In my seaside town, there is a plethora of benches, each one bearing a little brass plate commemorating a deceased occupant. You sit with ghosts. Mal Peet bearbenchbras Change image and share on social
I want to entertain, but I also want to push the barriers beyond what kids are conditioned into accepting. Mal Peet acceptbarriercondition Change image and share on social
Benches and books have things in common beyond the fact that they're generally to do with sitting. Both are forms of public privacy, intimate spaces widely shared. Mal Peet benchbookcommon Change image and share on social
I have kind of a personality defect in that I find the word 'no' hard to articulate. Mal Peet articulatedefectfind Change image and share on social
Fundamentalism - of any variety - is a form of illiteracy, in that it asserts that it is necessary to read only one book. Mal Peet assertbookform Change image and share on social
Everyone who sits on a sofa watching 'Match of the Day' is a top soccer expert, as you know. So if you start to worry about such people reading your story and saying, 'That'd never happen' you're going to freeze up. You're writing fiction, and your characters can do whatever you need them to do. Mal Peet characterdayexpert share on social
What I value in books is lucidity. I want the language to be rich; I love lexical fireworks on the page, but I have to know what it means. I want to be surprised and delighted, not merely baffled. Mal Peet bafflebookdelight Change image and share on social
I usually have about four books on the go - a bedside book, a lavatory book, a downstairs book, and the book in my study that I read sneakily while I should be writing. Short stories for the lavatory, obviously. Mal Peet bedsidebookdownstairs share on social
I'm not a great reader of historical fiction; it's not my favourite genre. Mal Peet favouritefictiongenre Change image and share on social
'Keeper' is about fathers, ultimately. and also conservation, commitment and ambition. Mal Peet ambitioncommitmentconservation Change image and share on social