The Unlikely Rise of Harry Sponge by Stephen Mangan (author) and Anita Mangan (illustrator)

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A high-energy, laugh-out-loud, fully illustrated adventure story by much-loved actor Stephen Mangan and talented artist Anita Mangan. Grumpy old King Chisel has a problem. He needs an heir to his kingdom – fast! So he challenges the best kids from across the country to compete in the Crown Duels, with the ultimate winner becoming king or queen. Step forward: GLORIA SQUAT-FURTHER: champion athlete HUXLEY BEELINE: mathematical genius JONNY MOULD: artistic ace GOSSAMER FOUNTAIN: empathy expert HARRY SPONGE: ordinary boy. Not to be underestimated… The ridiculous prime minister, Farting Bernie, is in charge and the contest swiftly descend into chaos. Who will rise to the top and survive wild sabotaging, saggy royal pants, the most disgusting meal ever invented, and a pair of frisky goats? The wildly funny, brilliantly silly adventure from the bestselling author and illustrator of Escape the Rooms and The Fart That Changed the World.

Wildly funny, delightfully imaginative storytelling with a message that any kid can be a hero!
Packed with pictures by Stephen Mangan’s sister Anita Mangan.

Escape the Rooms and The Fart That Changed the World have been huge bestsellers: Stephen and Anita are comic dynamite.

Praise for Stephen and Anita’s books:Escape the Rooms:“A brilliant, clever, kind of genius book” Graham Norton, Virgin Radio‘Richly imagined and deeply heartfelt’ Hadley Freeman, Guardian‘Manages to feel both classic and modern at the same time’Good Housekeeping‘A beautiful and exciting adventure that ignites the imagination’ Edith Bowman

The Fart That Changed the World “A sure-fire way for kids to entertain themselves. What’s more, it’s also excellent for reading aloud” LoveReading4Kids “Laugh-out-loud stuff” Ray D’Arcy “A high-energy, brilliantly imaginative and laugh-out-loud tale that is guaranteed to blow away young readers” Lancashire Evening Post

The Unlikely Rise of Harry Sponge “After the runaway success of joint debut novel, Escape the Rooms, and the hilarious The Fart That Changed the World, the dynamic duo return with an all-action, marvellously manic and laugh-out-loud tale with a message that any child can be a hero” Lancashire Evening Post“hilarious … A right royal romp” First News

ABOUT THE MANGANS Stephen Mangan is an author, script-writer and actor with huge range across TV, radio, film and theatre. From classic comedy such as Green Wing, Episodes and I’m Alan Partridge and acclaimed drama such as The Split , Stephen also presents Portrait and Landscape Artist of the Year and regularly appears on stage, most recently as a highly praised Ebeneezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol . Stephen also voiced the title role in Postman Pat: The Movie . He has been a member of the judging panels for the Costa Book of the Year prize and The Laugh-Out-Loud Awards (The Lollies). His children’s books are the bestselling Escape the Rooms and The Fart that Changed the World.Stephen on writing for children (interview on ITV’s Lorraine): “Every page has to grip them, make them laugh, be interesting because they can drop it. There are screens everywhere that they can pick up. That’s part of the reason why I started writing books because I had such fun as a kid reading books. I always had my head in a book. I wanted to write books that were unputdownable for children, that were full of adventure and crazy big characters and made them laugh.”Anita Mangan is a celebrated graphic designer and illustrator who has designed over 60 books including for Leon Restaurants, Gizzi Erskine and Fearne Cotton. She illustrated the best-selling Be a Unicorn series. Her first children’s book was the bestselling Escape the Rooms.

Our June 2023 Ages 9-10 Book of the Month

Our Book of the Month for 9+ is The Unlikely Rise of Harry Sponge by the much-loved actor Stephen Mangan! The Cantankerous old King Chisel needs an heir, so he has created the Crown Duels competition, inviting the best kids from his country to vie with one another to become the future king or queen. Chaos ensues as this gruesome gang of children compete in a multi-discipline game with pushy parents, wild sabotaging, and morally questionable tactics. Among them all, will an unassuming hero, Harry Sponge, be able to rise to the top?

Fully illustrated by talented artist Anita Mangan, this book is a high-energy, laugh-out-loud adventure from a bestselling brother-sister duo. The brilliantly silly and delightfully imaginative storytelling puts across the key message that any kid can be a hero, perfect for fans of David Baddiel, David Walliams, and Tom Fletcher. Full of surreal, larger-than-life characters, sparkling dialogue, and just the right amount of anarchy, The Unlikely Rise of Harry Sponge is a great choice for even the most reluctant of readers.