My life in BOOKS
AS HER LATEST NOVEL IS RELEASED, MY BEST FRIEND’S GIRL AUTHOR Dorothy Koomson REVEALS THE BOOKS THAT HAVE MEANT THE MOST TO HER
My favourite book as a child was…
The Meet The Garden Gang series by Jayne Fisher, a nine-year-old who wrote and illustrated felt-tip-pen stories about a group of talking vegetables who lived at the end of the garden. I loved the idea that someone my age could write a book, and I read them over and over – more for the author than the stories, which, I have to say, were pretty fun, too.
A book that shaped my teenage years was…
Hollywood Wives by Jackie Collins. All of her books shaped my teenage years, to be honest – I had a group of friends that I would pool money with to buy comics and we’d also borrow Jackie Collins novels from the library and avidly discuss them. I was completely square, so had no idea what most of the ‘spicy’ stuff was about until 20 years later!
The character I most relate to is…
Not just one character, but so many little elements of different characters that I’ve related to in different parts of my life. Such as Cara, in The Second Time We Met by Frances Mensah Williams, who is always trying to fix things in other people while her life is a mess, but also the sadness of the character of Marcy in Sareeta Domingo’s The Three Of Us. Whenever times are difficult, I fall into a book. There are some books I only pick up when I can’t sleep that help to soothe me.
A line from a book that has stayed with me is…
Something along the lines of, ‘There doesn’t always have to be a happy ending, just an ending’ from Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett. I read that line many, many years ago and the sentiment has stayed with me. A book doesn’t need to have a manufactured ‘happy’ ending, just one that fits the story and the journey the characters have been on.
The last book that made me cry was…
Just Sayin’: My Life In Words by Malorie Blackman. This is Malorie’s memoir, and it gives you such an insight into what she has been through and overcome to become one of our leading literary figures. Some of it was brutal and made me cry.
The one book I think everyone should read is…
This One Sky Day by Leone Ross. It’s a gloriously life-affirming book about a Caribbean archipelago going through huge changes. There’s an upcoming election, but there’s something in the air that means none of the inhabitants will ever be the same. It’s funny and clever and brilliant.
Every Smile You Fake (Headline Review, £16.99) by Dorothy Koomson is out 15th February