In Conversation with Nathanael Lessore

Award-winning author Nathanael Lessore will be in conversation discussing his books Steady for This, King of Nothing, What Happens Online and his newest teen book, Like a Brother.

Ask him your questions and find out all about how he comes up with his hilarious, inspiring stories about being a teenager. 

Recommended age 10+

Nathanael's books will be available to purchase and can be signed by the author after the event.

Tickets for this event are charged at £4 per child (under 16 years) and on a pay as you feel basis for adults, but please note that each person attending will need a ticket. All money from ticket sales supports the running, continuation and expansion of Canterbury Children's Literature Festival and our year round outreach work within the local community.

About the Author

Since its publication, Nathanael’s Steady For This has been shortlisted for the Carnegie Award, the Jhalak Prize, the Branford Boase, and many regional awards. His follow up, King of Nothing, won the Waterstones Prize 2025 and the Carnegie Shadowers' Award.

He’s also been published in the United States of America, or the USA of A, and has been practicing dance moves for no real reason.

Writing his first book gave him the opportunity to show his South East London childhood as the funny, warm, adventurous world that wasn’t always represented as such. Celebrating diverse characters gave Nathanael the opportunity to represent kids who otherwise would never see themselves in this light in this form of literature.

If he wasn’t a writer, Nathanael would be a half-hearted heart surgeon to mosquitoes, or head of some committee that meets on weekends. He grew up in a North Peckham estate as one of eight children to French and Madagascan parents. Becoming a writer is a dream come true, and he will never take this journey for granted.