Given a golden ticket
New Zealand Listener|July 8 - 14, 2023
Taranaki author Emma Pearl has writing in her blood via a relative famous for his classic kids' books.
LINDSAY WRIGHT
Given a golden ticket

Toko, astride the Forgotten World Highway, is about 10 minutes' drive east of Stratford. It's dairying country. There's a pub, school, hall, rugby club, domain and tennis courts, a big-iron trucking company.

Also nestled into this rumpled volcanic landscape of central Taranaki is the home of author Emma Pearl, who writes books for children and adults. Toko is her adoptive land, a long way from Buckinghamshire, where she grew up in a whānau that included her very literary great-uncle, Roald Dahl.

What sweet-toothed youngster hasn't salivated over Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or chortled with The Twits? His irreverent and funny works have reached across the world for generations.

"My grandmother, Uncle Roald and my family all lived within a few miles of each other in Buckinghamshire," says Pearl. "It was like one big, extended family. Uncle Roald was my maternal grandmother's brother and the closest thing I had to a grandfather after my other grandfather died.

"I sort of filled the gap between Roald's own children and his grandchildren - at a time when he was doing most of his writing for children, so we spent quite a bit of time together."

This included Dahl teaching his young relative to swim. "I was five years old and not too keen on getting wet. He said if I could swim a width of his indoor pool, he would buy me the biggest box of chocolates you could get.

"I practised and practised ... and finally did it. Uncle Roald clapped, cheered and gave me a big hug. 'Come on,' he said. We got into his car and drove to the village shop where he bought the biggest box of chocolates they had and gave it to me."

An even bigger treat came a few years later when The Twits was published. "He had dedicated it to me. It was such a huge thrill for a seven-year-old bookworm like me to see my name - 'For Emma' - inside the flyleaf."

This story is from the July 8 - 14, 2023 edition of New Zealand Listener.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the July 8 - 14, 2023 edition of New Zealand Listener.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM NEW ZEALAND LISTENERView All
First-world problem
New Zealand Listener

First-world problem

Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Applying intelligence to AI
New Zealand Listener

Applying intelligence to AI

I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Nazism rears its head
New Zealand Listener

Nazism rears its head

Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Staying ahead of the game
New Zealand Listener

Staying ahead of the game

Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Grasping the nettle
New Zealand Listener

Grasping the nettle

Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Hangry? Eat breakfast
New Zealand Listener

Hangry? Eat breakfast

People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Chemical reaction
New Zealand Listener

Chemical reaction

Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Me and my guitar
New Zealand Listener

Me and my guitar

Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Time is on my side
New Zealand Listener

Time is on my side

Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?

time-read
7 mins  |
September 9, 2024
The kids are not alright
New Zealand Listener

The kids are not alright

Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024