First children's book from CBeebies presenter Moate to Puffin

Puffin is publishing the first children's book by CBeebies presenter and YouTuber Maddie Moate, illustrated by Paul Boston, this September.

Titled Stuff, it offers a collection of stories about everyday things and how they are made, used and re-used. Editorial director Anna Barnes Robinson bought world rights from Jamie Slattery at Mirador Management, with plans to publish on 2nd September for readers aged between five and eight years old.

With hopes to inspire a passion for sustainability in children, the synopsis for the book reads: "Do you ever wonder where your stuff comes from, and what happens to it when you're finished with it? Did you know that you can make paper out of elephant poo? And plastic packaging out of seaweed? And did you know that if you throw away an old T-shirt, it can take 200 years to break down? Written and researched by Maddie Moate, and illustrated by Paul Boston, Stuff is full of mind-bursting facts and extraordinary stories of the ingenious ways people around the world, and across history, have made, used and re-used the stuff around them."

Moate has been creating fun and educational science videos on YouTube for the past eight years, during which time she has amassed over 155,000 subscribers and 40 million views on her channel, which is also home to the science show "Let's Go Live with Maddie and Greg", supporting home learning during the pandemic. She is also the host of the BAFTA-nominated CBeebies TV series "Maddie's Do You Know?", Fully Charged's "Maddie Goes Electric" and presented "Earth Unplugged" for BBC Earth on YouTube.

Robinson said: "As a huge fan of Maddie Moate and her incredible ability to explain science and processes to children in an exciting and fun way, I couldn’t be more excited to be publishing her first book. Stuff is a mind-blowing collection of stories and facts about the ingenious ways people have found to make, use and re-use everyday things and I can’t wait for children to get their hands on it!"

Moate said: "I have always loved finding out extraordinary stories behind the making of seemingly ordinary things. However, it is the lesser-known stories from around the world and throughout history that make you go, 'Why didn’t I think of that?!' or 'That is brilliant' that truly capture my imagination. The characters and communities in these tales are ingenious makers, who re-use and recycle their things creatively and considerately, and I cannot wait to be able to share these inspirational stories with young readers. So many of my favourite books from my childhood have the infamous Puffin logo stamped on their covers, so it is both extremely exciting and a huge honour that Stuff is going to be joining the Puffin family."