It was such an honour to be asked to write a guest blog for The Federation of Children's Book Groups (FCBG). I decided to write about the first fantasy adventure book that had me hooked as a child - Enid Blyton's series The Magic Faraway Tree - and how it paved the way to becoming the author of Oddney's Otherland. You can read the full blog here.
"We are a national voluntary self-funded organisation whose aim is to promote enjoyment and interest in children’s books and reading and to encourage the availability of books for children of all ages, from first picture books to young adult." - The Federation of Children's Book Groups
Anne Wood of Ragdoll Productions, whose programming includes BAFTA winning children's entertainment such as The Teletubbies and In the Night Garden, founded the FCGB in 1969. The Federation was set up to link the many book clubs that had started up through Anne's magazine Books for Your Children.
FCGB groups are held across the UK and are made up of parents, carers, librarians, teachers, booksellers, authors, illustrators, publishers and anyone in their local area who wants to encourage children to read and to share stories.
As well as these local groups, on a national level FCBG organises The Children's Book Award annually, promotes National Non-Fiction November, National Share-a-Story Month each May and so much more, including their rather excellent blog!