Launch assembly!

A big thank you to Wenlock Junior School, Luton, for hosting a launch party assembly for Max Counts to a Million.

The book is dedicated to all the students and staff at the school, in recognition of the challenges of the pandemic over the last couple of years, and to say thank you for all that the school has done.

Wenlock students were also among the book’s first readers, with two classes reading the book out loud last year when it was still in draft form. They get a thank you in the acknowledgements.

That’s two good reasons to launch the book at Wenlock, and so thank you for having me. And congratulations to the two winners who guessed closest to the number of letters contained in the book!

In shops today

Max Counts to a Million is in shops from today. I went to check, and yep. There it is. On the table no less, alongside its sibling books also out this spring.

Published by Nosy Crow, it’s the story of a boy who counts to a million during lockdown. It’s funny, it’s moving, and it’s perfect for reading aloud and reflecting on all that we’ve been through in the last couple of years.

You can of course buy it online from all the usual places. I recommend buying it from an unusual place. Specifically, Zebedee’s Bookshop, which is run by my children.

Arms sales to Madagascar

caat

Post on arms sales to Madagascar for the Campaign Against the Arms Trade.

In 2012 CAAT released a new database of UK arms sales, and I looked up Madagascar out of curiosity. It turns out Britain had licensed several shipments of arms to the country, despite its current un-elected coup government.