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Poet Joseph Coelho named new Children's Laureate

July 4th 2022

He's known for his page-turning poetry, and now the popular poet, playwright and author Joseph Coelho has been named the new Children's Laureate. Replacing Cressida Cowell, the award-winning writer will celebrate the power of poetry during his two-year tenure. Key projects will include the Poetry Prompts campaign, which aims to make the reading and writing of poetry accessible to everyone.

Awarded biannually in recognition of exceptional talent, the prestigious Children's Laureate role celebrates creativity and storytelling, promotes the vital importance of reading and children’s literature, and champions the right of every child to enjoy a lifetime enriched with books and stories. Each Laureate brings their own passion and creativity to their tenure, with previous laureates including Lauren Child, Malorie Blackman, Jacqueline Wilson, Michael Rosen and Sir Michael Morpurgo.

Who is Joseph Coelho?

The London-based writer and playwright has written children's books and young adult verse novels, including The Girl Who Became a Tree, which was shortlisted for the 2021 Carnegie Medal. His debut poetry collection, Werewolf Club Rules, won the CLPE CLiPPA poetry award.

Video © BookTrust.

Inspiring a love of poetry

Joseph's laureateship will focus on three key projects:

Bookmaker Like You will showcase new talent within the industry and spotlight their work, so that children are introduced to a range of creatives that truly reflect everyone in our diverse society, and ensure that every child can see themselves as a bookmaker
Poetry Prompts will celebrate the power of poetry in all its forms, breaking down the fear often associated with reading and writing to show why poems are for everyone, and the joy that writing, reading and performing poetry can bring
Library Marathon will see Joseph join a library in every local authority in the UK, and encourage even more people to register with their local library. Through this, he will champion local libraries, highlighting the vital role they play within the community and inspiring a love of reading in young people

What Joseph says

“Poetry is powerful, it is the medium we turn to at weddings, funerals and new births because it goes beyond mere words, poetry translates the soul. I want to use the prestigious platform of the Waterstones Children's Laureate to highlight and celebrate the power of poetry. To invite the nation, young and old, to write poems, to become poets. I want to ensure that every child has the opportunity to see themselves in books and as bookmakers through the plethora of new and exciting voices we have coming out of the UK - to diversify bookshelves so that every child can imagine themselves as writers, illustrators and poets. And, finally I want to hug every library, these miraculous institutions where new horizons line the shelves, where minds go to grow. Libraries made me a writer and make communities thrive - I wish to champion the services of these essential launchpads of learning.”