Maz Evans

Maz Evans

After I had done my Who Let the Gods Out post I decided to interview Maz and I have had the reply and the answers so I can now show you what she has said.

I hope you all enjoyed my Who Let the Gods Out post and I will be doing some more like that.

Here is the interview;

Who inspired you to become a writer?  As a child, I loved reading – I always had my nose in a book!  I was a huge Roald Dahl fan – still am in fact – and wanted to write a book that would make children laugh like I did.    

         

Why did you write a children's book and not an adults book?  Because kids are awesome! I’m really just a big kid myself, so thinking like a child comes very easily to me. I would like to write a grown-up book one day, so watch this space… 

Did you ever want to be something else?  Never. Writing was the only thing I ever wanted to do and it was the only thing I was ever any good at. But it still took a lot of hard work – which has made it so satisfying to achieve my dream.

Why did you choose Greek Gods?  Because I loved their stories as a child. I won a book on Greek Mythology at school when I was eight – I’ve been hooked ever since.

How did you think of the storyline?  It evolved over quite a long time. The idea that the Gods were still alive came first and then Elliot’s story came afterwards. I wanted a real hero, so I made Elliot a Young Carer – but no amount of magic can solve his problems. 

Why does he live on a farm?  I grew up in the country, so a lot of friends lived on farms and I thought they were so cool. I also wanted a very special home for Elliot, one he was very scared to lose.

Who is your hero?  Great question! I have so many. J K Rowling is my author hero because she never gave up and her books are just genius. But the Young Carers I’ve met this year have really inspired me – they are all such heroes.

Why did you want to put constellations in it?  I thought it was a bit different. I don’t really believe in astrology (although I am SUCH a Gemini!), but it’s a bit of fun. I liked the idea of them being real and a bit mad.

Who told you to never give up?  It’s something I’ve always told myself. I believe we are all capable of so much – we just need to believe in ourselves and work hard.

What were you like as a child?  Very chatty! I was always getting in trouble for talking too much! In fact, not very much has changed… 

What was your favorite book as a child?  The Twits by Roald Dahl. Although I also loved Greek Myths and stories like the 1001 Arabian Nights.

 
Who is your favorite author?  Argh – couldn’t say! There are so many I admire and now I’m lucky that lots of them are my friends. I think anyone who writes a book is awesome.

What is your favorite joke?  Q: What’s brown and sticky?A: A stick!

If you are a big Who Let the Gods Out fan please put in the comments your favorite character and your favorite part. 

Thank you so much Maz Evans, for spending time answering these questions and for being so inspiring.

Who Let the Gods Out

                                  

Who Let the Gods Out is a brilliant book by Maz Evans.

The blurb says:

When Elliot wished upon a star he didn't expect a constellation to trash into his dungheap.

Virgo thinks she's perfect. Elliot doesn't. Together they release Thanatos, evil Daemon of Death. 
Epic fail!

They need the king of the Gods and his noble steed -  they get chubby Zeus and his high horse Pegasus.

Are the Gods ready for the world? And is the world really ready for the Gods?

I really believe that this is the best book in the world and that Maz is the greatest children's author, due to the fact that the book includes a bit of everything. It has comedy, it is educational, it is funny and it has an exciting adventure.

Have any of you guys ever read Percy Jackson? Because my friend said 'Who Let the Gods Out is like Percy Jackson.'

I absolutely love this book to bits and luckily I had it signed and I have met Maz twice. 

I believe that everyone - I really do mean everyone, will enjoy this book so much.

Right - onto the review.  So, the first thing I am going to say is, 'let's see I am going to mix the order up for a change because I feel like it'. If you don't know me, I am quite a random person.

Why/Why not I liked the story:

I liked the story because it is very exciting and it is very gripping and very enjoyable.

Who are the main characters?:

The main characters are Virgo, Elliot, The Gods, Josie and Patricia Porshley Plum (cough cough 'horses bum').

What is it all about?:

This book is about Elliot Hooper and a constellation, or as Elliot likes to call her, a star ball thingy, 'Virgo' who quite accidently let out the Daemon of Death. Oh no! So they call on the Gods to help them, but it might be King of the Gods Zeus's fault. 'But how?', you may ask, however unfortunately I can't tell you anything more!  

I really recommend that you buy the book if you haven't already and just when you have 1 hour or an hour and a half just sit and read or you can stretch it out.

Maybe if you do the summer reading challenge you can use it as one of your books.

I'd love to hear what you think of it.

(this is Maz Evans holding her next book, which hasn't been released yet)

London part 2

Yay, on my way to the Roald Dahl experience (The Wondercrump )
I am so excited I wonder what it will be like. What is your favorite Roald Dahl book? Please tell me your answer in the comments. Mine is either The BFG or Danny Champion of the World.

It looks amazing even though it's not started yet.
Oooh I'm so excited.

This is the end of the Wondercrump experience. This is the wall of trumps!
I won't say what happened inside as they like to keep it secret and off social media so it doesn't spoil it for other people. These are the only bits we were allowed to show.
But what I can say is... it was splendiferous!!

This is the story title creator.
If you had to make a silly story title what would it be?
Please give me your answers in the comments.

This is a beautiful looking cafe it looks very old and cosy.
What do you think of the cafe?

This is a hot chocolate shop and they sell all things chocolate. The hot chocolate comes in lots of flavours too, like cinnamon or chilli.

 It takes them ages to make it, they carve lots of shreds to go on the top - dark, milk and white choc,  and then pile them on high..
This is them shredding the chocolate

This is what it looks like when it's finished:

Mmm it was delicious but I couldn't finish it all!
What do you think of it?

This is me with some lemonade on a bench chatting with my Dad, as you do. It's a place called Neals Yard which has lots of health food places and benches for a quiet break away from the hustle and bustle.

In Covent Garden they have a lovely indian restaurant called Masala Zone.
The ceiling is full of hanging puppets from India and the food is very nice and unusual.

Please feel free to answer my questions in the comments.
Happy holidays everyone!

London part 1

I recently went on a trip to London (with my parents obviously.) 

"Are we there yet..."

At the Waldorf Astoria fancy doorway.

Everywhere was fancy, especially the ceilings.

Lovely chandelier, it was very grand.

Sneaky heelie-ing in the corridor.

Cool sweeties. I bought some, it was too tempting!

A lovely looking cupcake shop. The cakes looked delicious. It made me want to make some when I got home. Whats your favourite cupcake?

Beautiful flowers in Covent Garden which is always full of life and entertainment.

Walking around with my dad. It was very fun in London.

What is your favourite holiday? Please tell me in the comments.

To be continued...

Tom Gates

What is it all about:

This book is about a young boy called Tom Gates. He has a grumpy sister called Delia and a boy in his class called Marcus Meldrew who he thinks is an idiot. There's a teacher called Mrs Worthington (tash). He has a best friend called Derek and they're in a band called Dog Zombies.

Who are the main characters:

The main characters are Tom Gates, Derek, Delia and Marcus.


Why/why not I liked the story:
I liked the story because it is really funny and enjoyable to read.


I have read 4/8 of the books in 1 week.

I'm not going to tell you the funniest bit because I don't want to spoil it for you but I will give you a clue in the word mummy.

If you want more of Tom Gates click  
HERE to visit his blog



Please tell me how much you enjoy reading Tom Gates in the comments.

kids blog club

Eeek!!
Thank you SO much to Kids Blog Club, I'm really thankful for your award.

spelt oaties

 These are really fun, quick to make and they taste great.

ingredients:
110g (4oz butter)
110g (4oz) soft brown sugar
175g (6oz) white spelt flour
175g (6oz) oats
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons milk

Before you start, ask an adult to turn the oven on to warm up to 150c/130f/gas2

1. First you need to cream the butter and sugar together. I would recommend using a wooden spoon.
2. Then add the oats and mix together.

3. Now sieve the bicarbonate of soda with the flour.
4.Then add the milk to it.

5. Now squidge it together into one big lump.
6. Some people use a rolling pin and cut neat shapes, but we make little balls then squoosh them flat. 

They might look bit like this:

Cook them for 20 minutes..

Then you can eat them when they've cooled down.
I prefer them with fruit but my paraents like cheese and chutney.

If you have any recipes you'd like me to try, please let me know in the comments!

BON APPETIT!