LoveReading4Kids Says
LoveReading4Kids Says
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month May 2023 | May 2023 Book of the Month
A touching and clever story by award-winning, former Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo gives an imaginary insight into the childhood of the future Charles III.
Using the true story of Prince Charles’s unhappy years in school, Morpurgo weaves magic into it when the young Charles meets Alfred, a king from history, in the scene where he famously burns the cakes! Alfred has wise words about the role of a prince and future king that help the young Charles to feel happier about his life.
Michael Foreman’s beautiful illustrations add exactly the right timeless quality.
Julia Eccleshare M.B.E
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About
The Boy Who Would Be King Synopsis
A beautifully illustrated full-colour tribute to King Charles III, published to mark his coronation - from the bestselling creators of There Once Is a Queen.
There once was a boy who was going to be king one day . . .
From the Nation's Favourite Storyteller Sir Michael Morpurgo comes a poetic celebration of our new monarch, King Charles III, beautifully illustrated in watercolour by acclaimed artist Michael Foreman.
There once was a little boy, born a prince. Encouraged by his parents, he grew up with a passion for the countryside, wanting to look after it. Then, as the longest-serving Prince of Wales in British history, he dedicated decades of his life to raising awareness for conservation.
Now our king, his devoted work will continue to inspire the protection of our planet for future generations. This allegorical story tells how - with the help of a tiny acorn - a wise old woman gives a lonely boy, who would be king, the courage and determination to change the world for the better, for everyone.
An exquisite companion to There Once Was a Queen, this commemoration of King Charles III's coronation is a gift book truly to be treasured.
Michael Morpurgo said, ‘Last year I wrote a fairy tale inspired by the life of our late Queen Elizabeth II. I called it There Once is a Queen. She had been queen almost all my life; I saw her coronation live on a small black-and-white television in my village hall, the whole village gathered round. Sadly, sadly she died shortly after I wrote my fairy story. We have a new king, to be crowned in May, King Charles III. He is just a little younger than me, but we grew up part of the same generation. I always felt a kinship. He, like me, went away to boarding school, and he, like me, developed an abiding love of nature and the countryside. So I have written another fairy story, not about King Charles, but very much inspired by him, and by his childhood in particular. Michael Foreman and I would like to dedicate this book to His Majesty the King, and Her Majesty the Queen Consort, wishing them well and happy in the years ahead.’
Michael Foreman added, ‘I wanted to follow the young prince's early appreciation of, and concern for, the natural world. A concern, which has remained with him, and is now shared by children around the world and, thus, an acorn has become a forest.’
About This Edition
ISBN: |
9780008615406 |
Publication date: |
13th April 2023 |
Author: |
Michael Morpurgo |
Illustrator: |
Michael Foreman |
Publisher: |
HarperCollins an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers |
Format: |
Hardback |
Pagination: |
72 pages |
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Press Reviews
Michael Morpurgo Press Reviews
Praise for Michael Morpurgo:
'A master storyteller at his best' - The Sunday Times
'Michael Morpurgo writes brilliantly about war and animals, conveying the big emotions without preaching' - Guardian
'Champagne quality over a wide range of subjects' - Daily Telegraph
'There are few children's writers as compelling as Michael Morpurgo' - Daily Express
Praise for The Butterfly Lion by Michael Morpurgo:
'The Butterfly Lion is unique among animals and books, and will touch all hearts - both young and old' - Virginia McKenna, Born Free Foundation
Author
About Michael Morpurgo
Michael Morpurgo, began writing stories in the early '70's, in response to the children in his class at the primary school where he taught in Kent. One of the UK’s best-loved authors and storytellers, Michael was appointed Children’s Laureate in 2003, a post he helped to set up with Ted Hughes in 1999. He was awarded an OBE in 2007 and a Knighthood in the New Year’s Honours in 2018 for services to literature and charity. He has written over 150 books, including The Butterfly Lion, Kensuke’s Kingdom, Why the Whales Came, The Mozart Question, Shadow, and War Horse, which was adapted for a hugely successful stage production by the National Theatre and then, in 2011, for a film directed by Steven Spielberg. The most recent film adaptation of his books is Waiting for Anya directed by Ben Cookson. He has won numerous awards including those voted for by children themselves, the Blue Peter Book Award and the Children’s Book Award. His latest book is Boy Giant published by Harper Collins Children’s Books and Owl or Pussycat illustrated by Polly Dunbar and published by David Fickling Books.
A son and grandson of actors, Michael has acting in his blood and enjoys collaborating and performing live adaptations of his books at festivals, concerts and theatres.
Michael's books have been translated into many languages including Chinese, Bulgarian and Hungarian, Hebrew and Japanese. He travels all over the UK and abroad talking to people of all ages at literary festivals, telling his stories and encouraging them to tell theirs.
With his wife Clare, he set up the charity Farms for City Children, which offers children and teachers from inner-city primary schools the chance to live and work in the countryside for a week on one of the charity’s three farms in Devon, Gloucestershire and Wales. Over 100,000 children have visited the three farms run by the charity since it began in 1976. Teachers frequently comment that a child can learn more in a week on the farm than a year in the classroom.
For more information about the work of Farms for City Children, please visit www.farmsforcitychildren.org
Michael Morpurgo lives in Devon with his wife Clare.
Anthony Horowitz on Michael Morpurgo:
'Michael Morpurgo is the most solid, classical of children's authors. He sits outside the series-driven blockbusters so beloved of publishers nowadays: he hasn't created a Harry Potter or an Alex Rider – and I admire him for resisting that. We are opposite sides of the same coin and, although his work has never influenced mine, I admire the eloquent, considered voice of his best books. He has an unerring moral compass – his schoolteacher past has never quite left him – and books such as War Horse and The Butterfly Lion have a strong social concience and an honesty that makes them universal.' (The Guardian)
In November 2016 Michael Morpurgo won the J M Barrie Award for his contribution to children’s literature. This award is given every year by Action for Children’s Arts to a “children’s arts practitioner” whose lifetime’s work has delighted children and will stand the test of time.
David Wood, chair of Action for Children’s Arts, said Morpurgo is “one of our greatest storytellers”.
“Michael Morpurgo has thrilled and delighted huge numbers of young readers since becoming a children’s author in the early 1970s," Wood said. "Action for Children’s Arts is delighted to recognise Michael’s outstanding contribution by presenting him with the J M Barrie Award 2016. His work will undoubtedly, like Peter Pan, stand the test of time, making him a truly worthy recipient of this award."
Morpurgo added: “Storymakers and storytellers like Barrie, and like all the previous winners of this award, have given us the hope and faith children need, we need, to keep flying, have sustained us through dark and troubled times, have banished doubt. To touch the lives of children, to witness their listening and reading silence, is reward enough in itself. This is simply the icing on the cake.”
Take a peek at Michael's 10 Rules for Writing.
You can also read about his life in War Child to War Horse, a collaborative biography with Maggie Fergusson.
More About Michael Morpurgo