My Mum is a Lioness by Swapna Haddow

Swapna Haddow, author of ‘My Mum is a Lioness’ illustrated by Dapo Adeola, is convinced that she’s not the only one who thinks some of her family members are animals. She has turned the tables on a group of young readers and is asking them the important questions today. Here is Swapna’s interview:

Swapna: My Mum is a Lioness is all about a boy who genuinely thinks his mum is a lioness. Does anyone here think they live with a lioness too?

Ash: No, but I think my mum is a giraffe.

Swapna: Really? Why is that?

Ash: She’s the only one who can get the TimTams off the top shelf.

Swapna: Does anyone else live with a giraffe?

Quinn: Yes, I do.

Swapna: And what makes you say that?

Quinn: Ash is my brother.

There was lots of giggling at this point, mainly from me. And lots of chat about favourite flavours of TimTams, again mainly from me.

Swapna: In the story, Mum gives the best lioness cuddles. Does anyone have a grown up in their life that gives excellent cuddles?

Aroush: My mum gives nice cuddles. She’s like a soft bear.

Swapna: I love that! Does anyone else live with a bear?

Emily: My granny smells like a bear.

Swapna: What does a bear smell like?

Emily: I dunno. A bear?

We then went completely off topic and discussed what a bear might smell like. We concluded that a bear probably smells a bit like an unwashed dog with a hint of trees and mud and pizza. (I met Emily’s granny later and can confirm she does not smell of bear at all.)

Swapna: Joe, you’ve been waiting very patiently to tell us about your mum. What animal does she remind you of?

Joe: An elephant.

We all snigger again because we’re sure he’s going to say it’s because she makes loud trumpet-y sounds.

Swapna: And why do you say that, Joe?

Joe: She’s grey.

Swapna: Huh?

Joe: She has grey hair.

Swapna: I also have grey hairs! My son thinks they make me look like a unicorn.

Joe is not convinced. He’s adamant that grey hairs mean you are an elephant. With no other child present willing to back me up on the unicorn thing, I move on.

Swapna: My Mum is a Lioness is actually the sequel to my first book with Dapo Adeola ‘My Dad is a Grizzly Bear so my final question is who would be best at washing up: lionesses or grizzly bears?

The vote was in favour of bears but only just.

With Mother’s Day around the corner, I hope all the giraffes, soft bears, elephants and lionesses get a well-deserved day of fun with their cubs. Thank you to Aroush, Ash, Emily, Joe and Quinn and their brilliant grown-ups for chatting with me.

My Mum is a Lioness by Swapna Haddow, illustrated by Dapo Adeola out now in paperback (£7.99, Macmillan Children’s Books)

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