On Tuesday evening we celebrated the 10th birthday of the utterly fabulous Clarice Bean. Author Lauren Child joined friends, family, booksellers, librarians and others in a small and hidden gem in the heart of London - The House of Barnabas once a women’s refuge now conference and meeting venue. We were lucky enough that the rain held off allowing us to enjoy a relaxed evening in the garden. Everyone there was given a personalised Clarice Bean badge and the excitement buzzing in the air was palpable.
A number of well-loved children’s books and their characters are celebrating birthday’s and other anniversaries this year and in order to help this one stand out a limited edition linen-bound copy of Clarice Bean is being published. Lauren will find herself busy personally signing each copy and she was thrilled to be able to talk to some of her young fans during the evening.
Lauren explained how she was thrilled to have made it to 10 years old with Clarice, a character very close to her heart, because she tried for a long time to find anyone to accept the story, constantly being told the picture books in the first person would not work. Luckily she has proved the publishers wrong and gone from strength to strength.
It was a very special birthday and party and a real pleasure to be able to celebrate with Lauren, Orchard Books, her publishers, and the assembled guests.
Thank you so much for sharing this with us. I am a Grade 2 teacher in Montreal, Quebec. My students are great fans of Lauren Child. Today one of my students asked me how old Clarice Bean is and your blog has helped us answer her question.
ReplyDeleteThanks again