Guest Columns

You probably already know the name Sophie Kinsella. Best known for her wildly successful Shopaholic series (the first two book were turned into a film starring Isla Fisher), Sophie has now turned her talented writing hand to a series of books for younger readers and – good news alert – she's coming to Barnes to talk about them. Hurrah! Sophie's workshop on her Mummy Fairy and Me books will be great for kids of 7 and over and will feature making your own spells and magic as well as hearing Sophie read from the book and find out about Mummy Fairy’s special kind of magic.

Ross Montgomery, author of Alex, the Dog and the Unopenable Door, The Tornado Chasers and Perijee & Me, is coming to Barnes to talk about his latest book, Max and The Millions. This fascinating book, in the vein of childhood favourite The Borrowers, is all about a deaf boy who discovers a microscopic fantasy world of tiny people living on his bedroom floor no bigger than ants. Ross, who came to writing via the interesting route of pig farming, post delivery, and primary school teaching, will feature loads of fascinating facts about the tiny invisible creatures living around us in his interactive workshop. There will also be activities where the kids can try to imagine what it would be like being ant-sized in a human sized room! The event will feature British Sign Language interpretation. Want to know more about the man behind the books? Read on....

Emily Gravett is a name that features on most kids' bookshelves. Her distinctive, interactively illustrated picture books are a firm favourite with kids and parents alike, and have won two Kate Greenaway awards (no one has won three). Her books, including 'Orange Pear, Apple Bear', 'Meerkat Mail' and 'Little Mouse's Book of Fears' are vastly re-readable (a must for books for tinies!) thanks to their witty use of language and interpretive illustrations. Her workshop at Barnes is sure to be bursting with drawing tips, as well as her giving us a sneaky peek of her upcoming book 'Cyril and Pat'. Get your tickets while you can!

Duncan Beedie’s career as a children’s author started with a bang, when his debut picture book, ‘The Bear Who Stared’ was shortlisted for the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize 2017. He’s gone from strength to strength with his latest two offerings ‘The Last Chip’ and ‘The Lumberjack’s Beard’, both packed with the punch of his trademark, cartoony illustration style, developed while working in animation. Come and see Duncan’s artistry in action at Barnes on Sunday 13th May, where he he will be hosting an interactive story time and live drawing from ‘The Last Chip’, his book all about a hungry pigeon….

Looking for belly laughs from your Barnes Kids Lit Fest experience? Andy Stanton's your man. The massively successful author, who wrote his first book in several hours one Christmas Eve as a festive present for his family, will be talking about his wickedly funny Mr Gum series. He will also be talking about his latest one-off book of hysterical/historical stories, Natboff! One Million Years of Stupidity, which lives up to the fantastically surreal promise of its title. We can't wait for this one – see you there!

He's best known as CBeebies Mr Bloom, but did you know that Ben Faulks, the man behind every kid's favourite allotment, is also a children's author? Good news alert – he's coming to Barnes! He'll be here on Saturday 12th May to talk about two books – 'Watch Out for Muddy Puddles' with Ben Cort, and 'What Makes Me a Me?' with David Tazzyman. His workshop is ideal for 'tiddlers' (3 and up) and will be an entertaining adventure about what makes us unique and how to get prepared for fantastical puddle jumping excursion! Just don't get him started on eggs, OK?

2018 is a busy year for children's writer Polly Faber. The author of the 'Mango and Bambang' series (about the adventures of a girl and her tapir best friend), has penned another three books!

Lisa Thompson is one of those rare authors that seemed to burst into children's literature to instant and spectacular success. Her first book, 'The Goldfish Boy' was published in 2017 and quickly became a bestseller that was published all around the world and nominated for a raft of awards including the Carnegie Medal. Her second novel, 'The Light Jar' was published this year to similar acclaim. Read on for her advice on getting started with writing and what she'd be doing if she weren't wowing kids around the world with her thought-provoking yet deeply entertaining reads. Clue: It's not singing.