Countdown to Pete's "most eagerly awaited book" . . .
HAPPY TENTH
BIRTHDAY TO:
TRAITOR
Pete's "Anti-Bullying Classic"
"Pete Johnson’s skilfully written dialogue takes us into ‘Traitor’ on the first page and gives the book a strong sense of immediacy and truth. There is real menace here, and the accessible story offers food for thought – not easy answers" The Bookseller
"Children are often the victims when a marriage falters or fails and in RESCUING DAD Pete Johnson illuminates this distressing reality with the perceptive humour which is his trademark.
"Hilarious, thought-provoking and shot through with a strong bolt of reality." Val Randal, Books for Keeps
Pete enjoying himself at a visit to Brooke Weston College, Corby, Northants. Visit arranged by the great Liz Billett, Team Librarian, in conjunction with Corby Learning Partnership. Photo courtesy www.heppdesigns.com
BLOOD GHOST . . . FIGHTING VAMPIRES . . .
AND HOW TO INSPIRE CREATIVE WRITING
June and July are Pete’s busiest months, beginning with a flood of VampireFighters events.
It starts with a special launch event at Wembley. Other events will take place at Waterstones, in Bury St Edmunds and Boston. There’s also a teachers’ conference in Reading. And Pete will be spending a day with Brighton and Peacehaven Libraries.
Pete is looking forward to visiting a number of schools, some are close by, such as Manor Lodge School in Shenley, Herts, and others are much further away, such as Peel Park Primary School, Accrington, Lancs. Pete is also delighted to be returning to some of his favourite schools such as, Oaks Park High School, Newbury Park, Teddington School, Teddington, and St Ignatius College, Enfield. He is pleased too, to be asked to return to one of his favourite festivals: The Brighton Festival.
Then on June 30th Pete is speaking at this year’s Leicester English Teachers’ Conference, explaining how his books are being used to inspire readers – and especially boys – to write creatively.
SOME RECENT FEEDBACK FROM PETE’S EVENTS
"A thousand thanks for a brilliant day – the students (and the staff) thoroughly enjoyed themselves." Lyn Holland, Great Baddow High School, Chelmsford.
"I’m writing to say what a pleasure it was to meet you and how much we all enjoyed your visit. All the children were very enthused about your books. The children who came to your writing workshop were very excited, inspired and eager. I’ve already been asked to read one story this morning! All in all a very successful and enjoyable day." Cheryl Sharpe, Alameda School, Beds.
"Many, many thanks for your sessions yesterday. We all had a wonderful time and a great experience, especially the schools that were seeing Video Conferencing for the first time." Linda Hayes, Oaks Park High School, Newbury Park.
"We were very pleased with Pete’s talk at our conference and have received some really positive comments from the young people about the day, including the following: Really, REALLY GOOD. Pete Johnson was great – really inspirational." Sue Ball, Staffordshire Libraries
Pete is based in Hertfordshire but travels all over the country. His lively, interactive talks have earned special praise. He also offers Creative Writing Workshops – including much-requested Ghost Story telling workshops. Pete works with both primary and secondary school pupils.
PETE NAMED OUP AUTHOR OF THE MONTH
"Vampires, celebrities and comedy – Pete Johnson offers an ideal combination to get students reading."
Oxford University Press celebrates Pete, and two of his greatest books: THE VAMPIRE HUNTERS, and HOW TO GET FAMOUS, which are available as ROLLERCOASTERS READERS. These are special editions, supported by extensive teachers’ resources on line, and student focused Reading Guides.
Pete says ‘I am thrilled OUP have selected me as their Author of the Month as the Rollercoasters editions are really special, offering so much stimulating material as a way into various aspects of my novels.’
THE VAMPIRE HUNTERS
"If you think your students have read all there is to know about vampires, they need to think again. Pete Johnson’s novel adds a delicious twist to the genre." Oxford University Press
HOW TO GET FAMOUS
"You’re drawn into Toby’s obsession to try and get famous, experiencing his confusion as he waits for his life to catch up with his dreams. It’s so funny in parts that even my eleven year old daughter (who read it with me) laughed out loud." Lynne Johnson, Northern England Secondary Sales Consultant.
A SPECIAL MESSAGE FROM PETE TO MY GERMAN FANS:
EINE SONDERNACHRICHT AN MEINE DEUTSCHEN FANS
Hi, welch eine Freude zu hören, dass Euch meine Bücher, besonders die lustigen, so viel Spass machen. Das ist wirklich tolle Nachricht für mich.
Im August wird mein neues Buch von arsEdition veröffentlicht. Da findet Ihr, so denke ich, eine meiner lustigsten Szenen mit Markus in einer blinden Verabredung im Kino und einer fehlenden Flasche Blut.
Ich hoffe, es macht Euch auch wieder viel Spass.
Nochmals tausend Dank für Euer Interesse und Euern Beistand.
The next Pete Johnson book to be published in Germany is The Vampire Hunters in August. Look out for the cover on this website soon. "It’s a corker," says Pete.
BOOKS IN THE NEWS
HOW TO GET FAMOUS
"I love Pete Johnson’s books – they’re so hilarious. How to Get Famous is 100% guaranteed to make you LOL. "
Freefallen YA reviews, Goodreads.
THE TV TIME TRAVELLERS
"Pete Johnson is one of my favourite children’s authors. The TV Time Travellers is an excellent way of introducing the genre of history as it contains WW2 evacuation with reality television. My big recommendation for him though is . . .
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR PARENTS " . . . an excellent read for Wimpy Kids fans and highly rated by reading groups."
Madamehooch,
MUMSNET
THE CREEPER
"If you like horror or scary books you’ll adore this book. ‘The Creeper’ is really exciting all the way through. This amazing book kept me on the edge of my seat." Wheatfield reviews (Amy)
The first draft was written when I was suffering from gastric flu. I seemed to be ill forever – and the only highlight of my day was when I crawled downstairs to tell the story of a monster who jumped into people’s dreams.
This book was my first big hit and won two prizes. You never quite know why certain books strike a special chord, you’re just so happy when one does. But THE GHOST DOG is really a story about the power of imagination. I especially like the scenes where the children try and tame the monster they’ve created – but it’s nowhere near as easy as they expect. And, despite all their efforts, THE GHOST DOG is still out there, terrorising their dreams . . .
SPOOKIEST CHAPTER – Chapter Six – when the Ghost Dog follows Daniel out of his dream. Also available in GHOST TROUBLEwith The Creeper, and as an e-book
I don’t normally write sequels. But readers really wanted me to return to Marcus and Tallulah from THE VAMPIRE BLOG and so I did. But to justify another book I had to raise the stakes. So in this book I introduced a new, deadly vampire who believed human blood (despite its sour taste) would bring it new, undreamt of powers if drunk in sufficient quantities – while draining humans of their life, of course.
Marcus is warned these deadly vampires are utterly ruthless. And he discovers just how ruthless, when in a shocking twist he finds out who the deadly vampire is. I’ve never had a character in greater danger . . .
SPOOKIEST CHAPTER – Chapter Twenty Six – when Marcus and Tallulah are confronted by the deadly vampire – without any means of escape. The Vampire Hunters is also available as an e-book and as an unabridged audio from AudioGo.
The Creeper is a horrific creature who haunts wrong-doers at night. The first sign that he is nearby is a tapping on your window. And one night (a time when I often work on spooky tales) as I was writing The Creeper I heard a ghostly tapping on my window. Then I smiled and told myself it was only the trees knocking against the window. I carried on writing until I remembered there were no trees outside my window . . .
So yes, The Creeper is the story where I actually scared myself. It’s the tale of Lucy, who finds an old tape about "The Creeper." Lucy’s nightmare really begins when the tape starts to come alive in her bedroom. I’ve visited schools and libraries where pupils argue passionately about which tale is scarier – The Ghost Dog or The Creeper.
You decide . . .
SPOOKIEST CHAPTER – Chapter Thirteen (!) When Lucy discovers she is not alone at night. Something stirs in her bedroom and it comes gliding towards her as: ‘Lightly and easily as a ghost.’ The Creeper is available in the bumper horror book GHOST TROUBLE (with The Ghost Dog) It is also now available alone
(ISBN 0440863929), as an e-book and as an unabridged audio from AudioGo.
Where do ideas come from? Well occasionally a fragment of conversation is enough. So once I heard about a boy who everyone was scared of because he claimed he could put spells on people. That was enough to set my imagination racing.
So in The Frighteners, Chloe starts at a new school and is picked on, until a small boy called Aidan comes to her aid. Everyone seems terrified of him and one day Chloe discovers why. If you annoy Aidan, he will slip a picture into your bag. A picture of "The Frighteners" who will stalk you forever . . .
SPOOKIEST CHAPTER – Chapter Ten. When Chloe is haunted by The Frighteners on a trip to the cinema. The Frighteners is also available as an e-book and as an unabridged audio from AudioGo.
A PETE JOHNSON MUST READ: EYES OF THE ALIEN
When Sam has an accident and knocks herself out, she has weird nightmares about a creepy figure with huge eyes. Freddie jokes that aliens must be after her. Then they both see a space ship …
PETE’S ONLY SCIENCE FICTION STORY, FAMED FOR ITS MYSTERIOUS PLOT AND, ’THUMPING GREAT SURPRISE AT THE END.’ The Observer
‘Eyes of the Alien had me hooked from the first chapter. The story kept catching me off guard, especially the ending.' Glasgow Herald
‘My favourite book is Eyes of the Alien. I like this book because it is science fiction, exciting and made me feel good inside. Reviewer Amazon
Eyes of the Alien is also available as an ebook and as an unabridged audio from AudioGo.
THE OFFICIAL PETE JOHNSON WEBSITE!
“Dear Pete Johnson, I am writing to you because our class is studying you as a significant author and you never guess what, you’re fab.”
Each week Pete receives letters like this one from Kane, in Salford, and he takes care to answer them all, as Pete was inspired to become a writer through his correspondence with an author – Dodie Smith, who wrote his all-time favourite children’s book: ‘The 101 Dalmatians.’
Pete has now written over forty books, which have been translated into more than twenty languages. He is best known for his award-winning comedies such as ‘How To Train Your Parents,’ ‘Help! I’m a Classroom Gambler,’ ‘Trust me, I’m a Troublemaker,’ ‘How to Get Famous,’ and ‘Diary of an(Un)teenager’ and thrillers such as ‘The Ghost dog, ‘Traitor, and ‘The Frighteners.’ He has also written highly popular titles for younger readers including, ‘Pirate Brother,’ ‘Bug Brother,’ and soon to be launched, ‘Spook School’ series.
The Times wrote that Pete Johnson provides a ‘heady cocktail of compulsive readability.’ He has also been described by TES as ‘one of our best contemporary humorists,’ and praised for ‘writing about characters that every child will recognise and every adult should try to understand.’ (The Observer)
His key themes include Bullying (‘Traitor,’ ‘The Frighteners,’) Feeling different: (‘Phantom Fear,’ ‘Trust me, I’m a Troublemaker.’) Family Relationships: (‘Rescuing Dad,’ ‘How to Train Your Parents,’ and ‘How Embarrassing is That?’) And the journey from childhood to adolescence: (‘Diary of an (Un)teenager,’ Runaway Teacher,’ and ‘Trust me, I’m a Troublemaker.’)
Pete Johnson lives in St Albans, England. He is a movie fan - both of current films and British and American films from the 1940s and 1950s. He has been a film critic on BBC Radio One, as well as a film extra and teacher of English and Drama. He collects signed books, of which he has several hundred.
Find out here how many of Pete's books are being studied in schools and libraries. Or click here for information about Pete's visits and how to arrange one.
