Name: James Catchpole, Lucy Catchpole
Genre: Childrens Fiction, Non-Fiction
Notable Works: What Happened to You?, You’re SO Amazing!
Website: thecatchpoles.net, thecatchpoleagency.co.uk
[ID: Photograph of two people on a wooden deck outside, in front of a lot of green trees. The man on the left is standing. He is white, has curly brown hair and is wearing a loose white shirt and brown shorts. His right leg is amputated below the hip. He has a black forearm crutch on his right arm. His left arm is partially obscured by the woman next to him. She is sitting in a manual wheelchair. She is white, has long brown hair and is wearing a long-sleeved white cardigan over a floral blouse, and a long green skirt. They are both smiling. /end]
About the Author:
James and Lucy Catchpole are a husband and wife duo of writers, parents and literary agents who run the Catchpole Agency. This is a family-run literary agency that was founded by Celia Catchpole, James’ mother. The organisation specialises in childrens literature- ranging from baby board books to books for teenagers- and caters to a small list of authors so as to not “spread [themselves] too thin” and ensure they invest adequate time in each of their respective clients.
The pair have written on their experiences as disabled individuals both prior to and after becoming parents to their two daughters. In the anthology We’ve Got This: Essays by Disabled Parents edited by Eliza Hull, they discuss how becoming parents almost seems to have changed public perspectives regarding their disabilities.
In her earlier articles, Lucy discusses her experiences living with an invisible disability while dating, caring for her younger family members, dealing with grief and the loss of a loved one, and disability stereotypes. More recent blog posts discuss her experiences as a mother, wheelchair user, author, and disability news circulating in the media.
In an interview with BBC Breakfast in 2021, James described the book “What Happened to You?” as a book for both disabled and non-disabled children and adults that discusses how disabled people, children in particular, may feel when faced with questions regarding their disabilities.
“I wrote it, first of all, for myself aged five. It’s hopefully the book that would have been useful for me at that age. It would have been useful to know that..I wasn’t obliged to answer the question ‘what happened to you?’.
James Catchpole on “What Happened to You?”, BBC Breakfast, April 2021
You can find more posts by the couple on their blog thecatchpoles.net, and information about their agency work at thecatchpoleagency.co.uk.
List of Works:
James Catchpole:
Articles:
“The Current State of Disability Representation in Children’s Books”, bookriot.com, Margaret Kingsbury, April 2021 *
*Part of an interviewed cast of authors
“”What Happened To You?”: What to do when a child asks someone about their disability”, Book Trust, April 2021
Books:
Name: What Happened to You? *
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Published: 2021
*Picture book. Illustrated by Karen George
Essays:
“Why It’s Important to Talk to Kids About Disability and “What Happened to You?””, diversebooks.org, April 2021
Other:
“7 illustrated children’s books about disability”, nationalbooktokens.com *
*Provided a list of 7 illustrated childrens books about disability to the National Book Tokens service
‘What Happened to You?’ storytime with author James Catchpole (for ages 3+), Moon Lane TV, April 2021
“What Happened to You? – James Catchpole on BBC Breakfast”, BBC Breakfast, April 2021 *
*Televised Interview
Lucy Catchpole:
(Previously Lucy Sholl)
Articles:
“Going Out on a Limb”, BBC Ouch, November 2004
“It’s less tragic when disabled people die”, BBC Ouch, March 2005
“Disabled single parent: who cares?”, BBC Ouch, June 2005
“Disabled girls are easy”, BBC Ouch, January 2007
“I love Channel 4’s Paralympics advert. But we can’t all be superhumans”, The Guardian, July 2016
“‘I did not expect motherhood to legitimise me’: parenting with a disability”, The Observer, February 2023*
*Article by Eliza Hull, featuring extracts from We’ve Got This, including Lucy and James’ piece.
Together:
Books:
“You’re SO Amazing!”, Faber & Faber, 2023 *
*Sequel to What Happened to You?, illustrated by Karen George
Essays:
“We’ve Got This: Essays by Disabled Parents”, Scribe Publications, 2023 *
*Anthology edited by Eliza Hull, including one chapter by James and Lucy
Archivist Comments:
I first came across this couple when I read What Happened to You? during a children’s storytime event at my university, and it sort of catapulted me into the world of disability picture books and children’s literature. And I’m glad it did because now I get to share them all with you!
I would like to extend a big thank you to the Catchpoles for allowing me to feature them and their work on the archive!
The Disability Book Archive 
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