Shukla and Heuchan to write children's book about race

Nikesh Shukla is writing a children's book about race with blogger Claire Heuchan for Hachette Children’s Group.

What is Race? Who are Racists? Why Does Skin Colour Matter? And Other Big Questions will be published by the publisher's imprint Wayland Books in October 2018. 

World rights for the title were acquired from Julia Kingsford at Kingsford Campbell by Paul Rockett, Hachette's publishing director of education who oversees Franklin Watts and Wayland.

Heuchan is a writer and academic who describes herself as a "black radical feminist from Scotland" and blogs on sisteroutrider.wordpress.com.  She also volunteers at Glasgow Women’s Library.

The book will be published in the same series as the titles by Michael Rosen and Annemarie Young on Humanism, Refugees and Migrants and Right and Wrong and tackles the biggest questions for kids aged 10 and upward. It will include pieces from a range of contributors with more details to be announced soon.

Heuchan tweeted to her 8,000 followers on Tuesday (19th June) from her @claireshrugged account: "Exciting news. @nikeshshukla & I are writing a book. #TeamHeukla is officially happening and I couldn't be more excited to write (a book!) about this subject or work with @nikeshshukla." 

Shukla also spoke about the title on the social media platform, saying he was "reaching saturation point" whilst working on four titles to be released next year. He said: "In 'Nikesh approaching saturation point' news, I'm working on four books for release in 2018. Alongside a dayjob and a newborn. I'm tired." It was revealed in May that he will write two YA titles for Hodder Children's Books including Run, Riot out next year and he is writing The One Who Wrote Destiny also to be published by Atlantic in 2018. He is contributing to a YA short stories collection by BAME authors for Little Tigers' imprint Stripes and co-editing a book of essays written by young people, Rife through crowdfunding publisher Unbound.

Shukla edited the essay collection The Good Immigrant (Unbound), which went onto win the public vote for the nation's favourite book at the Books Are My Bag Readers Awards last November. He has also co-founded The Jhalak Prize for Book of the Year by a Writer of Colour.