We are delighted to welcome Anne Fine, twice-winner of the Carnegie Medal and former Children's Laureate, to the blog to introduce her new book On the Wall and share her thoughts one of its lead characters, Finley.  On the Wall is published by Old Barn Books.

It’s perhaps as well that children don’t come, like sweets, as a Pick-and-Mix choice. We all know what we’d be tempted to choose. But mostly, instead, we end up with a pack of All Sorts.

I have a host of sisters. My mother only had to raise an eyebrow at one for the poor soul to fetch up on the edge of tears. But Mum could scold another till her throat ran dry, and all that sister would do was stubbornly stand, arms folded, till she could welly in with her own tirade and fearlessly argue her case.

So one of most interesting things when writing about the young stems from the fact that they have such astonishingly differing personalities, and such wide emotional ranges. Take Stolly, in Up on Cloud Nine - without a doubt the most eccentric child I’ve ever tried to portray. He makes a raft for his gerbils. He can’t help but tidy the queue at his bus stop. He even starts to build his own personal Wailing Wall. He drives everyone, including his best friend Ian, to distraction.

Yet Stolly’s still in mainstream school, and rolling along nicely. And that’s one of the things I find most fascinating about schools. They take in pretty well everyone, the All Sorts, and by and large everyone learns to fit in and rub along.

There are exceptions, of course. Children like Josh in The Ladder of Fear, (one of the short stories in Blue Moon Day), who has to be taught how to overcome his almost overwhelming anxieties about school. Or unhappy and awkward Tulip, in The Tulip Touch, whose own appalling classroom behaviour and frequent truancy stems from her horribly stressful home background. I’m sure the relentless show-off Titania, in the three comedies about the Mountfield Family (The More the Merrier, Eating Things on Sticks and Trouble in Toadpool) would prove a bit too much for most of those around her in her class.

But I’ve found it hard not to fall halfway in love with the young boy I feature in my new novel, On the Wall. Finley is moving up to secondary school. Those of his classmates who come from the same feeder primary already know him well. But those who don’t, and a goodly number of the staff now set to teach him, find themselves mystified by this unusually quiet and contemplative, but in no way shy, spirit. With his quite extraordinary gift for stillness and his seemingly cast-iron happiness, Finley appears to exist in his own private peaceable kingdom. What on earth makes the boy tick?

And how, by simply sitting unflappably on the wall of the recreation ground, does Finley end up having such a strong effect on both pupils and staff? For somehow, in his presence, nervous Juliet learns how better to deal with her previously relentless and intrusive worries. Overly excitable Akeem can be calmed. Even Miss Fuentes, suddenly bereft of her precious cat, finds his simple closeness on the bench beside her a tremendous comfort. It’s as if Finley’s acceptance of himself spreads outwards, to become an easy acceptance of how others are, giving them a confidence they find both soothing and healing.

Like many authors, I need a lot of time alone and a good deal of silence. Putting a character who has those same needs into a school became a sort of thought experiment. Sarah Maitland observed that most children tend to ‘disappear behind a wall of noise’. I chose to look more deeply into one who chooses to do the opposite. And I found it amusing and enlightening to work out, first, what fellow pupils and teachers would make of him, and how they might interpret his behaviour and even benefit from his presence.

Though there have always been children who come over as ‘different’ in children’s literature, this is a novel that wouldn’t have been written in quite the way it is before the sea-change in teaching whereby the nurture of the individual child began to be taken at least as seriously as the smooth-running education of the herd. And as a result, more and more of those of us who have dealings with young people are fully aware that disquieting numbers of our children now suffer from things like deep anxiety, or loneliness. For these, books can be a lifeline. We do, after all, read partly to know that we are not alone, and reading about someone else’s path out of an emotional mire can offer shafts of light, and ways to go.

A big thank you to Anne Fine for the blog and to Nicky Potter and Old Barn Books for the opportunity.  

We are delighted to welcome Geraldine McCaughrean, twice winner of the CILIP Carnegie Medal (1988 and 2018) to the blog.  Geraldine is one of today's most successful and highly regarded children's authors. In addition to the Carnegie, she has won the  Whitbread Children's Book Award (three times), the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, the Smarties Bronze Award (four times) and the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award. In 2005 she was chosen from over 100 other authors to write the official sequel to J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan. Peter Pan in Scarlet was published in 2006 to wide critical acclaim.

Without ever leaving my desk, I have journeyed to many, many countries to gather up their history, flora, fauna, traditions, climate and adventure-potential. Usually, it’s because I have just discovered some morsel of historical fact that has intrigued me into starting a book. I crave to take a reader somewhere they’re unlikely to have been – unlikely ever to go: Antarctica, for instance, or 13^th century Cathay or Noah’s Ark – somewhere that will take both of us out of ourselves and shake us like a rug.

In my latest novel, The Supreme Lie, the tiny country of Afalia is even farther afield in a way, because it’s invented. As its name suggests, it’s flawed, and prey to all those too-familiar faults: rich owners / poor workers, corruption, scheming ambition, too great a split between countryside and city, and an economy based on too few products. The catalyst for the plot is a flood. And a real flood was the historical fact that sparked the novel: the great Mississippi flood of 1928.

However, this time I set myself the task of inventing an entirely fictional country, complete with geography, fauna, a back story and a plausible assortment of residents. It’s the first time I’ve ever attempted it, and I can recommend it as enormous fun! Also, it means that no-one will be able to pull me up on my factual content!

I never set out to include an ‘issue’ or ‘moral’ or ‘life lesson’: all I’m after is adventure, entertainment and interesting characters the reader can love, hate and mind about. But somehow some preoccupation usually creeps out from behind my brain and insinuates itself into the story. This time it was the power of the Press and the fallibility of those to whom we look hopefully for leadership, exemplary wisdom and to keep our best interests at heart. Just so long as Adventure comes first: Adventure and The Cast, of course. The Villain, the Good Guy, the Innocent, the Chorus ... can characterisation really be as bald as that? It doesn’t feel like it. My actors seem to walk into their roles from somewhere else and, from then on, do half the work, take half the decisions, surprise me. It’s the chief joy of writing fiction – for me, anyway.

In this case I’ve even included animals, who provided a different perspective and also did things I wasn’t expecting. When I was at junior school and we were allowed to write stories, we were usually given a theme. But whatever the theme, my stories were always about horses. I was horse mad, but horseless. So, I rode an invisible horse to school, holding my satchel strap for reins. Since then, I’ve rather neglected the four-legged species. So here are Daisy and Heinz, doggedly doggy, town and country, chalk and cheese, destined only briefly to meet.  

You could say, my books come not from experience but from the lack of it, starting off with a lack of horse and moving on through a lack of daring, travel, influence or genius. (Well, look at that! I’m the inversion of Katherine Rundell!)

Oh, but there’s that other place they come from: the other place to which I rode my invisible horse: the Library. Talking to top juniors the other day, I asked them to picture the characters, after dark, descending on ropes from the bookshelves of their School Library – kings and gods, giant apes and sailors, Roman soldiers and Odin’s eight-legged horse. Night time fetches them out from beneath their covers, to fraternise on the Story Mat and for Sleipnir to graze on the carpet pile.

That is how I still choose to envisage libraries: their books the serried rows of beds in which stories lie dozing, waiting for the reader to find them and take them home for a memorable interchange of ideas. While library doors have been closed, imagine the panic of their numberless inmates inexplicably cut off from a career of entertaining and stimulating the young - the bored - the restless – the lonely minds.

I’ll be seventy this year. I never meant to be, but accidents happen, and here it comes, like a charging bull, to toss me out of the way, maybe, and make room for younger authors. Well, it can try ... but it won’t stop me writing. I spent a glorious lockdown writing poems, plays and, of course, another book.  And while those invented characters remain in my imagination – before they slip away from me to pursue their lives in someone else’s head – I shall point them in the direction of libraries and tell them what comrades they will find there, what cross-fertilization, what magic, as the words jumble and tumble from book to book on the long dark shelves, in the dead of night. 

Visit www.geraldinemccaughrean.co.uk to find out more about Geraldine’s work.

Twitter: @GMcCaughrean

The Supreme Lie is available now from Usborne Publishing for readers age 12+ £8.99

Thank you to Geraldine McCaughrean for the blog and to Liz Scott for the opportunity.  Do check out the readers' notes below.

We are delighted to welcome Cassie Kemp to the Youth Libraries Group blog to discuss the benefits of being a judge for the UK's oldest and most prestigious children's book awards.  Cassie is a librarian with Creative Learning Services in Leicestershire and has just completed her first year as a CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Judge.  Positions on the judging panel are now open to application for East Midlands, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, to find out more and to apply visit here.  

1.       Books, books, books!
You get to read the best quality books for children and young people out there at the minute. You are able to surround yourself with wonderful books that are loved and have been chosen by fellow librarians. Not only do you get to read all these wonderful books, but you get to look at them in depth.

For those books you have been eagerly anticipating reading it’s so exciting to have a reason to read your favourite author’s new work, but it’s also a great opportunity to explore new books by a wide range of authors and illustrators.

2.       Try something new

You will be able to read books you may not have heard about before or would not usually get a chance to read. Whether they are books for a different age group, a new genre or a new author or illustrator; you will be able add to your book knowledge as you devour the books.

There were some books that I know I wouldn’t have chosen to read normally, but that I was pleasantly surprised by, or books that I had absolutely no knowledge or preconceptions of that I was blown away by when I came to read them. We are all guilty of judging a book by its cover or author or genre, but this was a great exercise in showing me that there is a difference between favourite books and unfamiliar books, and that the latter is not a negative, but a positive waiting to be discovered.

3.       Humbling

There is nothing quite like realising you are doing all this reading for the good of others- not for yourself directly, or for monetary gain, but for your profession and for young people. It’s a great motivator when you’re struggling to think of sharing the books with other readers and to be able to support the shadowing groups who will be devouring the books you are choosing.

I had a surreal moment during the first judging days when I stepped back and looked at our situation from afar; we were a room of enthusiastic readers from across the UK who were united by our love of reading and our passion for sharing and promoting great books. We were all there because we love what we do and we love to share that with others.

4.       Networking Opportunities

You have the opportunity to work alongside like-minded people from across the UK, and share experiences, struggles and ideas whilst being able to hear what’s happening in libraries and authorities elsewhere, and of course- make new friends!

I was able to meet new people from similar working backgrounds and from completely different working backgrounds. We were able to talk about professional support, current challenges we were facing and how we were dealing with them. As well as being able to talk books (non-CKG of course!) and bask in the glow of other bookworms.

5.       Personal Development

You will gain confidence and belief in yourself and your abilities during this process. You have been chosen to be a CKG judge for a reason and you’ll learn so much about yourself from this experience.

After the first judging day I came away feeling so confident in myself as a professional person- the same kind of feeling you get when you get given a job you really wanted or get recognition in your workplace for what you do. It was a great feeling of validation- I was able to contribute to discussions with the other judges and feel that my opinions were respected and shared.

6.       Excuse to read books

While fitting the reading in with your everyday life and work can be tricky at times, the work you’re doing is reading- and we wouldn’t be CKG judges if we didn’t love reading! As a judge you are be able to read all weekend guilt-free because its for a good cause. It’s like having a reading pass, excusing you from reality for a few months.

And not only that but you get to re-read some of the books too when it comes to the latter stages of the process-- something we don’t often get time to do with our everyday reading books. Revisiting some of the books is a great experience- you’re looking at the books differently now you know more about the story and you discover new things you may have missed the first time round.

7.       That winning feeling

Prior to the judging days the judges are not allowed to discuss the books- with anyone! The first time you get to talk about them is on the judging days and you can’t guarantee everyone feels the same as you do about a book. That’s why there are multiple judges from a range of backgrounds and workplaces- so our individual experiences and knowledge can be put together with that of others to gain a consensus of opinion. So when a book you think is great gets the thumbs up from the group, it’s a wonderful feeling. There were some books that I felt so passionately about when it came to the first round of judging that I found myself getting quite emotional and nervous for when it was their turn to be discussed.

8.       Professional Recognition

It will look great on your CV! You’ve been chosen to be a part of history, of the oldest, most prestigious book award for children and young people in the UK. As one of my colleagues said to me when I found out I had been chosen “you can’t get a higher accolade than that in our profession!’

It’s a great experience on a personal level for your professional development but it can also look good for your workplace too- whether that’s a boost for your workplace to be able to say their librarian is a judge or for you to use as a reason to ask to attend conferences and other professional events because of your new standing in the professional society.

9.       The support of other judges

You will be a judge for two years and the group of judges is made up of a mixture of first and second year judges, allowing the latter to share their knowledge and experience and offer advice to the former. You will also be supported by the CKG working party, the Chair of Judges and previous judges from your region.

As a first year judge this year I was lucky enough to be able to speak regularly to a mentor. This was a great help as I was able to ask all the silly questions I was too nervous to ask the judging group and find out more about what was to come and what was expected of me.

10.   Learning about your own reading style

You will learn a lot about yourself as a reader, be able to push yourself out of your comfort zone and build up your reading stamina. The key to managing the reading is working out how you read best- whether that’s at a certain time of day, in short bursts or for large chunks of time.

I learnt that I work best when given a target- saying to myself “I’ll read another 50 pages then I’ll have a break/do the washing up/go to bed” so I didn’t feel overwhelmed or like I was missing out on life/housework/sleep! I found that very simple incentives worked too- like rewarding myself with a chocolate off the Christmas tree when I finished a book!

11.   You CAN do it

When the nominations lists are announced and you see the number of the books you have to read in the next few months it can be overwhelming. You may feel like you will never be able to read them all, but you can and you will! The key is to be organised- draw up a timetable or a plan; tick the books off a list as you go or separate the read and not-yet-read books from each other so you can see your progress. The feeling of achievement when you’ve read all those books will be amazing!

I had all my Carnegie books on a bookcase at home and turned the one’s I’d read around so all I could see were those I had yet to read. For the Greenaway I moved books from one shelf to another when I’d read them. Being able to physically see my progress was both comforting and encouraging.

12.   New terminology

You’ll probably be looking at books in a completely different way to the way you have before.  Because of this you’ll pick up new terminology and phrases you may have not have heard before.

Before being a judge I was worried that I didn’t know enough about art and artistic style to be able to properly judge the Greenaway, but I found that this wasn’t the case. As a reader familiar with children’s books I knew more than I realised I knew and that perhaps I just didn’t know the technical term for what I was talking about. The CKG Working Party creates a handbook for judges and this includes a glossary of terms which was invaluable at the start of my judging tenure and I learnt a lot from my fellow judges too during the process.

13.   The power!

You will know what books have been chosen to be on the longlists, shortlists and then what two books have been chosen as the winners before everyone else! This is somewhat of a double-edged sword as you have the power of knowledge, but you also have huge secrets to keep as well.

I had several experiences before the longlists and shortlists were announced when a particular book was discussed in my presence and I was fighting the urge to shout “I know, it’s great, isn’t it?” or “it’s on the shortlist!”

I also remember early on in the process feeling momentarily upset that I wouldn’t be able to follow the awards as I have done in previous years and get swept away with the anticipation of finding out which books had won or been shortlisted and longlisted this year. But then I realised that I would be in even a better position as a judge- I would be one of the people making that decision, making history and making some fabulous memories along the way. 

Thank you to Cassie for sharing her experiences of judging and good luck as you enter your second year!