Stargirl of the Edge

Stargirl of the Edge is an educational, inspirational coming-of-age story aimed at YA, mainly female learners worldwide, especially in China. It tells the story of Olivia, a 17 year old A level student who lives near the mystical hill in Cheshire, Alderley Edge. It aims to inspire people to think, explore and imagine. The north west of England is showcased to a world audience, especially its education and research facilities including Manchester University, MMU, the John Rylands Library and Jodrell Bank. Alan Turing is reincarnated as Olivia’s tutor.

The story functions as a manual on how to learn and deal with stress, in the first half coping with dyslexia, school and exams and in the second half the kidnapping of her father abroad. It’s a gripping, page-turning semi-autobiographical story in which fantasy is interwoven with contemporary drama. Written in clear English it aims to help people learn English. There is also some Chinese language content. At the end there is a powerful message, encouraging people to dream, aspire and be creative. Conceived as a feature film and then expanded into a novel, it has potential as a film or TV drama.

Exercises and tasks could be developed to help learners gain as much as possible. My dream is for it to be read by students in China and around the world, persuading them to come to Manchester, Liverpool and northern England for vacation and study. I hope to use it to promote my English classes and tours and do talks at schools, libraries, festivals and other events.