It’s never too early to get kids excited about books. Not only will you be doing them a favour (research has shown that kids who love reading do better in other aspects of school life too), you’ll have a lot of fun along the way. And that fun is what a one-off festival in Birmingham next month is all about.

On November 9 the Festival of Children’s Literature is taking place with the aim of getting kids and their families excited about reading, just for the sheer fun of it. There will be plenty of opportunities to meet some of the best authors and illustrators in the UK, including former Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo. Kids will have the chance to take part in workshops, listen to talks, and get books signed or their photo taken with award winning David Almond, Emma Chichester Clark, James Mayhew and Clara Vulliamy as well as Michael Morpurgo.

Every one from 0-100 is welcome! If your kids love sticking and gluing and getting messy, they’ll love Vulliamy’s circus themed workshop, based on her latest picture book Bubble and Squeak. If you’ve older kids who enjoy drawing or making music, they might like James Mayhew’s workshop based around the book which inspired Disney’s Sword in the Stone.

The Festival is being organised on an entirely voluntary basis by members of the Federation of Children’s Book Groups (http://www.fcbg.org.uk/), a UK-wide charity who are all about bringing books and children together, to encourage a love of reading. You can find out full details of the Festival here: http://www.fcbg.org.uk/festival-of-childrens-literature/