Picture Books / Younger Readers
Not So Younger Readers
Teenage Fiction / Adult Fiction
Most of my ideas come from things I’ve seen, or heard or read about. This is the only book I’ve ever written because I was angry. There were a lot of stories in the news at the time about dolphins being caught in the nets of tuna fishermen and killed. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I found myself muttering to myself on the bus one afternoon, practically vibrating with rage. And then I realized that being angry wasn’t enough. I had to do something. So I decided to write a story. I didn’t actually have an idea for this story, but when I was a kid I liked to sit on the beach (when no one else was there) and watch the porpoises swimming in the distance, and that memory eventually grew into this book.
Now, to celebrate the twenty-fifth birthday of The Whale's Song, Penguin Random House UK has republished it – and Gary Blythe’s stunning illustrations look even more beautiful then they did before.
This book was supposed to be called BUFFALO MOON (if you look closely at the illustration on the cover you can see that the fantastic illustrator, Gary Blythe, has painted the buffaloes into the clouds), but it wasn’t. The place where I grew up had once been the home of Algonquian-speaking Indians. Their village was at the lake about a block from our house. I was fascinated by them and always trying to imagine what our community had looked like all those hundreds of years ago when it belonged to them. One day my mother found an arrowhead in the back yard. I don’t even remember seeing it (she gave it to the town’s historical society), but I never forgot it. That arrowhead was the seed for this story.
Written by Dyan Sheldon, illustrated by Gary Blythe
Far too many years ago I collaborated on a picture book with the amazing artist Gary Blythe. So I am more than delighted to say that Gary and I have finally done another book together. The first was about a little girl who wants to hear the whales sing. This story is about a little girl who is sent on a quest by a greedy king. The story is a little like a fairytale, the illustrations are magical.
"A wonder to look at and a joy to read aloud." (Wendy Cooling)
"A hauntingly beautiful fable with a strong message about greed and the environment. Absolutely gorgeous artwork" (The Bookseller)
"Gary Blythe's glowing pictures and a lyrical text by Dyan Sheldon prove to be a perfect combination in this heartwarming story." (Bookseller)
"Spell-binding and incredibly moving story coupled with illustrations that will take your breath away." (Lovereading)
"Sweet lesson of the value of art and life. Original fairy tale succeeds as a fable." (Kirkus Reviews)
"The teaming of Dyan Sheldon with Gary Blythe is a welcome event… they together create something magical. This book is as wondrous as The Whales' Song." - Books for Keeps
"A lilting text is accompanied by soft-edged impressionistic pictures… Altogether a beautiful book." - School Library Association
My daughter came home from school one day very upset. There had been an old woman on the bus coming home who was singing, and the conductor threatened to throw her off if she didn’t stop. We both thought this was pretty outrageous. The next thing I knew, I had written my first picture book. It’s about a witch who gets on a bus and won’t stop singing.
It’s been a while since I published a picture book. This one started out as a completely different idea. It was going to be a book about being afraid of the dark and the sounds you hear at night. I worked on it for a long time, but it never took. And then one day I was walking across the living room, and it suddenly occurred to me to write it in rhyme. I have written nothing in rhyme since high school when my best friend laughed herself silly at my attempt at a rhyming poem for an English essay (we were doing Chaucer).
But this time I did manage to write the story. The only problem was that, for various reasons, no one wanted to publish it. The suggestion was that I keep the little girl and keep the rhyming and keep the night – but make it Christmas Eve.
And that’s what I did.
So instead of something scary in the night it’s Something Magic In The Night.
Jack is a cautious, practical boy, and Alice is a girl with a lot of imagination.
My version of Cinderella.
Brenda leaves her bear on the bus. But Pette is a resourceful sort of bear, and so he goes off on his own to see the world. But he always sends postcards back to Brenda.
“Absolutely delightful” Time Out for Kids
Dan was looking out the window of his classroom the first time he saw the unicorn. And then one day the unicorn followed him home… “A real winner” Irish Times
Zillah is always the last angel to do anything. She’s always late, and no matter how hard she tries something always goes wrong. But the Baby Jesus is about to be born and every angel wants to offer Him the perfect gift. This time Zillah is determined to get everything right. But, as often happens, things don’t turn out exactly as she planned.
“A touching and magical story” South Yorkshire Times
“A lovely, gentle book” Irish Times
Clara, a cat, and Buster, a dog, try their hand at dancing, but even a ballroom wouldn’t be big enough to guarantee that they wouldn’t knock something over.
Dara can’t sleep. Her father wants her to count sheep, but Dara prefers cows. Thing is, Dara’s cows keeping getting the jumping over the fence bit wrong.
This was loosely based on something that happened to a friend of mine when she was little. She wanted to be in her ballet school’s special recital, but her teacher banned her (because she was chubby!). “No pink tutu, for you-you” became an in-joke between us. Elena doesn’t get the pink tutu, either.
Seymour isn’t like the other dragons, so he sets off to find himself a home.
Benjy and Cas are convinced that the new neighbour is a vampire. All they have to do is prove it.
Andre often sees the black and white dog sitting patiently outside the newsagent’s. But one Sunday morning, Andre gets a surprise when the dog follows him onto the bus. The dog follows Andre off the bus. He follows him to football practice. He follows Him home. “He’s not my dog,” Andre tells everyone. But no one believes him – especially not the dog.
[This is the great Floyd - the model for the dog in HE'S NOT MY DOG]
One hot Spring day I was feeling restless and couldn’t write, so I went to the park nearby. There was a class of young children learning about nature. Most of them were learning about nature. But one little boy (whose real name I can’t remember) was more interested in destroying nature. Every few minutes someone would be yelling at him. “What are you doing?” “Don’t do that!” “Miss, he’s doing it again!” It was entertaining if you weren’t his teacher or a helpless insect. And it was a good idea for a book.
Mona is a girl who always wants something. And then she gets more than she bargained for.
Drusilla and her Brothers, and is about a little girl (that would be Drusilla) whose older brothers (that would be Her Brothers) have dedicated themselves to giving her a hard time – the way that older brothers sometimes do. I have friends whose older brothers did everything from constantly conning them out of their pocket money to convincing them they were adopted and/or from another planet, so I consider this story to be pretty realistic. And I’m very fond of Drusilla, who is not a girl to be easily intimidated.
Picture Books / Younger Readers
Not So Younger Readers
Teenage Fiction / Adult Fiction 
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