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The Book of Hopes

Book Synopsis

In difficult times, what children really need is hope. And in that spirit, bestselling author Katherine Rundell emailed some of the children’s writers and artists whose work she loved most:

‘I asked them to write something very short, fiction or non-fiction, or draw something that would make the children reading it feel like possibility-ists: something that would make them laugh or wonder or snort or smile. The response was magnificent, which shouldn’t have surprised me, because children’s writers and illustrators are professional hunters of hope … I hope that the imagination can be a place of shelter for children and that The Book of Hopes might be useful in that, even if only a little.’

This collection, packed with short stories, poems and pictures from the very best children’s authors and illustrators, aims to provide just that. Within its pages you’ll find animal friends from insects to elephants, high-flying grandmas, a homesick sprite, the tooth fairy, and even extra-terrestrial life.

There are 133 contributions from authors and illustrators, including Anthony Horowitz, Axel Scheffler, Catherine Johnson, Jacqueline Wilson, Katherine Rundell, Lauren Child, Michael Morpurgo and Onjali Q. Rauf. A donation from the sale of each book will go to NHS Charities Together, in gratitude for the incredible efforts of all those who worked in hospitals over the quarantine period.

Our Review Panel says...

Nominated for “Favourite Books of 2020” by: Vicky Taithe (Y3 Teacher & English Lead) Vicky says, “The idea behind The Book of Hopes was inspired and it is testament to the co-operation and joint efforts of so many children’s authors, illustrators and organisations, notably the National Literacy Trust. Making it available online during the lockdown when books were so needed by isolated children was just wonderful. It gives us all some hope.”

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