FCBG24

Another year, another conference! Henceforth known as ‘The Fun One’… the Eurovision/ SuperBowl of the KidLit calendar’ thanks to the very lovely October Jones, the FCBG Conference is always a fabulous occasion and this year’s was no exception! If anyone was wondering whether it’s worth ‘sacrificing’ one of their precious weekends for, the answer is absolutely and unequivocally YES!

This year, Woldingham School in Surrey was where it all happened. The school is set in 700 acres of lovely countryside, making it a very peaceful spot to stay and as the weather was mostly kind to us, a pleasant place to wander round.

Although the Conference Committee and their helpers has been busy for hours, delegates started to arrive at 3pm. It is always lovely to catch up with familiar faces, but a fantastic opportunity to connect with new people as well- discovering the face behind the social media name or simply meeting like minded book-lovers whilst having a cuppa and a cake.

The weekend began in earnest with afternoon tea celebrating the 10th anniversary of Supertato! Not only were there delicious cupcakes, but the tater himself made an appearance, delighting everyone with his willingness to pose for pictures! Following this were the Publishers’ Presentations, a fantastic opportunity to hear about some of the wonderful books which are currently available and coming soon. With such a wealth of books available, it is a great way of spotting books of interest to have a look at and discuss with the publishers at the exhibition!

The Publishers’ Exhibition which followed their presentations is undoubtedly one of the highlights of Conference for many delegates. The opportunity to have a closer look at some of the books mentioned in the presentations is a real joy, but actually being able to meet lovely publishing people is really special, offering an opportunity to chat about different titles, enter competitions and perhaps be offered a proof copy of something up-coming! And they really are lovely people..!

After dinner, everyone headed to the Mansion House for drinks. Sam Sedgman gave a brilliant talk about his work, including his latest book, ‘The Clockwork Conspiracy’ (review here). His knowledge, sense of humour and enthusiasm for discovering things and being interested in the world made him an absolute joy to listen to!

A hard act to follow you might think, but what came next was a fabulous session of music and poetry from three of the best! Treating us to a medley of well-known songs with altered lyrics such as ‘Feeding my Mind’ (Staying Alive) and ‘FCBG’ (Tragedy), the combined talents of Laura Mucha (review of ‘Celebrate!’ here and ‘Dear Ugly Sisters’ here), John Dougherty (The Hare-Shaped Hole here) and Roger Stevens (review of Razzmatazz here) were just what was needed to round off what had been an excellent start to the weekend!

Saturday was off to a bang with Cressida Cowell (The Wizards of Once) and David Almond (Bone Music), two real treasures of children’s books who I could have listened to all day! They were followed by a session called ‘Disadvantaged Boys Have Feelings Too’ with Brian Conaghan and Nathanael Lessore which I wasn’t able to enjoy as I was on the reception desk at this time, but which everyone was full of praise for!

After another round of cupcakes, Jenny Pearson took the stage for a fabulously funny and entertaining session. This was followed by the choice of four seminars: NSSM with Margaret Bateson-Hill, NNFN, graphic novels with Steve Webb and how to become an author with Julia Green (The Boy who Sailed the World). A tough decision to make!

After lunch, there was a session with Jennifer Killick (Dread Wood) and Peter Bentley (Octopus Shocktopus), past winners of the CBA which some children had been invited to attend. Next came the ‘Empathy in Picture Books’ panel with Mariajo Ilustrajo, Farrah Riaz and Kim Hillyard (Mabel and the Mountain), a wonderful session! More tea and cake followed to celebrate 30 years of ‘Dinosaur Roar!’ before the Group meetings.

And there was still more to come! We celebrated Michael Morpurgo’s 80th birthday with him before the Gala Dinner and then the incomparable David Fickling gave the after dinner speech! His enthusiasm and energy are completely infectious, making the perfect end to another perfect day!

Although some were a little bleary eyed from staying on at the bar the night before, everyone was up bright and early on Sunday to enjoy yet more book-ish joy! The first session was Lisa Williamson, an excellent YA author (First Day of My Life) , talking about her new MG series ‘Best Friends Forever’. This was followed by ‘Inclusion in Fiction’, a panel event with Sarah Hagger-Holt, Lisette Auton and Karen Owen. Lisette Auton wasn’t able to join us in person, but appeared on screen! Both of these session were thought-provoking as well as enjoyable.

Our final tea break -more cake!- was followed by ‘Fantasy with an Environmental Twist’, a fascinating session with Pari Thomson, Jess French and Rachel Delahaye (Day of the Whale). And last, but very much not least, Christopher Edge (Escape Room) closed conference in style with another excellent, fun session which no one will forget in a hurry!

Time for lunch and then we were all saying our goodbyes- and promising to meet again in Monmouth next year so we can do it all again! Many thanks to the Conference Committee for organising such a fabulous event and many apologies if I’ve left anyone out of the pictures! Can’t wait for FCBG25!

Escape Room

When Ami arrives at the Escape, she thinks her dad has arranged a treat for her- the ultimate escape room challenge. Along with team mates, Adjoa, Ibrahim, Oscar and Min, Ami learns that their challenge is to save the world, working together to find the Answer. However, from the first challenge, it becomes clear that this is no ordinary Escape Room challenge. Facing a series of perilous scenarios, Ami and her team must work together to find the Answer before it is too late.

‘Escape Room’ is one of those books which grabs you from page one and is impossible to put down. Beautifully plotted, the story has one of the best endings I have read in a long time which makes discussing the plot in detail very difficult without giving the game away!

The game starts as they expect with puzzles to solve and clues to decipher; However, things soon take a darker turn and the children find themselves playing a very different game to the one they expected- one with serious consequences. The children make their way through a series of locations, facing a new challenge in each. The settings (the Bibliothèque Universelle, described as a ‘vast cathedral of books’, sounds like my dream come true) are vividly described, creating the perfect backdrop to the action – and there is plenty of action. Christopher Edge does a marvellous job of building tension, forcing the reader to question everything as they journey alongside Ami and the team.

But there is more to this book than a pacy, intriguing adventure. As with his other books, Christopher Edge challenges the reader to think about… well, I can’t really tell you that without spoiling the plot- so you’ll have to read it to find out!

A fantastic read aloud, ‘Escape Room’ would also make an excellent core text to inspire children’s own writing, drama and debate work. It’s time to play for real…

Escape Room Christopher Edge

Nosy Crow ISBN: 978-1788007962

Originally reviewed for Reading Zone.