Today is Shakespeare’s birthday and deathday, if legend is to be believed, yet in the alternative reality of story which permeates our world he has never been more alive. His work has influenced writers as […]

A number of people have asked me what I think the publishing world will look like when the dust has settled on the current revolution, and last weekend I was invited to participate in a […]

Do you remember the years between learning to read by yourself for the first time and the ones during which school workloads dealt a mortal blow to your free time? And do you remember the […]

Boys need and deserve books addressed specifically to them, to overcoming the fears or 'monsters' that bedevil them. For what are great stories if not a vicarious exploration of one's deepest darkest fears, vanquished by an unlikely but ultimately worthy hero?

It’s the oldest public library in the English-speaking world. Chetham Library in Manchester, England, was founded in 1653 for the education of “the sons of honest, industrious and painful parents”.

I went into Borders with my 21-year old son yesterday. He stood beside me, shoulders hunched, hands in pockets, as I perused the YA shelves to see who’s getting the prime shelf space and why—a […]

Writers often get asked “If you found yourself marooned on a desert island and you could only have one book with you, which one would you choose?”