The Unlikely Rise of Harry Sponge

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.