New Children's Laureate for the UK

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Today, the wonderful Julia Donaldson passed on the mantle of UK's Children Laureate after her two year term (in which she did wonderful work!) The new Children's Laureate, just announced is Malorie Blackman, author of such wonderful teen books as Noughts and Crosses, Double Cross and Boys Don't Cry. Blackman was presented with the Children's Laureate medal and a cheque for £15,000 by Krishnan Guru-Murphy (Channel 4 News anchor) at a ceremony at King's Place in central London earlier this morning. She plans to use her position to call on teachers and parents to spend at least 10 minutes a day sharing a book with their child(ren) and students. She also wants to encourage teenagers to explore a wider range of literature. As Blackman started her career as a computer programmer and has a good grasp of the importance of technology, she wants to  spend some time focussing on the role that technology plays in literature, particularly for a generation that has grown up with digital influence.

The managing director of Waterstones, James Daunt is quoted as saying:

"This is a wonderful appointment. Malorie will bring her trademark energy to the role and be a great Children's Laureate. We at Waterstones will be proud to support her over the next two years."

Congratulations to Malorie. I'm sure she will bring her trademark passion and enthusiasm to the role.

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