Anna Kemp
Children's Author


Out Now: Into Goblyn Wood
I am so excited to announce that Into Goblyn Wood has just been published!
This book is the first in a new Fae fantasy trilogy for 8 + readers illustrated by the extraordinary fantasy artist David Wyatt.
*****
Accolades
Selected as one of Waterstones' best paperbacks of 2022.
September 2022 Book of the Month, lovereading4kids.co.uk
Peer reviews
"Want a magical, fairy-filled read with a twisty plot and a main character you'll adore? Step Into Goblyn Wood by Anna Kemp. Also it has gossiping trees! So good!'
A. F. Steadman, author of Skandar and the Unicorn Thief
"An absolutely sparkling adventure. The perfect book to curl up with as we're stepping into autumn"
Alex Foulkes, author of Rules for Vampires
"All the way through I was reminded of the old fairy tales that I so loved, as well as Dickens and Tolkien, to Peter Pan and the Pied Piper. A fabulously rich adventure into a magical landscape, with that most important theme of all: believing in ourselves and the potential we hold"
Sarah Lean, author of A Dog called Homeless
"Into Goblyn Wood gives readers a wonderful world to lose themselves inside, and to keep daydreaming about for a long time afterwards! Anna Kemp has created something very special"
Sylvia Bishop, author of The Bookshop Girl
Netgalley reviews
"Anna Kemp’s world building is sublime... It’s unpredictable, perfectly paced and totally gripping... This is a truly brilliant book - fantasy at its finest. I could not put it down and cannot wait to read the next book in the series!"
"Very atmospheric ... a great fantasy story... people are going to devour it!"
"It builds a world and a web of characters that I didn’t expect. It builds tension and intrigue. It’s tricky to talk about without spoiling it, so read it. It’ll be worth it!"
"The writing, character development and world building was incredible. A great book."
"There's magic in these woods and within each chapter."
BOOKS so far...
IN THE PRESS
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Fantastic Frankie
‘...vigorously comic, and the plot's twists and turns are expertly judged...a bonkers treat'
The Financial Times
Dogs don't do ballet
'This hilarious and beautifully illustrated book will have young readers giggling time and time again'
Booktrust
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Rhinos don't eat pancakes
'Anna Kemp's heart-warming story is told simply but with humour and emotion.'
The Scotsman
The Worst Princess
‘Told in verse, and wonderfully illustrated by Sara Ogilvie, this picture book is so funny it could be safely recommended for all ages’
The Independent on Sunday
Sir Lilypad
'Fantastic colours and perfectly captured characters compliment Kemp's perfectly paced hilarious text ... Faultless family fun'.
Booktrust
Dave, The Lonely Monster
'Ogilvie’s lilac-skinned, knobbly ogre is a delightful protagonist, and Kemp’s succinct rhymes are both funny and thought-provoking.'
The Guardian
ANNA
Hello! I write picture books and children's fiction. But I guess you already know that, so here are some other things about me...

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I was quite a 'slow reader' at school. Got there in the end though!
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I used to teach French literature (stories in French) and once wrote a book about a writer called Georges Perec who wrote a whole novel without using the letter 'e' - Imagin !
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My books have been adapted for television (Bookaboo, CBeebies), puppetry (Little Angel), dance (Ballet Black), orchestra (LSO) and theatre (New Writing North, Little Blue Monster).
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My books have been nominated for prizes including the Booktrust Early Years Award (2010), The Roald Dahl Funny Prize (2010, 2012), The Waterstones Children's Book Prize (2011, 2013), Oscar's Book Prize (2015), and The Dundee Picture Book Award (2019). Thank you for letting me show off.
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I am proud to be Writer in Residence for magical children's pen-pal Banjo Robinson.
VISITS AND EVENTS
I love to visit schools, libraries and bookshops and am available for festivals, speaker events and workshops.
Past author events include the Hay festival, the Edinburgh literary festival, a creative writing workshop at the V&A Museum of Childhood, an introduction to the Barbican's Family Film Club, and a Q&A with the lovely Dame Jacqueline Wilson.
I am thrilled to have been invited to a number of schools and have given readings and story-making sessions for Early Years through to Middle School. I also enjoy running creative writing workshops for adults who would like to write for children.
Testimonials
'Brilliantly engaging!'
'Really, really enjoyable and interactive'
'Great fun for adults and kids'
'Fascinating, helpful, life-changing - this will completely change the way I write!'
'Has inspired me to attack my latest picture-book with renewed vigour!'
'The workshop inspired me and my child to view writing in a positive and fun way'
'I'm a writer - I can't tell you how helpful this workshop was'
'I want to bring back everything I've learned to my class and teacher!'
'The Inspiration Machine is amazing!!!! I have learned so much'.
(Testimonials collected at a creative writing workshop for adults and children held at the V&A Museum of Childhood.)
Anna was an absolute delight to have visiting our school. She was enthusiastic and professional, with a well-prepared talk and book reading for younger children and an engaging and interactive workshop enjoyed by Years 3 to 6. She adapted her activities brilliantly for every age group and was keen to take the time to speak to every child that wanted to meet a real author. All the children came away excited to read her books and write their own stories, and we had a huge queue of children and parents thrilled to meet her after school and have her sign a book. I would recommend her to any primary school looking to encourage reading or writing for pleasure.
Roberta Cresswell (Year 3 teacher, Grove Primary School, Wantage)
Anna’s workshop was hugely engaging and interactive, giving the children the opportunity to design and create their own fantasy characters, inspired by her book ‘Into Goblyn Wood’ and other relevant literature. The children developed an appreciation of the intricacies of creating fantasy characters and settings, understanding how they can interrelate and lead into a cohesive plot. The pupils were able to participate throughout, and were subsequently keen to craft stories using their characters – this complemented our curriculum well. The workshop was pitched perfectly for our Year 5 pupils, in two separate groups with differing abilities. The children were really buzzing afterwards.
William Dickson (Head of English at the Dragon School, Oxford. Event performed for Year 5 pupils).
Anna Kemp came along to Flo's The Place in the Park as part of our Once Upon a Park event series. She did a fantastic, animated reading of two of her books. The children were fixated and when they got to dance with scarves and practice ballet it got even better! Anna was a very expressive, animated facilitator who was great with the kids. The drawing exercise went down very well too Thanks so much for a lovely morning!
Makena Lohr (Flo's The Place in the Park Community Centre, Oxford)
We were hugely lucky to find and entice Anna Kemp to our 2019 Dolphin School Book Fest in May. Her picture books are very popular with their wonderful eye-catchingly colourful and flamboyant illustrations by Sara Ogilvie and her very positive and funny poetry-style stories. The pupils were absolutely delighted to have a chance to meet Anna and to be involved in her comprehensive workshop and story-telling sessions. Thank you Anna – we hope you’ll be back at Dolphin School with more wonderful stories in years to come.
Kirsty Harrison (Dolphin School Library).
