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GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER?
Is it possible to write a novel that is aimed at both teens and adults? asks subscriber Paul Wreyford.
Well, that’s what I’ve done. Writers are told to target a specific market and readership, but I just wanted to write a book that would make a good read – whatever the age of the reader. Why do we need to put every book in an age bracket?
When Henry VIII Came to Dinner
aims to make history accessible and fun to both young adults… and adults young at heart. It was inspired by that age-old question: who would you invite to dinner if you could choose anyone who has ever lived?
In my book, a teenager and his father welcome Henry VIII, Napoleon, Shakespeare, Churchill, et al, to their semi-detached home in suburbia. It’s fantasy, but all the action is based on fact (instead of Cleopatra arriving in a rolled-up carpet, she pops out of a cardboard box delivered by Amazon couriers).
The reader will learn something about the guests, but ultimately the book is just a fun read and not for serious historians. Think Horrible Histories for anyone over the age of 12.