A F Steadman named the first patron of the St Austell Festival of Children's Literature

Children’s author A F Steadman has been named the first patron of the St Austell Festival of Children’s Literature. 

In her role as patron, Steadman will support the festival in its vision to make "a difference to young lives through the power of reading". The event will run from 28th to 30th June in St Austell, Cornwall, and will feature over 25 children’s authors in a three-day celebration of reading. Hannah Gold, Onjali Q Rauf, Louie Stowell and Tọlá Okogwu are slated to appear. 

Steadman is the author of the Skandar series, published with Simon & Schuster, which features ferocious unicorns and elemental magic. She commented: "I’m really honoured to be the first patron of the St Austell Festival of Children’s Literature. The work Simon Pollard and his team are doing is simply vital at a time when encouraging reading for pleasure has been more important than ever. It’s a privilege to be supporting a festival with both improved literacy and book-filled fun at the core of everything it does."

Simon Pollard, festival director, said: "We are extremely grateful that A F Steadman has agreed to be patron of our festival. The Skandar series captivates readers of all ages. Her appearance at our first festival is still talked about by many and the time and encouragement she gives to her readers is wonderful. We look forward to working together to continue to inspire children to read for pleasure and connect readers with authors and illustrators."