Huge congratulations to all the children across Shropshire – from Reception to Year 6 – who took part in our Readers to Writers 2025 creative writing project.

Every one of them has now written and illustrated their very own book!

We are grateful to the brilliant authors who inspired them.

Justin Davies, Sarah Ann Juckes, Tori Kosara, Iszi Lawrence, Eva Wong Nava, Helen Peters, Ros Roberts and Helen Rutter were each linked as author-mentors to one of the 41 classes taking part in the project.

From readers…

At the start of the project, we gave each class a collection of their author’s books to enjoy reading. And in January they had the excitement of welcoming their author into their classroom for a special creative writing workshop.

… to writers!

Inspired and enthused by all the top tips the authors gave them about planning, writing and editing a great story, the pupils were raring to get going on writing their own books!

Over the next two months, they dreamt up characters and settings, planned plots and adventures, drafted and wrote their stories. They drew pictures to illustrate them, created covers and barcodes, wrote blurbs and author bios. Pupils at Castlefields Primary School even made publicity stands for their books, with posters, bookmarks and little sewn characters from their stories.

Creative Writing Competition

By the end of the Spring term, everyone’s books were ready to be entered into the Readers to Writers Creative Writing Competition.

The Shropshire Bookfest Reading Panel had a WONDERFUL time reading them all!

It was extremely difficult for the Reading Panel to choose their favourites from among so many amazing masterpieces!

READERS TO WRITERS 2025 PRIZEWINNERS

We are proud to present the books that had the biggest impact on the Bookfest Reading Panel in their year groups for the whole of Shropshire.

And we’re thrilled that each of them has been narrated by our wonderful team of Readers to Writers 2025 Author-Mentors.

Please click on the images below, sit back and enjoy!

Then scroll down for links to flipbook versions of some more of the Reading Panel’s favourite books.

Reception Prizewinner:

EVA WONG NAVA reads Tom Meets Bobby by Josh Child from Rushbury Primary School

Year 1 Joint Prizewinner

JUSTIN DAVIES reads The Giraffe Who Swallowed a Boy by Rory Richards-Smith from St Lawrence Primary School, Church Stretton

Year 1 Joint Prizewinner

TORI KOSARA reads The Formula One by Theo Wright from Cheswardine Primary School

Year 2 Prizewinner

HELEN PETERS reads An Otter Called Midnight by Eva Lopez Bloor from Norton-in-Hales Primary School

Year 3 Prizewinner

SARAH ANN JUCKES reads Axle’s and Maple’s Magic Pearl by Lyra Mayhew from Hinstock Primary School

Year 4 Prizewinner

ISZI LAWRENCE reads Sophia and the Battle of Mithica by Evie Preece from Short Wood Primary School

Year 5 Prizewinner

HELEN RUTTER reads Gladiators Clash by Caleb Wilson from Alveley Primary School

Year 6 Prizewinner

ROS ROBERTS reads Charlie’s Way Home by Holly Gurr from Castlefields Primary School

MORE PRIZEWINNING BOOKS

To enjoy reading flipbook versions of some more of the books that wowed the Shropshire Bookfest Reading Panel, please click on the links below:

> Key Stage 1

> Years 3 & 4

> Years 5 & 6

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL READERS TO WRITERS 2025 PRIZEWINNERS

Almost 90 children were awarded prizes this year for their wonderful books and all the hard work they had put into them.

Please click on the ‘Congratulations’ image (above) for a Prizewinners Announcement video produced by our friends at Highly Flammable Studios.

AND FINALLY…

Thank you and congratulations to EVERYONE who took part in Readers to Writers 2025 – author-mentors, teachers, teaching assistants and ESPECIALLY all the pupils.

Keep writing…!

And THANK YOU to our generous supporters:
The Hall Garth Charitable Settlement
Hilton Jones Charitable Trust
The Lintel Trust
The Haystack Trust
The Millichope Foundation
Pengwern Land