3D Review, ‘Is it a Mermaid?’ by Candy Gourlay and Francesca Chessa - Author Interview with Candy Gourlay

Following on from yesterday's reviews of Is it a mermaid, today we have an interview with the wordsmith who brought us Benji, Bel and the dreaming Dugong, Candy Gourlay.

What was your favourite children’s book as a child?

​This is always a difficult question because I read and loved SO MANY books as a child. Many of the books were school issue readers – I went to a convent school so we were given hardback, colour illustrated books called Cathedral Readers. They were anthologies of stories that ranged across many genres. My dad also liked to buy books from the door to door encyclopaedia salesmen (did you have those in England?) ... and he once bought a collection called the Collier's Junior Classics, which excerpted the best children's book of the time. One story I loved was The Twenty One Balloons by William Pene Dubois – about a secret, high tech society living on Krakatoa before it erupted. I loved the illustrations and all the tech invented by the characters, like pneumatic beds that could be pumped up high (through ceilings that slid out of the way) so that children could go to sleep with a view of the night sky. There were many problematic things about the story – such as the absence of Indonesians on an Indonesian island. But as a child, I simply loved the adventure of it!

What is your favourite children’s book as an adult?

​Another tough question! But I have to say I love Frank Cottrell's books, especially Millions, about a boy who finds a holdall stuffed with millions of pounds and then he has to spend it all before the UK joins the Euro (sadly, now the stuff of fantasy as Brexit looms). The characters were so lovable and the writing was clever and engaging. ​

What do you think makes children’s books so inspirational?

​There is always a warm heart beating inside a story written for children, a hopefulness that you might not discover in a book written for adults.​

Why did you start writing for children?

I wanted to become a writer on the day that I fell in love with reading. I actually remember the moment and the feeling when I realised that the characters on a page were telling me a story. Everytime I write I remember the explosion of delight I experienced on the day​ I read my first book, and I've always wanted to recreate that feeling for other children.

Do you think about how the pictures will work with the text as you are writing?

​Yes I do! When I write picture books, I often begin by drawing comics – I did a comic strip for a weekly magazine a long, long time ago – ​and I draw until the story begins to emerge. And only then do I begin to fashion words.

What is the biggest challenge in crafting a story with such a small word count?

​The small word count is an exciting challenge and because I love to draw, I don't mind surrendering punch lines to the illustrator. The biggest challenge, really, is not creating the story but creating a story that fits the needs of a publishing market that is limited by its reach and the expensive risk posed by every picture book because nobody knows what story will capture the imaginations of the most readers.

"Candy Gourlay gave up writing picture books for novels after years of rejection. She is over the moon to become a picture book author at last with Is It a Mermaid, though her novels have been listed for many prizes including the Waterstones, Blue Peter, the Carnegie and the Guardian Prize. Her third novel, Bone Talk, will be published in August."

Thank you for stopping by, please come back tomorrow for an interview with Is It a Mermaid's, illustrator Francesca Chessa!

3D Review, ‘Is it a Mermaid?’ by Candy Gourlay and Francesca Chessa – Reviews - Picture Books

Review By Beatriz, (a picture book loving) 14 Year Old Reviewer 

‘Is it a Mermaid?’ is an amazing short story written by Candy Gourlay. After writing several novels, Candy has produced her first short story picture book, aimed for primary school kids. The tale tells of a boy named Benji and his sister Bel, who meet a friendly creature in the sea. The creature says she is a mermaid! However, Benji is sure it’s a Dugong! Bel and Benji set out with the creature to prove their points right. Is it really a mermaid? 

This tale is kind and shares a message of friendship and wonder. Carefully written, the book is wonderful to the end. Accompanied by beautiful drawings by Francesca Chessa, Benji and Bel create a special magic and a lovely story for all to read!

Adult Review by (a picture book and Dugong loving) Adult! 

Is it a Mermaid? Is a fun and charming tale panned by Candy Gourlay and exquisitely illustrated by Francesca Chessa. Set amongst vibrant backdrops the story tells the tale of two children who come across a mysterious, singing sea beast who is convinced she is a mermaid. Of course the children know better, tell their new friend the truth that she is not a mermaid but a sea cow, a dugong.

The creature is upset, but as mermaids are very forgiving, and the children are sorry, soon the threesome, are playing together and having a wonderful time, and it soon becomes apparent that Dugong, Mermaid or Human, it make no difference as friends accept each other for who they are.

Is it a Mermaid? Is a lovely picture book, which explores friendship plus brings a much neglected creature into the heart of this charming tale. Candy’s words along with Francesca’s beautiful imagery has created a delightful book, that is more than it seems, as it sprinkled dugong facts throughout the book and contains a page of dugong information to further peak children’s interest, and highlight the conservation issues that effecting the dugongs habitat. Is it a Mermaid is a truly beautiful book.

Thank you for stopping by, please visit us again this week, as we will be posting an author interview with Candy Gourlay, an illustrator interview with Francesca Chessa, and an article on a Dugong teaching resource too! 

Tears of the class clown - review of Jelly by Jo Cotterill

Jelly is the sort of heart-warming story that so many children (and adults) will find it very easy to relate to. It is the story of the class clown, who is using humour to hide their insecurities.

Jelly's impressions are legendary. She has the class in fits. She's voted by the class to take part in the talent show. She has great friends; is always picked for the sports team.

But now in the last year of primary school, Jelly's self-awareness in growing. She starts to recognise that she mainly plays up and tries to get people to laugh with her because she feels it will stop people laughing at her. Despite all her popularity, she is very insecure because she is fat, so her self-belief is very low.

It's clever of Jo Cotterill to have the insecure main character as being one of the popular girls. It so neatly draws attention to the fact of how much everyone plays a part and that the public face people show may not be who they truly feel to be inside. And it emphasises that to show our true feelings is exposing and uncomfortable and takes an awful lot of bravery, as Jelly finds out.

Another really great feature of the story that the person who notices Jelly's unhappiness is her mum's new boyfriend, Lennon. Seeing such a positive male role model in a story is a very neat twist, rather than using the new man in Mum's life as a source of uncomfortable conflict, and I loved this storyline.

Lennon is they key that gives Jelly the confidence to face up to her fears. 

Jelly starts to question whether she really even likes performing. She loves writing poems, which she never even shows to her closest friends. And when her friends start telling her than her impressions are crossing a line from being funny into being cruel, a crisis looms.

Jelly is such a warm and thoughtful character and the reader is really rooting for her as she wonders if she will be brave enough to reveal a new Jelly, one who admits their true feelings and acts more like the person she feels she is inside. Lennon, Jelly's lovely mum and her friends surround Jelly with so much goodness, creating a really feelgood story.

It really is a cracking tale about how outwardly confident people are often as insecure as everyone else and should give plenty of food for thought as well as being a joy to read.

Nicki Thornton

Beware of dragons in your garden

If your children are suddenly very keen to pitch a tent in the garden and stay out there all night, it might not simply be down to the hot weather. There's a good chance they will have read 'The Boy who Grew Dragons' by Andy Shepherd and are scouring the trees to see what is growing there.
Because anyone reading this lovely book is going to want a pet dragon of their own! (Except the parents, perhaps.)

This is such a charming story about Tomas, who discovers that a strange tree in his grandfather's garden is growing tiny dragons that fit right into your pocket.

What could be a more perfect summer read than this beguiling story about the close bond that quickly develops between Tomas and his dragon, Flicker? And the unfolding trouble as Tomas tries to keep his rather destructive new pet a secret.

In this warm, imaginatively told and very funny story, Flicker is much more gentle than you might expect a dragon to be and totally cute, but he still breathes spurts of fire capable of singeing a lot more than fingers. He can fly. And, as Tomas quickly learns, dragon poo is also fearsomely explosive.

As well as the humour, one of the many strengths of this story is the positive relationships throughout, and not just between Tomas learning how to care for his new, unpredictable pet.

His family are adorable and I love the strong bond between Tomas and his grandfather, and his school friends. So, not surprisingly, soon Tomas and his friends are camping out in the garden so that everyone can have a dragon pet. Let's just say chaos ensues.

The writing is gentle, vivid and very well imagined, and so well complemented by illustrations from Sara Ogilvie throughout, it makes you want to pitch up a tent in Grandad's garden and see if you can't catch a dragon of your own. Be prepared.

Nicki Thornton

3D Review - Kate Wiseman - Editor Interview with Elaine Bousfield the MD of Zuntold Publishers

What was your favourite children’s book as a child?

I loved reading more than anything else in the world. It is difficult to choose just one book to be honest. As a younger child there were two books that stayed with me for quite a long time. The first was Carbonel by Barbara Sleigh and the second was The Water Babies by Charles Kingsley.

I loved, and still love, books with a magical element or fantasy edge to them. I drove my sister mad with the Water Babies because I insisted that if I poked my heads under my bed covers at night, there was an ocean waiting for me, where I would turn into a Water Baby and have all sorts of adventures. I was so convinced of this, that my sister went crying to my mum, saying she was afraid that I would drown.

What is your favourite children’s book as an adult?

Ok..again this is difficult. I think my favourite has to be Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman. It is quite a tricky read for many children though - I think it is more likely to be enjoyed by older children - age 11 or 12 onwards. I love this book because of its beautifully detailed world building, and the amazing concept of the daemon - that part of our soul that lives outside our body as a separate but intricate part of ourselves.

I loved it, also because it combined a wonderful female character (Lyra - strong, curious, impatient, kind) with a fantastic life-changing adventure. It was pure genius. It was an important book because it tackled questions of adult power and how adults abuse their power sometimes and of course, the role of religion. It asked the important question, how can we find meaning if there is no God? They are big questions but I think children all over the world think about these things. Not many children’s books explore such complex themes. I also loved A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, a masterpiece in that it explores grief and loss, and the suppression of guilt which so often accompanies it.

What do you think makes children’s books so inspirational?

Ok…my immediate answer to this is they are not self -conscious; they remind us of the importance of play. They allow us to imagine again. And they teach us things about ourselves and the world without preaching at us (the best ones do anyway). I think our education system drills the imagination out of us and we forget how to play. Children’s books allow us recourse once more to a deeper, more connected inner world.

What do you love about this book and what makes it stand out?

I love gangster school because of the reasons mentioned above. Kate is so playful - the story turns the normal world of school on its head and gives us chaos, naughtiness and rule breaking instead. And it places at the centre of the story, two very different personalities who soon learn that despite being different, they need each other. So its about friendship and loyalty but it is also hilariously funny. I love Gruffles and Wolf. Kate develops characters well alongside a sizzling plot-line that keeps you turning the pages. The second Gangster school had me laughing so much, my entire family came up to my loft room where I work to see what I was laughing at.

How many people have worked on this book and for how long?

I got to Gangster School quite late in the day and didn’t have to do much editing to be honest. Just a little bit here and there. Kate worked on it for four years I think, but the other Gangster School books are being written much more quickly - the characters now have a life of their own I think. We also have our production team at Carnegie - Anna the MD there took a look and loved it p- and Lucy did that typesetting. Isla Donohoe, a young artist from Manchester designed the cover - like me she read both the first Gangster School and the second and could not stop laughin

Elaine Bousfield has worked in mental health and trained as a counsellor, working for many years with young people. She ran her own business, Xenzone, and developed an online counselling and support platform for young people called kooth.com . She sold Xenzone in 2015 and is still its chair and founding director. She writes fiction herself and in 2017 set up Zuntold with the aim of publishing new and exciting fiction for children and young people. She is particularly interested in diversity and the role that fiction can play in changing lives. She is interested in exploring fiction which can be used in therapeutic work with children.

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3D Review - Gangster School - Kate Wiseman - Author Interview

What was your favourite children’s book as a child?

That’s a hard question! There are so many to choose from. As a child, I used to get told off for reading in the shower and ruining my books. I was very dedicated.

There are two that really stand out in my memory: the first is Five Children and It by E Nesbit. I loved the Psammead (sand fairy) with his lumpy body and grumpy attitude and his eyes on stalks. He grants wishes to the children who dig him up, and they always backfire in some outlandish way.

My other childhood standout is My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell. I was green with envy at Durrell’s unconventional life on the island of Corfu, enchanted by his descriptions of nature, and his family’s high jinks made me laugh my grubby knee-high socks off.

What is your favourite children’s book as an adult?

Another tricky question. There is so much brilliant kids’ lit out there. I’ve read Phillip Pullman’s Northern Lights countless times and my family never tire of trying to work out what form someone’s daemon would take. Beware though – it may cause offence. Another favourite is Ross Wellford’s wacky, funny, touching Time Travelling with a Hamster, which incidentally also gets my vote for Best Book Title of All Time.

What do you think makes children’s books so inspirational?

One of the great tragedies of growing up is that we’re encouraged to downplay the importance of imagination in favour of other, more ‘practical’ qualities. Kids’ books embrace imagination and celebrate its power to transport us beyond the confines of the everyday.

As life becomes more and more pressurised and kids are pushed to conform to society’s expectations regarding everything from passing endless assessments and exams to the way they look, children’s books are a portal to countless other worlds where they can live a million different lives. They have no limits.

Why did you start writing for children?

When I finally got the courage to write fiction instead of essays, it never occurred to me to write anything else. I love the freedom and spontaneity of kids’ lit. It allows me to pour my overactive imagination and daft sense of humour into my writing. I still can’t imagine writing for adults and doubt that I ever will.

What made you want to write this book?

My son had just gone off to university and I was moping around, biting my lip every time I passed his bedroom door, and I needed to concentrate on something else. I decided to stuff all my fears of failure into a little box, lock it away in a dusty corner of my mind and have a go at fulfilling my childhood ambition of being a writer. I’ve worked with kids for a long time and writers are encouraged to write about what they know, so a school was an easy choice.


When my son was smaller, he used to disconcert people who asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up by saying ‘an evil genius’. That got me thinking – what would a school for young felons actually be like? And what would happen if you got sent there, but you weren’t actually a criminal at all?

What is your favourite aspect of writing for children?

Being able to give free reign to my imagination. I especially love concocting a rich history for Blaggard’s School for Tomorrow’s Tyrants. To me, the characters of Sir Thomas Blaggard, the school’s founder, who was born in a mud hut on the banks of the Thames and survived by eating stinging nettles and wrestling bears until he found his criminal feet, and Sally Masters, the eighteenth century Highwaywoman (nickname Blunderbuss Sally) and Foggarty and Spinks, the body snatchers, make the school what it is today. I also love thinking up situations that make me giggle.

Kate Wiseman is a wife, mother and cat minion who lives in Saffron Walden, Essex. Her many years experience of working in schools prompted her to begin writing about Blaggard’s School for Tomorrow’s Tyrants, the world’s best educational establishment for trainee villains.

Gangster School was shortlisted for several prizes and was published first in Germany, by Piper Verlag in October 2017. Piper has just released Gangster School 2: The Brotherhood of Brimstone and there are more to follow. Gangster School is also being published in summer 2018, by Uitgeverij, Holland.

Kate has a degree in English and Creative Writing and a Masters in English Literature. Gangster School is her first novel.