Leighton Buzzard author pens time travelling adventure

David Morgan, a teacher at Brooklands Middle School, is thrilled that The Strange Case of William Whipper-Snapper is now available on Amazon, almost 40 years after it first appeared on bookshelves in 1982.

The story is a dynamic adventure through history, featuring a pair of siblings who must embark on a quest back in time after their life gets turned upside down by a mysterious, magical object.

David said: “The Strange Case of William Whipper-Snapper is an intriguing and hilarious comedy of the weirdest sort. It is the story of an incredible journey undertaken by William, his sister, Emma, and a rather annoying talking silver case.

“The case, found by a calculated chance, is a very conceited, ‘1.B. Prize’ that grants wishes that go dreadfully wrong, with catastrophic results for William and his family. In order to return the case to the Prize-Maker, the children must leave their cosy Victorian world for Elizabethan times - to 1066, to pre-Roman Britain, and on to a mysterious planet.

“Along the way, a ghost is raised, history is interrupted, and a great golden being with no mouth and the best of intentions fights fantastical beings to save the universe.”

He added: “Join the fun and suspense and see how the children become closer and learn to grow up and make great decisions.”

David’s novel was first published by Hambleside Publishers Ltd and has now been adopted by his American publisher, Terrie Sizemore of A 2 Z Press LLC, Florida.

David told online blog ‘Reel Illustrated’ that, for him, reading the book is a “joyful experience” - a reminder of happy times with his mum and dad and his childhood home, River Hall, where he wrote the novel in 1981.

A reviewer from Honey’s Weird World blog, added: “I’m delighted about this development because the present generation of young readers out there will be able to read this classic gem by a very talented author, and [it can be] revisited by long-standing fans.”

David’s other works include: Winnie’s Wonderful Wheelchair, Treemendous Trees, and Really David! (an autobiography), while you may also remember him from a previous article in the LBO about his rhyming picture-story books, featuring fun facts about cool critters and creepy crawlies.

As well as being an author, David is also a talented poet, and his audiopoems are featured on his YouTube, Spotify and Soundcloud channels.

He said: “For the last five years I have been working on the Soundings project with my son Toby, performing my own poetry/writing to Toby’s original music and our self-created video and films.”

Their work ‘Self-Isolation’ is going into the finals of the UK National Poetry Archive competition.

The video has had nearly 6,000 views and 95 likes since June and the winner will be announced very soon.

To view and listen, search ‘Self-Isolation by David R Morgan & Tobias Morgan’ on YouTube.