Exclusive: Site takes a cut of subscriptions to content that promotes far-right ideology, white supremacy and antisemitism

Authors including Kate Mosse, Richard Osman and Philip Pullman have backed plans to give newborn babies automatic library cards, following a proposal by think tank the Cultural Policy Unit.

We do judge books by their covers. Illustrations spark young imaginations, solve problems, present information - and shape our world, says the children’s author on National Illustration Day

Children will help judge the new prize along with children’s laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce • ‘The Children’s Booker prize will tell kids that they matter’: Frank Cottrell-Boyce The Booker prize foundation has launched a major new literary award, the Children’s Booker prize, offering £50,000 for the best fiction written for readers aged eight to 12. The new award will launch in 2026, with the first winner announced in early 2027. It will be decided by a mixed panel of adult and child judges, a first for a Booker award. The inaugural chair of judges will be Frank Cottrell-Boyce, the children’s author and current children’s laureate. He will be joined by two other adult judges, who will help select a shortlist of eight books before three child judges are recruited to help decide the winner. Continue reading...

A report by charity Inclusive Books for Children found that of the 2,721 books surveyed, only 51 featured a Black main character, down by 21.5% since 2023