Media release: EMBARGO: 00:01 UK time on, 29 March 2019

New kind of children’s book tells tale of

a family day out… and an encounter with the Crystal Palace dinosaurs

New title, The Mysterious Dinosaurs of Crystal Palace, to be launched on 12 May by Parakeet Books

Competition to name dinosaurs in the book open till 3 April at Parakeetbooks.com

The Mysterious Dinosaurs of Crystal Palace features:

Much-loved Crystal Palace dinosaurs who come to life
Rhythmic, funny story that all kids will love
Rich and enigmatic illustrations
Family of colour
A pound from every sale goes to the restoration of the park dinosaurs

We would like to invite you to a launch party for the new book, The Mysterious Dinosaurs of Crystal Palace, 11am on 12 May at The Paxton Centre, 52 Anerley Hill, London SE19 2AE.

What is Parakeet Books?

Parakeet Books is a family start-up established in 2018 to fill a gap in children’s publishing. Parakeet Books release fun, pioneering stories of everyday diversity, featuring characters of all ethnicities, heritage and structure, including BAME and LGBT+ families.

We’d love to tell you more about our values and mission to make sure all children can recognise themselves and others in the stories they read and see diversity as a normal part of everyday life.

Parakeet Books work with talented illustrators to create books which are inclusive, unforgettable, diverse and original. Different kinds of family set-up are the backdrop to children’s stories with universal resonance through themes of love, relationships and belonging.

Parakeet Books was founded by husband and wife team Judy Skidmore and Sheju John, after we found our own experiences as a mixed-heritage family were not reflected in the books we bought for our children.

Sheju John, Founder of Parakeet Books, said: “When I started a family of my own I began to notice how few characters in children’s books looked like my family or those of my friends. The conventions of children’s publishing are strangely white and straight – only 1 per cent of characters in UK children’s books are from an ethnic minority, and almost none at all are LGBT+.

“We want children to recognise themselves in our books, whatever their family set-up, and to learn to cherish diversity for the beautiful and totally normal thing it is. It’s got to be possible to explore stories of love, relationships and family outside of the well-worn convention of a white heterosexual couple and their 2.2 kids.”

Co-founder, Judy Skidmore, who grew up in South East London, added, “And all south London children love the Crystal Palace dinosaurs – and those that don’t know of them will have a chance to find out in The Mysterious Dinosaurs of Crystal Palace.”

Notes to editors

A new type of book company aims to challenge the status quo in children’s publishing with bedtime stories of everyday diversity.

Parakeet Books launched with a range of titles featuring LGBT parents, minority-ethnic families and a gender-neutral child.

The aim is to represent types of family life which are almost totally ignored by the children’s publishing industry, so children can recognise themselves in their bedtime stories and see diversity as a normal part of everyday life.

The company is committed to diversity in everything it does. It is making bilingual versions of its stories available for mixed-heritage families and is researching how to convey differently-abled children in stories in a non-patronising manner.

Books published in the last eight months since Parakeet Books launched include:

The Mysterious Dinosaurs of Crystal Palace – The latest offering. Eddie, Rita and mum are playing and lazing in the park… hang on a minute, did that dinosaur just sneeze?!

Eve’s New Brother – Eve loves both her mums, but how will she find life with her new brother?

Buddy’s Pancakes – A book about love, family and food which is being made available in bilingual versions starting with Tamil.

Scout’s Bedtime – Scout is impossibly cheeky and not ready for bed. Whether Scout is a boy or a girl is up to the reader.

Social media:
https://twitter.com/judystick

https://www.facebook.com/parakeetbooks/

https://www.instagram.com/parakeetbooks/

New type of children’s book tells tale of

a family day out… and an encounter with the Crystal Palace dinosaurs