Siobhan Parkinson, Anna Carey, Padraic Whyte & Kim Harte
Chairperson: Niall Mac Monagle
‘You must write for children the same way you write for adults, only better’
Maxim Gorky
What makes a great children's book? Why do some capture the imagination briefly and then fade from memory while others stand the test of time? Is there a constant in what children themselves look for in a book or does this change with the generations? In short: is there a secret door to the child's imagination or is good writing simply good writing whomever the audience?
Nominating their own contenders for ‘kids’ lit classic’ and discussing the grown-up business of writing for children are Siobhan Parkinson – award-winning writer, publisher and Ireland's first Children's Laureate; Anna Carey – journalist, musician and now first-time children's novelist (The Real Rebecca); Padraic Whyte – Lecturer in Children's Literature at TCD and Vice President of the Irish Society for the Study of Children's Literature; and Kim Harte – Children's Bookseller/Buyer, Dubray Books.
