World Book Day 2012

Bob from The Gutter Bookshop along with Children's Books Ireland organised a fantastic World Book Day yesterday at Wood Quay! Myself, Sarah Webb and Gerry Boland helped launch the Biggest Book Show on Earth live link from London where 750,000 children from the UK and Ireland tuned in online.  RTE Junior came and covered our event,  go check it out here. 

Bob The Book Wizard!

Me and fellow book lover Sarah Webb

St. Audeon's NS see first sketches and doodles of Henry Hugglewug, then we then drew lots of Monsters together. 

Have you read these Picture books :)

Finished with a bit of Nonsense Smonsense!

Fantastic offer!

To celebrate the last weekend of Story Spark a two-for-one ticket offer is available on Sunday 19th for the 4pm show with Sarah Webb, Gillian Perdue and Brianóg Brady Dawson. Brilliant for 5-7 year olds!

Just contact Ark Box Office and quote CBI Special Offer to secure tickets - 01 6707788 - www.ark.ie

Way hey!

Story Spark this weekend!

Don't forget I will be at The Ark this Sunday for the last weekend of CBI's Story Spark.

I promise plenty of 'Nonsense Smonsense', Hugglewug roaring and fun with Mavis and Marge too! I am on at 2pm, there's a few tickets left so get booking here.

Pop over and read Hazel Gaynor's interview with me on her fab blog, Hot Cross Mum.

Frabulous Sarah Webb,will be appearing along with Brianóg Brady Dawson and Gillian Perdue on Sunday too at the 4 o'clock session.

Bob from The Gutter Bookshop will be there in case you would like some signed books for Christmas pressies! The Gutter Bookshop has to have the best Christmas window display in the city...wise words!

The Irish Book Awards!

On The Road with Mavis and Marge won The DAA Children’s Book of the Year!!!! I am thrilled!!!! Thank you so, so much to all my friends and family from all over the world who voted for Mavis and Marge. Thank you especially to Walker Books!!!!!

We had the best night...

at the best table,

with the best Sarah!

The best Mo!

We even had two Bonds...Conor and Chris!

The brilliant Jo!

The lovely Robert Dunbar and my totally rocking deadly designer Deirdre!

We had the wonderful Jane Harris!

The fabulous Susan!

And of course the best rep in the universe! (Conor Hackett!)

And a very, very late night :)

HURRAY!

Story Spark Ignites!

Last night was the launch of StorySpark at The Ark. It was such a warm family celebration and really fitting way to blast off the celebrations. Hurray!

Myself and Owen brought our three, and they were well impressed. The first floor has been kitted-out as a fully functioning Story Lab; an interactive workspace complete with mp3 listening stations and a digital recording booth.

You can listen to stories already created by children and then add your own story to the collection. Mags from Children's Books Ireland said that 'all the stories created in the lab during the next month will find a permanent home in Dublin City’s archive.'

Pretty amazing! Imagine your great grandchildren listening to these stories in the future. I overheard a young girl of ten setting her tale in Wagner Manor!

Aoibhe and Oscar loved listening to the recordings. And they were all totally impressed with the mountain of cocktail sausages and innocent smoothies. 'Just for us!'

It's going to be a really wonderful month filled full of stories. Bob from The Gutter Bookstore will be on hand if you want to get lots of signed books for Christmas pressies! Joseph O'Connor gave a lovely opening talk, I promise to upload soon. He really included all the children, especially the Bray Junior Book Club.

The stage is set. All we need now is you. Oh, yeah and a few story makers!

StorySpark at The Ark!

I was filming excerpts for RTE today. It's part of highlighting StorySpark, a celebration of children’s literature that promises to light up even the darkest of winter days.

Children's Books Ireland are taking over The Ark for the month of December. So if you love reading stories and Illustration book here so your not left in the dark!

The Reading Room line up is mind-blowing; Roddy Doyle, Frank Cottrell Boyce, Philip Ardagh, Oisín McGann, Marcus Sedgwick, John Boyne, Derek Landy, Sarah Webb.

And two Trapped By Monsters cave dwellers Ali Sparkes and me!

Do you like Marge the chicken made by my lovely friend Sarah O'Kelly?

Watch out for me around Skerries with Marge in my bike basket. My daughter Megan who's only 9 took the photo of Marge and Me in my studio.

Irish Book Awards shortlist announcement

Here's some photos from the shortlist announcements for the Bord Gáis Irish Book Awards from last Thursday.

My fellow Walker Books author and friend Sarah Webb is nominated in the Senior category. Here's Sarah and myself with Conor Hackett, 'the best rep in the world!'

It was so great to meet Derek Landy at the shortlist announcement. He just lives down the road from me in Rush, but we hadn't meet before. Megan, my daughter loves the Skulduggery Pleasant series. She is reading book 2 at the moment and loving it. Derek signed a photo for her and she was totally thrilled!

And so lovely to meet Cecelia Ahern too, she lives near my folks in Malahide.

Go, go the northsiders!

However, Paul Howard aka Ross O'Carroll Kelly wasn't so sure about all this northside competition!

Click here to vote.

More on the weekend...

More on the CBI conference here on Sarah Webbs Blog. Thanks Sarah for the kind words!
And more illustrations and notebooks doodles on the IGI site here and on The Squeaky Door Blog here.

Now I better do some work!