Authors for the Philippines – Online Auction

The devastating effects of Typhoon Haiyan on the Philippines has led to worldwide appeals for much needed funds to bring urgent aid to the thousands of people affected. 

UK author Keris Stainton has put together an online auction with items donated by a wide-range of authors, illustrators and agents—from signed books and original artwork, to manuscript critique, author visits, characters named after you (you could be in Patrick Ness' next book!) and a night down the pub with Andy Stanton and Anthony McGowan. 

There are a couple of items up there by me too—a signed copy of the US edition of 15 Days Without a Head, plus a signed copy of the UK edition of Waiting for Gonzo, complete with limited edition CD copy of the Gonzo soundtrack (not available in the shops).

Please drop by and make a bid—there are some fantastic items on there, and ALL proceeds will go directly to the Red Cross Typhoon Haiyan Appeal. 

The auction is now live and ends on Wednesday 20th November. Check back often as new items are being donated all the time.

Thanks.

Summer Reading Challenge

The summer months have always been a great time for reading. What could be better than a few hours in the sun (or shade!) with a mug of tea and a good book? 



An important part of getting ready to go on holiday as a teenager was choosing the books to take with me. Looking back now, the details I remember are often linked to the books I was reading: having my copy of The Two Towers stolen on a ferry or spooking myself with Robert Westall's The Scarecrows in a rainy, wind-blasted cottage in the Lake District. My copy of Hemingway's To Have and Have Not still bears the greasy stains of Ambre Solaire and the odd grain of Dorset sand stuck between the pages. Over the past two days I've been scanning the blue summer sky for aircraft trails while reading Elizabeth Wein's Codename Verity.

I'm a little too old to join in the Reading Agency's Summer Reading Challenge to read six books before the schools go back in September, but thought I'd have a go anyway. Here are my six summer reads (plus the one I've already started!)

Leave me a comment and tell me which books you'll be relaxing with this summer.