Birlinn Children’sAuthors available

for events and festivals in 2015

CO N TAC T

Jan RutherfordPublicity and Marketing Director

Birlinn Ltd10 Newington Road

West Newington HouseEdinburgh EH9 1QS

Tel: 0131 337 9724Mob: 077 1047 4308

E:mail: jan.ppw@janrutherford.co.uk

CONTENTS

Alexander McCall SmithDebi GlioriAllan BurnettTom PowStephen WhiteJoan LennonJoe Friedman

www.birlinn.co.uk

1234567

LATE 2014 & SPRING 2015

www.birlinn.co.uk www.birlinn.co.uk 1

Author based: Edinburgh

Willing to travel: Anywhere in the world

Happy to do:In-discussion or solo events; festivals large

and small. Alexander is a hugely experienced performer, with more than 50 appearances a

year before audiences ranging from small rural knitting groups to a packed Sydney opera

house2015/16 – limited availability

www.alexandermccallsmith.comwww.facebook.com/alexandermccallsmith

@McCall Smith

ALEXANDER McCALL SMITH

Creator of Precious Ramotswe and The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, which has sold 25 million copies in English and been translated into 46 languages.

July 2015: Precious and the Zebra NecklaceAugust 2015: Scotland Street #10 – The Revolving Door of Life

Also available: The Forever Girl (stand-alone novel) (hbk); Fatty O’Leary’s Dinner Party (stand-alone novel) (hbk); Precious and the Mystery of Meerkat Hill (pbk); Precious and the Mystery of the Missing Lion (pbk); Precious and the Monkeys (pbk); The Corduroy Mansions series; The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series; the Isabel Dalhousie series; the 44 Scotland Street series; the von Igelfeld series; plus stand-alone novels such as Trains & Lovers: The Heart’s Journey.

An hour in the company of Alexander McCall Smith is an hour of sheer delight!

Who is Alexander McCall Smith?Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world’s most prolific and best-loved authors. His career has been a varied one: for many years he was a professor of Medical Law and worked in universities in the United Kingdom and abroad. Then, after the publication of his highly successful No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, which has sold over 20 million copies, he devoted his time to the writing of fiction and has seen his various series of books translated into over 45 languages and become bestsellers across the world.

Alexander McCall Smith created Precious Ramotswe as a character in a short story in the 1990s. She made her debut in the novel The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency in 1998 and since then that novel (and a further fourteen titles in the series) has sold many millions of copies to fans across the world .

About Precious and the Zebra Necklace: When Precious finds out that all schoolfriend Nancy has of her missing parents is a photograph and a necklace, she offers to help. Precious and Nancy find themselves on an exciting adventure that takes them into the remotest parts of Botswana in their search for Nancy’s family.

Praise for Alexander McCall Smith:

‘Perfect escapist fiction’ – The Times

‘Elegant, precise and evocative, McCall Smith tells an exceedingly good story’ –The herald

www.birlinn.co.ukwww.birlinn.co.uk 2

DEBI GLIORIOctober 2014: Tobermory Cat 1, 2, 3 (aimed at readers aged 0–5)

Also available: The Tobermory Cat (pbk) (2013); The Tobermory Cat (hbk) (2012); The Scariest Thing of All (Bloomsbury UK, 2011), Stormy Weather (Bloomsbury UK, 2010), The Trouble with Dragons (Walker and Company, 2008), No Matter What (Bloomsbury UK, 2002)

Who is Debi Gliori?Debi Gliori was born in Glasgow and studied at Edinburgh College of Art. She is well known both for her picture books and her novels for children, and has been shortlisted for all the major prizes, including the Kate Greenaway Award (twice) and the Scottish Arts Council Award. Debi was the Shetland Islands’ first Children’s Writer-in-Residence. She published her first book in 1990 and since then has published so many successful books that she has lost count. She has written and illustrated No Matter What, The Trouble with Dragons, Stormy Weather and, most recently, The Scariest Thing of All.

About Tobermory Cat 1, 2, 3: In the village of Tobermory, on the Scottish island of Mull, lives a very special ginger cat. But once upon a time he didn’t think he was special at all – not like the woolly cats of Loch Ba, the singing cats of Staffa or the fishing cats of Fishnish.But now everyone knows about him. He’s the cat who has become a legend in his own lifetime by simply being himself. He’s the cat who dances on top of the fish van; the cat who speaks to otters; the cat who drives the big yellow digger; the cat who rides on top of cars. He’s the Tobermory Cat.

About The Tobermory Cat:Debi Gliori’s delightful The Tobermory Cat was one of the most popular children’s books of 2012. Based on a real cat known to local inhabitants as well as thousands of visitors to Mull, the island’s ginger tom and his extraordinary antics have now become world famous. Young children will love this counting book in which the Tobermory Cat wakes up hungry and explores the town in search of something to eat.

Praise for The Tobermory Cat:

‘Full of detail , allusion and charm [it] can be returned to time and again. What an ad for Tobermory – and cats!’– The scoTsman, children’s Books of The Year 2012

Author based:East Lothian

Willing to travel: Anywhere in the UK

Happy to do: Bookstore and external events, schools and

libraries,festivals large and small

Recent events:Wigtown Book Festival, Waterstones

UK tour; Edinburgh International Book Festival, libraries, Lennoxlove Book

Festival, Aye Write, Borders Book Festival, Durham Literature Festival, Dundee

Literature Festival.

www.birlinn.co.uk www.birlinn.co.uk 3

ALLAN BURNETT March 2014: World War I: Scottish Tales of Adventure

July 2014: The Story of Scotland: Inspired by the Great Tapestry of Scotland (aimed at readers aged 6–12)

Also available: World War II: Scottish Tales of Adventure (2011); the and All That series of history books for young readers

Who is Allan Burnett?Allan Burnett is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked as deputy editor for the Scottish Standard and as deputy foreign editor for the Sunday Herald. He is former editor of historical supplements for the Sunday Herald and is the author of Robert Burns And All That, Macbeth And All That, Mary Queen of Scots And All That, Bonnie Prince Charlie And All That, St Columba And All That, William Wallace And All That and Rob Roy And All That.

About The Story of Scotland:In this book, specifically designed for younger readers, bestselling children’s author Allan Burnett tells the story of Scotland through the Great Tapestry of Scotland – a thing of wonder, full of magic and adventures and mysteries. In addition to opening windows into key moments in history and introducing some of the most significant people who have shaped the nation, the book also celebrates the lives of ordinary Scotsmen and women over the ages. From saints, soldiers and Vikings to kings and queens, Arctic whalers and footballers, this is an amazing journey through the story of Scotland. About World War I: Scottish Tales of Adventure:World War I: Scottish Tales of Adventure is a gripping collection of eight true-life stories from the battlefields of the First World War (1914–18). It recounts the terrible struggle for survival in muddy trenches where young soldiers dodged bullets, poison gas and high-explosive shells while waiting for the order to go over the top and face the enemy. It brings to life the thrills and spills of the Royal Flying Corp, where airmen flew daring reconnaissance missions under heavy fire. It tells of brave doctors and nurses who treated the wounded in makeshift wards in tents amid the bombs and gunfire. These stories of excitement, heartache, heroism and victory, all based on personal diaries, letters and memoirs, bring to life a variety of Scottish war stories from the Western Front, Gallipoli and Africa in a way that will leave young readers informed, moved and inspired.

Author based:Sweden/EdinburghWilling to travel:

Limited availability but happy to consider anything in the UK and beyond

Happy to do: Bookstore and external events, schools and

libraries,festivals large and small

Recent events:Edinburgh International Book Festival, Borders

Book Festival, National Library of Scotland

www.allanburnett.com

www.birlinn.co.ukwww.birlinn.co.uk 4

Author based: Dumfries

Willing to travel: Anywhere in the UK

Happy to do: Bookstore and external events,

schools, festivals large and small, bespoke events, libraries etc

Recent events:Wigtown Book Festival, Dundee Literature Festival, Boswell Book

Festival, National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh International Book ferstival

Borders Book Festival

TOM POW May 2015: Sixteen String Jack and the Garden of Adventure (aimed at readers aged 6–12) Also available: A Wild Adventure (2014); Concerning the Atlas of Scotland (2014); When the Rains Come (2012); In Another World: Among Europe’s Dying Villages (2012); In the Becoming (2009)

Who is Tom Pow?Tom Pow was born in Edinburgh in 1950 and studied at the University of St Andrews. He taught in Edinburgh, London and Madrid before settling in Dumfries where he taught for many years at Dumfries Academy. He then took up the post of Head of Creative and Cultural Studies at the University of Glasgow Crichton Campus, Dumfries, where he is now Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing and Storytelling. Tom’s last two poetry collections were shortlisted for Scottish Books of the Year.

About Sixteen String Jack :One day, Daisy’s grandmother takes her to an overgrown garden. Many, many years before, other children had played in that garden – Sixteen String Jack and Dare Devil Dick were shipwrecked there; and often they fought pirates side by side till the sun went down. But it was only Sixteen String Jack whose fame would never die, for he grew up to become J.M. Barrie, creator of Peter Pan.

In this poignant and beautifully illustrated story, award winning writer Tom Pow and Sendak Fellow Ian Andrew search out the magic that, in time, would produce the most famous character in children’s literature.

About Concerning the Atlas of Scotland:Tom Pow spent six months as writer in residence at the National Library of Scotland Map Library in Edinburgh. He was so inspired by the collection that they hold and by the stories that they tell that he wrote a collection of poetry based on that experience. Published by Polygon but with input from the National Library and illustrated with details from the collection, this beautiful and quite haunting collection will be welcomed by map lovers as well as poetry lovers.

Praise for Tom Pow:

‘A subtle, lyrical poet’ – The scoTsman Praise for In Another World : ‘Through essays, photos, stories and poems, Pow eloquently charts the decline of Europe’s rural life’ – financial Times ‘[A] limber, engaging and enervated quest’ – The scoTsman

www.birlinn.co.uk www.birlinn.co.uk 5

STEPHEN WHITEJune 2015: J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan: The Graphic Novel

Who is Stephen White?Stephen White (Stref ) is an illustrator based in Edinburgh. He previously worked on The Beano and The Dandy, drawing some of Scotland’s favourite comic characters – Dennis the Menace, the Bash Street Kids, Minnie the Minx, Winker Watson and Desperate Dan. He now works freelance, and has published a number of graphic novels.

He’s appeared in a BAFTA nominated film, and runs Reekie Roundup, an Edinburgh community of writers, illustrators, film makers, actors, directors, producers, graphic novelists and comic makers.

About J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan: The Graphic Novel:Peter Pan is the first graphic novel featuring J.M. Barrie’s world-famous children’s character which is entirely faithful to the original story. With text adapted by Stephen White from Barrie’s original, it is published with the full backing of Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, which control the rights of Barrie’s novel and play.

Author based:Edinburgh

Willing to travel: Anywhere in the UK

Happy to do: Bookstore and external events,

festivals large and smallRecent events:

School events, Edinburgh International Book Festival

www.birlinn.co.ukwww.birlinn.co.uk 6

Author based: Fife

Willing to travel: Anywhere in the UK and beyond

Happy to do: Bookstore and external events,

festivals large and small, schools and libraries

Recent events:Edinburgh International Book Festival,

Learning Across the Arts Festival, numerous school and library events

JOAN LENNON May 2015: Silver Skin Who is Joan Lennon?Joan Lennon was born in Canada but has lived in Scotland since 1978. She has written a large number of children’s books, including a number of successful series – The Wickit Chronicles, Tales from the Keep and the Slightly Jones series. Her books have been translated into numerous languages.

About Silver Skin :Skara Brae, Orkney, during the Neolithic period. The sun is dying, crops are failing and the local inhabitants fear that the end of the world is near. When a strange boy appears from nowhere, dressed in an odd silver suit – his ‘silver skin’ – the community is thrown into confusion. Who is he, where is he from, and why has he come? Is he a selkie or seal person, a mythical being believed to have magical powers? For Cait, herself an outsider in the community, the boy, Rab, arouses a strange fascination as she finds herself strangely drawn towards him. For Voy, the Old Woman, Rab represents the only hope for the sun’s regeneration, but only if his silver skin is burnt in a huge sacrificial blaze. As the pyre is built, Rab must fight for his life if he is ever to be able to return to his own time. And if he succeeds, what will be the fate of the islanders he will leave behind?

www.birlinn.co.uk www.birlinn.co.uk 7

JOE FRIEDMAN May 2015: The Secret Dog Who is Joe Friedman?Joe Friedman was born in Chicago but has lived in London for many years, where he divides his time between writing and practising psychotherapy. He is author of the children’s series Boobela’s World, and is actively involved in running creative workshops for children in the 7–11 age range.

About The Secret Dog:After the death of his mother, eleven-year-old Josh goes to live with his uncle, Calum, who has a farm on a remote island. Uprooted and lonely, Josh finds solace in his love of animals. So one day, when he finds a tiny Border collie pup left to drown in the river, he decides to rescue it and keep it as his own. But money is scarce and a dog that can’t earn her keep would not be welcomed by Calum, and Josh must raise his new friend, Reggae, in secret.

As the pup grows and demands more attention, Josh’s schoolwork suffers, despite the help of the local vet’s daughter, Yvonne. Josh must also decide what to do with Reggae – he cannot keep her hidden forever – and decides that he will train her for the local sheepdog trials. But the training is tough and time-consuming. Can Josh and Reggae bring it off in time? All is going well until someone discovers Josh’s secret and will stop at nothing to ruin their chances . . .

Author based:London

Willing to travel: Anywhere in the UK and beyond

Happy to do: Bespoke events, bookstore and external events, festivals large and small, schools

Recent events:Jewish Book Week