Friday, 24 January 2025

It Was a Dark and Stormy (January) Evening...

 ...and, to make matters worse, Liverpool FC were playing at home in the European Cup!

(James Lefebure and me)

But despite all the odds against it, we had a fantastic evening at my book launch at Waterstones, Liverpool on the 21st January.

My intrepid friend, James Lefebure (author of The Books of Sarah) was in the chair and kept me mostly in order, except when the subject turned to the first scary stories I had ever read as a child. Here is where I normally wax lyrical about the multiple merits of The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs (which, if you haven't read, please do so, it's out of copyright and free on the internet and is all round brilliant). I said, as always, that I first read this at the age of around eight or nine at school. Kept me awake I can tell you, and put me off taxidermy for life.


But I veered off from that into an apparently innocuous and charming book we also read that year at school - Finn Family Moomintroll by Finland's Tove Jansson. You may have seen one of the animated versions of The Moomins and be familiar with Moomintroll, his Mamma and Pappa, his girlfriend the Snork Maiden, best friend Snufkin... So far, so charmingly sweet. But, as Moomin readers will know, there is a darker side of Moominvalley and its environs. There's a creature called the Groke, who is solitary, looks scary and turns up at night. She sits, unmoving, and when she goes away again the ground on which she has been sitting is...frozen. AARGH! Moomintroll is scared of her - and so was eight-year-old me. This was a dive-under-the-blanket moment for sure.

And then we got to the Hattifatteners. These creatures were affected by thunderstorms and became electrified. They could give you a nasty shock. More AAAAARGHS! But, how do you describe a Hattifattener to the uninitiated? I asked my hairdresser, Karl, who is from Shetland and, like me, a true Moomin aficionado. He said they had always reminded him somewhat of wavy condoms. Well, this reinforced my own feeling that, if you look at the illustrations the author did of them, they resemble penises...with jazz hands and staring eyes. 

Did I say this? In public? At Waterstones in Liverpool at around 7.00 pm?

(Can you spot the Hattifatteners and the Groke?)

Of course I did!

The audience laughed.

I wasn't banned from Waterstones.

And now you simply have to read Tove Jansson, don't you? 

Huge thanks to all who came, braved the elements and potential football crowds, and even bought books. Massive appreciation and thanks to James Lefebure, and to Phil Larner and Waterstones, Liverpool for making it all possible. Thank you to my lovely publisher, Flame Tree Press for the super prizes and for being who you are.

Congratulations to Simon and Cate Bestwick who won the gorgeous prizes provided by Flame Tree Press (in association with The Henge Shop in Avebury)

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Liverpool beat Lille 2-1. Result all round I'd say!

So, what were we launching?

Available from: 

and wherever you usually shop for books


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