[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-summer-reading-challenge-a-weird-wonderful-mythical-world":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"Snakes alive! This year's \u003Ca href=\"http://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/\">Summer Reading Challenge\u003C/a> is off to a great start! Here are a bunch of us at the \u003Cb>British Library\u003C/b> launch, being our usual quiet, demure selves. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_authorgroup3_zpsd682d683-cd810559b9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThat's illustrator-animator \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/stevemaythe1st\">Steve May\u003C/a> on the left (who did a great job animating the Mythical Maze trailer), writer-illustrator \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/LizPichon\">Liz Pichon\u003C/a>, some tall chick in a hat, writer (and former actor, I discovered) \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/GuyBassBooks\">Guy Bass\u003C/a>, and writer \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/HelenaPielichat\">Helena Pielichaty\u003C/a>. Oh, and here's Children's Laureate \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/malorieblackman\">Malorie Blackman\u003C/a>! (She's also been super-busy coordinating this weekend's London \u003Ca href=\"http://www.childrenslaureate.org.uk/yalc/yalc-schedule/\">YA Lit Con\u003C/a>.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_malorie_zps20eacb41-7f3f4fcf20.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOne of the things we were asked to do was to make a video saying which book we'd like to recommend to people doing the Summer Reading Challenge. I chose my studio mate \u003Ca hrf=\"https://twitter.com/gnorthfield\">Gary Northfield\u003C/a>'s book, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.garynorthfield.com/2012/07/24/teenytinysaurs/\">\u003Ci>The Terrible Tales of the Teenytinysaurs\u003C/i>\u003C/a>. It's a brilliant read: funny, and beautifully drawn. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_teentinysaurs_zps8ab133e0-405dcd4194.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLook out for the beautiful dark underwater scene that Gary carved out of a giant sheet of scratchboard! (Here's a peek at it from our studio.) Gary's the person who originally showed me how to do library events, he's ace.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/561844.html\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/gary_teenytinysaurs_scraperboard_zpsc6697edf-b84e18edad.jpg\">\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\nHere you can see me talking about \u003Ci>Teenytinysaurs\u003C/i>. I think I might have been underwater, too, or just very tired, because I don't think I usually talk that slowly and deeply. Kind of weird sounding. But, hey... FLOURESCENT MEDUSA HAT.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Clj-embed id=\"2733\"/>\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for more under the cut!-->\\r\nOo, and can you tell what book the Minotaur is reading? Yup, that would be Teenytinysaurs. (I think it has its horn through a Harry Potter book.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_minotaur_zpse18a9fc9-9fd3acc957.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI'm so enjoying keeping an eye on the \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Summerreadingchallenge&src=typd\">#SummerReadingChallenge hash tag\u003C/a> on Twitter. So many libraries are being wonderfully creative with turning the Mythical Maze characters into big displays! Check out this dragon from \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/ShropLibraries\">Church Stretton Library\u003C/a> in Shropshire:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_ChurchStrettonLibrary_Shropshire_zps9fb1baa1-b250431b1e.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/_Joolze_\">Jules Tudor\u003C/a> made an awesome yeti! And a whole bunch of displays from \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/HaveringLibrary\">Havering Library\u003C/a> have totally been cracking me up; check out this slightly sinister Nessie. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_yeti_nessie_havering_zps53f4bc75-c80f6885a3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd this yeti and unicorn, also by Havering Library! Ha ha! I love these. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_Unicorn_Havering_zps4ead5b1f-3d24e0620f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOo, super creative Mythical Map of the children's library by \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/TottonLibrary\">Totton Library\u003C/a>!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_TottonLibrary_zps8a9c3aab-a5416bfa6e.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd I love seeing how the parents are starting to get into it. Tweeted by \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/GedHirst\">Ged Hirst\u003C/a>:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_GedHirst_zps0106670c-d8beda71d3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLucy Yewman and her mum \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/sarahyewman\">Sarah Yewman\u003C/a> are always game for a book-related activity! Here's Lucy's Medusa Story Starter comic. (You can download yours \u003Ca href=\"http://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/competition/the-medusa-malarky-by-sarah-mcintyre\">from the Summer Reading Challenge website\u003C/a>.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_Lucy_zps6cfe1f10-ee8e35d989.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd Sarah did one, too! I absolutely love it when adults take part in making comics and other children's activities; it shows kids that this isn't some patronising thing for little 'uns, it's something people can keep doing and enjoying into adulthood. Kids get much more excited about their own work when they realise adults read, write and draw, too. Great comic, Sarah Yewman! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_sarahyewman_zps8d9295d5-b74a1f30e9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd another comic tweeted in by an grownup, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/tickingboy\">Damon Herd\u003C/a>: \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_DamonHerd_tickingboy_zps798b82ce-206790bb45.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThere's even a Mythical Maze app! Here's the \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/solusuk\">Solus team\u003C/a>, who went about putting it together. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_solus1_zps0635f0dc-85cddd1b69.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nYou can play games, see the figures go 3D when you find the matching posters in your library, and learn more about each character. Download it free \u003Ca href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/mythical-maze/id882022215?mt=8\">here\u003C/a> from iTunes. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_solus2_zps46a4694a-8904eb06b5.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe had three lovely speeches by these VIPs: Chief Executive of The Reading Agency \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/sue_wilkinson1\">Sue Wilkinson\u003C/a>, Chief Executive of the British Library \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/rolykeating\">Roland Keating\u003C/a> and Children's Laureate \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/malorieblackman\">Malorie Blackman\u003C/a>. Thanks for all you do to support reading and libraries (and for the kind words and flowers)! You can see \u003Ca href=\"https://www.flickr.com/photos/thereadingagency/sets/72157645614497931/\">more photos from the launch here on the SRC Flickr page\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/SRC_British_Library_zps6dd88844-0b1dd51c13.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nKeep an eye on the \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Summerreadingchallenge&src=typd\">#SummerReadingChallenge\u003C/a> hash tag, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/readingagency\">@readingagency\u003C/a> on Twitter, on \u003Ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/SummerReadingChallengeUK?fref=ts\">Facebook\u003C/a>, and on \u003Ca href=\"http://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/\">the website\u003C/a> itself for frequent updates and new videos. Exciting times!","2014-07-11T18:24:00.000Z","summer-reading-challenge-a-weird-wonderful-mythical-world",[],"summer reading challenge: a weird & wonderful mythical world!",1776628726620]