Imagine: Children's Literature Festival

By Hazel Last edited 217 months ago
Imagine: Children's Literature Festival
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It's half-term holiday all of next week for the country's children: for some, but not all, of London's population it is the most exciting thing to happen this February. No school! No teachers! No homework! But there are still books...

The Royal Festival Hall is hosting a week of literary events for kids from Monday to Thursday, with readings, illustrated talks and exhibitions. Imagine is pitched for the younger end of children's literature - featured writers include Laruen Child who created the Charlie and Lola series and Morris Gleitzman whose books, though concerned with quite sophisticated topics, are aimed at a maximum age of 12.

Children's literature has had an enormously successful revival of late through the Harry Potter series, the His Dark Materials trilogy and a continued blurring between what is grown-up and what is not in books by Melvin Burgess and David Almond. Attention has mainly been on the teenage end of the market - but Imagine is a week of celebrating and enjoying the picture books and fairy tales of the younger kids, and a chance to get children interested in the act of reading right now, so that they're in the habit of it by the time the next Potter-type sensation is rolled out.

Imagine is at the Royal Festival Hall from Monday 13th February to Thursday 16th February. For event listings and to book tickets, please click here.

Last Updated 10 February 2006