Cressida Cowell, Children’s Champion
Cressida Cowell, creator of the incredibly successful How to Train Your Dragon series, is a firm favourite with audiences at Bath Children’s Literature Festival. Last autumn she kept hundreds of young people spellbound as she talked about the magic of reading and the joy of writing. We thought you might like to know a little more about this inspirational writer and illustrator.
Cressida Cowell is the Waterstones Children’s Laureate. What does that mean?
Cressida was appointed the Waterstones Children’s Laureate in 2019, a post she’ll hold until 2022. It makes her the champion for children’s reading and books and she’s written a giant ‘to do’ list, called a charter, which you can read later in this blog. She has spoken passionately about the need not only to encourage children’s reading, but also their creativity and not to stifle it with micro-managing or over-correcting. Creativity is hugely important both to individual children’s mental health and to us as a country: the creative industries make £100 billion a year for the UK. Cressida wants to encourage the authors and illustrators of the future.
What part does Cressida play in the Reading is Magic free digital book festival this autumn?
The very title of the festival, Reading is Magic, is taken from something Cressida believes in - that reading is magic and magic is for everyone. She will be among the writers and illustrators taking part in the festival. Cressida tells children that reading gives you three magical powers: creativity, intelligence and empathy.
As a parent or teacher can you advise what age group Cressida writes for and what does she write about?
Cressida is both a writer and an illustrator (double skills!). She’s probably best known for the Viking adventure series How To Train Your Dragon and magical books about young boy wizard and a young girl warrior, The Wizard of Once series. They can be enjoyed being read aloud to children from the age of six, and to be read alone from the age of eight. Younger children (age three +) will enjoy the Emily Brown series of books about a little girl. The whole family might like to start with some holiday listening, enjoying How To Train Your Dragon audio read by David Tennant or hearing Cressida reading her own books on YouTube. A list of her books is here.
What does Cressida’s Charter set out as its goals for children and young people?
Every child has the right to…
1 Read for the joy of it.
2 Access to new books in schools, libraries and bookshops.
3 Get advice from a trained librarian or bookseller.
4 Own their own book.
5 Find themselves reflected in a book.
6 Be read aloud to.
7 Have some choice in what they read.
8 Be creative for at least 15 minutes a week.
9 Attend an author event at least once.
10 Have a planet to read on.
Taking inspiration from the charter, Reading is Magic themes will concentrate on numbers 3, 5, 8 and 10. You can download a poster of Cressida’s Charter from the BookTrust website here.
What wise words has Cressida got for parents and children about reading and writing?
Watch Cressida’s top tips on reading together on YouTube, made for the Book Trust. She says it’s never too early to start reading with babies and that making a ten minute reading time together is a great habit - enjoy putting on silly voices when you read to your child. And yes, audio books still count as books - ‘the kid is still getting all the words.’
For aspiring young writers her advice is to read lots, to write and re-write and keep a notebook for ideas. Don’t get hung up on neat handwriting or spelling, just enjoy writing your story.
Whether you’re a parent, a carer or a teacher, click here to sign up to the Reading is Magic newsletter to find out more about the festival, which runs from 27 September to 2 October and will feature more than 25 events over five days. Follow Cressida Cowell on Twitter @CressidaCowell, Instagram @CressidaCowellAuthor or YouTube @CressidaCowellOfficial
Whether you’re a parent, a carer or a teacher, click here to sign up to the Reading is Magic newsletter to find out more about the festival, which runs from 27 September to 2 October and will feature more than 25 events over five days.
