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How to draw… SupertatoMeet Supertato! He’s always there for you when the chips are down (groan...). Now you can draw your very own top ‘tater - but keep your eyes peeled for his arch nemesis, The Evil Pea! -
Toxic love: YA's bad boys need to stay between the coversDark, intense relationships can make for a good YA read, but they can also open up a conversation about the danger of toxic love in the real world -
The Nest by Kenneth Oppel and Jon KlassenThe Nest is a creepy tale of childhood fears and nightmares by Kenneth Oppel and illustrated by Jon Klassen. Discover some of its eerie secrets here - if you’re brave enough...
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Children's authors share their World Book Day costumesWe asked authors including Malorie Blackman, SF Said, Juno Dawson, Philip Reeve and Pamela Butchart (dresssed as a pimento stuffed olive, in tribute to the late, great Louise Rennison) to show us how they dress up on World Book Day! -
Adam Frost and Ross MacKenzie win Blue Peter book awards 2016Two graphic artists turned authors scoop the Blue Peter book awards, chosen by school children across the UK
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Book lovers smash quiz world record for World Book DayOver six thousand readers take a new Guinness World Records title for World Book Day
how to join us
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How do I get involved in the Guardian children's books site?This site belongs to young readers aged 7 - 18 years, and there are lots of ways to join in and be part of the community – here’s how
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What are you reading together?Review the picture book you’re currently reading with your child – and show us a photo – and we’ll choose the best for a gallery on the Guardian children’s books site
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Here's how
Are you teen bookworm and keen to get a group of mates together to discuss a book? A teacher or librarian wanting to introduce a class of children to reading? Or a parent thinking about setting up a group to make reading fun? We're your first port of call!
in pictures
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Which World Book Day £1 book shall I buy? - in picturesFind out more about all the World Book Day 2016 £1 books, including a true story from Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake
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World Book Day authors tell us where reading takes them – where does it take you?The minds of other people, the future, the outer limits of your imagination… this year’s World Book Day authors, including Cerrie Burnell, Rainbow Rowell, Juno Dawson and David Baddiel, tell us where reading takes them
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Alan the crocodile's guide to perfect teethWho better to ask for perfect teeth advice than the animal with the biggest snappers in the world? Enter Alan the crocodile with his tips for teeth that SCARE!
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Jo Weaver's Little One - in picturesJo Weaver’s Little One tells of a journey through the seasons of a mother bear and bear cub, evocatively rendered in quietly beautiful charcoal illustrations. Here she explains how she created her debut picture book
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The wildest weather – in picturesWhat happens when the weather goes WILD? From typhoons and waterspouts to moonbows and sun halos, Anna Claybourne shares some of the incredible weather phenomena and the science behind it from her book 50 Things you should know about Wild Weather. Be warned – it’s a stormy ride!
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How to... make a 3D paper elephantTry Jonny Lambert’s adorable lesson in making a 3D elephant out of just one single sheet of paper. The perfect half-term project!
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Top 10 Scottish picture booksSimon Puttock celebrates winning a Scottish children’s book award by sharing his favourite Scottish picture books, from Mairi Hedderick’s Katie Morag to Debi Gliori’s Dragon Loves Penguin
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Top 10 adventure stories inspired by WalesTo celebrate St David’s Day Jenny Nimmo has chosen her 10 favourite children’s adventures stories inspired by the landscape of Wales, from Alan Garner’s The Owl Service to Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach
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YA fiction is about far more than political correctnessDaily Mail writer Sarah Foot suggests YA fiction is too dark, gloomy and issue-based for teenagers to handle. Not so, argues site member confessionsofabooklover - it is a vibrant, diverse and exciting community with something for everyone
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What are the best children's fantasy book series?From Ursula K le Guin’s Earthsea sequence to Garth Nix’s Old Kingdom trilogy, the Book Doctor recommends epic fantasy books to tweens and young teens who want something like Game of Thrones but without the sex and violence
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interviews
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Alice Oseman: Romance is not the centre of my worldThe author who took teen lit by storm with her first novel Solitaire, published when she was just 19 years old, talks to site member Patrick Sproull about privilege, why teenagers shouldn’t be looking for a soulmate in real life or books, love of Artemis Fowl fandom and her new book Radio Silence
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Marissa Meyer: The world isn’t made of only white people, so fictional worlds shouldn’t be eitherSite member WordsAreLife got to ask sci-fi author Marissa Meyer about how it feels to say goodbye to the Lunar Chronicles series, writing diverse characters and why she is Ravenclaw through and through
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Free read! Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn HamiltonDustwalk is Amani’s home. The desert sand is in her bones. But she wants to escape. More than a want. A need. Then a foreigner with no name turns up to save her life, and with him the chance to run. But to where? The desert plains are full of danger. Sand and blood are swirling, and the Sultan’s enemies are on the rise.Read the gripping first chapter of our new Teen book club read – what a debut!
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quizzes
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Harry Potter Night of Spells - quizKnow your Expecto Patronum from your Expelliarmus? Celebrate Harry Potter Book Night: A Night of Spells with our quiz, if you think your knowledge of Harry Potter is verging on the Riddikulus!
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Which Roald Dahl character are you? - quizAre you a wizzpopper, or a wizard of pops? Do you think yourself a clever-clogs, or rather that children smell like dogs? Take our quiz and find out, as Story Telling Week begins
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How well do you know Severus Snape? - quizTo us Alan Rickman will forever be Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films. So we made this quiz in honour of the great, great actor who died this week. Find out if you know your Snivellus from your Sniffilus here. Warning: this quiz contains plot spoilers
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From Hunger Games to Harry Potter: would you survive your favourite fandom? - quizImagine if you were whisked from one of your favourite fandoms to another, from Panem to Hogsmeade, from Camp Half Blood to a zombie-ravaged London. Would you survive? Put yourself in the place of your favourite heroes, answer these questions - and find out if you’d survive in your favourite worlds…
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Magic and mystery books are winners for Scottish childrenA talking mouse, a mysterious shop and a sinister ghost story feature in the Scottish children’s books of 2016, voted for by Scottish children
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Ross MacKenzie's whirlwind guide to writing mysteryAfter winning a Scottish children’s book award with his mystery novel The Nowhere Emporium, Ross Mackenzie his mystery writing secrets
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Teen book clubTeen book clubFree read! Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn HamiltonDustwalk is Amani’s home. The desert sand is in her bones. But she wants to escape. More than a want. A need. Then a foreigner with no name turns up to save her life, and with him the chance to run. But to where? The desert plains are full of danger. Sand and blood are swirling, and the Sultan’s enemies are on the rise.Read the gripping first chapter of our new Teen book club read – what a debut!
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you may have missed
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What's happening in children's books in 2016? A literary calendarWant to know when your favourite author has a new book published? When the awards are being dished out? What film adaptations are up-coming or get the low-down on festivals near you? Then check out our literary calendar for 2016
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Find more books on your favourite topicStuck for what to read next? Take a look at what we suggest based on your favourite topics and genres, from adventure to vampires and plenty in between!
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Diverse voices: the 50 best culturally diverse children's books
An incredible list of the 50 best children's books published from 1950 to the present day that celebrate cultural and ethnic diversity is released today
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What are the best LGBT books for children, teenagers and YAs?Site members and authors including David Levithan, Patrick Ness and Liz Kessler recommend the most brilliant books which challenge homophobia and discrimination against people's sexuality
