Project Fairy: Discover a brand new magical adventure from Jacqueline Wilson

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Double Act won the prestigious Smarties Medal and the Children’s Book Award as well as being highly commended for the Carnegie Medal. The Story of Tracy Beaker won the 2002 Blue Peter People’s Choice Award. Mab's mum is obsessed with fairies - she even named Mab after the Fairy Queen! Their flat is full of fairy ornaments, tiny fairy furniture and they've even got fairy lights in the toilet. Mab doesn't quite get it, but she knows that fairies make her mum happy, especially after Dad left.

Jacqueline is one of the nation’s favourite authors, and her books are loved and cherished by young readers not only in the UK but all over the world. She has sold millions of books and in the UK alone the total now stands at over 35 million! Fairies are real! Or is it the little girl protag Mab's imagination, born out of sadness and desperation? You can come to your own conclusion after finishing it. I think the fairies, who are not so sweet and saccharine like you see in other children's media, are intended to be real in 'Project Fairy'. I’ve been an ABBA fan since they won that long-ago Eurovision Song Contest. I’ve been to the Avatar show ABBA Voyage at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London. I wasn’t quite sure how it would work, but thought it would be fun – and it was actually amazing, a really fantastic experience. It’s such an entertaining exciting show, utterly convincing but a little tongue in cheek too. The seated audience sang, laughed, and swayed their arms, while those in the dancing area jumped about joyfully. The specially built venue is beautifully designed to minimise queuing – even for the Ladies loos. I wish I had an Avatar of myself. That Jacqueline Wilson could go and do all my events while I stay at home and read and write. As well as winning many awards for her books, including the Children's Book of the Year, Jacqueline is a former Children's Laureate, and in 2008 she was appointed a Dame.

I like how Jacqueline Wilson made Mab a realistic character. She can be a bit unlikeable and irritating. She went through family issues, foster care with her unstable typical JW mother and cheeky little brother. Also, why is Mab once again, ‘mousy, straggly thin hair’ and ‘skinny and small for my age’ ?? Like practically all the other Jacqueline Wilson characters have that stereotype. Perhaps Jacqueline relates to that because she might have been like that when she was younger. I kind of wish there was a mention, like a suggestion, of whether Mum was taking any kind of medication, any antidepressants, however. What about therapy? Asking for help when dealing with mental health problems big enough that you had to be institutionalised and separated from your children for a while is a good thing to represent in children's lit! Was it a good thing for Mum to deal with her depression mostly on her own? I'm not sure. It depends on the context. What I am certain and adamant about is that Mab shouldn't have to act like an adult and take care of her out of anxiety.

Jacqueline is also a great reader, and has amassed over 20,000 books, along with her famous collection of silver rings. I shall be giving talks about my new book Project Fairy this month and next. Perhaps all good-natured children will clap their hands for me. When Mab finds an old flower squashed in a book about fairies she pops it in a glass of water as it looks very wilted. Much to Mab's surprise the flower turns into a rather bad tempered and very opinionated and talkative fairy called Bindweed. Now Mab has to look after Bindweed while keeping her secret from her mother, who is mad keen on a quite different kind of fairy, her younger brother who could easily hurt Bindweed by mistake and, most importantly, the horrible girls in her class who already sneer and scoff at her. Mab and Bindweed's growing friendship demands navigating practical difficulties which also help Mab find confidence and happiness in her own life. Edie is fascinated by Victorian times, and she's just desperate to be cast in the lead role of her drama club production of Oliver. When she's given a real Victorian notebook she's determined to write the best story ever, all about a girl in a workhouse. But when she starts writing, something strange happens.

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Before the start of the book, she had a breakdown after Mab's dad left them, and it caused Mab and her little brother Robin to be put into care, and a foster home for a bit. Since then Mum has been trying to get better in raising her kids, so she doesn't lose them again. Her obsession with fairies, and believing they are real to an extent, are in fact harmless quirks. It's her hobby, and part of who she is. Fairies and fairy paraphernalia make her happy. Mab, who initially wasn't interested in pink and "girly" things like fairies and was embarrassed by her mother's love of them, comes to see this, and appreciate her mum more later on. She never wanted her to be depressed again, that's for sure.