Weekly Gossip - Updated!

Here is your bookish news from the past week!

A fair amount of news from RHCB - first up, cover reveals! The Noughts and Crosses series by Malorie Blackman has been repackaged! Check out the new covers:




Pretty awesome, huh? I think they're amazing covers! Click on the covers to be taken to their Goodreads page.

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News: Boy's Don't Cry by Malorie Blackman iPhone App!

Great news for Malorie Blakman fans an iPhone users from Random House!

We have some exciting news about a brand new App created especially for the release of Boys Don’t Cry – it is out now to download from the Apple store, the press release below explains all:

"Random House Children’s Books has commissioned leading digital production company Somethin’ Else to create My CriBaby, an iPhone and iPod Touch app to coincide with the publication of Malorie Blackman’s new book Boys Don’t Cry, a powerful novel about teenage fatherhood. This app marks a first for both companies; it is Random House Children’s Books’ first iPhone app and the first iPhone app Somethin’ Else has produced for a publisher.

In a recent survey of teenage boys aged 13-19 published by Random House Group and children’s charity Coram, 77% of respondents admitted they would not know what to do if a baby cried; nearly half said they would struggle to change a nappy, and a third said that they would find it difficult to feed a baby. Dressing and bathing the baby were other areas of concern for teenage boys.

My CriBaby puts these skills to the test, challenging the user to look after a baby, doing everything from feeding and burping to playing, rocking and whispering to it. The game gets progressively harder and at the end of three (virtual) years the player is given a score. Facebook integration means this can be shared with friends.

The app will be available in two versions. A lite version will give users a 24-hour experience of the game, whilst a full version will offer virtual parenthood for up to three “virtual” years (12 weeks). Both versions will include the book’s first chapter and a link to Malorie’s re- launched website.

The app is designed to reflect the main theme of Boys Don’t Cry: teenage parenthood. The novel is the latest book from Malorie Blackman, the acclaimed young adult author of the bestselling Noughts and Crosses sequence. It focuses on seventeen year old Dante, whose ex-girlfriend turns up at his house and leaves him with the baby daughter he didn’t know he had. The book follows Dante as he comes to terms with fatherhood and how drastically it will affect his life. The hard hitting novel gives a voice to a group largely ignored by society.

My CriBaby is available to download now from the Apple Store:
• FULL VERSION
• LITE VERSION"

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News: Malorie Blackman Radio Appearances!

Some news from Random House UK regarding Malorie Blackman and her novel Boys Don't Cry.

On Saturday she will be on BBC London’s Vanessa Feltz show at 10.30am discussing her new book Boys Don’t Cry and talking about the survey we recently ran asking teenage boys their opinions about parenting.

On Sunday she will be on BBC 4’s Open Book with Mariella Frostrup at 4pm (repeated the following Thursday, 4pm) for a YA books special! Malorie will be joined by Marcus Sedgwick and Gemma Malley who will be discussing what distinguishes teen novels today and what challenges and possibilities they present for the writer.

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News: Boys Don't Cry by Malorie Blackman

I received some news from Random House regarding Malorie Blackman's latest novel, Boys Don't Cry.

You're waiting for the postman - he's bringing your A level results. University, a career as a journalist - a glittering future lies ahead. But when the doorbell rings it's your old girlfriend; and she's carrying a baby. You're fine to look after it, for an hour or two, while she does some shopping. Then she doesn't come back and your future suddenly looks very different.

Seventeen year old Dante is left holding the baby. His baby. Not only does he have to come to terms with the fact he is now a father but he is also faced with the realisation that his life is about to dramatically change. He needs to learn how to raise his daughter when he still feels like a child himself. The reader follows Dante as he stumbles against the obstructions and prejudices in society, but also experiences some of the joys that only parenthood can bring. Not one to shy away from controversial subjects, Blackman handles the issue of teenage fatherhood with sensitivity giving a voice to a group largely ignored by society. From the press release.

How awesome does it sound? I can't wait to read it! It will be released on 28th October from Doubleday.

But there's more! To promote her new novel, Sugar magazine are holding a writing competition with the prize being a writing workshop with Malorie Blackman and 10 friends at Pizza Express. Find out more here.

There is also now an official fan page for Malorie Blackman on facebook which she ocassionally posts on. Be sure to check it out!

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