Malorie Blackman: The Power of Stories exhibition coming to Time and Tide Museum

12 October 2024 – 9 February 2025

This autumn take an inspirational journey through the career of one of the nation’s most important and popular authors, Malorie Blackman, in this touring exhibition from the British Library.

From trials to triumphs, explore Malorie’s impact on the world of children’s literature. Discover how this library-loving girl grew into one of the UK’s most popular authors, and how her enthralling books shine a light on different ways of seeing the world. Find out how she defied expectations to become a literary icon and a trailblazer for inclusivity and representation in publishing – a journey which includes her becoming the UK’s first Black Children’s Laureate.

See the original synopses of her landmark series, Noughts & Crosses, and artwork from her novels. Find out about the work of some of her biggest inspirations like Toni Morrison and Alice Walker who paved the way before her, as well as some of the game-changing authors who have followed in her footsteps.

The exhibition includes films and quotes from fans – famous and otherwise – which highlight her impact, while objects and books which inspired and motivated her are also on display, helping to set the cultural context of her career. Poetry and artworks responding to Malorie’s work created by Year 9 pupils from a London secondary school situated close to the British Library appear throughout the exhibition.

Malorie Blackman OBE is one of Britain’s best-loved and most widely-read writers. She has written over seventy books for children and young adults, including the Noughts and Crosses series, Thief and a science-fiction thriller, Chasing the Stars. Many of her books have also been adapted for stage and television, including a BAFTA-award-winning BBC production of Pig-Heart Boy and the major BBC production of Noughts and Crosses. More recently Malorie wrote for the Doctor Who series on BBC One.

For over thirty years, her books have helped to shape British culture, and inspired generations of younger readers and writers. The Noughts and Crosses series, started in 2000, sparked a new and necessary conversation about race and identity in the UK, and the books are already undisputed classics of twenty-first-century children’s literature.

Malorie’s work has been instrumental in improving the representation of Black children in literature and has led the way for many other creators to follow in her footsteps, whether directly inspired by her or benefitting from her ground-breaking achievements.

This exhibition, on loan from the British Library, celebrates Malorie Blackman’s writing career and touches on some of the key moments in her personal life that have relevance to her writing. The exhibition also highlights Malorie’s other achievements, such as her time as Children’s Laureate, and screenwriting credits.

Placing the work and experience of Malorie centre stage, the exhibition allows us to look at Black British writing and publishing for children and young adults, throughout recent history and up to the present day.

Display from Malorie Blackman: The Power of Stories, ©The British Library

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