COOL not CUTE!

Last year I started to write a blog post about gender bias in the picture book industry — I think the industry’s output reflects girls’ tastes a lot more than it does boys’ and that this bias has exacerbated the gender gap between boys’ and girls’ reading abilities.

This is something I’ve been discussing with people inside and outside the industry for several years and I thought I'd set down all my thoughts on the subject. Once I began writing, I realised that, to do the issue justice, it was going to have to be considerably longer than a blog post. In addition to an article about picture books, I've written two shorter articles on related subjects. All three articles can be found on a separate blog I’ve just set up at coolnotcute.com

I’d like to start a debate on the issue so, if you’re interested, please click here to visit the site.

Poly Bernatene Calendar 2013

Happy New Year everyone!

For the past few years Argentinean illustrator Poly Bernatene has produced a calendar showcasing his work. Poly has posted this year's calendar as a free download on his blog.

Along with illustrations from our last two picture book collaborations, The Santa Trap and The Princess and the Pig, the 2013 calendar also features a couple of illustrations from our forthcoming picture book, a piratical adventure called Here be Monsters, to be published this autumn.

Click here to download the calendar.