Tom Gates 20: Happy to Help (eventually)

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But nothing quite goes to plan. Washing and shrinking Delia’s clothes isn’t a good start. And the hours spent carefully cleaning cars with Derek are ruined overnight when a storm hits Oakfield Town, causing even MORE chaos. I am really pleased to introduce guest contributor Anna. She recommends the Tom Gates series of kids’ books that her son “Bee” and previously his older sister have appreciated and enjoyed. The top-of-the-class, extra special 20th book from multi-million copy selling author and illustrator Liz Pichon. Tom grows up in each book and the vocabulary develops. Tom Gates author Liz Pichon has added to the collection since my daughter stopped reading them. You can read them as stand-alone books too! Pichon said: “I was ridiculously happy to make miniature books for this advent calendar. I used to collect them when I was a kid, so writing a brand-new Tom Gates story as the big finale is perfect for a Christmas treat. I think my readers will be excited to add this to their collection.”

Most of the story revolves around things that happen at school. There are teachers he likes and doesn’t like, and children who he has difficult relationships with as well as his mates. The books are filled with jokes and really dynamic illustrations. My son will laugh out loud. I loved funny books, and I was being offered funny books to illustrate, but I thought if I wanted to illustrate one I’d better write it myself,” she says. “I didn’t actually get to write my own stories until I was in my mid-40s.” It was only when she and her husband were investigating issues for their son as a child – he’s now 30 – that she realised about her own dyslexia. “We discovered that he had various different things like hearing problems, speech problems, and as we were going through the process with him, they always talked to the parents, and everything they were saying was like, well, you’re probably dyslexic. So I’ve never officially been diagnosed, but my family have always thought it.” I have a soft spot for this series, so love it when a new book comes out. This one was hilarious. Kids eating bowls full of sugar, caramel doughnuts, cool grandparents and a whole heap of illustrations to boot!” Rania T. Ten years after the first was published, the 19th Tom Gates book, Random Acts of Fun – “Hanging out with a kid who likes to eat sugar from a bowl. (NOT fun.) Watching squirrels steal stuff from the garden. (Who knew that would be SO much FUN?)” – is just out, and Pichon has no plans on calling a halt any time soon.

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The publisher says the launch of Tom Gates: Happy to Help (Eventually) will be supported with a “kid-safe” consumer campaign across YouTube, a partnership with Kids in Museums, a digital campaign to reach parents across social media, live public events and signings and a major schools campaign including a launch day event on Scholastic Schools Live. Liz Pichontrained as a graphic designer and has illustrated several picture books. She based a lot of the stories in the Tom Gates books on funny things that happened to her at school. She creates a story map for each book, noting down small events that will take place during her narrative – Derek gets a dog; homework excuse; squirrel wars – and fleshes them out into funny stories. And they are genuinely funny – I’ve watched my eight-year-old chortling away to herself at them on many an occasion, and even my 11-year-old hasn’t quite outgrown them yet, stealing them away from her little sister when she’s in the mood.

Lauren Fortune, fiction publisher at Scholastic UK, said: “Liz Pichon is an incredible talent and we are proud to be growing and expanding the Brilliant World of Tom Gates into new publishing areas so fans and new readers can enjoy even more of her uniquely engaging graphic style, doodling inspiration and humour. Laugh out loud and always relatable, Tom Gates: Happy to Help (Eventually) is set to hook even more children on reading and we can’t wait to see it in children’s hands.”Songs included:Nice Cup of Teaby Tea Cup Tony and The Saucers;What You Gonna Do?by Plastic Cup;Shout it Outby Dude3;Delia’s A Weirdoby DogZombies;The Cat Songby DogZombies;The School Dinner Blues (Chips Song)by DogZombies.