Secret Serendipity Seven with Elizabeth Dale

Today I'm pleased to welcome children's author and SCBWI pal, Elizabeth Dale, onto the blog, to share seven secrets with us. Yesterday on the blog, her latest picture book, Nothing Can Frighten A Bear was reviewed by Liss Norton. 

We all love secrets, don’t we? Some we don’t mind sharing, some we’re a bit tentative about. Should I tell you my 7th one? Read it and see!

1. I originally started writing children’s books because they are short. Honestly! My first ever writing attempt was a long adult novel. It was typed on a portable typewriter with keys that stuck if I typed too fast, edits could mean re-typing whole pages or chapters - and no-one wanted to publish it. After all those endless late nights hammering away on my ancient machine, I vowed that never again would I spend so long on something that might never be published. So I wrote magazine stories, which were wonderfully short. And then when my daughters were born, and I was reminded how wonderful children’s books are, I started writing them, too. Firstly because they were short, but then because I fell in love with them. Writing for children is the most fun of all. Indeed, my daughters were so impressed by what a blissful life I lead - sitting with my feet up, drinking coffee, gazing out the window - sorry, writing! - that two of them, Katie Dale (Little White Lies, Mumnesia, Fairy Tale Twists etc) and Jenny Jinks (A Treasury of Bedtime Stories) are children’s authors, too.

2. My latest picture book Nothing Can Frighten a Bear was inspired by a trip to Canada where I went for walks in the woods looking for bears. But I am really, really pleased to say we never found one! I would have been scared silly. My daughter thought she saw one and our screams of terror were deafening (even though it turned out to be only a squirrel!). So whilst it’s true that Nothing Can Frighten a Bear, there is a lot that can terrify this human!

3. I’m useless at baking cakes. My picture book The Carrot Cake Catastrophe is about a girl rabbit and her granddad making a birthday cake for her mummy that goes disastrously wrong. It was written from experience. I shall never forget the day I was baking with my daughters and egg whites were mistaken for peach juice! The Carrot Cake Catastrophe has a recipe in the back for a yummy carrot cake, which my editor provided and tested out. Not me. I didn’t want my own carrot cake catastrophe!

4. I often get car sick. My picture book Off to Market - about a trip on an African minibus to a market, was based on a real journey I took in Uganda. There was everything on that minibus: goats, rugs, hens, and lots of people. It was hot, jam-packed and full of very interesting smells. Fortunately, despite these and the bends and very bumpy roads, I didn’t feel sick. Which is just as well as I’d never have been able to push my way off that crowded bus in time!

5. I’m allergic to dogs, cats, horses, and anything furry. The first picture book I ever had published, Scrumpy, is about a dog that died and is based on a dog of that name we all fell in love with one holiday. I wrote it because my daughter’s hamster died and I saw the devastating effect that had on her, and I wanted to write a positive story about moving on after the death of a pet. But I’ve never had a dog. My children would have loved one, but they couldn’t because of my allergies. I have had courses of de-sensitising injections but they didn’t work, so the only dogs in my house are in books.

6. Not many people know that I am writing a musical - working title Always a Rainbow with my daughter, Katie, and the lovely Helen Bonney who is a musical genius. It is based on the life of Janusz Korczak who ran an orphanage for Jewish children in Poland in the Second World War, and refused to leave them no matter what. It’s funny, sad, heart-rending but hopefully uplifting too - and filled with beautiful songs.

7. I do not have an agent. I have had over forty books accepted, due to dogged persistence, learning from feedback and never giving up over the years. Which leads to an extra 8th secret. I am the Rejection Queen. I am used to rejection, I expect rejection, I can take it. It’s hard sometimes, especially when I’m on the verge of acceptance and it falls through, but I have learned that every rejection is an opportunity - to send that text out to someone else. So for all fellow writers reading this, I would say - Never Give Up! Embrace rejection, it comes to us all (well most of us!) and when an acceptance finally happens, past rejections make it even sweeter.

There… should I have revealed that I get rejected a lot? Hardly makes me look like a mega-successful author, does it? But all you writers or would-be writers out there suffering or fearing rejection need to know -you are not alone! It’s healthy. It’s normal. It’s part of being a writer. But despite them all, being a writer, especially for children, is still the best job in the world!

Nothing Can Frighten A Bear is published by Nosy Crow. To read a review, click here. 

Summary

Snuggled up in bed one moonlight night, Baby Bear is sure he hears a monster outside. Daddy Bear insists there’s nothing scary in the forest and, anyway, nothing can frighten a bear. But as the family of bears set out to make sure, and all vanish one by one, it looks like Daddy Bear might not be as brave as he seems… 

This bedtime story is full of comic surprises and gentle reassurance. After all, the things that go bump in the night are never as scary as you might think!

***

If you want to know more about Elizabeth Dale and her books, please visit her website - http://elizabethdaleuk.blogspot.co.uk/

Or contact her on [email protected] 

Nothing Can Frighten a Bear by Elizabeth Dale and Paula Metcalf

Deep, deep in the woods, with the moon shining bright, 

Some bears snuggled up in their beds for the night. 

There was Mummy Bear, Daddy Bear… 

Grace and then Ben… 

And Baby Bear, too, who lay dreaming, but then… 

As Baby Bear wriggled and stretched out a paw, 

He suddenly woke when he heard a loud… 

roar! 

Summary From Nosy Crow 

This September we’re publishing a wonderful picture book by a brand new author-illustrator pairing: Nothing Can Frighten a Bear, written by Elizabeth Dale and illustrated by Paula Metcalf. This is an absolutely FANTASTIC book: beautifully illustrated, with an incredible rhyming text, and a gentle, reassuring message that’s perfect for young children. 

Snuggled up in bed one moonlight night, Baby Bear is sure he hears a monster outside. Daddy Bear insists there’s nothing scary in the forest and, anyway, nothing can frighten a bear. But as the family of bears set out to make sure, and all vanish one by one, it looks like Daddy Bear might not be as brave as he seems… 

This bedtime story is full of comic surprises and gentle reassurance. After all, the things that go bump in the night are never as scary as you might think! 

****

Review by Liss Norton 

Nothing Can Frighten a Bear is going straight on to my 'Best Books of the Year' list. It's a hilarious story about a bear family going out in the night to investigate a scary roar. Daddy Bear's certain it can't be a monster because monsters don't exist but he starts to have doubts as his family begin to disappear. Of course, there's a happy ending, but I'm not giving it away! 

Elizabeth Dale's rhyming text is perfect - good rhythm and a terrific use of language - and sometimes the last word of each rhyming couplet appears on the next page so the reader has a chance to guess what it is before turning over. I read the book to Theo, aged six, and he loved guessing. (He was right every time.) He and I giggled all the way through the book; it's clearly going to become a favourite - for both of us! 

Paula Metcalf's beautiful illustrations match the text brilliantly. There's lots of detail to talk about in the pictures, but Theo and I didn't stop to chat, we kept reading to the end because we were so eager to find out what would happen. Later he said that his favourite page was the one where the 'monster' appeared because he knew what it was, but silly Daddy Bear didn't. 

I urge you not to miss this book because it's totally fab! And if anyone from Nosy Crow is reading this review, please let's have more from Elizabeth Dale and Paula Metcalf. What a duo!

From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg

New Yorker Claudia knew that she could never pull off the old-fashioned kind of running away. That is, running away in the heat of anger with a knapsack on her back. She didn’t like discomfort; even picnics were untidy and inconvenient; all those insects and the sun melting the icing on the cupcakes. Therefore, she decided that her leaving home would not just be running from somewhere, but would be running to somewhere. To a large place, a comfortable place, an indoor place, and preferably a beautiful place. And that’s why she decided upon the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. 

Pages - 148

Published by Pushkin Children’s Books June 2015

Summary

Twelve-year old Claudia is frustrated with life at home and runs away to the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. with her younger brother, Jamie, who has the big advantage that he has money from cheating at cards. There they sleep in a bed owned by a queen, bathe in the restaurant fountain, using the money thrown into it to supplement their meagre finances. 

However, no sooner have Claudia and Jamie settled into their new home, than they are caught up in the mystery of an angel statue bought by the museum for the bargain price of $225. Is it in fact an as yet undiscovered work by Michelangelo, worth millions? Claudia is determined to find out, and her quest leads her to the remarkable, secretive Mrs. Frankweiler, who sold the statue to the museum - and to some equally remarkable discoveries about herself.

****

Review by Elizabeth Dale

This is a children’s classic, a Newberry Award-wining book reissued after nearly fifty years - one I had not come across before. It is written from the point of view of an eccentric rich old lady who has sold a statue of an angel to the museum and tells the story of Claudia and Jamie’s adventure as they learn something new each day and outwit the guards to stay in the Museum each night after the visitors leave. It explores the quirky relationship between the siblings and follows their quest to prove whether the beautiful statue is, in fact, by Michelangelo and therefore invaluable. Jamie, a few years younger, is just after adventure and is ready to return home after a week but Claudia is desperate to become different in some way before she goes home and is convinced that it will happen if she manages to solve the mystery of the statue. 

It is a very well-written and intriguing story, thought-provoking and wryly humorous. Not only does it have adventure and mystery, but it provides a clever, thoughtful and feisty protagonist and an insight into the wonders and richness of the Met - or any other museum children might visit. And the meeting at the end with the eccentric Mrs. Basil E, Frankweiler is an entry into a whole new world and ideas. This is a clever, unique and most enjoyable read - I can see why it is a classic. 

A Monster’s Moved In by Timothy Knapman and Loretta Schauer

It’s raining and Barnaby is bored. Then he has a brilliant idea: he’s going to make a den. “But a monster might move in!” say Mum and Dad. Barnaby’s den is made of cushions and bits of sofa - far too cosy for a monster. But playing by himself isn’t much fun and soon Barnaby wishes a monster would move in. BIG MISTAKE!

Published by Little Tiger Press 2nd March 2015

Summary From Little Tiger

A laugh-out-loud romp from best-selling author, Timothy Knapman (Dinosaurs in the Supermarket and Mungo and the Pirate Book Pirates). This funny picture book celebrates friendship, imagination and play. Children will love the bright and lively illustrations - a book to banish rainy day blues.

Review by Elizabeth Dale

It’s a typical scenario for any young child (and their mum and dad!). It’s raining and despite all his toys, Barnaby has NOTHING to do. So he decides to make a nice cosy den behind the sofa and he isn’t put off by his parents’ suggestion that a monster might move in. But when it becomes boring in there all on his own, Barnaby wishes that a monster would come. BIG MISTAKE! Burple the monster does. But he’s a fun monster and despite his disgusting packed lunch, he and Barnaby have the best day ever. When Burple finally has to go home, is their fun over? Or does Burple have a surprise for Barnaby?

This is a simple story about friendship, with a really fun twist, greatly complimented by exuberant, colourful illustrations that really bring it to life. An ideal book for a rainy day!

Run by Gregg Olsen

Cash: $17.00 Dinner: My turn, spaghetti?

Days at this school: 155

Texts from Caleb: 15 so far

Plan: Find a Way to Tell Him the Truth

MY NAME IS RYLEE AND I AM A LIAR, BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT I WAS RAISED TO BE

I hear the water running in the bathroom sink and I know my mother will bitch at me for leaving it on. Even thought I didn’t. I just got home from school. Mom has been critical of me, while praising my brother, Hayden - despite the fact he doesn’t do much to deserve it. If he remembers to flush the toilet after a late night pee, she practically does handstands the next morning. Mom has always been harder on me. She says that it’s because I have so much potential. Which really means that whatever I’ve done so far has disappointed her.

Published by Hot Key Books - May 2014

Pages - 245

Summary 

This is the story of 15 year-old Rylee’s’s desperate attempt to save her mum. She has come home from school to find her step-dad dead on the floor and the word ‘Run’ written in blood beside him. This is the moment Rylee has been trained for all her life, she instinctively knows that her mum is missing - abducted by the man who has been on their trail all her life.  But until now she’d had no idea he was an evil serial  killer. With no money and no idea whom she’s looking for, Rylee must try to outwit a murderer who always seems to be one step ahead of her - and who, she discovers, has a terrible link to herself.

*****

Reviewed by Elizabeth Dale

When I began to read this, I thought it was going to be another story about a family on the run from a criminal. But Run  is very different - for a start, Rylee is completely on her own, there is no-one she can turn to for help, especially not the police.  But she is tough and extremely resourceful and every step she takes is prompted by an unswerving  desire for deadly vengeance. 

This is a dark and sometimes unflinchingly brutal story - full of very clever twists and turns, and horrifying secrets from the past that shock Rylee to the core. As she discovers that her whole life has been one big lie, but not the lie she thought she had been living, as she learns more about the sadistic evilness of her mum’s captor, and the true, horrifying  motive for his attack, she becomes more determined than ever not only to find him before it’s too late but also to confront the mother who has deceived her at every stage of her life. 

This book is fast-paced and well-written, and Rylee is very much a heroine to admire, as she cleverly  manages to uncover more about the killer and all his previous possible  victims.  She is smart, feisty and spirited and It is easy for the reader to empathise with her. The other characters are well-drawn, as much as we see of them, but the book mainly focuses on Rylee. I had suspected as I read it that I knew how it would end, but I was wrong. It’s always great when a book surprises you to the final page, but I have to say I was slightly disappointed by the final twist. But that’s simply a matter of personal taste, and Run is certainly an edgy, riveting read that will shock and surprise you and keep you turning the page.

Don’t Look Behind You by Lois Duncan.

Summary

April Corrigan's life is turned upside-down when she when she learns that her father has been working secretly undercover for the FBI. When his testimony convicts a notorious drug dealer, the whole family must relocate and enter the Federal Witness Security Program. April's entire way of life changes--not just her name. And when she attempts to communicate with her boyfriend, an agent is killed

Republished by Atom in 2012

*****

Reviewed by Elizabeth Dale

April’s world changes forever one Tuesday in May. She is given a lift to school by her boyfriend,  Steve, as usual,  and arranges to meet him at the end of the day. But she never does. Instead, she is called to the school office after lunch to be taken home by her gran. From that moment her whole world spins out of control.  At home, she is met by her mum and brother and Uncle Max, who tells them they have to go away secretly for a few days - someone has tried to kill April’s father to stop him testifying in court.  The book follows April’s anguish over the days and then weeks and months that follow as her family is forced to firstly hide out in motel rooms, then go into witness protection and relocate with false identities to another part of America, always looking over their shoulders. With far less money to live on than she’s used to and having to live a lie, hide her tennis skills, make new friends and with her mobile confiscated and no chance to get a message to Steve, April is frantic.

This book gives the reader a real insight into how awful life must be when absolutely everything - family, friends, school and boyfriend is snatched away. It explores April’s inner turmoil as well as the tensions within her family as everyone has to become someone else, all the time aware that one slip could mean that they could be killed by the hit-man chasing after them.  And even when she manages to return home briefly, April has to face the realisation that life moves on without her

My one criticism is that the reader should be able to identify and sympathise with April, who has been dealt an awful hand, but unfortunately she makes several selfish decisions that adversely affect others. That’s maybe understandable once - she’s only seventeen, she didn’t ask for her world to be thrown into turmoil - but when there are tragic consequences, she doesn’t seem to suffer the appropriate  remorse.  Apart from that one flaw, Don’t Look Behind You is a gripping, taut read, filled with drama and turmoil, twists and turns  and should leave readers feeling appreciative of the boring sameness of their own lives that they may just be taking for granted!

Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

An engaging and heart-warming 'two voice' story of an East Coast/West Coast digital friendship that begins when Elizabeth emails her soon-to-be college roommate, Lauren. On the cusp of freedom during their last summer before starting a new independent life away from home, they discover the catharsis that an anonymous email friendship can bring as they chronicle the tension, excitement and anxiety of leaving their homes, falling in love, and finding the right mini-fridge

Published by Hodder and Stoughton in January 2014

Pages - 235

******

Reviewed by Elizabeth Dale

It’s the start of the summer after graduation and Elizabeth (EB to her friends) can’t wait to leave her miserable mum with her desperate love life and head all the way across to the other side of America to start college in San Francisco, where her gay dad now lives. When the university emails her contact details of her college room-mate, Lauren, so they can sort out what they’re each bringing, EB emails her. Lauren’s feeling about starting college just across the bay and escaping her chaotic home life with her mum and dad and five younger siblings are more ambivalent.  She’s going to miss them so much, but she relishes the thought of finally having some peace, so she is very disappointed to discover that her request for a room of her own is refused.

As the correspondence builds that last summer, both girls find themselves telling each other their hopes and worries, and confiding details of their new romances  that they don’t even reveal to their friends.  But when Lauren meets EB’s dad and tells EB things she doesn’t want to hear, their relationship fractures before they’ve even met. Can you just have too much truth?  

This novel is a great read, capturing all the conflicting emotions that come with leaving home, no matter how much you think you want to go.  Written by two authors from each girl’s totally unique perspective, the reader really enters each girl’s totally different world. It captures the excitement and fear, not just of heading off to college, but also growing up and accepting and adjusting to relationships both within and outside the family. My one criticism would be that the voices of the two girls aren’t quite distinctive enough,  and some of the other characters, particularly EB’s mum could be more developed, but I very much enjoyed it all the same and really felt I was there with the girls as they say goodbye to everything they know and love, and face up to such a  momentous change in their lives.