She started out with other people’s, but then had a go at writing her own picture books. Square-Eyed Pat, about a telly addict dog, was published in 2003, followed by My Big Brother Boris, in which Little Croc and his brother live in a swamp. “It doesn’t seem quite so jolly now,” Pichon says of the title, but it won her the Smarties prize, and got her properly thinking about the kind of book she would have loved to read herself as a child. I loved funny books, and I was being offered funny books to illustrate, but I thought if I wanted to illustrate one I’d better write it myself,” she says. “I didn’t actually get to write my own stories until I was in my mid-40s.” The publisher says the launch of Tom Gates: Happy to Help (Eventually) will be supported with a “kid-safe” consumer campaign across YouTube, a partnership with Kids in Museums, a digital campaign to reach parents across social media, live public events and signings and a major schools campaign including a launch day event on Scholastic Schools Live.

This quirky, funny, highly-illustrated, fiction series follows life’s ups and downs of chaotic but loveable Tom, Delia, his old sister, his parents and of course his best friend Derek and his arch enemy, Marcus. Written by award-winning author and illustrator Liz Pichon, Tom is a master of excuses (especially when it comes to homework), creative storyteller and doodler and middle-school comedian extraordinaire. Most of the story revolves around things that happen at school. There are teachers he likes and doesn’t like, and children who he has difficult relationships with as well as his mates. The books are filled with jokes and really dynamic illustrations. My son will laugh out loud. Each book in the series centres on a week or so of Tom’s life where he goes to school and a close shave adventure happens. Tom lives in a traditional nuclear family – he has one older sister, Delia Gates – who is a teenager and they ‘hate’ each other. Tom has a band, plays guitar and likes drawing. It was only when she and her husband were investigating issues for their son as a child – he’s now 30 – that she realised about her own dyslexia. “We discovered that he had various different things like hearing problems, speech problems, and as we were going through the process with him, they always talked to the parents, and everything they were saying was like, well, you’re probably dyslexic. So I’ve never officially been diagnosed, but my family have always thought it.” Tom grows up in each book and the vocabulary develops. Tom Gates author Liz Pichon has added to the collection since my daughter stopped reading them. You can read them as stand-alone books too!I have a soft spot for this series, so love it when a new book comes out. This one was hilarious. Kids eating bowls full of sugar, caramel doughnuts, cool grandparents and a whole heap of illustrations to boot!” Rania T. Our book of the month for children ages 7+ is the brand new Tom Gates book: Happy to Help (Eventually). This is the twentieth book in Liz Pichon’s best-selling series and is sure to be a hit with any existing Tom Gates fans, or any fans of highly illustrated series such as Diary of a Wimpy Kid or Dork Diaries.

Following Tom Gates’ 10th anniversary year in 2021, Pichon is also releasing her first art activity book, You Can Draw Tom Gates with Liz Pichon, on 31st March 2022. Publication will be marked by her touring the UK in the Tom Gates Doodle Van to launch a national drawing challenge. This publication will be followed by the Tom Gates Totally Brilliant Advent Calendar in September 2022 and the 20th novel in the Tom Gates series in October 2022. The latest Tom Gates book was released in October 2021. Tom Gates Book 19: Random Acts of Fun is available now. Additional books – including a new Tom Gates book for 2022!It was an honour to design 2022’s iconic BBC Children in Need T-shirt and I want children to add their own doodles to it too. I know my talented creative readers are going to enjoy ‘The Brilliant World of Tom Gates’ Halloween TV special that I co-wrote, and sing along to the spooky song my music producer husband Mark and I wrote. It’s a super busy time and I’m loving every minute.” Lauren Fortune, fiction publisher at Scholastic UK, said: “Liz Pichon is an incredible talent and we are proud to be growing and expanding the Brilliant World of Tom Gates into new publishing areas so fans and new readers can enjoy even more of her uniquely engaging graphic style, doodling inspiration and humour. Laugh out loud and always relatable, Tom Gates: Happy to Help (Eventually) is set to hook even more children on reading and we can’t wait to see it in children’s hands.”

I am really pleased to introduce guest contributor Anna. She recommends the Tom Gates series of kids’ books that her son “Bee” and previously his older sister have appreciated and enjoyed. A Tom Gates costume is a super easy dress up for World Book Day at school (great for us lazier mums!) In terms of an age recommendation, I think these are great books for ages 8+ and if you want to start at the beginning, the first Tom Gates book is The Brilliant World of Tom Gates, which was first published in 2011. The top-of-the-class, extra special 20th book from multi-million copy selling author and illustrator Liz Pichon. Ten years after the first was published, the 19th Tom Gates book, Random Acts of Fun – “Hanging out with a kid who likes to eat sugar from a bowl. (NOT fun.) Watching squirrels steal stuff from the garden. (Who knew that would be SO much FUN?)” – is just out, and Pichon has no plans on calling a halt any time soon.But nothing quite goes to plan. Washing and shrinking Delia’s clothes isn’t a good start. And the hours spent carefully cleaning cars with Derek are ruined overnight when a storm hits Oakfield Town, causing even MORE chaos. Liz Pichon has recently released a new book, Shoe Wars. The footastic book features lots of shoe puns! It was released in October 2020. Pichon said: “I was ridiculously happy to make miniature books for this advent calendar. I used to collect them when I was a kid, so writing a brand-new Tom Gates story as the big finale is perfect for a Christmas treat. I think my readers will be excited to add this to their collection.”

My grandson loved it . Had previously bought all the Tom Gates books for my 7 year old grandson and from being a reluctant reader he absolutely loved them., so when “Random Acts of Fun” came out it was a no-brainer. He absolutely loves this one as well.” PerryE She creates a story map for each book, noting down small events that will take place during her narrative – Derek gets a dog; homework excuse; squirrel wars – and fleshes them out into funny stories. And they are genuinely funny – I’ve watched my eight-year-old chortling away to herself at them on many an occasion, and even my 11-year-old hasn’t quite outgrown them yet, stealing them away from her little sister when she’s in the mood. PR includes BBC Breakfast, CBBC Newsround, Channel 5 News and a wealth of print media including Liz as expert judge for the Sun on its Christmas card competition.At the age of 7, my son was still being given very simple books by his teacher. However, he was able to read the longer Tom Gates books with more confidence. She said: “The thrill of seeing a book published never stops – even after 20 Tom Gates books! I hope children enjoy reading Tom Gates: Happy to Help (Eventually) as much as I did writing and illustrating it. There are also 4 additional Tom Gates themed books by Liz Pichon, including a drawing book to be released in March 2022.