Author Interview

Anthony McGowan tells Caroline Lindsay why he’s thrilled his latest book has won the Carnegie Medal

Born in Manchester, brought up in a small town in Yorkshire and attending school in Leeds, Anthony McGowan describes himself as “a kind of generic, all-purpose northerner.”

“The school I went to in Leeds was pretty brutal, and my experiences there fed into many of my later books,” says Anthony.

After his PhD he ended up in London, doing various “not-very-interesting jobs”, but still writing.

“After the usual round of rejections and humiliations, I managed to get an agent, and then alternated writing books for teenagers with adult thrillers,” he says.

“Kids came along, and I wrote many books for younger children.”

Anthony’s latest book, Lark, won the 2020 Carnegie Medal, a prestigious award that recognises one outstanding new English-language book for children or young adults.

“Lark is the fourth in a series of books about teenage boys Nicky and Kenny – the collective title for the series is The Truth of Things,” Anthony explains.

“At the beginning of the series their home life is pretty terrible. Their mother left home when they were quite young, and their father has fallen apart emotionally.

“Kenny has learning difficulties, and so Nicky has had to be his primary carer, and their bond is the central thread that runs through all the books,” he continues.

“The early books follow the family’s progression through chaos to a position of relative stability. In Lark, they decide to go for a walk on the North Yorkshire Moors, along with their old and crabby Jack Russell terrier, Tina.

“They are hopelessly ill-equipped , and get into terrible trouble when the weather turns, and they become lost in a blizzard.

“The story was inspired by a couple of my own misadventures on the moors, but also I wanted to wrap the whole story of Nicky and Kenny up, giving them a satisfying ending.”

So how does it feel to win the Carnegie Medal? “Amazing! I have had a long career as a writer – I’ve lost count of how many books I’ve had published, but it’s in the 40s – with plenty of ups and downs, but this is easily the greatest honour I’ve ever had,” he smiles.

“I feel great for the book – and for me! – but also for my wonderful, Edinburgh-based publisher, Barrington Stoke, who have done so much to make these books successful.”

Memories of his own teenage years have supplied Anthony with an almost endless fund of stories and characters.

“And I feel very strongly about drawing in the kinds of young people who don’t normally read books,” says Anthony.

“Many readers of Lark tell me they cry at the end, and it certainly has some sadness in it, but I mainly wanted it to be a book filled with hope and love. I tried very hard to give all the main characters a ‘good’ life, but in a way that felt true and real.”

Lark by Anthony McGowan is published by Barrington Stoke, £7.99.