Holes Unjustly sent to a juvenile reform camp deep in the sweltering desert, Stanley Yelnats is forced to dig a hole each day. Then he digs up a secret that links past and future in the most unexpected and life-changing way. This winner of countless awards is a truly remarkable tale of fate and survival. Written in a fresh, surreal voice and set amid a boiling desert landscape, it is impossible to forget. Reviews: 'I love this book. It's so funny, so dark, so gripping, and yet so deep- all in one. I love all the characters, especially the 'D-Tent Boys'. 'I like the way that there's magic in this book as well as the harsh reality of being in a camp for 'bad boys' when you aren't really bad!' Louis Sachar Where and when were you born? I was born in East Meadow, New York, USA, on March 20, 1954 and lived there until third grade. My dad worked on the 78th floor of the Empire State Building! What were you like at school? I enjoyed school and was a good student, but it wasn't until high school that I became a big reader. When I was nine, we moved to California. There were orange groves all around, and we would divide up into teams and have orange fights. The "ammo" hung from the trees, although the best ones were the gushy, rotten ones on the ground. What were your favourite subjects? I loved reading but I studied Economics at college and then went on to study law. I also spent time working as a Teaching Assistant in Elementary School. After high school, I attended Antioch College in Ohio. I had a short but surprisingly successful career as a Fuller Brush man. For those of you too young to know what that is, I went door-to-door selling cleaning products! Eventually though I packed it in and became a full-time writer. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I became a writer because I loved books so much and I wanted to be like my favourite authors! Some of my other favourite authors include Margaret Atwood, E.B. White and J.D. Salinger. What do you do in a typical day? I write every morning, usually for no more than two hours and nobody is allowed in my study apart from my two dogs Tippy and Lucky. I spent two years on my latest novel and nobody, not even Carla my wife or Sherre my daughter knew anything about it until it was finished. Then they were the first to read it. Do you ever get writer's block? I get writer's block a lot! Usually I just try and get through it -- to write anything, because I know I'm going to do four or five drafts of a book. So, maybe the next time I get to this point, I'll have a better idea of what to do. So, I just do anything just to get through it! What's your favourite book? Charlotte's Web by E.B White is one of my favourite Kid's books and The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger is another favourite. How did you get the idea to write the book Holes? I never think of an entire book at once. I always just start with a very small idea. In Holes, I just began with the setting; a juvenile correctional facility located in the Texas desert. Then I slowly make up the story, and re-write it several times, and each time I re-write it, I get new ideas and change the old ideas around. In the end, it's really hard to say how I thought up each part. Who is your favourite character in your book Holes? Kissin' Kate Barlow. Louis' Top Tips for budding writers Read, find out what you like to read, and try to figure out what it is about it that makes you like it! Also don't worry if you have to re-write things! My first drafts of things are always awful! Do you have any hobbies? In my spare time, I like to play bridge. You can often find me at the bridge club in Austin, or at a bridge tournament somewhere around the country. What makes you proud? I get a tremendous feeling of accomplishment from starting with nothing and then somehow creating a whole story with a setting and characters! That's the greatest thing about writing. The Adventures of Captain Underpants George and Harold have created the greatest superhero in the history of their school — and now they're about to bring him to life! MEET CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS! HIS TRUE IDENTITY IS SO SECRET, EVEN HE DOESN'T KNOW WHO HE IS! FIGHTING FOR TRUTH, JUSTICE AND ALL THINGS PRE-SHRUNK AND COTTONY! Reviews: 'I don't normally like reading but Captain Underpants is really funny. 'Wedgie power!'' 'I really liked the cartoons and the 'flip-o-rama' fight with the robots!' DavPilky h2. Where and when were you born? March 4, 1996 in Cleveland, Ohio h2. What were you like at school? I had a pretty tough time in school. I've always had reading problems, and I didn't learn the same way that most of the kids in my class learned (being severely hyperactive didn't help much, either). h2. What were your favourite subjects? I hated math, but I had some great times being sent out of class to wait in the hallway. Finally, when I reached college, my habit of drawing in English class was actually (wow) encouraged. h2. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? Right there, outside class, in the hallway! h2. What do you do in a typical day? I live a very simple life, and often spend several hours each day just daydreaming. I also love spending time with my pets: a cat named Blueberry, and three dogs, Martha Jane, Leia, and Little Dog. h2. What's your favourite song? 'Love Potion #9' made popular by The Clovers. Dr Stinky McNasty uses Hate Potion #9 to turn the classroom lizard into a monster in Ricky Ricotta's Mighty Robot. h2. What's your favourite book - you can't choose one of your own! _Hop on Pop_ by Dr. Seuss and the _Frog and Toad_ books by Arnold Lobel. h2. Where did you get the idea for Captain Underpants? I used to staple sheets of paper together and make my own books. I invented a whole bunch of super heroes, including '_The Amazing Captain Underpants_', who flew around the city in his underwear giving wedgies to all the bad guys. h2. Which person, living or dead, do you most admire, and why? Thomas Edison. He was terrible at school, but he turned out o.k! h2. What keeps you awake at night? The idea of author visits! I hate travelling, so I avoid speaking engagements whenever possible. h2. What's your most disgusting habit? At school, I held the record for the number of crayons I could stick up my nose. I'm proud to say I hold that record to this day. h2. What was your most embarrassing moment? Getting kicked out of my first school aged 4, for throwing stuff out of the window. h2. What word or phrase do you most over-use? 'Stuff'! h2. What makes you proud? I've proved my high school principal was wrong when he took me out of class to say, 'You artists are a dime-a-dozen! You'll never make a living like that!' h2. What's the most important lesson life has taught you? It's good to know that even if you're not successful in school, you can still be successful in life. Does My Head Look Big In This? High School is tough enough without throwing a hijab into the mix... 16-year-old Amal reckons it would be easier to walk into class naked than wearing the muslim headscarf. Boy, will the kids freak out! So how can she "shawl up"... AND still catch the cutest boy in school? Reviews: 'I never thought I had much in common with Muslim girls, but I've got loads in common with Amal! She's funny and sassy, and she shows exactly what Islam means for her.' 'This book is hilarious -- I just couldn't put it down!' Randa Abdel-Fattah Does My Head Look Big In This? High School is tough enough without throwing a hijab into the mix... 16-year-old Amal reckons it would be easier to walk into class naked than wearing the muslim headscarf. Boy, will the kids freak out! So how can she "shawl up"... AND still catch the cutest boy in school? Reviews: 'I never thought I had much in common with Muslim girls, but I've got loads in common with Amal! She's funny and sassy, and she shows exactly what Islam means for her.' 'This book is hilarious -- I just couldn't put it down!' Randa Abdel-Fattah Where were you born? I am an Australian-born-Muslim-Palestinian-Egyptian-chocoholic. Try saying that with your mouthful! What were you like at school? Naughty but nice, I think! School was great. Attending an Islamic school, the bond between the guys and girls was strong and almost like a family. What were your favourite subjects? I adored English -- the chance to use my imagination and get stuck into loads of great authors. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I think I always knew -- but I thought being a lawyer would be easier! Now I have to find the time to be both! What do you do in a typical day? A typical day for me is jamming 48 hours into 24. When writing I have my baby in a rocker under the desk. I type away and rock her to sleep with my foot! What's your favourite book? - you can't choose one of your own! Matilda has always been a favourite. I loved Roald Dahl - his wicked sense of humour, crazy imagination and the delicious way he invented words. Where did you get the idea for Does My Head Look Big In This? I wanted to write a book which allowed readers to enter the world of the average Muslim teenage girl and see past the headlines and stereotypes - to realise that she was experiencing the same dramas and challenges as her non-Muslim peers - and have a giggle in the process! What keeps you awake at night? Usually my beautiful but noisy young daughter! What's your most disgusting habit? I'd rather not say! What makes you proud? When I get letters from my readers and I know that the books I have written have been important to them -- and fun to read! What's the most important lesson life has taught you? Never be afraid to stand up for what you believe in. Also, set your sights high and go for it! You never know what you might achieve. And finally...you say you're a chocoholic! What's your favourite kind? Dark chocolate with almonds. YUM AND OH SO OFF LIMITS! Holes Unjustly sent to a juvenile reform camp deep in the sweltering desert, Stanley Yelnats is forced to dig a hole each day. Then he digs up a secret that links past and future in the most unexpected and life-changing way. This winner of countless awards is a truly remarkable tale of fate and survival. Written in a fresh, surreal voice and set amid a boiling desert landscape, it is impossible to forget. Reviews: 'I love this book. It's so funny, so dark, so gripping, and yet so deep- all in one. I love all the characters, especially the 'D-Tent Boys'. 'I like the way that there's magic in this book as well as the harsh reality of being in a camp for 'bad boys' when you aren't really bad!' Louis Sachar Where and when were you born? I was born in East Meadow, New York, USA, on March 20, 1954 and lived there until third grade. My dad worked on the 78th floor of the Empire State Building! What were you like at school? I enjoyed school and was a good student, but it wasn't until high school that I became a big reader. When I was nine, we moved to California. There were orange groves all around, and we would divide up into teams and have orange fights. The "ammo" hung from the trees, although the best ones were the gushy, rotten ones on the ground. What were your favourite subjects? I loved reading but I studied Economics at college and then went on to study law. I also spent time working as a Teaching Assistant in Elementary School. After high school, I attended Antioch College in Ohio. I had a short but surprisingly successful career as a Fuller Brush man. For those of you too young to know what that is, I went door-to-door selling cleaning products! Eventually though I packed it in and became a full-time writer. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I became a writer because I loved books so much and I wanted to be like my favourite authors! Some of my other favourite authors include Margaret Atwood, E.B. White and J.D. Salinger. What do you do in a typical day? I write every morning, usually for no more than two hours and nobody is allowed in my study apart from my two dogs Tippy and Lucky. I spent two years on my latest novel and nobody, not even Carla my wife or Sherre my daughter knew anything about it until it was finished. Then they were the first to read it. Do you ever get writer's block? I get writer's block a lot! Usually I just try and get through it -- to write anything, because I know I'm going to do four or five drafts of a book. So, maybe the next time I get to this point, I'll have a better idea of what to do. So, I just do anything just to get through it! What's your favourite book? Charlotte's Web by E.B White is one of my favourite Kid's books and The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger is another favourite. How did you get the idea to write the book Holes? I never think of an entire book at once. I always just start with a very small idea. In Holes, I just began with the setting; a juvenile correctional facility located in the Texas desert. Then I slowly make up the story, and re-write it several times, and each time I re-write it, I get new ideas and change the old ideas around. In the end, it's really hard to say how I thought up each part. Who is your favourite character in your book Holes? Kissin' Kate Barlow. Louis' Top Tips for budding writers Read, find out what you like to read, and try to figure out what it is about it that makes you like it! Also don't worry if you have to re-write things! My first drafts of things are always awful! Do you have any hobbies? In my spare time, I like to play bridge. You can often find me at the bridge club in Austin, or at a bridge tournament somewhere around the country. What makes you proud? I get a tremendous feeling of accomplishment from starting with nothing and then somehow creating a whole story with a setting and characters! That's the greatest thing about writing. Northern Lights Lyra is a wild and carefree girl... until her friend Roger disappears and she and her daemon, Pantalaimon, set out to find him. Her quest will take her to a glittering Arctic north of armoured bears and witch-queens, where scientists are conducting experiments of unspeakable terror and dangers await them in worlds far beyond their own. Reviews: 'I would love to be Lyra and go on adventures with Iorek the bear and the Gyptians and my own daemon!' 'This book is really magical -- it really makes you believe in this other world where Lyra lives.' h2. Philip Pullman h3. Where and when were you born? I was born in Norwich in 1946, and educated in England, Zimbabwe, and Australia, before my family settled in North Wales. h3. Where do you get your ideas from? I'm always interested why people ask this question. I can't believe that everyone isn't having ideas all the time. I think they are, actually, and they just don't recognise them as potential stories. h3. Where do you work? I used to work in a shed. But it got too crowded, and I got fed up with being down at the end of the garden, especially on rainy days. So now I work in a big study in the house we live in. h3. What is a typical day like for you? I write three pages a day. If I manage this by lunchtime, I can fool about with my power tools in the afternoon. If not, it's back to the desk until it's done. h3. What do you do about writer's block? I don't believe in it. All writing is difficult. The most you can hope for is a day when it goes reasonably easily! h3. What do you like doing in your spare time? I like to draw and to make things out of wood. I also like to play the piano. I'd like to play it well, but I can't, so the rest of the family has to put up with my playing it badly. h3. What books did you like when you were young? I liked books I wasn't supposed to read - books for adults. I didn't always understand them, but I liked the feeling that I was sharing grown-up things. I also loved comics. h3. When did you start writing? When I was very young. I used to tell stories to my friends and my younger brother, and then I began to write them down. They weren't very good. h3. Were you encouraged to be creative? No, I was ignored. When anyone took any notice it was to point out what a twit I was, and laugh at me. This was the best possible preparation for the life of a novelist. h3. What advice would you give to anyone who wants to write? Don't listen to any advice, that's what I'd say. Write only what you want to write. Please yourself. YOU are the genius, they're not. Ally's World: The Past, the Present and the Loud, Loud Girl With one sister aged 17 going on 70, the other sister away with the fairies, and a space cadet brother, it was a struggle that Ally ended up normal. And then there's school and the small matter of the forgotten history project and the obnoxious new girl that - oh joy! - Ally's been nominated to look after. It's going to be a fun couple of weeks... Reviews: 'WHAT are the directions to Ally`s World? I`d really like to go there and meet the LOVE family, they are the funniest family ever!! 'This book is a brilliant book. I can relate to it in many ways. I think both her sisters are silly. One is away with the fairies and the other is turning into an old fogie.' h2. KarenMcCombie h3. Where and when were you born? 28 August 1963, in Aberdeen, Scotland. (Think scenic castles, not-so-scenic oil rigs and plenty of thermal underwear and you get a feel for the place.) h3. What were you like at school? A bit like Ally, really -- kind of popular, but a bit of a worrier. With a dodgy fringe. h3. What were your favourite subjects? English and Art. I wanted to be a graphic designer before I was a writer... h3. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I worked for loads of teen magazines, including 'J17' and 'Sugar', doing lots of different jobs (including pet correspondent!). But one day the deputy editor asked me to write some short stories for the magazine. Once I did a few of those, I got the bug! h3. What do you do in a typical day? I work v.hard 'cause I only have a little bit of book-writing time -- the rest of the day I'm making Playghdough dinosaurs or playing 'cafés' with my daughter Milly. h3. What's your favourite song? _Anything_ by Kate Bush! h3. What's your favourite book - you can't choose one of your own! When I was a little girl I loved the Little House on a Prairie books, by Laura Ingalls Wilder. h3. Where did you get the idea for Ally's World I got an email from a girl called Harriet which said in the subject bit: AN URGENT MESSAGE OF WOWNESS. She told me how much she liked all my books, and I loved what she'd put so much that I decided to use it as the title of my next book! h3. Which person, living or dead, do you most admire, and why? My mum, Nancy. Just because. h3. What keeps you awake at night? Worrying, like Ally. h3. What's your most disgusting habit? Too disgusting to tell you. h3. What was your most embarrassing moment? I once showed my knickers to the whole of my year group (by accident!) h3. What word or phrase do you most over-use? Um. h3. What makes you proud? My little daughter, Milly. h3. What's the most important lesson life has taught you? A cup of tea is much better with a good biscuit. Pig-Heart Boy Cameron is thirteen and in need of a heart transplant when a pioneering doctor approaches his family with a startling proposal. He can give Cameron a new heart - but from a pig. Cameron is fed up with just sitting on the side of life, always watching and never doing. He has to try - to become the world's first pig-heart boy. Reviews: 'It was a book that must've had super-glue on the pages because I just couldn't put it down!' 'This book really makes you feel what the characters were feeling and it made me wonder what it would be like to have to have a heart-transplant.' h2. Malorie Blackman h3. Where and when were you born? Clapham in South London, February 8th 1962. h3. What were you like at school? I was a bit of a dreamer and I was always getting told off for laughing too loudly. I'm afraid I still laugh too loudly, but at least no one tells me off any more! People always mention my laugh though... can't think why! h3. What was your favourite subject at school? English. Followed by Chemistry, although I wasn't terribly good at it. My worse subject was Maths, even though I enjoyed some aspects of it. The most boring subject was Geography. h3. Did you always want to be a writer? Not when I was at school, I wanted to be an English teacher but tripped and fell into Computing instead. I worked in the Computing industry a number of years, after which I did an acting course, then became a writer. h3. What inspired you to be a writer? When I was a kid I was always trying in vain to find books in the library with black central characters. This made me want to create stories that showed black children just getting on with their lives, having adventures, like all the white characters I read about as a child. h3. What would you do if you weren't a writer? If I wasn't a writer, I'd still like to be involved in books in some way, so maybe I'd work in a publishing house, or in a bookshop or as a librarian or as an agent. I'm not sure, but definitely something to do with books. h3. Do you write every day? I try to. I work whilst my daughter is at school. h3. What's your favourite song? That's so hard! _Love Will Find A Way_ by Lionel Richie and _I Want You_ by Marvin Gaye. I love, love, love music. h3. What's your favourite book? There's no way I can just pick one. But I try to read everything by Philip Pullman, Philip Ridley, Catherine Johnson, Jacqueline Roy, Jacqueline Wilson, Melvin Burgess, etc. One book that would be in my top ten though would be Holes by Louis Sacher. If you haven't read it, get hold of a copy as soon as possible. h3. Where do you get your ideas from? I get asked that question a lot. Ideas come from anywhere and everywhere -- you just have to be open to receiving them. My ideas have sprung from newspaper articles, things on the telly, conversations I overheard, things I saw in the street, visits to other countries -- like I said, anywhere and everywhere. h3. Which person, living or dead, do you most admire, and why? Nelson Mandela for everything he has done. h3. What's your most disgusting habit? Well, it's not disgusting but I dance in the rain and that embarrasses my daughter! h3. What word or phrase do you most over-use? Saying 'absolutely' too often. h3. What's your greatest ambition? To be at peace! Also if I could have one selfish wish in this world, I'd wish I could sing. Stormbreaker When his guardian dies in suspicious circumstances, fourteen-year-old Alex Rider finds his world turned upside down. Forcibly recruited into MI6, Alex has to take part in gruelling SAS training exercises. Then, armed with his own special set of secret gadgets, he's off on his first mission to Cornwall, where Middle-Eastern multi-billionaire Herod Sayle is producing Stormbreaker, a space-age computer with an evil secret. Reviews: 'I like the gadgets that Horowitz invents -- they are disguised as other things which is very clever. The stories are not just set in England they are set all over the world. I highly recommend this book.' 'I don't read that often, but as soon as I got this book I found it hard to put it down.' h2. Anthony Horowitz h3. Where and when were you born? I was born in 1956 in Stanmore, Middlesex, to a family of wealth and status. I was raised by nannies and surrounded by servants and chauffeurs. h3. What were you like at school? I was a very unhappy and overweight child. I was sent away to boarding school when I was just 8 and I hated every minute of it. Once the headmaster told me to stand up in assembly and in front of the whole school said, 'This boy is so stupid he will not be coming to Christmas games tomorrow.' I have never totally recovered. To relieve my misery and that of the other boys, I made up tales of astounding revenge. h3. Was there anything good about your childhood? My unhappy childhood gave me a gift — it provided me with rich source material for all my books. All the nasty experiences inspired me to write! Also I was able to escape from my horrible school life through the James Bond films. Alex Rider is very like a young James Bond. h3. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I started to make up stories so I could escape the real world. h3. What do you do in a typical day? As well as writing books I write scripts for TV series such as Foyle's War and Midsomer Murders so I am very busy! I write for 10 hours a day in a small studio at the bottom of my garden. h3. What's your favourite book? As I said as a kid I loved James Bond but I also loved Charles Dickens. I often think that my unhappy childhood and life at boarding school was very much like one of his books. Great Expectations is my favourite. h3. Where did you get the idea for Alex Rider? I spent lots of time daydreaming about being a secret agent and this was the first inspiration for the series. Then when writing it I did lots of research, for instance I actually went in a car crusher and up a crane for Stormbreaker. h3. What was your most embarrassing moment? Probably the one when the headmaster called me stupid. h3. What is your favourite thing? My passion is scuba-diving. I have dived all over the world, including the South China Sea where I saw hammerhead sharks. h3. What's the most important lesson life has taught you? Believe in yourself. It's not easy getting started and there'll always be someone to tell you you're not going to succeed. They're wrong. The only difference between a successful writer and an unsuccessful writer is that the unsuccessful writer gives up. h3. Things you didn't know about Anthony... * Anthony began writing because he wanted to be like Tintin. * He has travelled to all the places in the Tintin books (except the moon). * He got married in Hong Kong. He didn't understand the ceremony because it was in Chinese. * He spent a year working as a cowboy in Australia. This was for fun -- not for a book. The Illustrated Mum Dolphin's sure she has the most beautiful mum ever. Her whole body is painted with swirling colours. Then she enters a spiral of strange behaviour. Is Dolphin's illustrated mum still in the picture? A powerful novel of two sisters who have to cope with living in a very dysfunctional household where their tattoo-crazy mum has real difficulties in coping. Reviews: 'This book is sad, funny and happy. The way the author wrote this book, from Dolphin's perspective, is fantastic, as you can really get into the book. I really like 'Star' the protagonist's sister because I like her attitude (problem).' 'I like the way J.Wilson sets out this book - each chapter is one of The Illustrated Mum's tattoos!' h2. Jacqueline Wilson h3. Where and when were you born? I was born in Bath in 1945, but spent most of my childhood in Kingston-on-Thames. I still live there now! h3. Which of your characters were you most like at school? I wish I could say that I was like some of my daring characters but I'm actually a wimp really. In Double Act... I'm more like Garnet but I can get in a strop like Ruby sometimes. h3. What were your favourite subjects? English of course and Art! I hated Maths and I was useless at P.E. h3. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I always wanted to be a writer and wrote my first "novel" when I was nine, filling countless Woolworths' exercise books as I grew up. As a teenager I started work as a journalist working for a magazine publishing company in Scotland. h3. What do you do in a typical day? I obviously write lots but this is often done on trains and in the back of cars travelling to give talks to children. I swim, I dance, I go to art galleries and I love shopping. h3. What's your favourite film? Thelma and Louise or Mandy an old black and white movie about a little girl who couldn't hear. h3. What sort of music do you like? All sorts -- especially Queen and the late lamented Freddie Mercury. h3. What's your favourite book? _Lavender's Blue_, a nursery book illustrated by Harold Jones. My favourite books as a child were _Ballet Shoes_ by Noel Streatfield and _Little Women_ by Louise M. Alcott. h3. Where did you get your ideas from? I think it's a bit like asking you where you get your dreams from; you don't exactly know, do you? Dreams are distorted and you have no idea where they came from. I don't know what's going to come next! For instance, I came up with the name of Tracy Beaker in my bath. I was washing my hair and I pulled up this beaker to wash my hair down with, and that's when it came to me "Tracy Beaker". h3. What are you passionate about? My biggest passion and/or worst vice is buying books. I have over 15,000 books crammed into every corner of my house -- and they've started to creep across the carpets. My favourite holiday place is Hay-On-Wye, which has about twenty second hand bookshops. h3. Which is your favourite out of all your books? I can never make up my mind. Maybe _The Illustrated Mum_. h3. What's your favourite food? I like fruit most. I also like cakes and chips and ice-cream (but not all together). h3. If you could have one wish for the 21st Century what would it be? That people still make up stories. h3. What was your most embarrassing moment? Falling flat on my face at my first dance! h3. What makes you proud? My daughter Emma. The Adventures of Captain Underpants George and Harold have created the greatest superhero in the history of their school — and now they're about to bring him to life! MEET CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS! HIS TRUE IDENTITY IS SO SECRET, EVEN HE DOESN'T KNOW WHO HE IS! FIGHTING FOR TRUTH, JUSTICE AND ALL THINGS PRE-SHRUNK AND COTTONY! Reviews: 'I don't normally like reading but Captain Underpants is really funny. 'Wedgie power!'' 'I really liked the cartoons and the 'flip-o-rama' fight with the robots!' DavPilky Where and when were you born? March 4, 1996 in Cleveland, Ohio What were you like at school? I had a pretty tough time in school. I've always had reading problems, and I didn't learn the same way that most of the kids in my class learned (being severely hyperactive didn't help much, either). What were your favourite subjects? I hated math, but I had some great times being sent out of class to wait in the hallway. Finally, when I reached college, my habit of drawing in English class was actually (wow) encouraged. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? Right there, outside class, in the hallway! What do you do in a typical day? I live a very simple life, and often spend several hours each day just daydreaming. I also love spending time with my pets: a cat named Blueberry, and three dogs, Martha Jane, Leia, and Little Dog. What's your favourite song? 'Love Potion #9' made popular by The Clovers. Dr Stinky McNasty uses Hate Potion #9 to turn the classroom lizard into a monster in Ricky Ricotta's Mighty Robot. What's your favourite book - you can't choose one of your own! Hop on Pop by Dr. Seuss and the Frog and Toad books by Arnold Lobel. Where did you get the idea for Captain Underpants? I used to staple sheets of paper together and make my own books. I invented a whole bunch of super heroes, including 'The Amazing Captain Underpants', who flew around the city in his underwear giving wedgies to all the bad guys. Which person, living or dead, do you most admire, and why? Thomas Edison. He was terrible at school, but he turned out o.k! What keeps you awake at night? The idea of author visits! I hate travelling, so I avoid speaking engagements whenever possible. What's your most disgusting habit? At school, I held the record for the number of crayons I could stick up my nose. I'm proud to say I hold that record to this day. What was your most embarrassing moment? Getting kicked out of my first school aged 4, for throwing stuff out of the window. What word or phrase do you most over-use? 'Stuff'! What makes you proud? I've proved my high school principal was wrong when he took me out of class to say, 'You artists are a dime-a-dozen! You'll never make a living like that!' What's the most important lesson life has taught you? It's good to know that even if you're not successful in school, you can still be successful in life. The Measly Middle Ages Discover all the foul facts about the wild women, mad monks, naughty knights and crackers kings and queens of the Measly Middle Ages - all the gore and more! Find out why people used to sit in a sewer and chickens had their bottoms shaved. It's history with all the nasty bits left in! 'Normally I think that history lessons are really boring but this book isn't boring! It tells you all the bits about medieval times that teachers don't mention.' Reviews: 'I liked the funny cartoons -- especially the ones about the knights!' h2. Terry Deary h3. Where and when were you born? I was born just after the war into slum housing in the north-east of England. My father's family originally came from Donegal to work in the shipyards of Sunderland. h3. What were you like at school? I went to grammar school which was hideous because we were drilled to pass exams; we weren't introduced to literature, except as a sort of thing which we had to study in order to analyse and pass exams in. And when we were given essays to do, I was always about top of the class. h3. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? It was just a natural ability I had and I never valued it. I became a professional actor and what I discovered was there were no plays written for the four actors in our company to use. We started to improvise and put them together but in the end, the company just turned to me and said: 'Terry, go away and write us a play.' And it was as natural as falling off a log. h3. What do you do in a typical day? I always have a word target. I always try to write -- if I'm writing scripts. I can write a radio or television script in two days: 30 minutes. I can write two thousand words a day non fiction. Fiction I can write eight thousand words a day. If I want to. I don't always want to, you know. h3. What's your favourite book - you can't choose one of your own! _The Napoleon of Notting Hill_ by G K Chesterton. I love thrillers. Murder mysteries. You know, the Agatha Christie era. And when I read non fiction, I like to read history -- very boringly! h3. Where did you get the idea for Measly Middle Ages? It came out of discussions with the publisher of Horrible Histories -- at that time we wanted to focus on subjects that linked in strongly with the national curriculum, and the medieval period is one of those. It is now one of the top ten bestselling titles in the series. h3. Which person, living or dead, do you most admire, and why? My dad. He died when I was 19 years old but he taught me how to play football -- not to a very high level, but, you know, that was the height of his ambition. He died because he smoked 50 cigarettes a day, which in those days was not unremarkable. h3. What makes you proud? I came from a very deprived, very working-class background. And it is extra difficult for people from that area to get on in any field. So now I'm an ambassador for Sunderland, where I was born. That's what makes me proud. h3. What's the most important lesson life has taught you? In terms of writing, there is only one primary rule which is 'Writers don't matter. Readers matter.' I always always have the reader at the forefront of my mind. I always say 'I am writing for a real person' and I imagine them. If the reader is not engaged, they're not listening. When I've got their attention I can do something with them. Top Trumps Find out all you need to know about you favourite football stars. Packed with facts on your favourite players: from goals scored to games played, everything you ever wanted to know. Frank Lampard Who has been the biggest influence on your career? My Dad, Frank Snr. How did you start out as a professional? I had trials with West Ham when I was 13, signed as a school boy and then when I was old enough signed on as a professional. When did you make your Premiership debut? It was for West Ham against Sheffield Wednesday in 1996. What is your favourite food? Pasta What car do you drive? Bentley Continental What do you do after a match to relax? I like to go out with my wife for a quiet, relaxing meal. What is your favourite book now? The Da Vinci Code What was your favourite book when you were at school? There was a series of football books by Michael Hardcastle that I really enjoyed. What has been your biggest football disappointment? The World Cup last year. What is your greatest football moment? Winner the Premiership with Chelsea the first time Did you know: (could be spread over the page in individual boxes). The First League Goal - ever - was scored on 8th September 1888, by Jack Gordon a Preston North End player. The First International Match was played in Glasgow, Scotland on 30th. November 1872 when Scotland played England. Longest throw-in ever was 48.17 metres (158 ft 0.4 in) by Michael Lochner at Bexley High School, Ohio (USA) in June 1998. The first all seater stadium in England was Highfield Road the home of Coventry City The first stadium in Europe to have floodlights installed was Bramall Lane, home of Sheffield United