Salisbury novelist releases new children’s book in time for Christmas

Monday, 11 November 2024 05:50

Julian Noyce’s latest children’s book ‘Oliver’s Dream Ticket’ takes inspiration from watching his son play football for Salisbury Thunder under 9s.

“The book’s main character, Oliver, has big dreams of being a footballer and scoring a winning goal in the Premiership,” said Julian. “His dad emails the local football team, and his journey begins.”

The book is written in two halves, just like a football match. The first half focuses on Oliver’s football training as he settles into his new team, Salisbury Thunder.

In the second half, which Julian says was inspired by the film ‘Rocky’, the Football Association offer an end-of-season exhibition match for any team to play against ‘the greatest team in the country, if not the entire world, Tischester United’.

All 40,000+ team names go into a computer and Oliver’s team, Salisbury Thunder, are selected to play Tischester at Wembley Stadium.

Oliver’s Dream Ticket is 174 pages long and is written for children aged 6 - 9. Julian said: “The book is beautifully illustrated by artist Julie Budworth, who did the covers for my two other children's books, The Adventures of Stella Earwax and More Adventures of Stella Earwax and Friends.

“My wife Natalie also did some of the illustrations, including the referees and small footballs.”

The last part of the book, entitled ‘Extra Time’, includes profiles of the real-life Salisbury Thunder players, plus some inspirational quotes from famous footballing legends.

“Oliver’s Dream Ticket is an inspirational story that teaches children about teamwork and what happens when you work hard and dream big,” said Julian. “It’s the perfect stocking filler for your kids, grandchildren, nieces or nephews this Christmas!” he added.

Oliver’s Dream Ticket costs £7.99 and is available to purchase in paperback from Amazon here.