Some of my earliest memories of books are not just of stories, but of worlds.
Small, quiet worlds filled with animals, fields, hedgerows and little details that felt almost real enough to step into. These were the books that made me fall in love with stories and, in many ways, they helped shape the kinds of stories I create today.
Beatrix Potter
One of my earliest memories of books is a little set of Beatrix Potter stories in a cardboard sleeve. Each tiny book featured a different character, and I remember taking them out one by one and looking through them over and over again.
My mum bought me those books, and they became some of my very first treasures.
Years later, when I had my first child, she continued the tradition. She bought him a Peter Rabbit book and a little Peter Rabbit outfit, which felt like a lovely way of passing those stories on to another generation.
There was something magical about the way Beatrix Potter brought animals to life – rabbits in blue jackets, ducks in bonnets, mice in tiny kitchens – yet they still felt like real animals living in the countryside.
Her illustrations were filled with beautiful natural details: mossy paths, wildflowers, garden gates and woodland corners. As a child I could spend ages looking at each page, noticing something new every time.
I think that quiet attention to nature is something that stayed with me.
Brambly Hedge
The Brambly Hedge books by Jill Barklem felt like discovering an entire hidden village.
Every page was packed with tiny details. Shelves of jars, baskets of apples, tiny teacups, warm kitchens and winding hedgerow paths. The mice lived in a world that felt incredibly cosy and carefully imagined.
I remember studying the illustrations for ages, fascinated by how every corner of their world had been thought through.
Those books showed me that illustrations could tell just as much of the story as the words.
The Wind in the Willows
The Wind in the Willows felt slightly different – a little bigger, a little more adventurous.
The world of Mole, Rat, Badger and the unforgettable Mr Toad was full of rivers, woodland paths and long journeys. Even as a child, there was something comforting about the rhythm of the story and the sense of friendship between the characters.It’s a book that captures both quiet moments in nature and a sense of adventure, something I’ve always loved in storytelling.
Ladybird Books
Another set of books I remember vividly were the little Ladybird books.
When I visited my grandparents during the school holidays, they had a small cupboard under the stairs. Inside was a shelf filled with Ladybird books, and I loved opening that cupboard and choosing one to look through.
The illustrations fascinated me. I would often sit and draw pictures inspired by the images in the books, copying animals and scenes that caught my attention.
Those books weren’t just stories, they were also some of my earliest inspiration for drawing.
How Those Books Still Shape My Stories
Looking back now, it’s easy to see the thread connecting all of these stories.
They all shared a love of nature, gentle storytelling, animal characters and quiet moments of discovery. Those same elements are what I try to capture in my own books today.
When I’m illustrating a tiny shell on the sand or a bird chick exploring the shoreline, I’m often thinking about the kinds of details I loved noticing in those childhood books.
Carrying Those Inspirations Forward
When I create stories now, I often find myself returning to the same feelings those books gave me as a child – quiet moments in nature, small discoveries, and animal characters experiencing the world around them.
Books like The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Brambly Hedge, The Wind in the Willows and the little Ladybird books showed me how powerful gentle storytelling can be.
In many ways, the stories I write and illustrate today are my own small way of continuing that tradition, creating nature-inspired stories for children that invite them to slow down, look closely, and discover the beauty in the natural world around them.
