Laura Powell grew up in the Brecon Beacons and spent most of her childhood with her nose in a book. She went on to study classics at Bristol and Oxford, then spent five years working in the editorial departments of both adult and children's publishers. She now lives in West London.Powell's latest novel is Witch Fire, the sequel to Burn Mark, one of Kirkus Reviews' "Best Teen Books of 2012."
Not so long ago I asked the author about what she was reading. Powell's reply:
Illustration has always been important to me, probably because my dad’s a painter. I firmly believe that picture-books shouldn’t just be forVisit Laura Powell's website.kids and so The Folio Society, which publishes illustrated hardback editions of classic books, is very bad for my bank account. I’ve just saved up for a copy of Pushkin’s Eugene Onegin, illustrated by the Balbusson sisters. It’s a nineteenth-century novel in verse but please don’t let that put you off – it’s romantic, tragic, witty and surprising.
The book I really wish I’d written is Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld. I’m slightly obsessed with boarding school books (I boarded myself, and hated it) and this is the sharpest and smartest I’ve read. Ever since Prep, I’ve been a Sittenfeld fan-girl and I can’t wait to get stuck into her latest,Sisterland, which is about twins with paranormal powers.
I always have at least one YA novel on the go, and this week it’s Hidden Among Us by Katy Moran. It’s a modern fae-story but avoids the usual clichés to chilling effect. The story is told from lots of different perspectives and to my great joy isn’t focussed on romance, but the equally compelling dynamics of friendship and family.
Learn about Laura Powell's top ten heroes in disguise.
My Book, The Movie: Witch Fire.
The Page 69 Test: Witch Fire.
--Marshal Zeringue
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