Siobhan Parkinson - Ireland's first laureate for children's literature

Author Siobhan Parkinson has been announced as Ireland's first laureate for children's literature. Irish president Mary McAleese, announced the news at the Irish Arts Council in Dublin, where she presented Siobhan with the Laureate na nÓg medal. The Dublin-based author said: "I am thrilled and honoured to be chosen as the first Laureate na nÓg. I believe that children's literature lays the foundations of the imaginative life of a people, and that every child deserves to have access to a reading haven-a well-stocked and well-run library in their school and in their community"