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Lucy Bannerman

Lucy Bannerman

@timeslucy.bsky.social

620 followers 180 following 41 posts

Children's book critic and journalist at The Times. Championing the best in children's literature every week. News | Features | Podcasts | Book prize judge Insta: @lucybannerman_books

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Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Jun 15

'Augmented' by Kenechi Udogu is The Times children's book of the week.
A fresh take on eco sci-fi for young adults 🪴🌱🌿🌾🌻
(with a bit of gentle romance)...
@faberbooks.bsky.social

The Times children's book of the week

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Jun 7

@jimalkhalili.bsky.social

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Jun 7

Did you know that skatole, the foul-smelling compound that makes poo stink is also used in...perfumes? And as a flavour enhancer in strawberry ice cream? 🤢
I do now thanks to The Times childrens book of the week: 'Elements of the Day' by Samantha Lewis+Hao Hao

www.thetimes.com/article/36d3...

How to make chemistry fun for kids

Samantha Lewis’s Elements of the Day makes the periodic table rock

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Jun 1

Shopping trolleys! Folklore! Techno! And a green-skinned heroine in a dress made out of Tesco carriers bags.
'Riverskin' by Mike Edwards is The Times children's book of the week.
A bold and atmospheric story for readers 9+.
@walkerbooksuk.bsky.social

www.thetimes.com/article/3a09...

It’s the Little Mermaid but with discarded shopping trolleys and techno

A folktale resurfaces among the slime and grime of Britain’s rivers in Mike Edwards’s debut, Riverskin

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · May 30

"Ye're an auld hoor, Morag Coll".

Adding the reissued 'From Scenes Like These' by Gordon Williams to the book pile immediately. Sounds tremendous.
Great review
@robbiemillen.bsky.social
www.thetimes.com/article/716e...

Welcome to 1950s Scotland — it’s an awful place

Shortlisted for the first Booker prize, From Scenes Like These by Gordon Williams is a novel brimming with black humour and vivid description. It deserves its modern classic status

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · May 24

This is a SUPERB novel for readers aged 12+
Although it's set in Blitz-era London, it steers well clear of any 1940s ''Dad's Army' cliche, and delivers a wise and unflinching story that makes you think about Gaza and Ukraine today. Superb.

www.thetimes.com/article/4651...

Childhood friendships forged in the flames of the Blitz

In Under a Fire-Red Sky by Geraldine McCaughrean, four runaways live by their wits on the streets of London at war

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · May 23

Are you an unpublished children's author who wants to win a £10k publishing deal?
Send your manuscript to The Times Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition.
✨Only 10 days left to enter.... ✨

urldefense.com/v3/__https:/...

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · May 11

Know anyone about to make that first flight to secondary school?
This is a sweet - and ultimately reassuring - read. The First Year by Matt Goodfellow is The Times children's book of the week.

@mattgoodfellow.bsky.social @otterbarrybooks.bsky.social

www.thetimes.com/article/06d6...

It’s time to go to big school. A story in verse

Nate is leaving his primary behind, but things are complicated at home … in The First Year, Matt Goodfellow explores a time of transition with energy and warmth

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Apr 30

Something so sad about little boys being read to less than little girls.

One in five wee boys (aged 0-2years) is rarely or never treated to storytime with an adult, according to new research.

@harpercollins.bsky.social @philearle.bsky.social

www.thetimes.com/article/b306...

Gen Z wishes goodnight to bedtime stories for children

The youngest generation of parents are the least likely to value reading aloud, research suggests

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Apr 26

Making a good picture book - must surely be up there with giving up smoking and doing the ski-jump as 'things that look easy but are actually very hard.'

'Sleep Tight, Disgusting Blob' by Huw Aaron is The Times children's book of the week.
www.thetimes.com/article/5f1b...

Finally, a monstrously funny bedtime story

Sleep Tight, Disgusting Blob by Huw Aaron turns traditional monsters into adorable characters — from Dracula brushing his fangs to Medusa blow-drying her snakes. It’s a hilarious read for ages 3-7

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Apr 20

An evil tech entrepreneur has destroyed civilization. Only a few plucky survivors remain. And Jen's dad is actually...an AI replica. Whose side is he really on?

'After' by Padraig Kenny, a sci-fi thriller for 9+, is The Times Children's book of the week.

www.thetimes.com/article/5461...

The robots have risen up against us. What happens next?

In After, Pádraig Kenny’s novel, a daughter and her unusual father must use their wits to survive in a post-apocalyptic world

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Apr 12

The Times children's book of the week is 'What Happens Online' by Nathanael Lessore.
A brilliant, big-hearted book about boyhood.
(Also contains good jokes about Kanye, Ozempic, bubble tea and Shoe Zone. 💪)

@hotkeybooks.bsky.social
#childrensbooks
www.thetimes.com/article/9dab...

It’s Adrian Mole for the gaming generation

What Happens Online by Nathanael Lessore has a brilliantly relatable teenage protagonist, who provides laughs and positive messages

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 31

Would you let your kids chat with Harry, the AI-generated bot?

Is the idea of taking a fictional character from the safety of the page and using AI to develop it on messaging platforms an exciting idea - or a deeply sinister one?

#clickarte #bologna #BCBF #kidlit
www.thetimes.com/article/1af9...

Why did the tiger come to tea? Kids could soon ask it on WhatsApp

The book world is poring over an AI project that introduces children to characters on the page and encourages them to get to know them better on messaging apps

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 29

Middle-grade mysteries set in London are ten a penny... but this one is outstanding.

Deep Dark by Zohra Nabi is The Times children's book of the week.
@sschuster.bsky.social
www.thetimes.com/article/c339...

Children vanish in an 1830s gothic thriller

In Zohra Nabi’s outstanding novel Deep Dark, a chilling mystery unfolds in the back streets of London

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 28

"I love it when a new picture book lands that is so original, so distinctive, it suddenly makes the competition look bland."

Delighted for Mikey Please whose debut, The Cafe at the Edge of the Woods, has won the Waterstones Children's Book Prize.

Review here:

www.thetimes.com/article/5229...

The Café at the Edge of the Woods by Mikey Please review — a sublime shot of flavour

This debut from a Bafta-winning director about an ogre who likes nothing on the menu is subversive and original

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 26

This is a scandal that doesn't get enough attention.
Single parent families are owed almost £700million in unpaid child support.
The penalty for ex-partners who refuse to pay up?
ONE person went to prison last quarter of 2024.
ZERO passports confiscated.

www.thetimes.com/article/4f5a...

Single-parent families owed £690m in unpaid child maintenance

Homes ‘repossessed’ after uncollected payments to Child Maintainance Service. Yet agency is not using all powers at its disposal to pursue evading parents

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 23

Lyrical, gritty, surreal. This is a pony story with a difference.

'Ride North' by Maria De Jongh is The Times children's book of the week.

@andersenpress.bsky.social

www.thetimes.com/article/89cc...

Giddy up! This horseback adventure should be made into a movie

Ride North by Maria de Jong is a quirky and gripping tale of survival with a real sense of jeopardy

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 15

The Times children's book of the week is...Hidden Treasure by Jessie Burton.
Contains mudlarking, mystery and a touch of magic.
☀️🌕☀️🌕☀️🌕☀️🌕☀️

@bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social
www.thetimes.com/article/b41a...

A mudlarking dilemma — The Miniaturist author’s first children’s book

Two jewels buried in the Thames mud will unlock a magical wish for their finder in Jessie Burton’s Great War-era tale Hidden Treasure

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 8

I'm still haunted. (In a good way).

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 8

Also, I don't care what anyone says, this was the best movie of the 1980s.
Once seen, never forgotten...
#ReturntoOz

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 8

It's a little bit X-Files, a wee bit Stephen King-lite and a lot of frightening fun...
The Times children's book of the week is The Deadsoul Project by Dan Smith, the first in the new Night Files series. Illustrations by Luke Brookes.

@dansmithauthor.bsky.social
www.thetimes.com/article/3410...

This book is Stephen King for children

Dan Smith’s horror-mystery, The Night House Files — The Deadsoul Project, has the perfect balance of thrills and chills

www.thetimes.com

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 6

Why are some of the best dogs - Airedale terriers! Old English Sheepdogs! Irish terriers! - on this list of vulnerable breeds?
There's no justice.
I blame the cavapoos.

@crufts.bsky.social @kennelclub.bsky.social @dogstrust.bsky.social

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 6

They were once among the UK's favourite dogs.
Their admirers included Dorothy Parker, Rudyard Kipling, Beatrix Potter, Julie Andrews and Humphrey Bogart - all owners of a 'Scottie'.
But now the popularity of the Scottish Terrier has hit a record low. 😢 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

www.thetimes.com/article/ce81...

Save our Scotties: popularity of Scottish terriers hits record low

The breed, once a favourite of royalty and presidents, is at risk of disappearing. The Kennel Club says the Old English sheepdog and Irish wolfhound are also declining

www.thetimes.com

Reposted by Lucy Bannerman

Susie Dent @susiedent.com · Mar 6

Etymology of the day: ‘book’ comes from an ancient root shared by ‘beech’, a wood that people used for engraving inscriptions. ‘Paper’ comes from ‘papyrus’, and ‘volume’ is from the Latin for a ‘roll’ of parchment.

Happy World Book Day.

Lucy Bannerman @timeslucy.bsky.social · Mar 5

How do you pick the world's best picturebook? Are UK publishers too "safe"? Are British customers missing out on all the weird+wonderful storybooks from around the world?

I went behind the scenes at #BolognaRagazzi awards to find out...

#WorldBookDay #Bologna

www.thetimes.com/article/6e69...

These are the best picture books in the world (and no Gruffalo in sight)

The BolognaRagazzi awards are the most prestigious in global children’s publishing — but on World Book Day, it seems the UK is lagging behind

www.thetimes.com