Kids' Lit Quiz World Final

Had to tell you I was at the world final of the Kids' Lit Quiz yesterday in Edinburgh. What a great day. There were seven teams, representing New Zealand, South Africa, Wales, Northern Ireland , Scotland and the United Kingdom, but it was the team from England, The City Of London School for Girls who carried off the trophy after a nail biting finish!  I was so impressed by these young people. They were so clever, so smart and so quick. There were loads of other authors there, including Alan Gibbons who gave a really funny and inspiring  speech about how much we needed libraries, and stories. Later we were all invited to dinner, and heard about some of the young people's favourite books. Keith Gray and Nicola Morgan gave entertaining speeches too. And then, when it was all over and just as it began to get dark, the authors left in taxis to go to the launch of the Book Festival. A perfect end to a perfect day.