph. I stepped back, feeling woozy from inhaling his strong aftershave.

‘Right, let’s get you both home,’ he said in Arabic, turning from Joseph.

‘But what about the football trials?’ I asked. ‘Our driver is bringing my boots. I have to wait for him!’

‘Your dad asked me to pick you up. It’s not safe to be out today.’

‘But, Baba!’ Joseph interrupted. ‘We were gonna get on the team today! This is so unfair!’

‘Joseph, I already told you, it’s not safe to be at the stadium.’

Joseph tutted, shoved his fist into the carved wooden door and walked out.

‘Thank you! I’ll keep you updated,’ Joseph’s dad shouted at the school receptionist as he followed Joseph out. I ran after him, my stomach lurching. Dad wouldn’t send Joseph’s dad to pick me up unless it was serious. Maybe the bombing was really bad. Dad would know because of the number of casualties coming in at the hospital.

The street outside school was a tangle of gridlocked cars and beeping horns. Cars were double parked across the pavement, leaving hardly any room to walk between them. The newspaper seller shoved papers and magazines into our sides as we walked past his stall, desperately trying to get them sold while the street was jammed with people. We    all got into Joseph’s dad’s Honda CRV and I pulled the seat belt over me slowly, looking out at all the parents frowning in their cars. Joseph glanced at me and then pulled out his tablet.

‘Can’t believe they dropped a bomb today of all days… been waiting ages for this,’ he muttered under his breath.

‘I know…’ I said. ‘I bet Avraham’s on his way with my boots as well. He’s probably stuck in all the traffic now.’

‘What did you end up ordering?’ he asked, pressing

Start on a game.

‘Can’t get the Nike Magistas in Damascus. So I got the Adidas Predators.’

‘Oooh, nice.’ He looked out of the window and then said, ‘Thanks for sticking up for me with George.’ His cheeks were flushed again.

‘No worries… I’d never leave you to face that thug alone.’ George and his stupid gang had bullied Joseph ever since we started middle school. They thought they could do or say anything they wanted because they were ulad masooleen

– kids of government officials. I’d never seen Joseph look so sad or alone as that first week, and I never wanted him to feel that way again. I’d always be there for him. It had always been Sami and Joseph. And it would be for ever.

‘Ignore him,’ I said. ‘He’s just jealous of your skills – still

hasn’t got over last semester, when you scored that penalty.’

Joseph smiled. ‘Yeah, that was awesome. Do you think they’ll rearrange the trials to next week now?’

‘Yeah, probably.’

As Joseph went back to his game, I stared out of the window, checking out everyone’s cars. Leila’s mum was in her space grey Lexus RX, but I couldn’t see Leila through the tinted glass. Oh man – I realised I’d totally forgotten   to reply to her note after Mr Abdo walked in. I’d message when I got home and tell her me and Joseph would be at the ice rink at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

It took twenty minutes to get out of the school street behind all the other cars, but when we got moving I could see the high-rise buildings were still intact, the roads were clear, traffic only building up near the checkpoints. There were a few fluffy clouds scattered in the sky. Something circled the blue far away, probably a helicopter. I still couldn’t see any smoke in the air. They probably bombed the outskirts of the city, I reassured myself again.

On the way to Joseph’s neighbourhood, a crowd of people were gathered outside a big villa, the men in smart suits and the women in dresses, some wearing headscarves. But I was more interested in the cars they were standing next to – a black Bentley and a white Rolls Royce parked on the road. Both Joseph and I sat up to get a better look, our mouths open, practically drooling.

‘Woah. What do you think they’re here for?’ I asked Joseph.

‘Probably a wedding… or a funeral,’ he said, showing me his game score and smirking. ‘I beat you, right?’

‘Oi! Give me that,’ I said, grabbing his tablet and pressing

Play. We’d been doing this for weeks.

Joseph’s dad parked outside their apartment building. As the car stopped on the smooth black tarmac, we heard what must’ve been gunshots in the distance. I always thought it sounded like rain hitting a tin roof. But it wasn’t raining. We jumped out, sheltered our heads with our arms and ran through their black front gates. We raced straight up to Joseph’s bedroom, throwing our bags down next to some dried orange peel he hadn’t bothered binning.

I sat on the end of his bed while Joseph switched on his PlayStation and small flat screen TV. ‘May as well play FIFA, if we can’t play the real thing, eh?’ he said, his second chin protruding more than usual because of his grumpy face.

‘Yeah, may as well,’ I said, wishing the trials hadn’t been cancelled and we were showing off what we’d been practising.

There was a small knock on the door and it opened. ‘Hi, you two. Do you want anything to eat?’ asked Joseph’s mum.

‘Nah,’ said Joseph, still facing the TV screen, waiting for the game to load.

‘How about you, Sami?’

‘No thanks, Aunty, but can I have a drink please?’ ‘Sure. What would you like? Coke?’

‘Yes, thanks. Shall I call my mum to get Avraham to pick me up? He’s probably waiting for me at school.’

‘No!’ she said quickly, in a strange high-pitched voice. ‘Your dad wants you to stay for dinner. Stay there – I’ll be right back with that Coke!’ She pulled the door tight and left.

I bit my lip and frowned as I grabbed the remote from Joseph’s hands and put it on TV mode.

‘Oi! What you doing?’ shouted Joseph.

‘Shhh, I just wanna check the news. See why Dad got us picked up. Don’t you wanna know?’

‘Not really. All they’ll show is more dead people.’ ‘Oh, come on, it’ll only take a minute.’

‘Go on then,’ said Joseph.

I flicked through the channels one by one. Kids’ cartoons, music, documentaries, news channel. My head started spinning as I read the headline flashing in red at the bottom of the screen.

DAMASCUS: CHAM CITY CENTRE MALL REBEL TERRORIST BOMB ATTACK

I sat staring at the image on the screen. The once-shiny glass building was now partly rubble. The glass half of the mall was a broken grey shell – the concrete half was just about standing. There were no windows or doors left in any of it and people in high-vis jackets rushed through the smoke, debris, rows of police cars and ambulances. I watched, but couldn’t move. My ears throbbed. I could see Joseph’s arms waving around next to me. Everything had slowed down, the noise from the TV and Joseph’s words muffled. I tried to say something, but nothing came out.

The mall had been bombed. Mum and Sara were there.  Buying my football boots.

Laura Watkinson's translation of Annet Schaap's Lampie made Carnegie Medal history in March when it became the first book in translation to be shortlisted for the awards.  As part of a special international focus day leading up to the announcements of the 2020 Medals we were delighted to talk with Laura about translation and her career.  

(1) How long have you been translating and how did you enter the field?

That’s a good question. I’ve been translating on and off since I first started learning languages at school, starting with fun things, like trying to translate the lyrics of “The Bare Necessities” from The Jungle Book into German, which I’m sure was a disaster! I’ve always been fascinated by languages for some reason and was delighted when I found out that I could study them at school – which later extended to university too. I’ve also done other work, including teaching English abroad, working for a subtitling company and a brief stint with the BBC Pronunciation Unit, but often used to do translation work on the side and taught a few university translation courses too. It was a course in literary translation from Dutch into English at UCL that really made me focus on translating books though. I’ve been a full-time translator for pretty much twenty years now. I still love translating and learning languages. I’m your typical language nerd.

(2) In your opinion what are the qualities that make a strong translation and are there any special considerations when working upon fiction?

I think a strong translation captures the tone and spirit of the original book. When an author’s voice is strong and confident, as is the case with Annet Schaap, that guides and inspires the translator. As I gain a feeling for the author’s voice and for the text, I begin to have a sense of how they might have used the resources that are available in English, which helps me as a translator to follow creatively in the author’s footsteps. With any book, fiction or nonfiction, I take some time to listen closely to the author’s voice, even if I think I know it already from other books.

(3) The shortlisting of Lampie is a historic moment for the Carnegie Medal as it’s the first time a translated book has reached this stage, are there challenges with bringing translated titles to the UK children’s market and how important are prizes and promotions?

It’s fantastic news. I’m British, so I grew up reading all those wonderful authors who won the Carnegie Medal. I remember Susan Price coming to visit us at our local library club and reading to us from The Devil’s Piper, which I believe was her first book. I was very excited when she signed the book for me. Then there were other authors I loved and read, such as Lucy M. Boston, C.S. Lewis, Eleanor Farjeon and, more recently, Philip Pullman and Patrick Ness. One of my favourite books ever, Elizabeth Goudge’s The Little White Horse, won the award in 1946. My mom gave me her copy of it when I was little, as it had been a favourite of hers too. So, it’s amazing for me to have worked on a book that has been recognised by an award with such an illustrious history. I’m so grateful that translated books are now eligible for the Carnegie Medal too, reflecting the fact that great children’s literature comes in many different languages. The British and American markets have traditionally been a little reticent about opening up to books in translation, but I believe that is starting to change. We’re seeing more and more great books in translation, and recognition of translated books is important. We need to hear more voices and read more great stories.

(4) Were there particular parts of Lampie that you found more enjoyable to translate or more challenging and what were the reasons for this?

I enjoyed translating all of Lampie, from start to finish. Annet has such a strong voice and such a great ear for dialogue, so it was particularly good fun trying to echo what she’d done with the Dutch dialogue. I have to confess to a particular fondness for the mean voice of the wind in the first few chapters. It’s a fun book to read aloud.

(5) What kind of communication did you have with author Annet Schaap?

Sometimes when I’m translating, I’ll have a few questions for the author as I’m working, but that wasn’t the case with Lampie, as the story is told very smoothly. During the editing stage, Annet had a look at the translation and we emailed about a few points. We discussed some questions with Daniel Seton from Pushkin Press and, of course, with the wonderful Hannah Featherstone, who is a very sensitive reader and did a great job of editing Lampie. So, there was some back and forth before we finalized the text.

(6) Can you tell us a little about other books you have translated?

I’ve particularly enjoyed translating Tonke Dragt’s books, also for Pushkin Press: The Letter for the King; its sequel The Secrets of the Wild Wood; The Song of Seven; and The Goldsmith and the Master Thief. Tonke Dragt is a beloved author in the Netherlands and, along with many other readers, I’d always found it frustrating that her classic books hadn’t been translated into English yet. Many thanks to Pushkin Press and Adam Freudenheim for making that happen! The Letter for the King was written in 1962 – and it came out as a Netflix series in English this year, which I was so pleased about. Happily, Tonke Dragt is still with us, so she’s been able to see what a success her books have been in English too.

(7) Finally, if you were making a case to champion translated books to librarians what comments would you make around the importance of reading work in translation?

Translated books can open up new worlds that you might never have thought about. In a way, a translated book offers a double guarantee of quality, too. Not only has the book made it to publication in its original language, it has also been well received at home already, and so publishers, literature foundations, readers, reviewers, authors, illustrators and translators have joined its cheerleading squad and, as a result, it’s made its way into other languages. That’s a great recommendation. Ultimately, though, translation provides access to lots of new and exciting tales and characters and allows a wide range of voices to be heard. There are so many great stories waiting out there in the world – and who doesn’t love a great story?

Thank you to Laura Watkinson for a fascinating interview.  To find out more about Laura, why not visit her website.  Do check out the international themed videos we have programmed for today as part of the National Shelf Service (these are themed around different book awards from across the globe and will be released on the hour from 11.00am and will cluminate with a  very special prelude to this evening's announcements by 2019 Kate Greenaway Winner Jackie Morris which will go live at 3.00pm).  The announcements themselves will take place on BBC Front Row this evening from 7.15pm.

‘We ALL tell stories all the time.  We narrativise our lives as we try to make sense of them.  We tell useful stories to ourselves, or unhelpful ones, and they are powerful.  We live by them often without knowing.’ 

Marcus Sedgwick

The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Twitter Takeover has been a part of the awards programme for four years now.  This year’s Takeover felt particularly special given the challenges that the awards process, the judges, shadowers, publishers and (of course), the authors and illustrators have faced through Covid-19.  A theme that ran through much of the conversation was the vibrant and varied discussion around the arts and their role as influences and inspirations.

With the winners of this year’s awards due to be announced on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row programme on Wednesday 17 June, the story for the awards will feel somewhat different to usual in 2020.  For those who are looking for other work to dive into, delving into different ways of thinking and seeing, here is a compilation of the recommendations made by authors and illustrators throughout the discussions.

Poynton High School Library asked Shaun Tan which picture books and or illustrators inspired him as a child and in the present day.

‘Phew, too many to list.  Where the Wild Things Are [Maurice Sendak] always loomed large in my imagination and still does.  The Red Tree has some similarities to it, see if you can spot them.  Right now I’ve enjoyed the work of Sydney Smith, an illustrator with great heart in every line.’

Talking about nature, Shaun said ‘a book I’d recommend is The World Without Us,  [Alan Weisman] which explains how fast nature would overrun human cities. Part inspiration for Tales from the Inner City actually.’  Shaun also described how ‘stencil street art and the ‘human shadow etched in stone’ of the Hiroshima bombing’ helped influence his use of silhouettes in Tales from the Inner City describing this as ‘Sort of taxonomic and a bit funerary’.

Julian and Marcus Sedgwick spoke about their shortlisted book, Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black.  Julian recommended films ‘A Matter of Life and Death’ film and Cocteau’s Orphee which he described as ‘a really worthwhile and hallucinatory viewing experience.’

Asked around whether they turn to art during times of adversity themselves and whether they have any first choices, Julian suggested Anton Chekhov ‘He’s like a thoughtful and gently helpful older family member.’  Marcus chose  ‘Thomas Mann for the same reason, appropriately like a wiser older brother saying good things about people.’  Marcus said he looks for voices that aren’t cynical suggesting Adalbert Stifter and Artur Schnitzler.

Talking about artists Marcus described how they knew they ‘wanted someone who could capture the feel of some of the actual WW2 artists like [Mervyn] Peake [Mervin], [Alan] Moore.’  Julian described how [Francisco] Goya  was in the manuscript from Harry’s journal. 

Julian suggests ‘As long as art reflects complexity, nuance etc there has to be a vital space for art – even in the worst times.’  He suggested [Henryk] Gorecki’s Third Symphony - Symphony of Sorrowful Songs as an example.  Julian cited film makers Powell and Pressberger as ‘so interesting as a working team.’

Poonam Mistry spoke about the influences of kalamkari and traditional Indian art and also of Inuit textile patterns in her art describing how she likes ‘the patterns in my work to reflect the origins and setting of the story’.

Chris Naylor-Ballesteros, revealed that on re-reading The Arrival by Shaun Tan, he realised some of the subconscious parallels that exist between this and his shortlisted title The Suitcase leading to a discussion on inspirations.

Beth Waters revealed that she plays the cello in an orchestra and has played [Anton] Dvorak’s New World Symphony twice.  She also introduced us to a song by Siiga, ‘Michelle (Seashell) (see here)  

Chris Vick talked about how the frame for his book is from One Thousand and One Nights and introduced e e cummings poem maggie and milly and molly and may. 

Randy Ribay described his personal reading journey, ‘as a kid reading was escapism for and there’s a power in that.  I loved entering Narnia [C S Lewis], Redwall [Brian Jacques] etc.  In college, I came to understand the revolutionary power of books by reading the authors I mentioned in my previous answer.’ 

That answer included James Baldwin, Jean Toomer, Sandra Cisneros, Haruki Murakami, Walter Dean Myers, Carlos Bulosan, Jose Rizal, Audre Lorde, Patrick Rosal, Toni Morrison.  Randy commented he picked ‘authors instead of particular books because there are too many to name!’

Dean Atta described going to Church of England schools for his primary and secondary education ’the Bible had A LOT of power in my childhood,’  answering a question from Poynton High School Library about past YA LGBTQ authors he admires, Dean suggested Jacqueline Woodson. 

Dean also introduced us to many of his inspirations citing Roald Dahl and Dr Seuss when younger and the poetry of Maya Angelou, Gil Scott-Heron, John Agard, Benjamin Zephaniah, Shakespeare’s plays and also giving an insight into some of his musical tastes Bob Marley, Tupac, Nirvana, The Roots, Ursula Rucker.

Dean powerfully described how ‘Reading books about characters similar to ourselves can be such an affirming experience.’ Going on to further state that ‘reading books about identities different to our own can be extremely educational and a great exercise in empathy.’ 

These descriptions of the art and purpose of reading sparked a recommendation from Randy remind him of ‘Rudine Sims Bishop’s concept of books as windows, mirrors and sliding glass doors’ (see here)  the premise of which not only underpins why we read and its importance, but also the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway’s medal’s mission:

‘to inspire and empower the next generation to create a better world through books and reading’.

If you have any thoughts or recommendations of your own to make, please use the comments section below.

We are delighted to welcome Darren Shan to the YLG blog to discuss his new series featuring Archibold Lox.  It is fascinating to hear about the influences Darren has had.  Big thanks to Catherine Ward for making this possible.

Where did the story idea for this new series come from?

I was walking across a bridge in London when I saw a young woman walking towards me, twitching her nose and pulling strange faces. I couldn’t understand why she was doing that, and it set my brain whirring. I thought, “What if she’s from another universe, and those grimaces are a key to open the door between our universe and hers?” The idea intrigued me, and I decided to follow her through that doorway to explore whatever lay on the far side.

Did the plot and characters come to you fully formed or take some time to develop?

Some of the main ideas came to me quickly — the story would be told from the point of view of a boy who sees the girl pulling faces, he finds out he’s a locksmith with special powers, and crosses after her. And some of the central concepts of that other universe fell into place neatly and swiftly. But I spent a lot of time asking questions and scribbling down ideas before I felt ready to write, and even when I did sit down to begin, there was a lot I didn’t know — the answers came as I teased them out through the writing process.

Would you consider this series your biggest feat of worldbuilding so far?

Well, it’s certainly been the hardest! My other long series were all primarily set on Earth, but the vast majority of the action in the Archibald Lox series takes place in the Merge. With my other series, I could introduce a little bit of strangeness to our world, then get the action going almost immediately, without having to worry about the background setting from that point on. In this one, the Merge is almost another character, and I had to explain lots of different things about it, so that readers could understand what it is and how it functions. The trick was in finding the right balance between the explanations and the action. Worldbuilding by itself can be quite boring — if you explain too much about a world, your reader’s eyes will quickly start to glaze over. I ended up writing far more than I needed in my first draft, then spent about a dozen edits whittling it down, getting rid of tens of thousands of words, so that the story could flow, while hopefully still making sense!

Was the writing of this series a conscious effort to step away from the horror stories for which you, the Master of Horror, are well known?

I didn’t decide to deliberately not write about horror. I just knew from early on that the story didn’t want to be as dark as most of my other work. I’ve gone a long way down the horror path, especially with The Demonata and Zom-B, so it’s been nice to pull back from that for a while and work on something different, but I’d have no qualms about returning to the genre tomorrow if the right idea came along and grabbed me. When it comes to writing, I never impose myself on my stories. I just follow where they lead.

Can you share with us some of the other writers who have influenced your writing journey and/or this new series?

Lots of different authors and books influenced this series. One of the big ones was The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I’m actually not a huge fan of the Narnia books, but the beginning of Lion is truly magical, and is mirrored in the first chapter of Archibald Lox and the Bridge Between Worlds. I haven’t read a lot of Diana Wynne Jones’ books – I’m slowly working my way through them – but the few I’ve read so far have had a big impact me on, and I knew I wanted this, like hers, to be a book of gentle, subtle surprises, rather than sharp, sudden shocks. I loved Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea Trilogy, and the scale of those books spurred me on to make the universe of the Merge as expansive as possible. There are shades of Neil Gaiman’s work in there… sprinklings of Harry Potter… elements gleaned from Stephen King’s Dark Tower series… Those are some of the conscious influences — there are probably loads more that I’m not even aware of!

Do you feel more at home writing longer series than standalone novels, or does it just depend how the story unfolds in your head?

It’s all down to the story. I never put a limit on the stories that I tell, or tailor them to fit the demands of the market or the expectations of my fans. If I can tell a story in a single book, well and good. If it demands three or four books, I go with it. If it requires ten or twelve, then I take a deep breath, knuckle down and push it on in the direction it wishes to go.

Why did you decide to release the first volume of Archibald Lox earlier than planned?

I was working on my final edit of the first three books, and was planning to release them later in the year, but when the lockdown started, I felt like it was the right time to put them out there, at least in ebook form, as it would give people something that might distract them from the scariness of the world for a while. I think it’s a good time for positive distractions.

Did you write the books in sequence from draft to final manuscript each time, or do you juggle working on several books in the series at once?

I usually work on several books in a series over the space of any given year. Each will be at a different stage of its evolution and I like to jump around between them. So, for instance, I might finish a first draft of book five, then edit books one through four again, before doing my first edit of book five, then moving on to a first draft of book six.

That said, I wrote the first three Archibald Lox books as a single volume, and only divided that big book into three when it came time to release it. There were several reasons why I did that — one of the major ones was that it allowed me to put the first book out as a freebie, and since this is very different to my other long series, I felt that would give fans a chance to try the first book without having to pay for it, and then, if they decided it wasn’t for them, they could stop there, and wouldn’t have spent any money on it, or devoted too much of their time to it. Thankfully the response has been incredibly positive, so most of my fans who’ve read book one have got on board with the other two books — phew!

When can we expect the next volume in the series?

Hopefully in the first half of 2021. I’ve written the second volume and am now editing it into shape. That’s a lengthy process, and I think need to go through the book at least another four or five times before it’s ready to see print — and it’s a big book, so there’s no quick way to do that! But, if all goes well, I think the first half of 2021 is achievable. If that optimism proves ill-founded and I have to push the release date back, well, the waiting will just make its eventual release all the sweeter!

Do you know the series ending, and how many books there will be in total, or is that still to be determined?!

I’m not certain. I have three volumes planned, and there’s a very good chance that I’ll stop at the end of volume three, as that concludes the main story arc that kicks off in chapter one of book one. But there’s a possibility that I could continue on for another volume or two, with one of the secondary story lines that develops over the course of the first three volumes. We’ll see how the next volume goes, and I’ll take (or leave) things from there…

The three books comprising Volume One in the Archibald Lox series are now available from all good ebook retailers. 

Empathy is a vital human force. One that creates happier children, stronger communities and a better world. It’s come into sharp focus during the pandemic and right now, we’ve never needed it more. Empathy is being able to imagine and share someone else’s feelings.

The good news is that it's a skill you can learn, and Empathy Day on 9 June aims to help everyone understand and experience its transformational power. Empathy Day focuses on how we can use books to step into someone else’s shoes. Scientists say that we can train our brain with stories – the more you empathise with characters, the more you understand other people’s feelings.

Empathy Day was established by not-for-profit EmpathyLab, who are on a mission to inspire the rising generation to drive a new empathy movement. On 9 June they will host a day of brilliant online events and home-based celebrations to help children READ, CONNECT AND ACT using empathy. Children can join in whether they're at home or at school, and authors, illustrators, schools and libraries across the country will all be taking part.

To mark the countdown to Empathy Day, the Youth Libraries Group are delighted to welcome Muhammad Khan to the blog.  Muhammad's book Kick the Moon is included in EmpathyLab’s Read for Empathy Collection, has chosen an extract from their book and tells us why they feel it’s a powerful read to develop empathy.

Extract: Kick the Moon pages 35-37, 2^nd para, line 6, ‘By the end of the lesson, I’m solving simultaneous equations like a pro…’ [See dowload link below]

On the first day of term, Ilyas can’t believe his luck when told he’s being moved up a set in maths. His old teacher, Mr Gordon, had a less than encouraging teaching style (read old school bullying); and his gang were always snatching his book and copying his answers (more bullying). In spite of all this, he’s a little wary of his new environment. He needn’t be. It turns out Ms Mughal’s classroom is a safe space for learning. Though Ilyas is chuffed to discover this, he doesn’t think it would be cool to express these positive feelings. His gang have brainwashed him into believing ‘dons’ never show emotion except to laugh at losers, aggressively flirt with girls, or demonstrate violence. These are the hallmarks of toxic masculinity. We feel empathy for Ilyas because we know he wants to be a good boy but past experience has determined it leads to bullying.

Ms Mughal’s students seem to really like her, share jokes together, but clearly understand where she draws the line. Ilyas is surprised when they all say ‘bye’ to her on the way out. Finding this new respectful dynamic awkward, he tries to slip out unnoticed. In spite of the apparent snub, Ms Mughal tells him he is welcome to see her anytime for extra help – thereby showing she understands the enormity of his burden. In this moment she is promising to have his back, she is empathising. It flies in the face of Ilyas’s gang who claim they are the only ones who will ever look out for each other thereby exerting control through fear and lies.

Outside in the corridor, Ilyas sees Jade - the beautiful girl he is obsessed with - engaged in a controversial conversation with a couple of friends. Melanie says horribly racist things. Jade is complicit and it breaks Ilyas’s heart. Until now he’s placed her on a pedestal but discovers an ugly side which throws a massive spanner in the works for future romance (no matter how unlikely it was!) The third friend, Kelly, looks deeply uncomfortable with this bigotry but doesn’t have the strength to challenge her friends over it. She is an analogue for Ilyas – both teens are caught up in groups of friends who say and do things that are ostensibly wrong. The moment foreshadows the eventual friendship that will blossom between the two.

As a secondary school maths teacher, I drew direct inspiration from the children I teach. I wrote this book to try to understand why some of the kindest teens hang out with others who lack empathy and can be cruel. High school, of course, is not an easy time. There is strength in numbers. To stand alone and fight for what you believe in can make you a target, especially in friendship groups where a pecking order exists. Many young people already feel self-conscious – the burden of taking those ‘flawless’ selfies and clocking up the most likes doesn’t exactly breed confidence – so it is difficult to challenge peers to become better people. Hierarchies are established through fear and shame which of course creates subordinates while venerating a de facto leader. And as we know: power corrupts.

Ilyas and Kelly are both relatable in their very averageness. They have hopes and dreams just like everyone else and desperately want to be friends. We empathise because we see how happy and creative they become whenever they are together and feel sympathy when berated, mocked and threatened by their respective ‘friendship’ groups who demand they keep apart.

Standing up for yourself or your friends is not easy, but hopefully the book empowers young people to believe some things are worth fighting for no matter how daunting the odds.

For the first time this year, EmpathyLab will host its Empathy Day programme online to support families at home. Schools and libraries across the country will also be offering a wide range of home learning and story-time activities.

Prior to the big day, EmpathyLab are hosting a Countdown Fortnight on their social media channels (26 May-8 June). Highlights include brand-new empathy-themed illustrations from leading artists, short stories from favourite authors and video readings of empathy-boosting books and poems from the writers themselves. Families can also download a new Family Activities Pack, featuring 14 writing, drawing, crafting, listening and reading activities to do at home. https://www.empathylab.uk/family-activities-pack

Events on 9 June will begin at 9:30am with Children’s Laureate and best-selling author Cressida Cowell, who will introduce Empathy Day. The day’s activities, designed to introduce children to the concept and importance of empathy and how to put it into action, include a draw-along with Rob Biddulph, a poetry challenge with Sarah Crossan, Empathy Charades with Joseph Coelho, exercises on listening with Jo Cotterill and Robin Stevens, before rounding up the day with an activity on putting empathy into action with Onjali Rauf and Sita Brahmachari. Finally, an evening event with Cressida Cowell, Muhammad Khan and psychologist Professor Robin Banerjee aimed at parents, teachers and librarians will address the science that drives EmpathyLab.

The full programme can be found HERE https://bit.ly/EmpathyDay2020

Join in with the #EmpathyDay social media campaign and share your #ReadforEmpathy book recommendations.