We Bring Audiences and
Educational Speakers Together

The World’s Best Children’s Authors are a Phone-call Away

One of the best ways of encouraging children to read and take an interest in books is bringing them face-to-face with the book’s creator. Finding a good speaker, though, isn’t easy…

Let SPEAKING OF BOOKS ease your workload

Many leading writers, illustrators and storytellers can be contacted through SPEAKING OF BOOKS and we give reliable advice about getting the right speaker for your individual needs. We work with some of the biggest names in Children’s Books (including Anne Fine, Michael Rosen, Jeremy Strong) and only recommend the very best. We can help make your visit a success from beginning to end, and have years of experience and contacts.

I go back a long, long way with Speaking of Books, working first with Jan and now her daughter Ellie. There is a great tradition of putting authors like me into schools. It’s about children, teachers, books, authors, making sure everything clicks. It’s no easy matter to ensure that everyone is satisfied with the outcome but that’s where the long tradition comes in: all the potential snags and pitfalls have been foreseen.

Speaking of Books has become a cornerstone of my professional life supporting my work as a writer and writing or reading consultant. They are what has enabled me to make the connection with teachers and schools and I can’t think of anything I’ve done that is more important than that. So I owe them huge thanks for that.

Michael Rosen

Author

Book a Chat With Ellie

You might not know who is the right speaker for you – I invite you to chat through what your aims for a visit are and then I can make a recommendation once I have listened to you tell me about your school and the children in it – or the event you’re running, if it’s a training session, conference or festival.

Use the fancy button to find a time when we can talk – either on the phone, or on zoom (whichever is best for you).

There were many factors involved in making Michael Rosen’s visit a brilliant day for our community but the main reason for why it ran so smoothly was down to the organisation and communication from Ellie
at Speaking of Books.  Not only is she an approachable and friendly individual, she is adaptable to both the needs of the authors and the requirements of the schools she is working with. Ellie worked closely with me to make the day a huge success which was especially welcome as I am a recently qualified teacher.  I cannot thank her enough.

Jordan Bryant

Teacher, Harold Wood Primary School, London

As Head of English at my preparatory school, I have worked with Ellie on numerous occasions to book author visits throughout the year for my pupils. We have had fantastic visits from a range of best-selling authors including Jeremy Strong, Anne Fine and Ross Welford. Ellie is incredibly helpful when arranging these visits, working closely with us to ensure that the visits run smoothly and that our pupils have the best experience when meeting these wonderful writers. When looking to book a visit from an author or illustrator, she is the first person I contact.

Clare Cadenhead

Head of English, Glendower Prep School, London