U is for...You

Yes, gone for the phonetic get-out clause for the letter 'U'. Try as I might; rack my brains as I did; I just couldn't think of a children's fictional character that began with 'U'. I am probably missing hundreds of famous Una's and Unwin's, but my work-addled brain can't think of them.

This poor A-Z challenge. You see, I can't stop now. If I stop then my side bar gets muddled. I feel like I am one of those people you see struggling through the London Marathon (26 miles or so), dressed as armour-clad knight, doing their bit for the challenge but in their own time. And which media luvvie nicknamed these folk 'fun' runners? Have they tried running marathons for charity dressed as a lumbering dinosaur, London bus, or errant knight? Calling these brave hardy souls 'fun-runners' makes their contribution seem a little less, when struggling around a course with actual equipment is an amazing feat and should be lauded from the sky.

But the point of this post, apart from having a chat with you, as it feels so long since we've had a chat, you and I - is the You part. Firstly for being here, reading this blog. When I started blogging I was confessing my writing fears to the wind. I didn't know, for a very long time, how to find others, and what to do when I did. Commenting seemed a big step. I like to read blogs, and I think of you all massively when I don't get around to visiting. Sometimes life just swells... not because of interesting, exciting things, but because of mundane boring things that pay the bills. C'est la vie, eh?

Agh - see how much I have missed chatting to you! I have gone wildly off target. But the point of this post is I wanted to ask you a question...

Over to you

What books did you read as children? Did you haunt libraries, like me? What books do your children like? Do you write for children - if so, what age? Do you write Young Adult books, and if so, who is your favourite contemporary YA children's author?

T is for...The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tiler

When I was ten I had a lovely teacher who really encouraged reading and creativity. We had a reading list of books that actually sounded interesting – there was Tyke Tiler, Stig of the Dump, Ghosts in the Attic (The Dollhouse Murders) - many different books to hook our imagination.

The author Gene Kemp uses a first-person narrative so we can see exactly what the protagonist, Tyke, sees. Tyke is a fearless twelve-year old who often gets into trouble, although never means things to turn out quite the way they do. It looks at life and the situations during the final year at Cricklepit Combined School, and is a very humorous, realistic (for the time) slice of life. It was the first book I read that had a swear word in it (git!). I remember dreading my turn to read a chapter aloud to the class (and secretly really wanting to!) in case the chapter picked was the one that had the naughty word.

The best thing about the book is the twist at the end – it is very unexpected, but at the same time, it really shouldn’t be – and the very reason why it is unexpected is worth exploring. Definitely a book to make a class think.

The Turbulent term of Tyke Tiler
Published: 1977
Author: Gene Kemp

Turbulent fact one: Every plane I have been on is turbulent around meal-times.

Turbulent fact two: The quickest way to make me ill is to sit me at the back of the car and drive around roundabouts in heavy traffic on a hot day.

Turbulent fact three: I was such a bad car traveller when I was little that my dad and brother would drive ahead with all the luggage and me and mum would have to get the train.

Turbulent fact four: The worst boat ride I’ve ever been on was a ferry from Guernsey. Everyone suffered!

Turbulent fact five: Not surprisingly - I love trains (especially the vintage steam train from Swanage to Corfe Castle). No turbulence to be found!

S is for... Slinky Malinki

Slinky Malinki is a cat – a bold fearless adventurous cat – who can open doors and steal slippers. He is brought to life by New Zealand’s bestselling children’s author / artist Lynley Dodd, as part of a series of brilliantly rhyming picture books which also includes Hairy Maclary (from Donaldson’s Dairy).

Wonderful names and brilliant rhymes abound throughout Lynley Dodd’s work – you can sense a real joy behind her use of language – and this gives the reader, whether child or adult, the same happiness. She plays with words in the same vein as Dr Seuss but sets them in reality – so the stories take everyday situations and inject them with a bit of rhyming magic. Her illustrations of cats and dogs are beautifully realised – scrappy dogs, sniffing dogs, slinking cats, superior cats.

As for Slinky Malinki – I love the name so much! Every cat owner knows a Slinky Malinki, just as I’m sure every dog owner knows a Hairy Maclary.

Slinky Malinki (but the author has written many other books)
Author / Artist: Dame Lynley Dodd
Published: This book published in 1990

Illustration fact one: Shirley Hughes, creator of Alfie and Moving Molly, is my favourite children’s illustrator. Her characters expressions are perfect; their clothes and surroundings wonderful.

Illustration fact two: Other favourite illustrators include Edward Ardizzone, Arthur Rackham, Ruth Brown, Graham Oakley, Jill Barklem, Shaun Tan, Dave McKean, Lauren Child, Jason Cockcroft.

Illustration fact three: I’m a BA (Hons), with a degree in Two-dimensional design (focusing on illustration). I have held three exhibitions of my work. My style is mixed media, main influence German expressionism.

Illustration fact four: I love and adore illustration and will often buy books purely based on either the illustrations or cover art. I can recognise the style of my favourite illustrators from ten paces.

Illustration fact five: I used to have a stall on a farmer’s market selling my hand-made cards and illustrations (and a shop in Shoreditch). I still remember how happy I was when I sold my first print - it was of the Louvre in Paris, and the person who bought it said it would be a birthday present for her sister. I hope she liked it!

R is for... Rupert Bear

Rupert began life as a newspaper’s marketing ploy in order to win readers from a rival. He first appeared in the pages of the Daily Express in 1920, and today can be found on an interactive website; a CGI-animated television series, and a seemingly limitless collection of merchandise. Not bad for a 91-year old bear!

One secret to Rupert’s success could be down to his creators realising that an annual, promoting both him and the paper, could come out every Christmas and be collected. This tradition began in 1936...and continues to this day. The annual I remember most was the one celebrating 1971 (pictured), which, given the year, must have been my brother's, and later found its way to me. I recall there was a story about some magical seaweed on a beach, and some weird gold gnomes that popped up in the bushes. The illustrations were incredibly detailed, especially the endpapers, and I could stare at them for hours, making up my own adventures.

I remember begging my mum for the video of Rupert and the Frog Song – which was an animated cartoon feature by Sir Paul McCartney that promoted his 1984 song ‘We All Stand Together’. That Christmas I was a happy girl – can’t say the same for the rest of the family who had to listen to it over and over again. Let’s sing the grand finish – ‘We all. Stand. TOGETHER!’

Rupert Bear
Published: 1920 onwards
Author and Illustrator: Mary Tourtel, Alfred Bestall (and many others)

Annual fact one: I’d always get an annual for Christmas (an annual being a collection of stories in a hard-cover, for anyone unfamiliar).

Annual fact two: A Christmas day annual was full of fun. A Boxing Day annual would be an encyclopaedia, dictionary, or the Guinness Book of Records.

Annual fact three: I always received a Mandy annual without fail. This is because (whispers) Mandy is my real name. Sh! It’s an un-secret.

Annual fact four: Other annuals would be Mr Men, Jem (Sings: She’s truly outrageous! Truly, truly, truly outrageous!), Beano, and Whizzer and Chips.

Annual fact five: I often buy my friends annuals at Christmas from retro fairs as I think it’s just not Christmas without one. This means nearly all of them have random annuals poking out of their bookcase thanks to me. Hee! They love me really.