Reading Well for teens presents Love Ssega in conversation with authors Sita Brahmachari and Nicola Morgan.

This webinar is one of a short series of virtual events to promote the new Reading Well for teens scheme (launching on 10th October 2022). The webinars will showcase different authors from the list, talk about teenage wellbeing and how reading can help.

This event is aimed at secondary schools, colleges and libraries and will be an in conversation style where the authors will discuss their experiences, their books and any tips/ tricks to support young people.

Reading Well for teens aims to support the mental health and wellbeing of teenagers, providing information, advice and support to help teens better understand their feelings, handle difficult experiences and boost confidence. The list is focused on supporting teens’ mental health and wellbeing in a post-pandemic context. The collection has been chosen and endorsed by leading health professionals and co-produced with teenagers.

Reading Well has been developed by The Reading Agency in partnership with Libraries Connected, and is delivered with public libraries. The scheme is funded by Arts Council England and Welsh Government.

Find out more about Reading Well.

About the event

During this webinar Love Ssega will talk to Sita Brahmachari and Nicola Morgan about their books, teenage wellbeing and how reading can help. There will be an opportunity for the audience to ask questions.

Running time: 60 mins (around 45 mins for author discussion followed by a Q&A)

If you have any questions please get in touch: readingwelll@readingagency.org.uk

This event will be hosted live via Zoom.

About the speakers

Love Ssega is a musician, songwriter and performing artist whose use of the arts and culture to promote social issues such as climate action has seen him invited to host at United Nations COP26 and be featured by The New York Times Climate Forward. His work has been performed at London’s National Gallery and Serpentine Pavillion, with visual art exhibited at New York’s MoMA PS1.

Love Ssega was the original frontman-songwriter of Grammy-winning Clean Bandit and is now Artist In Residence for Royal Festival Hall’s Philharmonia Orchestra. Love Ssega is a Trustee of Brian Eno-led climate charity EarthPercent and Arts Foundation Music For Change Fellow 2022.

Sita Brahmachari is an internationally award winning author of widely read novels, novellas, short stories and plays. She has a background in working in youth and community theatre and has an MA in Arts Education. Her work is celebrated for its ability to help young people navigate today's world. She won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize with her debut novel Artichoke Hearts (currently in rehearsal for theatre) and her writing of Tender Earth was honoured by the International Board of Books for Young People. Her theatre co-adaptation of Shaun Tan's 'The Arrival' was widely celebrated. Her many novels have been shortlisted for the UKLA Book Award, The Little Rebel Award, nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal, and have been translated into many languages around the world. She was The Booktrust Writer in Residence and is the Writer in Residence at Islington Centre for Refugees and Migrants. Sita's work has been endorsed by Amnesty International for its ability to speak powerfully of global human rights. Sita is a Royal Literary Fund Fellow and lives in London with her family.

Sita is the author of When Shadows Fall, picked as one of The Guardian and Times books of 2021.

About When Shadows Fall : Kai, Orla and Zak grew up together, their days spent on the patch of wilderness in between their homes, a small green space in a sprawling grey city. Music, laughter and friendship bind them together and they have big plans for their future – until Kai’s family suffers a huge loss. Trying to cope with his own grief, as well as watching it tear his family apart, Kai is drawn into a new and more dangerous crowd, until his dreams for the future are a distant memory. Excluded from school and retreating from his loved ones, it seems as though his path is set, his story foretold. Orla, Zak and new classmate Om are determined to help him find his way back.

Nicola Morgan is one of the leading writers for teenagers: an award-winning novelist and expert in the teenage brain and mental health, who is invited all over the world to talk on a huge variety of fascinating topics. Nicola has won many awards, including Scottish Children’s Book of the Year twice. Her novel, Wasted, was on lots of award lists and nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Fleshmarket is popular in schools and Mondays are Red continues to inspire and enthral. In 2018, she was awarded the School Library Association’s prestigious award for Outstanding Contribution to Information Books. She has written about teenage brains, stress, peer pressure and friendships, human behaviour, life online, body image and sleep. Most importantly, Nicola cares about your wellbeing and has masses of science-based advice to help you be healthier, stronger, happier and more successful.

Nicola is the author of Be Resilient: How to Build a Strong Teenage Mind for Tough Times.

About Be Resilient: How to Build a Strong Teenage Mind for Tough Times : From building a support network to building optimism, find positive, practical advice for preparing for, coping with and bouncing back from the toughest of times. Authoritative and backed by the latest science, this is a reassuring companion for teenagers everywhere.

Love Ssega in conversation with Sita Brahmachari and Nicola Morgan