Stephen Davies joins Ian Eagleton in The Reading Realm to talk about his new book ‘Footprints: Walk the Path of Our Earliest Ancestors’ which is illustrated by Kalina Muhova…
Before we settle down in The Reading Realm for a chat, what’s your drink and snack of choice?
Tea and toast, please. Do you have any Marmite?
Tell us about your book in three sentences and then three words!
My book is about our ancestors who lived in Africa three MILLION years ago. They were the first people to start walking on two legs instead of four. The book imagines one terrifying day in the life of these amazing creatures, who were a bit like apes and a bit like us.
Three words: Footprints. Fear. Survival.
If one of your characters could come to dinner, who would you invite and what would you cook them? What do you think you’d talk about?
Our ancestors three million years ago ate a lot of leaves, so I think salad will be on the menu – topped with lovely crunchy beetles. We know from the fossil record that these creatures could not talk, so we would spend the evening grunting and hooting happily.
What’s the funniest word you know that always makes you laugh?
Collywobbles. It’s fun to say and it reminds me of old Mrs Collywobbles from the genius picture book Beware of the Frog by William Bee.
What’s the silliest or strangest thing you’ve ever researched for a story?
I recently found myself googling ‘Can horses walk down stairs?’ The answer is yes (just about) but they find it easier going up!
If your writing desk could speak, what would it say about you?
The desk is covered with ammonites, notebooks, coffee cups and half-finished cryptic crosswords. If it could speak, it would just plead to be tidied.
Did you like reading when you were a child? If so, what?
Yes. I read mostly lots of books about naughty boys (Just William) and naughty rabbits (Brer Rabbit).
What’s your favourite book that isn’t yours?
A chunky collection of Sherlock Holmes short stories. I’ve reread it so many times, I keep having to tape it back together.
What book do you wish you could read for the first time again?
The Twits. Reading it for the first time was electrifying. It’s the book that made me want to become an author.
What’s the funniest/oddest thing a child has said to you?
I often visit schools overseas. One time, a child in Jordan came up to me and shyly asked, ‘How many years have you wasted writing books?’ His friend stepped in quickly and hissed ‘Spent! The word is spent!’
If you weren’t an author, what would you be?
A palaeontologist – someone who studies dinosaurs and other ancient life. Look away from the screen and try to spell palaeontologist…good luck!
What BAD advice would you give to someone who wants to be a writer?
Do it for the money.
SPEED ROUND:
Cake or biscuits? Cake
Dinosaurs or unicorns? DINOSAURS!!!!!!
Pirates or astronauts? Pirates
Museums or theme parks? Museums
Cats or dogs? Cats
Summer or winter? Winter
Aliens or robots? Robots
THANK YOU Stephen for joining us in The Reading Realm today!
