The Beasts of Knobbly Bottom: Attack of the Vampire Sheep!

Product Information

With a fast-paced plot, off-the-wall humour and dynamic black-and-white illustrations, this hilarious chapter book, is the first in a fabulously funny series that is perfect for junior readers. When given the chance to read the book and send some questions to the author, we jumped at the chance. Maggie is a small but mighty hero and, together with her little sister Lily and next-door neighbour Fred, she uses every means at her disposal to defeat the monstrous sheep, from garlic baguettes to frozen steak (realising too late that she should have used stakes).

But Maggie soon discovers that Knobbly Bottom is also full of secrets… The sheep are growing fangs, their eyes are turning red, and they’re planning to take over the world! Tyler can’t wait for the summer holidays to start, until she discovers she's been enrolled by her dad at Happyville Summer Camp. Maggie McKay is NOT happy that her mum has decided to move from their flat in Leicester to a house in Knobbly Bottom (the most BORING village ever invented). When Pippin discovers she possesses magical powers, she uses her newfound skills to investigate the mysterious water shortage in Funsprings. Hilarious black and white artwork from Jeff Crowther makes this an ideal book even for reluctant readers.Featuring a fiercely determined girl hero and a cast of brilliant monster-battling characters who will delight kids and grown-ups alike this is a perfect read for fans of Pamela Butchart and Grimwood. Gary the Great and Evil child eater would be Paul Whitehouse and the mum, Lucy would be Ellie Taylor. This new series by Emily-Jane Clark is sure to delight readers and have them giggling through the adventure. As a debut children’s author, was there anything you learned that surprised you about writing and publishing for children?

I really enjoyed the process of working with editors and illustrators to make the finished product as good as it could be! Nine-year-old Maggie is adamant that she’s not moving from the bustling city of Leicester to Knobbly Bottom, a tiny village in the middle of nowhere, but Mum won’t listen to reason. Maggie McKay is NOT happy that her mum has decided they’re moving to Knobbly Bottom (the most boring village ever invented).The Beasts of Knobbly Bottom Attack of the Vampire Sheep is written by Emily-Jane Clark and illustrated by Jeff Crowther It is published by Scholastic. Maggie is outraged, especially as Mum has blatantly lied about the virtues of the countryside: the air is not cleaner, it stinks of poo; it is definitely not peaceful, with cows, birds and combine harvesters making a hullaballoo day and night; and it is absolutely not safer than the city, as Maggie quickly discovers when she encounters a flock of talking vampire sheep, with sharp yellow fangs and glowing red eyes, who are determined to take over the world. It’s up to Maggie, her little sister Lily, and their new friend Fred to save Knobbly Bottom from the Attack of the Vampire Sheep! When I was about nine years old my parent FORCED me to move from an estate in town to the countryside because they said it was a safer place to bring up children. I originally had way too many characters, but in the end I only kept the ones who added something to the story.