The coming week’s bookish radio delights to listen out for include:
“The ever-popular children’s writer and illustrator Shirley Hughes recently published a magazine article recalling the dances she attended as a teenager growing up in wartime West Kirby. Readers responded with their own memories of similar dances in other parts of the country. Amongst them was the writer and journalist, Philip Purser. But he didn’t just remember similar dances: he remembered exactly the same ones.
Now, over seventy years after Shirley and Philip danced the foxtrot and joined in a Paul Jones or an Excuse-Me dance together, they are reunited for the very first time, not only in recalling these Saturday night dances but with the promise of taking to the dance-floor one last time.”
For me the most interesting children’s literature related conversation this week was around this news – David Cameron (the British PM) visiting a London school and telling parents they ought to be reading nightly to their children. Sounds good, but against a backdrop of library cuts and increasing reliance on private sponsorship and volunteers to get books into schools, this isn’t actually such a good news story. @mefinx responded with this article, and Michael Rosen also wrote a great riposte.
There were also two fun videos doing the rounds in cyberspace. If you missed them, here they are:
Thanks to Alex at Bookshelf for bringing this one to my attention.
And then, if you ever wondered what happens in a bookshop after dark…
Myra from GatheringBooks
Hi Zoe! I’ve already discovered The Joy of Books – but it’s my first time to see “Organizing the Bookcase” – i’ve shared it in my FB page – so fun! I can never remember where some of my books are in my various bookcases – I have a vague recollection that it’s somewhere in the second shelf, bottom corner – but I know that I NEED to develop some kind of filing system. 🙂
I’m envious of all the kidlit radio fun – would you know if they happen to be available internationally?
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[…] Kidlit Radio and News #3 by Zoe from Playing by the Book […]
Zoe
Hi Myra, absolutely – the BBC radio stuff is all available to listen to again online for free worldwide. Some of it is only available for one week after broadcast tho, rather than permanently.
I’m not sure about having my bookcase too well organised. Wouldn’t browsing be a lot less fun if you knew exactly which book was where?
Elli
I’ve just forwarded the link to the Shirley Hughes programme to my Mum, who was born in New Zealand but spent the latter part of her childhood in post-war West Kirby.
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Zoe
Hi Elli,
That programme is definitely one of the highlights for me this coming week. Am really looking forward to listening to it.
Zoe recently posted..Kidlit radio and news #3
Polly
Thanks for the Shirley Hughes tip off. Listened to it in the bath last night with much pleasure. I loved Joan and her ‘convoy’…
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