Something for Kids and their Mums

Anne Brear

 

Historical Romance Author

 

Discover which books in her childhood influenced this successful writer whose  powerful and uplifting novels, set in England and Australia, are the perfect escape for busy mums. 

 



Nikolai Petrov (1868-1945)

Welcome to my garden, Anne.  














As a child did you have a favourite book or author you loved above all others?

As a child my favourite author was Enid Blyton. The Wishing Chair and The Faraway Tree were my favourite stories of hers. They stirred my imagination like no other.

Enid Blyton was my favourite too. I loved these books, and the Secret Seven and Famous Five series. I read them to my kids.

 When you moved into your teens, what books held you captive?

 I enjoyed the Silver Brumby series by Elyne Mitchell and Black Beauty as well






















So, you loved horses. 


As a mother did you read to your children?

I read to my children from as young as two years old and all the way through until they started reading themselves when they were about 10 years old or so. My children loved being read to at bedtime and two of my children are still avid readers now they are adults.

That's a wonderful influence for mothers to have on their children. So satisfying to know we have enriched their lives.

What were their favourites.?

My eldest son enjoyed the Harry Potter series and grew up with those books before moving on as a teenager to enjoy the Anthony Horowitz , Alex Rider series.  My daughter read the Twilight series as a teenager and still enjoys reading a lot of fan fiction, but also authors like James Patterson .



















Young people today have more matured reading tastes, or at least they are different from mine. Although, we did have comics with paranormal characters like The Phantom and the super heroes, which I loved.

 Anne, do a have a particular kid's book you like to read to your nieces and nephews.

 I think the classic books like, Winnie the Pooh and Beatrix Potter are always favourites.

Oh yes, wonderful books. I see so many random quotes from Winnie the Pooh in the social media, it's clear this book has carried over into adult life.

What influence do you think your early reading had on you? 

 My mother owned a bookstore when I was young so I had an enormous amount of variety to choose from and this gave me a wonderful appreciation for reading books that triggered my imagination.

Oh wow, a bookstore. That's even better than a lolly shop. No wonder you write such beautiful books now.  Your original stories and the historical backgrounds are filled with adventure and characters so easy to fall in love with.

I know the mum's will be thrilled to visit Anne Brear's Amazon Page to find her historical romances they will delight in reading for their own pleasure.


As an author, Anne, have you been tempted to write historical romances to suit the YA audience?

No, I haven’t, simply because I feel you need to be the kind of writer that has the passion and knowledge to do justice to that genre. I know how much my daughter enjoys YA books and I don’t think I could manage to write something that would be suitable. 

Well, I'm convinced, when older teens discover your romances, they will devour them with as much relish as I have. Women of all ages can identify with your heroines.

Thank you for giving us your time today, Anne. It's been a joy to talk to you.


Mums might like to see more of Anne and her blog
http://annebrear.blogspot.com