S TAY I N G
STRONG TV chef, author and presenter Nadiya Hussain on her new children’s book Today I’m Strong I n t e r v i e w C A R LY G L E N D I N N I N G
Q Have you always loved storytelling and did you always want to write a children's book? A Writing is one of my very first loves – it’s the way I express myself and it’s something I’ve always loved doing. When I was about seven I wrote a poem that won a national competition and that was it, I got really into reading and writing in a big way and I’ve been doing it ever since; reading, writing, lots of poetry. I express myself in writing quite a lot although I never had a diary as a child, it was always make believe and stories. I’ve written recipe books with stories and 18
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I love writing for children, so it’s been exciting to work on my first picture book. Q Today I’m Strong has such an important theme of developing resilience. What sparked the idea? A Today I’m Strong is a natural follow on from my previous book My Monster and Me (although of course you can read them individually). The first one was about anxiety and this is about the next stage which is finding your inner strength. I wanted to make sure young readers are taken on a journey where they are able not only cope with their
fears, but find strength in dealing with them. The emphasis on ‘today’ is because resilience isn’t something you practise once and then you’re done: you’re going to have good days and bad days, that’s part of the process. Q Going back to school at the start of this academic year has been very different to previous years for many children. How do you hope Today I’m Strong will help the children that have transitioned to a new year? A In a young child’s life being at home for six months when they are used to going
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