TEN SUMMERS THINKING ABOUT 100 SUMMERS

I literally spent a decade thinking about this story and finally found time to write it during the later lockdowns of the pandemic. I wanted to write a character with ADHD and dyslexia to authentically represent these issues, in some detail. With a family full of ADHD, dyslexia and autism, life around me has always been very neurospicy. 

It seems like everyone is getting a diagnosis these days. It's tempting to think it's a bit of a fad. But for young (and older) people who have ADHD and/or dyslexia (they often go together) it can be a serious problem - especially when the educational and career world runs increasingly on digital platforms where nobody sees your smile before an AI algorithm judges your application and casts it aside. For anyone with ADHD or dyslexia, online applications are the stuff of nightmares and it's hard to shine when you're in a state of near panic.

This is why it's never been more important to find ways to help children and young people get engaged with reading - for pleasure.

Dante begins his time at Candlesham Hall in a state of dread and disenchantment. Eveyone there has a problem, like him, but he doesn't think he'll ever fit in or have fun. He certainly would never have believed he would get excited about a book.

But when a book is full of clues to ACTUAL treasure, that's different. Bea has left him a fantastic gift - something which compels him to find other classic stories in the hall library, and even take a look at Shakespeare. Most of all, it's Bea's writing that begins to draw him in, to make him take the time to slowly read and start to care about a girl he will never meet, but who seems to understand him and his life.

This is probably the most literary book I have ever written, or will ever write. If you've read my other stuff you'll know that fast-paced action adventure, with a seam of comedy and an occasional supernatural twist, is very much my thing. All of this is in 100 Summers, too, trust me. It's just that this one may make you think a bit more deeply, encourage you to seek out other reading, tempt you to crack the ciphers... and possibly make you cry.