About The Trust
The Siobhan Dowd Trust has the simple aim to bring the joy of reading to those who need it most – disadvantaged children and young adults. It is the legacy of Siobhan Dowd, who bequeathed the royalties from her books to further the Trust’s work.
We have supported small and large projects, and welcome innovative and pilot projects. The Trust also aims to help different groups work together and link up.
About Siobhan
Siobhan Dowd was born in 1960 to Irish parents. She was brought up in London, but spent much of her youth visiting the family homes in County Waterford, then Wicklow town. She attended a Catholic grammar school in south London, and went on to receive a BA in Classics from Oxford University and an MA with distinction in Gender and Ethnic Studies from Greenwich University.
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What We Do
The Trust has supported a number of projects since being set up: July 2011: Lunchboox is a weekly club run in Oxfordshire schools by Bookfeast.Its simple aim is to encourage Year 5 and 6 pupils to enjoy books and talk about them with confidence. Participating schools get...
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A Monster Calls Trailer
A Monster Calls has just been published in the US… and is getting some fantastic reviews. The US publisher, Candlewick Press released this animation – and we thought the illustrations by Jim Kay were spooky enough in book-form!
Kirkus reviews said ” From a premise left by author Siobhan Dowd before her untimely death, Ness has crafted a nuanced tale that draws on elements of classic horror stories to delve into the terrifying terrain of loss…. In an ideal pairing of text and illustration, the novel is liberally laced with Kay’s evocatively textured pen-and-ink artwork, which surrounds the text, softly caressing it in quiet moments and in others rushing toward the viewer with a nightmarish intensity. A poignant tribute to the life and talent of Siobhan Dowd and an astonishing exploration of fear.”
Read More ... A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (based on an idea by Siobhan) has been nominated for a Red Tentacle award, designed to reward books that are “progressive, intelligent and entertaining” genre fiction. And the wonderful illustrator of A Monster Calls, Jim Kay has been nominated for an Inky Tentacle for his…
Read more ... County Cavan is in the Republic of Ireland, close to the border and thus a very fitting place to hold a Festival around Siobhan’s work. “One Cavan: One Writer” is the initiative of Josephine Brady, an energetic Librarian who is both a fan of Siobhan’s work and the woman behind…
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The first grant awarded by the Trust was for a pilot project for an expansion of the Letterbox Club scheme targetting 11-13 year old Looked after Children. In 2010 60 children in 11 different Local Authorities were selected, sent books and writing materials throughout the year, and their reactions…
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NEW FOR 2012 -- TEACHERS AND LIBRARIANS: WE NEED YOUR HELP -- Tell us how you spread the Joy of Reading and win £1000 worth of books for your school!
The Siobhan Dowd Trust is proud to announce that Michael Rosen, Poet and ex-Childrens’ Laureate will be on the…