A SUPERNATURAL ELEMENT

THE CIRCUS, THE LIVERPOOL BLITZ AND A TRAGIC GHOST

This year the circus is celebrating its 250th anniversary, which inspired me to write my latest novel, THE BOY WHO COULD FLY.

The story is written for children (10 years upwards) but is also interesting for adults. It has a supernatural element, bringing together my own 19th century ancestor, 'Una The Human Fly', a circus star tragically killed while performing at the age of 16, and Jamie, a fictional descendant of his. It begins in Britain during WW2 with Jamie losing both parents in the Liverpool blitz and follows his subsequent life, much of it difficult, and his burning desire to learn how to fly on a trapeze.

A mix of story telling, circus lore and historical detail, parts of the book are autobiographical. I was born and brought up in Liverpool, and it's the setting for one of my adult books too (ME, DINGO AND SIBELIUS). From the mid-19th century my family were circus and theatre performers - acrobats, gymnasts, dancers, singers and musicians

THE BOY WHO COULD FLY is my twelfth book, available in both paperback and Kindle from Amazon.

A BOOK FOR THE 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CIRCUS

TWO TRAPEZE ARTISTS, LINKED BY BLOOD, LINKED BY THE CIRCUS, DIVIDED BY HALF A CENTURY

THE BOY WHO COULD FLY

There have been three 'final drafts' but it's finished at last. Now comes the wait while it's edited, proof-read and the cover is completed.
In the meantime, here are the first few paragraphs as a taster:
Just before midnight on the 4th of December 1941 a bomb fell on Number 23 Deremont Street,
It killed Jamie Bird's Mum and Dad instantly and it buried Jamie beneath tons of rubble.
Five minutes earlier when the air raid siren began its warning wail his Mum had rushed to the kitchen to cut sandwiches, fill a flask with hot cocoa and turn off the gas. His Dad had rushed upstairs to collect thick jumpers and scarves to keep them warm in the street shelter.
They had told Jamie to wait inside the family's Morrison shelter in the dining room, which was supposed to be safe. But it didn't feel safe. The thunder of bricks, the screech of metal, the groaning of timbers, the hiss of water escaping from fractured pipes terrified him.
'Mum! Dad!' he cried. Where were they?
He called again and again but brick dust had clogged his throat and he didn't think anyone could hear him.