BookTrust NI Author Tours

The BookTrust NI Author Tour is a project offering children and young people access to poets, authors and illustrators. 

Supported by Lottery Project Funding, through Arts Council Northern Ireland, it showcases the best of children’s literature and takes well known authors, illustrators and their books out to communities that would not typically engage with the arts. Children taking part receive a personally signed book to take home, treasure and share with their families as a legacy of the project.

Artist visits like this are a fantastic opportunity for pupils to meet a successful writer or illustrator and gain an insight into their creative process. Research shows that the earlier the reading experience begins with children the better the prospects for future educational and quality of life benefits. The fact that reading is also enjoyable, inspirational, memorable, life-enhancing and, in many cases, life-changing, is an added and wonderful bonus. The Arts Council is pleased to support BookTrust NI in promoting the value of reading to young people across Northern Ireland - Damian Smyth, Head of Literature and Drama, Arts Council of Northern Ireland

Now in it’s seventh year, BookTrust NI have brought Chris Riddell, Julia Donaldson, Nick Sharratt, Lauren Child, Dan Freedman, Sarah Crossan, Juno Dawson, Alex T Smith, Steven Lenton, Nadia Shireen, James Mayhew, Joseph Coelho, Ed Vere, Tom Percival and many more to schools across Northern Ireland in recent tours.

ACNI Stories Tour 2020/2021

This year the tour looked a little different... Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the tour went virtual! We asked schools to submit an application to be part of the tour. Books were delivered to schools in advance of the virtual visit, and schools were given access to exclusive videos and resources from the five authors – Chitra Soundar, Smriti Halls, Sophie Kirtley, Rob Biddulph and Tom Percival. Following a live Q&A session, the pupils were given the opportunity to enter a competition set by the author and a chance to win additional books!

Register your schools interest in having an author visit