Red House Children's Book Award

Questions & Answers

How do you feel about being shortlisted for the Red House Children's Book Award?

It's fantastic! Red House is one of the coolest book awards ever because it is voted for by children... that makes it extra special to any children's author!

How would you describe Angel Cake in five words?

Friendship, family, cake... & angel wings.

Did you speak to any children who moved from Poland to England about their experiences when you were writing Angel Cake?

The book was inspired by a Polish girl I met after a school event in the north-west. My books were the first she had read in English, and she showed me something she had written about her first few days in the UK. Although I'd had no plans to write about a Polish girl until then, her words stayed with me and the idea for the story began to unfold. As I was writing, I met and talked to a number of other Polish girls, both in the UK and Ireland, and they helped me with information and details. A reader in Krakow who was reading my books in Polish translation helped me to get the Polish background right!

Why did you choose to set the novel in Liverpool?

Initially it was set in Glasgow, but it wasn't quite working. I changed it and set it in an area of Liverpool I had once lived in as an art student. Just as I fell in love with Liverpool, so Anya did too... as soon as I switched the setting, it seemed to come alive. That Liverpool magic is infectious!

What is your favourite children's book?

Watership Down by Richard Adams is one that always stands out for me... I got caught reading it at high school by the coolest boy in our year, and was horrified to be spotted reading a book with a big rabbit's head on the cover. It turned out it was his favourite book... I made a new friend, and learned a very important lesson. Reading is cool!

Where is your favourite place in the world?

I love to travel... the west coast of Ireland, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Italy, Greece, Australia, New Zealand... all of those places are amazing. But my favourite place? Home, in the Galloway countryside, every time.

What's your favourite joke?

Q. What do you call a girl with egg, chips and beans on her head?
A. Caffy
(I like very, very corny jokes... sorry!)

If you could have any super power what would it be?

To fly. Preferably on a winged horse or a unicorn, but having my own wings would be cool, too.

What makes you laugh?

My friends, my family, my mad dog Kelpie and my crazy rabbit Einstein who is like a small, furry haystack and has one ear that sticks up and one that hangs down. I also have a tendency to laugh hysterically at random things, like chocolate reindeer coming towards me on the conveyor belt at the supermarket.

Who is your hero?

There are many people I admire, like Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama and Aung San Suu Kyi, people who stand up for their beliefs and fight for what is right. But my hero has always been my dad, who taught me to dream, to find the magic in life, to work hard to make the dreams happen and to never give up. Real-life heroes are everywhere, if you just begin to look.