What happens when you mix children’s authors with academic experts, add a drop of a humorous panel quiz show a dash of the International Literature Festival Dublin, and stir with the National Collection of Children’s Books (NCCB) research project? The Great Children’s Book Panel Quiz Show!

Join host Pádraic Whyte for an evening of curiosity and fun as two teams of experts battle it out, delving into the mysteries of children’s books new and old,. Participants include current Laureate na nÓg, poet and children’s author Áine Ní Ghlinn, previous Laureate, novelist and poet, Peter Hunt, leading expert in children’s literature, and Siobhan Callaghan, IRC postgraduate scholar working on refugees in children’s literature.

About the Panel

Áine Ní Ghlinn is a poet, novelist, and children's writer and the current Laureate na nÓg, 2020—2023, the first to write exclusively in Irish. She has won various awards for adult and children’s poetry, drama, fiction.

Peter Hunt was the first Professor of children’s literature in the UK. He has written or edited over thirty books on the subject, has lectured all over the world. He has been Visiting Professor at Trinity College, Dublin, Università Ca’Foscari Venice, Newcastle University and Hollins University, Roanoke VA, USA.  He is currently Adjunct Professor at DCU.

Shane Hegarty is the author of Boot the Robot and bestselling series, Darkmouth – which is currently being developed into a big screen animation. He was formerly a journalist and editor of the Irish Times.

Siobhán Callaghan is a PhD student in Children’s Literature at Trinity College, Dublin. Her research examines the representation of memory and displacement in twenty-first century historical fiction for children about WWII and is funded by the Irish Research Council. 

Pádraic Whyte is an author and a director of the Children’s Literature MPhil programme at Trinity School of English. He was co-recipient of a major Irish Research Council/Government of Ireland research grant to establish the National Collection of Children’s Books (NCCB) project.

The event will be followed by the launch of the Research Impact Case Study by Trinity’s Dean of Research Professor Wolfgang Schmitt and an in conversation chaired by Professor Carmel O’Sullivan and will provide an in-depth opportunity to discuss the National Collection of Children’s Books.

In partnership with the International Literature Festival Dublin, the Trinity Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute and the Office of the Dean of Research.

Please indicate if you have any access requirements, such as ISL/English interpreting, so that we can facilitate you in attending this event. Contact: foraffer@tcd.ie

Age Suitability: 18+