Mrs Margaret Gray

Margaret Gray loves to be beside, on or under the sea. She also enjoys walking in the countryside and always takes a camera with her. In the past, she has had articles published in diving magazines but always intended to write stories for children after her retirement from public sector administration and finance.

Margaret retired in 2006 to look after her frail in-laws. Sadly, her father-in-law died while she was working her notice. However, she looked after her mother-in-law for eight months until her mother-in-law chose to go into a home.

During that period, Margaret needed an outlet for her anxiety and frustration. That was when she started "A Tale For All Seasons", a story about a year in the garden of a robin and a blackbird and their relationship with the elderly woman who looks after the garden. It was some time after her mother-in-law's death before Margaret felt able to complete the tale.

With her second illustrated story, "Cuddles The Cuttlefish", Margaret hopes to inspire young people to take an interest in the marine environment. She wants to share her joy in the beauty that can be found underwater. The tale follows the development and encounters of a young cuttlefish. Margaret took the pictures in the waters off the South-West coast of England.

"Wilf The Water Nymph", which describes the unusual meeting and budding friendship between a naughty water nymph and a boy, is her third illustrated story. The boy, who calls himself "Deano", and Wilf learn from each other as the boy helps the nymph to return home. They have several adventures along the way.

After being given two, toy ducks, Margaret wrote about "The Adventures Of Splish And Splosh". A pair of little, plastic ducks are washed up on a Cornish beach, following a shipwreck. They are found by a couple of divers, who take them on a boat-diving weekend. Splish and Splosh are worried throughout the weekend that they will be returned to the sea. However, the divers take them to a number of interesting sites, although some visits are a bit frightening. They generally enjoy themselves but hate being left in a cold, shiny bathroom. Splish and Splosh long for a return to the countryside and further adventures.

Fortunately, the divers soon return to Cornwall with Splish and Splosh, where they are given to a couple of children. "Splish And Splosh Have More Adventures" describes some of the activities, fun and holidays that the ducks have with their new family. Bobbing around in rock pools and on little boats helps the ducks overcome their fear of water. After scary encounters with a helicopter and a young gull, the children take Splish and Splosh with them for a short break in the Isles of Scilly, off the Cornish coast. Here, they enjoy the beautiful scenery, beaches and water activities with the children. After returning to Cornwall, Splish and Splosh meet Dunk, a plastic duck that has spent most of his life in the back of a cupboard. Although they soon discover that Dunk does not float, the three ducks have more fun with other toys and water.

"The Splish And Splosh Adventures" combine the two Splish and Splosh stories into one paperback.

"Dawn Black - Storm Child", is about the short life of Dawn Black, a child born and raised on farms in Cornwall. Dawn overcomes adversity and has a mainly happy life but, sadly, she dies in an accident following a row with a jealous rival.

"Mojo's Story" is about a dog that is born in the New Forest, in the south of England, after her mother had been abandoned. Only two puppies survived the first couple of months - Mojo and her older brother. Their mother developed a fatal disease, leaving the two puppies to fend for themselves. The tale describes Mojo's struggle to survive, her adventures along the way and how she adopted her human companions. Mojo then enjoyed a happy and contented life.

Sadly, she has recently passed away.

"Olive The Knitted Octopus" describes the transformation in her life once she is spotted by baby Saffron. Olive had spent much of her life sitting on top of a cake tin above a kitchen cabinet. It was not much of a life until Saffron introduced the knitted octopus to all sorts of toys, games and places. As Saffron grew, the adventures and games became more exciting. However, on her first visit to Cornwall, Saffron left Olive on some rocks. The rising tide claimed the knitted octopus and introduced her to the underwater world. The child is later reunited with Olive and they have more adventures, this time above the water.

"The Key To 'Pandora' " is a story about pirates. A couple of young cousins occasionally visit their grandparents' home where they pretend to be pirates. Their grandfather has converted his shed into a pirate ship, called "Pandora" because of all the evil deeds that the ruffians act out in and around the shed. Most of all, the pillagers crave treasure. After a visit to the majestic Jurassic Coast in Dorset, the cousins decide that they want to be smugglers as well as pirates. One spring, the boys' grandfather takes them to Cornwall on their first camping trip. The pirate games and adventures continue on the holiday where the youngsters find a key that leads them to a new kind of treasure. The "freebooters", as they call themselves, have an exciting time and build wonderful memories.

"The Grey Lady's Mysterious Magic" describes several events reported in a local newspaper. An elderly woman and her two Old English Sheepdogs materialised at the scenes of incidents involving children. Their intervention ensured happy outcomes for the youngsters. With the help of her dogs, the grey lady helped a child trapped in a garage, stopped a new pupil being bullied, saved a family from a falling tree and rescued a toddler from a swollen river. I am sure that many of her other good deeds went unreported. The mysterious trio always managed to disappear before anyone could thank them for their help.

"Huffin' Hedgehogs" is a true story about the author's garden and the creatures that regularly visit it. The tale explains how she and her husband have attracted more wildlife and the difficulties encountered when trying to make the garden more hedgehog friendly. Margaret describes the hog behaviour she and her husband have watched over the years. The hogs' activities have given them many hours of pleasure. The couple were concerned that much of their good work had been undermined recently by a team of Countryside Rangers. The Rangers tore out a large area of hedgerow, laden with berries, which ran behind their property. However, they continue to benefit from providing a little oasis for the local wildlife.