For the National Year of Reading, we are sharing a series of short conversations with people who are involved in promoting reading with young people. This could be a programme, resources or a literary event, and we’re giving them the opportunity to share what they do and how people can get involved.
In this episode we are joined by Tanja Jennings, who is the joint Northern Ireland Representative on the Youth Libraries Group.
Information about the Carnegies can be found here.
Information about the Members’ Fest can be found here.
The Youth Libraries Group recommendations on Bookshop.org can be found here.
And if you are interested in The Youth Library Review or newsletters, you can get more information from ylg.newsletter@gmail.com.
Tanja Jennings write a blog, Good Night to Read, about books and reading which can be found here.
Katy
0:11
Welcome
to
Mostly
Book
Talk.
I'm
Katie,
Ali
0:14
I'm
Ali,
and
for
the
National
Year
of
Reading,
we're
sharing
a
series
of
short
conversations
with
people
who
are
involved
in
promoting
reading
with
young
people.
This
could
be
a
programme,
resources,
or
a
literary
event.
And
we're
giving
them
the
opportunity
to
share
what
they
do
and
how
people
can
get
involved.
Katy
0:30
And
this
episode,
we're
talking
to
Tanya
Jennings,
and
she
is
the
Northern
Ireland
Joint
Representative
on
the
Youth
Libraries
Group,
and
she
is
going
to
talk
about
what
the
Youth
Libraries
Group
does
and
what
they're
doing
for
the
National
Year
of
Reading
and
how
everyone
can
get
involved
in
that
this
year
and
in
future
years.
So
welcome.
We
have
with
us
today
Tanya
Jennings,
who
is
the
Northern
Ireland
Joint
Representative
for
the
Youth
Libraries
Group,
and
is
part
of
our
series
looking
at
what
people
are
doing
for
the
National
Year
of
Reading.
Ali
1:06
So
welcome,
Tanya.
Do
you
want
to
give
us
an
overview
of
what
the
Youth
Libraries
Group
is?
Tanya
1:12
Thank
you
for
having
me
on
your
lovely
podcast.
And
basically,
the
Youth
Libraries
Group
is
all
about
celebrating
wonderful
books
and
supporting
librarians.
We
are
a
special
interest
group
of
SILUP
and
we
have
12
subcommittee
regions.
We
promote
quality
literature
and
illustration
every
year
through
the
amazing
Carnegie
Medals,
which
started
in
1936.
So
it's
really
exciting
to
be
part
of
that
every
year.
We
provide
social
and
professional
support
through
facet
publications,
helping
school
librarians
make
the
most
of
their
school
libraries,
helping
librarians
right
across
the
profession,
offering
them
support
and
networking
and
advice.
We
like
to
meet
at
conferences
and
share
knowledge
and
information,
preferably
best
practice,
so
that
we
know
we're
providing
a
quality
service
for
children
and
young
people.
And
in
a
recent
Eastbourne
conference,
it
was
wonderful
to
just
be
part
of
a
community
that
loves
libraries
and
reading
and
books.
And
there
was
a
talk
by
the
CEO
of
SILP,
and
I
think
it
really
sums
it
up.
Everything
that
we
do
as
librarians.
Librarian
professionals
are
vital
to
the
empowerment
of
young
people
in
society,
positively
impacting
on
learning,
inclusion
and
cohesion,
intellectual
freedom,
trust,
democracy,
human
rights,
and
health
and
well-being.
So
it's
very
much
about
being
there
for
each
other
and
just
supporting
the
educative
value,
the
versatility
and
the
professionalism
of
the
craft
of
librarianship
right
across
the
board,
with
innovative
offers
for
children
and
young
people,
and
support
for
librarians
through
lots
of
different
avenues.
It
is
librarians,
it's
not
just
public
librarians.
Katy
3:07
Well
I
think
of
public
libraries,
schools
as
well.
So
anyone
who's
any
librarian
who's
working
with
young
people.
Tanya
3:14
Yes,
any
librarian
who's
working
with
young
people.
Katy
3:16
Brilliant.
So
you
mentioned
the
Carnegie's,
which
you
run
every
year,
which
we
enjoy.
We've
just
seen
the
long
list
come
out
today.
Exciting.
Yeah.
And
are
there
any
other
special
activities
or
anything
else
that
you're
doing
for
National
Year
of
Reading
or
anything
you
want
to
highlight
in
the
National
Year
of
Reading
in
terms
of
what's
on
offer,
just
to
make
people
aware
of
what
you're
doing?
Tanya
3:38
Absolutely.
Carnegie's
is
part
of
the
National
Year
of
Reading.
And
do
want
to
say
that
we
had
the
long
list
announcement
today,
and
there
are
wonderful
books
to
read
and
to
go
on
visual
journeys
with,
and
really
exciting
debut
authors
and
well-known
names,
and
just
a
wonderful,
diverse
field
to
investigate
and
explore,
and
just
have
a
wonderful
time
looking
at
them
with
young
people.
The
shadowing
scheme
is
so
important,
and
young
people
are
more
involved
in
it
than
ever
because
they
can
decide
their
winners,
their
shadowers'
choice.
So
it's
not
just
about
judges
saying
these
are
the
books
that
we
think
are
outstanding,
it's
about
the
young
people
engaging,
and
it's
just
so
wonderful
to
see.
The
shadowing
runs
from
March
to
June,
and
there's
a
whole
Carnegie's
Week
on
Scholastic
Schools.
The
shortlist
announcement
will
be
at
the
London
Book
Fair
on
the
10th
of
March.
And
then
you've
also
got
the
Schools
Live
ceremony
at
the
Cambridge
Theatre,
London,
in
June,
which
is
so
exciting,
and
it's
got
a
wonderful
set.
Mrs.
Phelps
and
Matilda's
librarian,
and
the
whole
library
set,
and
the
whole
atmosphere
of
Matilda
and
all
the
authors
and
illustrators
and
judges
and
young
people
coming
together
to
celebrate
wonderful
books.
Now
we're
also
really
excited
because
we
are
involved
in
setting
up
a
massive
open
online
course,
again
linked
to
the
Carnegie
Medals.
They're
unique
as
they're
judged
solely
by
librarians,
and
they
also
started
up
a
win
for
Arthur
Ransom
in
1936
for
Pigeon
Post.
And
then
you
have
the
youngest
ever
author,
Margaret
MacDonald,
winning
with
Glasgow
Boys
in
2025.
But
they
will
be
celebrating
their
90th
anniversary
in
2027.
So
the
Youth
Libraries
Group
is
going
to
work
with
the
University
of
Lancashire
to
develop
a
massive
open
online
course
to
support
the
medals.
So
that
is
in
the
works.
Katy
5:37
That
is
that
course
for
teachers
and
librarians
who
want
to
involve
their
young
people
in
it.
Tanya
5:43
It
is.
We
have
got
a
member
fest
on
the
5th
of
March,
World
Book
Day,
coming
up.
What
you
do
is
you
go
on
to
the
Silip
website
and
you
can
register
on
events.
Now
we're
just
one
of
the
special
interest
groups
doing
all
these
events
for
membersfest.
But
what
you
can
do
is
you
can
log
on
to
this
and
it's
free
for
all
members
and
non-members.
You
just
register
at
the
SILIP
website,
and
we're
going
to
be
looking
at
essentially
how
children's
and
YA
books
are
beneficial
and
relevant
to
everyone,
and
how
they
support
well-being
and
literacy.
That
is
so
important
with
Mental
Health
Week
upon
us.
So
they
support
well-being
and
literacy
no
matter
what
age
you
are.
And
there's
going
to
be
a
special
emphasis
on
graphic
novels
and
picture
books.
Wow,
I
can't.
Ali
6:34
That's
an
event
that
an
event
for
Cilip
members
and
non-silip
members
as
well.
They
can
everyone
can
get
involved,
register
on
that.
We
can
put
a
link
to
how
people
can
register
for
that.
That's
really
cool.
Tanya
6:47
Yep.
Head
onto
the
Cilip
website,
check
out
Member
Fest,
and
you've
got
a
whole
showcase
of
training,
workshops,
discussions.
You've
stuff
happening
with
all
the
wonderful
special
interest
groups.
And
ours
is
the
online
webinar
supporting
reading
in
the
National
Year
of
Reading.
And
as
it
was
said
about
the
importance
of
graphic
novels
and
picture
books
for
visual
learners,
there's
going
to
be
a
real
emphasis
on
that.
And
that's
really
exciting
because
some
people
have
overlooked
graphic
novels.
I
know
when
I
did
a
study
of
it,
it
was
like,
oh,
those
are
comics.
You
shouldn't
be
reading
comics.
But
they're
just
so
much
more.
They
take
you
on
visual
adventures
and
they're
linked
to
learning
and
they
offer
all
these
portals
into
different
worlds.
So
we're
going
to
be
focusing
on
visual
power
in
that
webinar,
as
well
as
YA
books.
Katy
7:41
We
hear
a
lot
about
how
popular
graphic
novels
are
becoming
and
how
they
can
be
the
kind
of
thing
that
gets
some
real
buzz
going
in
schools.
Yeah,
the
shortlist.
Not
the
pardon
me.
The
long
list.
Oh,
you
haven't
given
away
the
shortlist,
have
you?
Are
you
a
judge?
Tanya
7:58
No,
I
am
not
a
judge
at
all
this
year.
Ali
8:01
We
always
we
play
that
though,
but
now
the
long
list
is
out.
We
try
and
play
shortlist
bingo.
Tanya
8:06
Oh,
he's
going
to
be
on
the
short
list.
All
I'm
saying
is
that
on
the
long
list
there
is
the
Incredible
Lord
of
the
Flies
graphic
novel.
I
saw
that.
Katy
8:15
That's
in
the
illustration
list,
isn't
it?
Yeah.
Ali
8:17
But
it's
interesting,
isn't
it?
It's
taking
a
classic
and
reinventing
it
for
a
new
generation
of
readers,
which
is
It's
powerful.
Tanya
8:23
And
then
one
of
the
winners
in
a
previous
year,
they
took
a
book
long
way
down
and
reinvented
it
as
a
graphic
novel.
And
I
was
a
judge
that
year,
so
I
can
say
that
we
were
really
that
one.
It
was
just
incredible.
Ali
8:41
Our
final
question
really
is
what
are
your
hopes
and
fears
for
the
national
year
of
reading?
Tanya
8:47
The
youth
libraries
group
just
wishes
to
carry
a
love
of
the
richness,
power,
and
diversity
of
reading
forward
to
as
many
people
as
it
can
reach.
And
the
Carnegie
Medals,
it
responds
to
feedback
and
is
continually
evolving.
It
went
through
a
whole
diversity
review,
which
was
very
successful.
And
now
we've
got
the
exciting
new
age-inclusive
long
list
shadowing
offer,
which
is
going
to
encourage
more
reading
groups
of
all
ages
to
take
part.
We've
another
library
conference
coming
up
in
Oxford
this
year.
And
for
the
first
time,
groups
are
going
to
be
able
to
shadow
the
long-listed
books
with
age
guidance,
tailored
resources,
and
flexible
ways
to
build
their
own
book
selections.
And
that
hope
is
enshrined
in
supporting
more
schools
and
libraries
to
get
involved.
They
might
not
have
the
funds
to
be
able
to
get
a
lot
of
the
shortlisted
books.
So
there
are
other
ways
they
can
access
them.
You
have
Sora,
which
provides
free
digital
access
for
schools
to
be
available
with
shortlisted
books
on
Sora.
And
the
fears
would
be
failing
to
engage
with
less
traditional
readers.
But
reading
just
transports
you
and
you
can
encounter
characters
that
crack
the
heart
and
speak
to
the
soul.
I
know
that
I've
encountered
many
of
those
characters
through
being
lucky
enough
to
be
involved
with
the
Carnegie's
and
reading
wonderful
shortlisted
books.
And
everybody,
when
you
open
a
book,
it's
a
portal
into
exciting
new
worlds,
whether
they
be
fantastical,
historical,
or
a
treasure
trove
of
knowledge.
And
it's
just
all
about
celebrating
books
via
social
media
channels,
via
events,
via
sharing
recommendations.
And
I
also
have
to
mention
one
thing
that's
happening
is
the
YLG
have
got
involved
in
bookshop.org.
I'm
sure
you
know
about
bookshop.org
and
read
it
forward
this
February,
where
10%
of
all
children's
book
sales
through
bookshops
go
to
reading
charities,
Book
Trust
and
Scottish
Book
Trust,
and
they're
supporting
independent
bookshops
as
well.
We're
going
to
be
showcasing
regional
choices
across
the
12
months
with
e-lists
recommended
by
librarians
across
the
regions
in
the
youth
libraries
group.
So
London
is
up,
and
that
features
authors
like
Alex
Wheatle
and
Patrice
Lawrence.
So
you
can
check
it
out
on
the
bookshop.org
site.
And
then
Wheels
is
going
to
be
the
next
region
featured,
and
we're
going
to
be
right
across
the
year
with
all
the
regions.
So
that's
another
way
we
are
contributing
and
hoping
to
spread
the
word
about
great
reads
and
highlight
great
reads
from
great
regions.
Yeah,
it
sounds
great.
Katy
11:15
Can
I
just
be
clear
in
terms
of
just
check
with
you?
The
Sora
offer,
if
people
are
looking,
maybe
haven't
got
involved
in
the
Carnegie
shortlisting
or
shadowing
before
because
of
the
difficulty
about
affording
the
books.
What
is
the
do
you
want
to
just
explain
the
Sora
offer
that's
this
year
in
terms
of
how
people
can
access
the
books?
Tanya
11:35
It's
just
that
Sora
is
making
the
Carnegie
books
available.
Free
digital
access
for
schools
to
be
available
with
shortlisted
books
on
Sora.
Yep.
Okay,
brilliant.
And
there
are
publishers
offering
discounts
on
Carnegie
titles,
like
you
can
order
the
long
lists,
but
packs
can
be
pre-ordered
from
Scholastic,
and
the
build-your
own
long
list
packs
will
be
available
to
order
from
Scholastic.
Okay.
Okay.
Katy
11:59
And
just
in
general,
if
people
aren't
currently
involved
in
their
youth
library
group,
how
do
they
get
involved?
If
they're
thinking
it's
the
National
Year
of
Reading,
I
want
to
get
more
involved
in
these
things.
How
do
they
get
involved
in?
You've
said
there
are
regional
groups.
How
do
they
get
involved
in
those?
Tanya
12:14
They
can
head
along
to
the
member
fest
on
the
5th
of
March
and
check
it
out
and
look
at
all
the
special
interest
groups.
Okay,
brilliant.
Katy
12:22
And
is
there
anything
else
that
you
wanted
to
say
what
you
know
you
hope
that
the
National
Year
of
Reading
will
achieve,
what
its
legacy
will
be?
Tanya
12:29
I
just
had
it
won't
be
a
tick
box
exercise.
Oh,
we've
done
the
National
Year
of
Reading.
I
hope
it
will
reach
more
people
than
ever
before
promoting
great
reads.
And
I
have
noticed
a
lot
of
people
celebrating
the
National
Year
of
Reading
on
in
particular.
But
the
thing
about
that
is
there
are
lots
of
people
from
the
book
community
celebrating
it.
But
we
want
to
get
the
message
out
to
everyone.
Um
because
reading
can
be
a
magical
experience,
and
we
just
want
to
spread
the
magic.
It's
just
like
with
the
kids'
lit
quiz
that
I've
been
involved
with.
It's
all
just
about
the
power
and
the
magic
of
reading.
The
more
you
can
share,
the
better,
exactly.
Katy
13:10
So
we
don't
just
want
the
National
Year
of
Reading
being
all
the
people
who
know
about
reading
and
books
to
talk
to
one
another
about
how
great
they
are.
They
wanted
to
get
that
from
that.
Tanya
13:17
No,
we
want
someone
to
pick
up
a
book
and
say,
Hey,
I
heard
about
this
book,
you
know,
like
to
share
it
with
you.
Personally,
I'm
reading
to
my
mum
at
the
minute.
I'm
reading
the
finest
hotel
in
Kabul
to
my
mum.
So
I'm
also
listening
to
an
audiobook,
and
I'm
also
reading
lots
of
books
at
the
same
time.
So
I
am
getting
involved
in
terms
of
just
reading
more
than
ever
before.
But
the
more
people
celebrate,
the
better.
And
sometimes
the
media
can
just
be
involved
intermittently
and
promote
an
event
here
and
there,
but
it's
to
keep
the
momentum
going
and
just
spread
the
word
about
great
books,
and
just
the
most
important
thing,
the
most
important
message
is
diversity
and
inclusivity,
and
books
that
children
can
see
themselves
reflected
in,
and
that
other
children
can
see
different
lives
reflected
back
to
them,
just
so
that
there's
more
awareness
of
different
people's
lives.
Because
when
you
pick
up
a
book,
you're
experiencing
a
life,
you're
stepping
inside
the
author's
mind,
and
you're
living
through
the
characters.
And
if
it's
written
spectacularly,
the
characters
just
they
live
off
the
page,
they
live
in
your
mind,
and
you're
wondering
what's
happened
to
them.
You
put
the
book
down
and
there's
what's
going
to
happen,
and
it's
this
compulsive
reading,
and
that's
a
gift.
Katy
14:36
It
is
indeed.
Thank
you.
Brilliant.
Thank
you
very
much.
Tanya
got
in
touch
after
we'd
done
the
interview
just
to
say,
could
we
mention
the
Youth
Library
Review,
which
is
the
official
journal
published
each
spring,
which
covers
a
wide
range
of
library
and
children's
literature
reviews.
Ali
14:58
So
a
little
plug
for
that.
And
if
you
want
to
tell
us
what
you're
up
to,
what
your
organization's
doing,
then
get
in
touch.
Info
at
mostlybooktalk.com
and
we
can
have
a
chat
with
you
too.