Siobhan Curham - Finding Cherokee Brown

Praise for Dear Dylan, also by Siobhan Curham

‘Tender, quirky and cool. Siobhan Curham is a name to watch’ Cathy Cassidy

‘An absorbing, moving novel . . . I’m still thinking about the characters so much that I want to check on them and see how things are going for them now!’ Luisa Plaja, Chicklish

‘A funny, moving, thought-provoking story about a very special friendship’ Tabitha Suzuma

‘Reminds us of the power of true friendships. A wonderful achievement’ Booktrust

‘A great, fast-paced read. All I can say is, “GO, GEORGIE!”’ Bookalicious Ramblings

‘I didn’t want to leave these characters behind. A wonderful read full of laughs, tears and heart’ Carrie’s YA Bookshelf

‘Truly a diamond of a novel. Touching, funny and full of heart; I just couldn’t get enough’ Lauren’s Crammed Bookshelf

‘A story to lighten the soul. I laughed and cried and wanted more’ Tales of a Ravenous Reader

‘Fabulous . . . poignant . . . honest’ The Sweet Bonjour

‘Touching and emotional . . . really special’ So Many Books, So Little Time

‘Strong and realistic characters that people of all ages will relate to’ A Life Bound By Books

‘Keeps the reader captivated from start to finish. Intimate and honest . . . I loved it’ I Was a Teenage Book Geek

‘A very beautiful story. You’re going to love it’ Darlyn and Books

‘I really couldn’t put it down’ Sarah’s Book Reviews

‘A fab story’ The Overflowing Library

Hi there,

A couple of years ago, a writing magazine that I worked on published a letter from a teenage girl complaining about the lack of interesting, inspirational heroines in Young Adult books. At the time I’d just finished my first YA novel, Dear Dylan , and was wondering what and who to write about next, so I decided to use the girl’s letter as a challenge. For many years I’d wanted to write about bullying – I know several people who have been affected by bullying and it’s something I feel very passionately about – so the seed of an idea took root. What if I created a character who was a victim of bullying but was determined to fight back in her own original way? A character who used her love of books and writing to reinvent herself as a unique and memorable heroine. And so Cherokee Brown was born. I still have the magazine letter that sparked the novel pinned to my noticeboard and I hope I’ve met the challenge and created a character who’s both interesting and inspirational. I have no idea if the girl who wrote the letter will ever read this book, but I’m hoping the fact that I named Cherokee after her will bring it to her attention somehow.

I really hope you enjoy Finding Cherokee Brown , and that it inspires you to become the unique and inspirational hero of your own life story – whatever that may be . . .

Siobhan x

For more from Siobhan, please visit her blog:

http://www.dearwriterblog.blogspot.com/

You can also find her on Facebook, or visit www.electricmonkeybooks.co.uk

Finding Cherokee Brown Published 2013 by Electric Monkey, an imprint of Egmont UK Limited The Yellow Building, 1 Nicholas Road, London W11 4AN

Text copyright © 2013 Siobhan Curham

The moral rights of the author have been asserted

ISBN 978 1 4052 6038 1

eISBN 978 1 7803 1265 1

www.electricmonkeybooks.co.uk www.egmont.co.uk

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library

50042/1

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Please Note: Any website addresses listed in this book are correct at the time of going to print. However, Egmont cannot take responsibility for any third party content or advertising. Please be aware that online content can be subject to change and websites can contain content that is unsuitable for children. We advise that all children are supervised when using the internet.

EGMONT

Our story began over a century ago, when seventeen-year-old Egmont Harald Petersen found a coin in the street. He was on his way to buy a flyswatter, a small hand-operated printing machine that he then set up in his tiny apartment.

The coin brought him such good luck that today Egmont has offices in over 30 countries around the world. And that lucky coin is still kept at the company’s head offices in Denmark.

For Jack Phillips and Katie Bird

– may your souls forever be fearless

Cover

Praise Praise for Dear Dylan , also by Siobhan Curham ‘Tender, quirky and cool. Siobhan Curham is a name to watch’ Cathy Cassidy ‘An absorbing, moving novel . . . I’m still thinking about the characters so much that I want to check on them and see how things are going for them now!’ Luisa Plaja, Chicklish ‘A funny, moving, thought-provoking story about a very special friendship’ Tabitha Suzuma ‘Reminds us of the power of true friendships. A wonderful achievement’ Booktrust ‘A great, fast-paced read. All I can say is, “GO, GEORGIE!”’ Bookalicious Ramblings ‘I didn’t want to leave these characters behind. A wonderful read full of laughs, tears and heart’ Carrie’s YA Bookshelf ‘Truly a diamond of a novel. Touching, funny and full of heart; I just couldn’t get enough’ Lauren’s Crammed Bookshelf ‘A story to lighten the soul. I laughed and cried and wanted more’ Tales of a Ravenous Reader ‘Fabulous . . . poignant . . . honest’ The Sweet Bonjour ‘Touching and emotional . . . really special’ So Many Books, So Little Time ‘Strong and realistic characters that people of all ages will relate to’ A Life Bound By Books ‘Keeps the reader captivated from start to finish. Intimate and honest . . . I loved it’ I Was a Teenage Book Geek ‘A very beautiful story. You’re going to love it’ Darlyn and Books ‘I really couldn’t put it down’ Sarah’s Book Reviews ‘A fab story’ The Overflowing Library

Siobhan Curham Hi there, A couple of years ago, a writing magazine that I worked on published a letter from a teenage girl complaining about the lack of interesting, inspirational heroines in Young Adult books. At the time I’d just finished my first YA novel, Dear Dylan , and was wondering what and who to write about next, so I decided to use the girl’s letter as a challenge. For many years I’d wanted to write about bullying – I know several people who have been affected by bullying and it’s something I feel very passionately about – so the seed of an idea took root. What if I created a character who was a victim of bullying but was determined to fight back in her own original way? A character who used her love of books and writing to reinvent herself as a unique and memorable heroine. And so Cherokee Brown was born. I still have the magazine letter that sparked the novel pinned to my noticeboard and I hope I’ve met the challenge and created a character who’s both interesting and inspirational. I have no idea if the girl who wrote the letter will ever read this book, but I’m hoping the fact that I named Cherokee after her will bring it to her attention somehow. I really hope you enjoy Finding Cherokee Brown , and that it inspires you to become the unique and inspirational hero of your own life story – whatever that may be . . . Siobhan x For more from Siobhan, please visit her blog: http://www.dearwriterblog.blogspot.com/ You can also find her on Facebook, or visit www.electricmonkeybooks.co.uk