Frequently asked questions

How can I contact Jeremy Strong? You can leave a message on the Message Board, or you can write to him at the address below. Jeremy Strong c/o Puffin Books 80 Strand LONDON WC2R 0RL. Why do you like writing stories? When I was in Y3 and Y4 at my primary school I had a wonderful teacher. Her name was Miss Cox. She made me feel that writing stories was special and also that sometimes I was quite good at it. Also, I have always loved using my imagination. Writing is a very powerful things - you can make anything you want happen when you write a story! Do you ever visit schools? I visit schools all the time. I travel all over the UK and abroad. If your school wants to contact me to try and organise a visit they can write to me using the address I have put in the answer to the very first question - or they can leave me a message on the Message Board of this website. Where do you live? I live in a small town near Bath, in Somerset. It has a lovely river running through the centre and I often walk down to the little cafe in the middle of town and sit outside and watch life go by. I am surrounded by great countryside and I often go for long walks and spot deer, foxes, and all sorts of birds. There is even a herd of alpacas nearby, in case I want to knit a jumper! Where do you work? I have taken over the shed at the bottom of the garden! I have a ginormous desk and my computer and all my papers and pens and books and so on. I also have an armchair and a fridge and my hi-fi, so I am well set up. My cat, Jeeves, often joins me down there. He sleeps in the armchair while I work. It looks out over the garden, so I spend most of my time staring out of the window! Do you do lots of planning? Yes. I like to know that the story idea is going to work, and thinking it all through is a good way of ironing out problems before I start writing. Having said that, my planning is pretty haphazard. It is not particularly organised and I spend almost as much time doodling as I do writing things down. The planning can often take quite a long time, especially for a 'big' story - weeks of work before I write a single word of the story. Does anyone help you? My cat, Jeeves, likes to help. He likes to get my typing chair warm for me by sleeping on it for as long as possible. He also likes to guard the paper for my printer by sleeping on top of that once he's been turfed off my chair. And every so often he likes to write his own stories. If I ever visit your school, ask me about it.

Latest News
Monday 23 August
GUESS WHAT? I\'m going on holiday! Hooray! I\'m off to Turkey for a while - and that means sun, sea and terrific food. I love it out there. Hope you have all been having good holidays too. But it\'s bye-bye from me for now. Be back soon!
Sunday 18 July
Big, BIG news! Brand new website coming very soon! Watch out for the new site. It is going to be mega-brilliant and absolutely fantasti-bubbly-crumbo!
Thursday 15 July
Watch out for the latest book to fly on to the bookshelves! It\'s called DOCTOR BONKERS and is a new Cosmic Pyjamas adventure (the third one). It\'s very exciting and totally funny. Doctor Bonkers is definitely bonkers so I hope you have great fun in his company. It will be out beginning of August!
Thursday 24 June
GREETINGS FROM ABROAD! Guess where I am? Germany! I\'m out here for a week, visiting english speaking schools on the huge Army and RAF base near Monchengladbach. I\'ve been having great fun with the children out here and the sun has been shining too. I get back home tomorrow and I guess there will be a pile of post waiting for me!
Friday 28 May
NEW BOOK OUT NOW! Keep your eyes open for the latest book. It\'s called WE WANT TO BE ON THE TELLY! It was written to celebrate Puffin\'s 70th birthday and it\'s VERY funny! Go find it NOW!
Wednesday 28 April
To all you wonderful fans out there - BIG NEW SERIES COMING! I\'m working on a great new series called THE CARTOON KID. It will have lots of pics, even more laughs and I hope it will blow your socks off AND your heads. (Not literally, of course!) The first book comes out early next year.

New Title
Let's do the Pharaoh!
ISBN: 0141316802
This is the sequel to THERE'S A PHARAOH IN OUR BATH! Those arch criminals, Grimstone and Jelly, escape from jail and try to track down the Pharaoh's treasure map. However, Sennapod somehow manages to take part in a fashion contest, where he and Carrie wow everyone with their strange dancing and Sennapod's even stranger dress-sense. Soon everyone is wearing the latest fashion - bandages! This causes a lot of mix-ups at the local hospital! Will Jelly and Grimstone get the treasure map this time? For 7-11's

New Title
Giant Jim
ISBN: 0140382488
Giant Jim is not a dangerous sort of giant, even if he does have a giant pet hen called Florence Fluffybum. But he is so big he seems to cause nothing but trouble, especially when he goes house-hunting. The people of the town tell him he must leave, even though the children love him. But when a terrible hurrican strikes, Giant Jim is the only one who can help. For younger readers, 6-9.

New Title
Pirate Pandemonium
ISBN: 0141304936
That crazy teacher, Miss Pandemonium, has been called to Witts End Primary School. She's been told the children are very difficult, but it's the deputy head, Mrs Earwigger, who is the real monster. Very soon Miss Pandemonium and her swashbuckling children are locked in battle with the demon deputy. For age 7-11.

New Title
The Monster Muggs
ISBN: 0141302194
For younger readers, 5-6. Big Mugg, Little Mugg and Ugly Mugg think they are horribly horrible monsters. When they try to frighten the children at school they get a bit of shock themselves. Colour pics on every page.

New Title
The Indoor Pirates
ISBN: 0140375724
A hopelessly silly piratical adventure. Bald Ben, Lumpy Lawson, the quarrelling twins, Polly and Molly, and Captain Blackpatch are a useless bunch. They don't like boats and they don't like the sea, so they live in a house. When a big electricity bill lands on the mat it needs paying pretty quickly, so the hunt is on for some treasure. But are these pirates any good at finding treasure? In fact, are they goood for anything at all?! For younger readers, 6-9.

New Title
Pirate School - Where's that dog?
ISBN: 0141317604
This is the third book in the PIRATE SCHOOL series. DOgs are forbidden on board Patagonia Clatterbottom's pirate ship, but Jazz still manages to sneak on board. He is immediately hidden by the children. When school inspectors arrive they find everything wrong with the school, unitl Ziggy and the children take them in hand. Fast, furious and funny. For younger readers, 5-8.

New Title
My brother\'s famous bottom
ISBN: 0141322384
Nicholas has got a new baby brother and sister, Cheese and Tomato. (Not their real names!) Cheese is asked to take part in a TV advert campaign for nappies, but viewers get a lot more than they bargained for when Cheese appears on the national news - with nothing on!

New Title
My brother\'s famous bottom gets pinched!
ISBN: 0141322421
Nicholas\'s brother\'s bottom is so famous it\'s going on tour. The TV people are taking the family on the road – but somebody has to look after the goat! And when the Bumper Dumper tour bus is kidnapped by a gang of giant babies it\'s up to Nicholas to save the day - can he get there in time?

New Title
My brother\'s famous bottom goes camping
ISBN: 0141323572
Nicholas and his family are off on holiday! Dad\'s bought a tent on wheels and Granny\'s looking after the goat. A whole week of fun in the sun - but WAIT! Nicholas\'s sister has packed her pet carrot, Cecily, and now her twin brother (the one with the famous bottom) wants to take his chicken - but how can you go camping with a CHICKEN?

New Title
Lost! The hundred mile an hour dog
ISBN: 0141323251
It wasn\'t even her fault! She wanted to protect some pies from the PIE ROBBER and suddenly she\'s miles from home and two-legged Trevor AND she has to make friends with a cat. A CAT! But it gets a lot HAIRIER when they find themselves face-to-face with a baboon. Will Streaker ever see her pups again? Jam-packed with fun and adventure.

New Title
Beware! Killer tomatoes
ISBN: 0141320588
Jack\'s in trouble, big trouble. Not only is he in hospital (boring!) but he knows the police are coming for him. Because of an accident - a tomato related accident. Who would have thought tomatoes could be so dangerous - or hospital could be so funny?!

New Title
Weird
ISBN: 0141322025
Jeremy Strong\'s first novel for teenagers, STUFF, won the Manchester Book Award. WEIRD is his second. Fizz and Goat are thrown together when they go on work experience in an old people\'s care home. They both expect to die of boredom and horrible smells. But why is Mrs Kowalski trying to dig an escape tunnel with spoons? And why is Goat\'s home full of Polynesia tree snails, not to mention the donkeys? And why does Fizz want to kill her big sister? Expect loads of laughs in Fizz and Goat\'s weird world.

New Title
STUFF
ISBN: 0141319038
Please note: This story is for readers aged 12 and over.

Problem 1: My home has been INVADED. Dad has moved in his new girlfriend (!) and, WORSE, her daughter (no sense of humour, no taste in music).

Problem 2: My GIRLFRIEND, Delfine. Whose brother would break both my arms if I broke up with her.

Problem 3: The NEW GIRL at school. Stunning. Gorgeous. Willowy. My DESTINY. (But see Problem 2.)

Too much stuff is going on. Time to plan the GREAT ESCAPE. But can I cope without a toaster?

Part story, part comic strip, STUFF is a shocking exposé of the life of an ordinary confused fourteen-year-old boy.

New Title
The Beak Speaks
ISBN: 0141315733
Published August 8th, 2003. Mark wants to be a vet , like his Dad. He also wants his Dad to get married so he and his little sister Tamsin can have a proper Mum. He puts an advert in the Lonely Hearts column of the local paper and that’s when things start to go wrong. It isn’t long before the whole family is in serious danger, and it isn’t just them that are suffering. Also in peril is their pet talking mynah bird, Dinah, and her rather daft friend, Arnold Teabag, an escaped chimpanzee. This story is full of danger, excitement, romance and badly behaved animals - and half of it is told by a loud mouth mynah bird!

New Title
Chicken School
ISBN: 0141317361
Tim's dad likes playing with toy trains. Tim's mum sticks shells on flowerpots. It's no wonder Tim thinks he has the most boring life ever. To make things more interesting he spends most of his time day-dreaming about rescuing the girl he loves from terrible danger. But then things start to turn strange, very strange. Why is his dad dressing up as Wonder Woman? And who is spraying graffiti on the school walls? A funny, exciting romp for 7-11 year olds.

New Title
Let's do the Pharaoh!
ISBN: 0141316802
Published January 8th, 2004. The second story about the Pharaoh, Sennapod. Brought back to life after four thousand years of mummification, Sennapod lives with Ben and Carrie and their mum and dad. Trouble is in store when Sennapod's wicked enemies, Grimstone and Jelly, escape from jail and set about trying to discover Sennapod's secret treasure map. But events take many strange turns as Sennapod sets off a fashion craze for dressing in bandages and dancing like an ancient Egyptian. Fast, funny and weird! You can read about Sennapod's first set of adventures in THERE'S A PHARAOH IN OUR BATH!

New Title
Pirate School - The Birthday Bash
ISBN: 0141315954
This is the second Colour Young Puffin about Pirate School, the only school in the country where children can learn how to be a pirate. Meet the scary head teacher, Patagonia Clatterbottom and find out how Patagonia and the children come face to face with the wicked children form The School for Highwaypersons. There’s definitely going to be trouble - and lots of laughs! (For younger readers.)

New Title
Return of the Hundred Mile an Hour Dog
ISBN: 0141318430
Streaker is back! That crazy dog is still causing trouble in every direction. This time Trevor and Tina have to train her up for a Dog Show, and if they are not successful it could be the end of Streaker forever. Charlie Smugg is up to his evil tricks, and Trevor falls for the beautiful daughter of the new Chief of Police. Will it all end in tears, or will you die laughing? You will have to read it and find out for yourself!