Baby Love

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I can understand that feeling, but nobody really minds about crime writers and they mostly don’t go around committing murders,” she observes drily. “If you write fiction, you need an imagination. You have to write about what you’re interested in and have a good stab at things and if you’re not sure what it might feel like to be an entirely different sort of person, it’s a good idea to try to meet people who could help you in some way.”

Jailbait Taboo: The pastor who sexually abuses and eventually impregnates Sarah blames her for tempting him. She's just fifteen years old. Worse, she believes him and tells Laura that he's a wonderful man and his actions are all her fault. One day, whilst out with her friend at the lido, Laura meets Leon and although she isn’t that interested in him, she does let him walk her home after a tiff with her friend. Leon ends up having sex with Laura, it’s a blurred line of consent as we realise Laura doesn’t actually know what is happening and is therefore never able to say yes or no. This a few months down the line leads to Laura discovering she is pregnant and as the blurb states, it ends up with her being sent away. Maybe it’s because it’s in England (or maybe because it’s a Jacqueline Wilson novel), she isn’t sentenced to a life of gloom in this home for expectant mothers, it’s certainly not the best but it isn’t the tales from those horrible Irish nuns convent. Laura comes across all sorts of girls here and they all share their tales and deal with the harsh opinions of older women and the realities of what having a baby this young can mean. Bilingual Bonus: It's heavily implied that Leon asks for permission to have sex with Laura, but she misunderstands it as him asking if they can cuddle as she barely understands French. In her teens, Jacqueline Aitken began a relationship with partner Millar Wilson, whom she married in 1965 when she was 19. Two years later, they had a daughter named Emma. [6] Her husband later left her for another woman. [7] They divorced in 2004. [7] [34] While such health episodes can offer a jolting reminder of one’s own mortality, Wilson did not initially comprehend how serious hers was. “I’ve been a hypochondriac all my life, so when I started to get symptoms of heart failure and feeling much more tired, and a sort of heaviness across the chest, I’d look myself in the mirror and think ‘pull yourself together, you’re just anxious.’ It had to escalate a bit before I thought, ‘oh dear God, this is actually happening.’”

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I’ve always been an avid reader of Jacqueline Wilson ever since I was young. I have so many positive memories of reading her books as a child (and even rereading them as an adult) and I’m so excited to read a book set for young adults and one of a more adult and sensitive subject too. Because of her previous health conditions, Wilson was classed as extremely clinically vulnerable to Covid and had to shield for a time – a requirement she didn’t find too onerous because “I’m used to staying at home and writing.” I found the time Laura spent in the house of expectant mothers okay, it felt a bit like reading about boarding school but also dealing with the realities of parents who had shamed them and boys who had let them down. Laura herself does grow as a character when she thinks about the expectation placed on her vs Leon, but that is briefly stated and then never mentioned again really. The book ends up focusing on the bond between mothers and babies, and whilst I didn’t fully believe that Laura had the capacity for some of the realisations she had, I do think that could just be my scepticism. She lived in a place where there wasn’t much hope and perhaps, she developed much more than I’ve given her grace for. The ending was sweet and surprisingly something I saw coming. However, it was good for Laura and I think Wilson did a great job of showing other not so great endings for other women in the book for us to believe that Laura’s could be one of the good ones. Katy was made into a three-part TV series, Katy, broadcast on CBBC from 13 March 2018 to 16 March 2018. [31]

Trying to keep up with Nina gets increasingly difficult as they venture out to cafes and movies in their school holidays. A trip to the local swimming pool begins with trepidation as Nina wears a bikini and a European holiday tan, and Laura squeezes into her old bathing suit with an anchor on her flat chest. Jacqueline Wilson wrote her first novel when she was nine years old, and she has been writing ever since. She is now one of Britain's bestselling and most beloved children's authors. She has written over 100 books and is the creator of characters such as Tracy Beaker and Hetty Feather. More than forty million copies of her books have been sold. Nina stops ignoring Laura when she hears her crying on the toilet and immediately tries to help her.a b Pauli, Michelle (26 May 2005). "Children's laureateship goes to Jacqueline Wilson". The Guardian . Retrieved 13 July 2016. Jacqueline Wilson wrote her first novel when she was nine years old, and she has been writing ever since. She is now one of Britain’s bestselling and most beloved children’s authors. She has written over 100 books and is the creator of characters such as Tracy Beaker and Hetty Feather. More than forty million copies of her books have been sold. Nina's little brother Richard admires Laura a lot too, even stating openly how much he likes her and wishes she was his sister instead of Nina, while constantly showing off his latest achievements to her as well, to the point Laura thinks he's got a Precocious Crush on her. She does concede, though, that modern children would find “the idea that a woman’s place is to look after the menfolk – if you can call pixies and goblins menfolk – a bit odd.” So while Blyton’s magical world remains intact in Wilson’s version, we can expect hers to include fewer of the questionable social mores that can make some of Blyton’s work feel dated today.

Parents as People: Laura's mother is incredibly overprotective over Laura and obsessed with keeping a good image but she's also lost two previous children and works hard to give Laura the opportunities that she never had. Laura's father reacts very badly to her falling pregnant at such a young age but she's his little girl and he just can't understand how she got into that situation in the first place. They both come across as being unsupportive but their reaction is due in part to the stigma of underage mothers at the time. The book follows Laura, whose life changes forever after a French exchange student insists on walking her home one afternoon. When her family discover Laura is pregnant, they send her away to a Mother and Baby Home to have her baby given up for adoption. Lea, Richard (8 February 2008). "James Patterson stamps out library competition". The Guardian . Retrieved 29 August 2008.

Dustbin Baby ( BBC). Featuring an A-list cast including Juliet Stevenson as Marion, David Haig as a new character, Elliot, and Dakota Blue Richards as April. Original broadcast date: 21 December 2008. Embarrassing Damp Sheets: Happens quite often at Heathcote House whenever a girl's water breaks during the night. It happens to Jeannie and Laura worries that Sarah will get her sheets damp when she sits on them after starting labour.

Can't Get Away with Nuthin': Laura has sex that's so brief she's not even sure that anything happened and still falls pregnant. It's also her first time being with a boy ever. The Story of Tracy Beaker (2002–2006, CBBC). Starring Dani Harmer as Tracy and Lisa Coleman (whose sister, Charlotte, appeared in Double Act as Miss Debenham) as Cam. Original broadcast dates: 8 January 2002– 9 February 2006. Since its original broadcasts, 15-minute versions have been shown on repeat on the CBBC Channel since 2007.Don't bring up aunt Susannah around Laura's mother; she even storms angrily out of a shop without paying when they have a chance encounter. The Pied Piper of Kingston' Article about Jacqueline Wilson by Claire Amitstead, The Guardian, 14 February 2004. A lecture hall at Kingston University's Penrhyn Road campus has been named after her. [30] Adaptations [ edit ]