Malorie Blackman: ‘Thank God that’s done!’
The former children’s laureate on the end of the Noughts & Crosses series, why her memoir is the hardest book she’s written, and her soft spot for murder detective games
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile review – lip-smackingly good fun with the CGI singing croc
Shawn Mendes voices the much-loved character of the reptile discovered in a pet shop, but it’s Javier Bardem’s flamboyant showman who steals the film
Lenny Henry on his roaring 60s, writing for kids and facing Lord of the Rings trolls: ‘They sit in their pants, slagging off anything different’
His mother warned him not to overstretch; his partner tells him to be more choosy. But Lenny Henry (actor, comedian, campaigner, author, hobbit) just can’t help himself
Tony Mitton obituary
Other lives: Prolific children’s poet and author who wrote the prize-winning verse narrative Wayland
Canada’s Robert Munsch marathon aims to honour much-loved children’s author
Actor M John Kennedy will read all 75 books in a single day during Toronto’s Nuit Blanche art festival
Children’s and teens roundup – the best new picture books and novels
A tender portrait of adoption; a zebra on the run; an uplifting poetry anthology; an exceptional YA debut; and more
GCHQ publishes book of spies’ brainteasers for children
Agency also invites public to solve colouring-in puzzle as it seeks to engage next generation of agents
Sick, sad, or in need of comfort? Young adult fiction can be the perfect balm
Caitlin Cassidy has always reverted to younger books in times of need. Since discovering modern YA like Heartstopper, she can’t get enough
Michael Rosen and his son Joe look back: ‘I am gooning about, but this photo is tinged with sadness’
The poet and children’s author and his film-maker son on homework, holidays and health scares
Wainwright nature writing prize goes to ‘inspirational’ Goshawk Summer
Wildlife cameraman James Aldred’s diary of time spent observing a family of goshawks in the New Forest takes top honour
Joseph Delaney obituary
Children’s author whose popular series beginning with The Spook’s Apprentice drew on Lancashire history and folklore
La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman audiobook review – the gripping prequel to His Dark Materials
Michael Sheen gives a richly textured performance as he brings Lyra Belacqua’s magical world to life
Children are coming of age in the pandemic – and these books are capturing the moment
Children’s lives have been defined by a crisis that floored their parents. Australian writers are helping them make sense of it
Children’s and teens roundup – the best new picture books and novels
Bad manners in the jungle; a magical inner-city tree; galactic danger; a conservationist call to arms; plus the best new YA novels
‘People are obsessive, unrelenting’: how armchair treasure hunts have cost money – and lives
Literary quests have taken readers from Bedfordshire to the Rocky Mountains in search of jewels and money – no wonder it can become a dangerous preoccupation