CMIS Evaluation Fiction Focus

The ever-reliable PaperTigers blog has published a list of international children’s literature events being held this month. There’s no point in reinventing the wheel. Here they are.

Thanks PaperTigers.

If you are in the vicinity on Tuesday 27 October, don’t miss the opportunity to hear Markus Zusak give the 2009 Leslie Rees Lecture at Fremantle Children’s Literature Centre.

The lecture honours Leslie Rees, who died in 2000, after a lifetime of  journalism, travel writing, drama and children’s literature. He won the  first Children’s Book Council Book of the Year award in 1946 with the picture book, The Story of Karrawingi the Emu, illustrated by Walter Cunningham.

Markus will speak on issues he believes to be important in youth literature.

The first lecture in 2000 was given by Libby Hathorn. Last year’s lecture was delivered by Matt Ottley.

Where: Fremantle Children’s Literature Centre, Old Prison Hospital: cnr Knutsford Street and Hampton Road, Fremantle WA

When: Tuesday 27 October, 7.30pm (drinks on the veranda at 7pm)

RSVP: 20 October 08 9430 6869 or email: freoclc@iinet.net.au

Free, but reservations essential for seating and catering purposes

Anyone within a bull’s roar of the Fremantle Children’s Literature Centre on Wednesday December 3 should not miss the opportunity to hear Matt Ottley give the 2008 Fremantle Leslie Rees Lecture.

With the intriguing title The Art of Corrupting Youth – Beethoven, Zusak and Ottley, the lecture from the CBCA Picture Book of the Year winner promises to be provocative and, as always with Matt, highly entertaining. The controversy of his win is still raw, so Matt will have plenty to say about ‘corruption’.

Beethoven? Well, Matt’s musical credentials are well established and will be part of the evening’s presentation, as will his artwork. Apparently Eroica was decribed as ‘musical anarchy’ when first performed. Zusak? That other CBCA winner (2003 Book of the Year), The Messenger, has been called ‘immoral’. So Requiem for a Beast is in good company. The evening is dedicated to the significance of quality and challenging youth literature.

The Leslie Rees Lecture series honours a Western Australian author who won the first CBCA Award in 1946 for The Story of Karrawingi the Emu.

2008 Fremantle Leslie Rees Lecture

Where: Fremantle Children’s Literature Centre, Old Prison Hospital, corner Knutsford Street and Hampton Road, Fremantle

When: Wednesday December 3. Drinks at 7pm; lecture 7.30pm

Cost: Free

RSVP (essential) by November 28. Telephone 08 9430 6869 or email: freoclc@iinet.net.au

We know that Children’s Book Week will be here in two weeks, with the announcement of the winning books on August 14. School libraries everywhere in Australia are busy fuelling the minds of their readers.

But if you are lucky enough to have travel on your mind, or if you are just interested in what is going on elsewhere, there are plenty of other book-related events happening around the world in August. Thanks to the Papertigers site for keeping us informed.

The current issue of Papertigers is devoted to literacy.