Falling out of a tree with mirth ... and Princess Petunia

"I nearly fell out of the tree laughing"   A Princess Petunia's Dragon Moment

So wrote, and drew, an artist by the name of Jane Smith.  She was sitting in a tree in Finsbury Park. She hadn't read anything about Princess Petunia's Dragon before.  In fact, she hadn't read a whole book for five years.  So there's my claim to fame.  Encouraging Jane to read a whole book, in one go, one fell swoop ... or one missed fall.  

She goes on to say  - "in this sketch I seem to have one black eye and am huge compared to the tree."

But I think it's perfect.  Thanks a million, Jane! 

A perfectly Petunia morning

A perfect morning starts with coffee. So where do you find yours? In the Botanic Gardens?

You see, I couldn't resist picking away at a fresh red coffee seed to find the moist bean inside.  

I was in the Botanics, waiting for my walking group to come marching past. My excuse for not getting to the start was the traffic. (Oh yeah. Pull the other one! More like sitting on the balcony, enjoying the unusually cool breeze.)   But still, it gave me the chance to inspect the coffee bean and to watch the ducks enjoying their morning splash. And best of all, to indulge in some pure Petunia pleasure with dry leaves.  

Here I am, swishing my trainers through the dry leaves that this cool weather has given us.  It made me feel just like a princess stomping through the Deep Dark Woods in her Wellington Boots. That 'beginning of the Autumn Term feeling' when leaves are everywhere, begging to be kicked.  Thankfully there were no nasty surprises underneath. Just a musty smell.  

Now it's later in the day, and things have got even better!  I've had a text from a young reader. Hannah, aged 8, was given Princess Petunia's Dragon today. Or rather, she was given a copy of the book! 

Hannah -    Dear Emma. I liked Princess Petunia a lot. The part that made me laugh was when the dragons flew over the cake and it went everywhere. My favourite drawing was when she met Freddy and they were walking together.

Emma -    Thanks, Hannah, I can see you are a real 'people person'. Or should that be 'dragon person'?  

Perhaps I should have asked her - do you like kicking leaves in Wellington Boots? But there again, perhaps not. Because everyone enjoys that, don't they?

Snail leaf

What a beautiful leaf I found today on Balmoral Road.  

An insect must have burrowed into it, and disturbed its growth, so that it grew in a snail's shape. 

My photo doesn't quite do it justice, but the hues of amber and deep khaki gave me plenty of enjoyment as I messed around with watercolour pencils. 

A perfect way to unwind on a Sunday afternoon.    

Of marmalade, hats, tiaras and gobstoppers...

There was once a bear called Paddington, and there was once a young reader called Emma. And the two were inseparable.  

And now, in MPH Books, in Raffles City, Singapore, I'm thrilled to find my own book cosying up to this inimitable bear from darkest Peru.   

The bear called Paddington always wore a hat that hid a marmalade sandwich, just in case of emergencies.  It took no time to fall in love with the characters in these stories.  And it made me start eating marmalade - that scrumptiously bitter-sweet jam without which toast is really not worth eating! 

Thankfully, Petunia in my book does not hide anything under her tiara, or it might spoil it! Freddy, on the other hand, does keep a gobstopper sweet in his ear. But for dragons it's very important - it keeps their scales shiny and their eyes bright. You can see them clearly in Charlotte Micklewright's drawings.      

I'm now the proud owner of a beautiful Princess Petunia dress, tiara and a set of ears for Freddy. I'll be using these for school visits and readings.  Or for anyone who just fancies getting all dressed up. 
  
Here's my young friend, Kitty, wearing the costume for Princess Petunia. Great modelling skills, Kitty.  And thanks for the wonderful tailoring, Kinnetia!  

 

Sittin' on the dock...with Petunia

Today I'm writing from my kitchen in England. The weather is wet and windy, though yesterday on our return we were greeted with glorious blue skies which lasted all day long. 

Here is what I was doing at the beginning of the week, when I should have been wrapping Christmas presents.  Well,  I was just sittin' on the dock of the bay, watching the tide roll away (what tide?)...Wastin' time

See how many places you recognize. And, if Singapore isn't familiar to you, enjoy the views:

The weather was sunny and breezy ... a little too breezy at times - Ooops!

But, like mad dogs and Englishmen we didn't give up.... Most people ignored me as I balanced Petunia in random places. Does this happen all the time, maybe?

We were tempted to have a splash...

We passed several bridges:

and stopped to cool off in a shopping centre:  

We skirted what must be Singapore's smallest park,

and finally headed off to Patterson Road

to catch the bus home.  If I don't have time to write again within the next few days, please have a Very Merry Christmas. And if you already have a copy of Petunia, please enjoy reading it. 

BooooOOOOO!! with Emma's Elephant

Ooh! You scared me. 

But no, that's not MY elephant. It's David's Seow's picture book,'Emma's Elephant'.
David presented a brilliant workshop yesterday at the National Library in front of scores of young readers.  

The story of a little girl - Emma - and her invisible elephant friend helping endangered animals is great fun to read aloud. Even if saying the 'Boooooo!' nearly gets my tonsils in a twist. 

David kicked off, bantering with these eager fans who are now on holiday until January.

After I had read the story, David asked some tricky question to find out who had really been listening.

Then to the really fun part - with two wonderfully inventive and energetic teachers, Susanna Goho Quek and Karen Quek, the children set to designing their own elephant masks. No one could resist trying their hand.

Here's one from an older reader -

then a younger reader, with help from Mum.

and from Susanna.


And of course there were prizes for the best masks, judged by David, Karen, and Susanna.

Another sample of the children's original artwork:

Who's sitting in MY chair!

What a cheek! Someone's sitting in my chair.  But it isn't Goldilocks. It's ........

As of Friday, I am the proud owner of a few advance copies of Princess Petunia's Dragon! So lovely to feel the whole book, printed and bound and snug inside its glossy cover. And today I must clear a space for the stock, arriving tomorrow! Send me your orders as fast as you like. (Or you can wait to see the book in the bookshops and libraries here in Singapore.) 

Charlotte's illustrations are fantastic! Here's the King you can see peeking out of the open page:

 And here's Charlotte's blog too: http://tickled-bright.blogspot.sg/p/welcome.html  Thanks, Charlotte, for a really professional job.  Great fun working with you.