Authors Electric

The other day, I noticed that one of the tiny dandelion weeds that had rooted themselves in a crack in the pavement adjacent to my front step had unexpectedly flowered, and the sight of it filled me with such joy and tenderness that I photographed it. The image has come out at an odd angle - the paler grey is actually the horizontal of the step, but here it looks vertical. Why is there so much folklore around the dandelion? Like many kids, I used to be told by my mum that if I picked them I would wet the bed, and there is, I believe, some truth in this, as I think dandelions as herbs have been used as a diuretic, in which case, might eating it in a salad, or enjoying a bowl of dandelion soup, have a similar effect? I love its original French name: Dent de Lion - lion's teeth . At present I've been reading Ayaan Hirsi Ali's fascinating, knowledgeable, and very scary book: "HERETIC" If you haven't yet heard of her, she's a Somali woman raised as a stric...

This is a disturbing image of a boy turning into an elephant (or can it be an elephant turning into a boy?) Possibly worse is the person who is clearly turning into a giraffe, and even more worrying, the caterpillar man, but these are classifed images, and not for the consumption of delicate souls like you. Strange, top-secret experiments are taking place in Cornwall this Christmas and New Year, and I would advise anyone considering going there, especially with young children, to stay well away. However, if you're still prepared to take the risk, visit Miracle Theatre's pantomime this year - it will not disappoint (it never does). The mask and the backdrop are both designed by our daughter, and just to remind you that dubious shape-changing might well run in my family genes, here is my most recent book. THE NIGHT OF THE WERE BOY, in which a cat is transformed, by the full moon, into that most odious of creatures, a SMALL BOY (SO embarrassing for an elegant feline equippe...