Safe for Life

Katherine Reynolds

Lovereading Price £7.95

RRP: £7.95

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Why I wrote this book

I didn’t, initially, set out to write a children’s book. My two main characters, who happen to be a tap-dancing horse and a worldly-wise cat, demanded that I set their story down. The result has been described – by others more versed in publishing than I am – as a ‘family classic’ meaning that its appeal spans the generations from children to grandparents.

I was driven to explore how my two main characters overcame the limitations of their circumstances and achieved their dreams. Once embarked on a tale in which the two main characters are animals, it comes naturally that their adventures will involve other animals. As far as the humans in the story are concerned – Ringmaster Chia, Madame Lulu Bombazine, Lord Stomper – they all share one particular characteristic: they are deeply empathetic to their animal cousins as I have been since I was a child. My favourite thing about these two stories is Dylan and Red Tabby’s deep friendship – that bond which neither time nor distance can break. The response to the first story was so enthusiastic that a sequel simply became an imperative.

Synopsis

SAFE FOR LIFE is Katherine’s eagerly-awaited sequel to her prize-winning first novel, BORN TO DANCE, perfect for readers aged 8 - 12. If you enjoyed Black Beauty or Wind in the Williows then you should enjoy Katherine's books.

The new story pits the tap-dancing star of the Happy Days Circus, Dylan de Polka and his worldly-wise feline friend, Red Tabby, against the ruthless Jago Reaver, and his sidekick, Frankie, as the two scoundrels plot to steal Great Park, the circus animals’ much-loved home.

While the troupe waves off the newly-wedded Ringmaster Chia and Madame Lulu Bombazine on their honeymoon, an ominous black balloon casts a menacing shadow over the happy scene. Lord Stomper, Great Park’s owner, goes missing in mysterious circumstances, and the animals find themselves in grave peril. Before their home and their hopes are destroyed, the troupe must somehow foil the villains’ cunning scheme.

Can they rescue Lord Stomper; save Great Park; and reunite the Happy Days Circus? Can they ever be SAFE FOR LIFE?

Credits: 2010 First Prize Winner Children’s Fiction London Book Festival

Reviews

David St. John Thomas Charitable Trust (critique 2010)
Katherine Reynolds was the winner of the Children’s Book Category Award two years ago with Born to Dance. Clearly, the award was well-deserved because the book went on to win first prize in the [2009] San Francisco Book Festival. Now follows [the sequel] Safe for Life. It is well-written in classic ‘characters-problem-solution’ style using straightforward, clear and direct language that is exactly right for its audience.

Brownies Online Book Club
Safe for Life is a very exciting story with loads of loveable characters. Although it’s the sequel to Born to Dance you don’t need to read that to understand the plot. Look out for the Brownie Katie in Chapter 14. The author, Katherine Reynolds, included this character after reading a real Brownie’s review of Born to Dance on our Book club! If you’re the Kate who posted the review, you really must read this book!
Anna Smirnova, Book Club Editor

This is a really good book. I really like the bit where the animals make friends with some other animals on a safari park. Brownie Sam

It’s even better than the first book and that was brilliant. Brownie Jane

About the Author

Katherine Reynolds attributes her love of story telling to an old wooden cupboard which stood, when she was small, in a corner of her bedroom. Its shelves and drawers held her private treasures. Its doors, adorned with an ever-changing array of postcards and pictures, opened onto the many worlds of her imagination.

Although the written word was her first love, she found she had a natural aptitude for film making, founding in 1962 Dateline Productions in Soho’s busy film district. In 1970, she accepted an invitation to edit a Canadian feature film, - ‘The Rainbow Boys’ starring Donald Pleasance – the assignment signalled a new chapter in her life.

Katherine became a Canadian citizen in 1979. Soon after, she was appointed Contributing Editor for Britannia Magazine, a monthly publication aimed at British ex-patriots. In 1982 she married Canadian actor, Michael J. Reynolds.

In 1988 she founded ‘The Street’, a monthly newsletter for Canada’s many ‘Coronation Street’ fans.

After 30 years in Toronto, she and Michael upped stakes, moving to England. Katherine now makes her home in the Somerset heritage village of Milverton where she has returned to her love of story- telling. The old wooden cupboard has come into its own at last.

Why do you feel people should read your books?

Katherine responds: I think it was best expressed in an article in Parent Talk here in the UK. The article said my books bring a “welcome burst of sunshine to the world of children’s fiction”. So much of what is written for children seems to try to be cool and sassy – almost as if the authors fear not being accepted by their readers. In my books, I have tried to create a form of pure, timeless story-telling in the enduring tradition of the great classics. An author friend said this of BORN TO DANCE ‘I love the relationship between the horse and the cat. The message of being true to oneself and one's gifts is one that all children need to believe in. We are indeed all born to dance in some form or another.’ For children to be exposed to and to be able to absorb that message in an entertaining form early in life seems to me to be a gift very worth the giving.

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