New Year Honours

Congratulations to recent OLA visitor Wayne Mills who has been awarded the Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to education in the Queen's New Year Honours list 2011.

Wayne launched the Kids' Lit Quiz™ in New Zealand in 1991 concerned that his children’s school prize givings never included awards for keen readers. He wanted to make children who love books as highly valued as school sports stars in his sports-mad country, with national TV coverage, trophies and trips to compete in exciting venues to spur them on. The competition has been spreading around the world, is hugely popular in the UK and is launching in Canada in February.

The New Zealand Order of Merit, established in 1996, is awarded to those “who in any field of endeavour, have rendered meritorious service to the Crown and the nation or who have become distinguished by their eminence, talents, contributions, or other merits”.

Wayne Mills is a senior lecturer at the University of Auckland in the Faculty of Education. In March 2008 he was awarded the Margaret Mahy Medal in New Zealand for his substantial and distinguished contribution to both national and international literature and literacy.

Treasure Island and classic books

Following Year 7's visit to the theatre to see an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island we had a discussion in the Library about what we mean by a classic. We looked at the definition in the Oxford English Dictionary (my favourite reference book) and then thought about classic books, suggesting titles. A list of classic books arranged by genre was given out to paste into English exercise books. All the books on the list are available for loan from the school library, and of course, make a great Christmas present or gift for a child at any time of the year.
Season's Greetings!

The 2011 Blue Peter Book Awards Shortlist

The 2011 Blue Peter Book Awards Shortlist is:
Best Book With Facts:
Do Igloos Have Loos? by Mitchell Symons
How the World Works by Christiane Dorion
What You Need To Know Now: The World in Facts, Stats, and Graphics by Joe Fullman et al.
Most Fun Story with Pictures:
Alienography by Chris Riddell
Mr Gum and the Cherry Tree by Andy Stanton, illustrated by David Tazzyman
Lunatics and Luck (The Raven Mysteries) by Marcus Sedgwick, illustrated by Pete Williamson
Favourite Stories:
Dead Man's Cove (A Laura Marlin Mystery) by Lauren St John
A Web of Air (Mortal Engines) by Philip Reeve
Tall Story by Candy Gourlay
The panel of adult judges selected the shortlist which will now be judged by Blue Peter viewers. They will decide both the winners in each category, and the overall winner of Blue Peter Book of the Year 2011.

KLQ Quiz Master visits OLA

Wayne Mills, the KLQ Quiz Master, visted OLA before he flew back to New Zealand. He attended the lunchtime Debating Society taster session 'Fairytales should be banned - they delude young children', and then spent the afternoon in the Library recommending books (see the list here), and giving out prizes for a correct answer to a spot question. He never asks a quiz question on a book unless he has read it, and his enthusiasm for reading is infectious, so by the end of his sessions I was very busy issuing books for loan!

Kids' Lit Quiz - UK Final

The UK Final of the Kids' Lit Quiz took place yesterday in Oxford Town Hall, an exciting afternoon where some of the best readers in the UK were being rewarded for reading. Children’s author, actor and comedian Charlie Higson, creator of the Young Bond series and new zombie thriller series The Enemy along with 30 children's authors came to cheer on their readers. The winners were Cockermouth School with Bristol Grammar coming second after a nail-biting play-off. Both teams are invited to New Zealand in 2011 for the 20th Anniversary International KLQ Celebration.