Jun 22, 2026 · 39 min · 12 segments
APPROX AGE RATING: 12+ Welcome back to The Reading Cafe, the award-winning podcast from Holy Cross High School that aims to get people talking about reading! This special episode is the first ever…
Ross McKenzieGuestNoraHostOrlaHostWelcome to The Reading Café, the award-winning podcast from Holy Cross High School that aims to get people talking about reading.
You join us
for a very special episode of the podcast, as this is the first ever Reading Café Live Junior.
So please give everyone listening at home your biggest cheer to let them know you're here.
Our guest is
the
multi-award-winning novelist, Ross McKenzie.
Talking of awards, we must also mention that The Reading Café is currently on the shortlist for a Scottish Podcast Award.
Ross McKenzie is a Scottish fantasy fiction novelist, best known as the writer of the very popular Nowhere Emporium series.
His first published book, Zack and the Dream Pirates, came out in 2014 and won the Scottish Children's Book Award for Younger Readers, which was voted for by thousands of children from across Scotland.
The following year, the Nowhere Emporium was published and won the 2016 Scottish Children's Book Award, as well as the Blue Peter Book Award and the North East Book
Award.
Ross writes novels directly influenced by growing up in Glasgow, and there is a distinct Scottishness to his unique brand of fantasy adventure writing.
He always knew he'd like to be an author, and he's been writing stories since he was seven years old, beginning with a book about a hungry crocodile called Crunchy Colin.
When he isn't world-building in his novels, he works as a graphic designer for the publisher DC Thompson.
We are going to be talking to Ross about his most recent book, The Uninvited, which might well be his very best novel yet.
Scandor
author A.F. Stedman described The Uninvited as simply magical, praising it as wildly imaginative and deeply thought-provoking.
Please join us in welcoming
Ross McKenzie to the Reading Café.
Welcome on.
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Welcome to The Reading Café, the award-winning podcast from Holy Cross High School that aims to get people talking about reading.
You join us
for a very special episode of the podcast, as this is the first ever Reading Café Live Junior.
So please give everyone listening at home your biggest cheer to let them know you're here.
Our guest is
the
multi-award-winning novelist, Ross McKenzie.
Talking of awards, we must also mention that The Reading Café is currently on the shortlist for a Scottish Podcast Award.
Ross McKenzie is a Scottish fantasy fiction novelist, best known as the writer of the very popular Nowhere Emporium series.
His first published book, Zack and the Dream Pirates, came out in 2014 and won the Scottish Children's Book Award for Younger Readers, which was voted for by thousands of children from across Scotland.
The following year, the Nowhere Emporium was published and won the 2016 Scottish Children's Book Award, as well as the Blue Peter Book Award and the North East Book
Award.
Ross writes novels directly influenced by growing up in Glasgow, and there is a distinct Scottishness to his unique brand of fantasy adventure writing.
He always knew he'd like to be an author, and he's been writing stories since he was seven years old, beginning with a book about a hungry crocodile called Crunchy Colin.
When he isn't world-building in his novels, he works as a graphic designer for the publisher DC Thompson.
We are going to be talking to Ross about his most recent book, The Uninvited, which might well be his very best novel yet.
Scandor
author A.F. Stedman described The Uninvited as simply magical, praising it as wildly imaginative and deeply thought-provoking.
Please join us in welcoming
Ross McKenzie to the Reading Café.
Welcome on.
