book cover

Something I Said

by Ben Bailey Smith

Interest age: 10 to 13
Reading age: 10+

Published by Bloomsbury, 2021

  • Coming-of-age
  • Funny

About this book

When you have a brother who’s tall, dark, sporty and handsome, while you are short and freckly with a ginger afro, it pays to have a sense of humour. But Carmichael Taylor, known to his mates as Car, takes humour to a whole new level.

Smart, witty and articulate, Car has a way with words and will do absolutely anything to get a laugh. When his first "accidental" stand-up routine goes viral, it also causes upset and distress to almost everyone he knows. Is that a price he’s prepared to pay for fame? Or should he forget his dreams and keep his mouth shut?

Car Taylor is typical of many 13-year-olds whose ideas about their future don’t necessarily coincide with those of their parents. As his mum and dad (Mum, especially!) clamp down on things that might distract him from school work and good grades, Car becomes more determined, and more secretive, in his attempts to be his own person.

Essentially, Car’s story is about finding out through experience what is most important to you. It’s a great reminder that being able to make good decisions is a consequence of making bad ones and learning from them.

About the author

Once an underground rapper, in 2010 Ben Bailey Smith created the double BAFTA winning CBBC television series 4 O'clock Club, which combines razor sharp rhymes and laugh-out-loud comedy. It filmed its ninth season in 2018. He has appeared on Blue Peter, both as a performer and a contributor to their reviews of children's literature, and has been a storyteller on CBeebies' Bedtime Stories. In 2016 he contributed to Sky's countdown of the nation's favourite Roald Dahl books and in 2017 made an unforgettable cameo in the Sky One adaptation of the David Walliams' bestselling children's novel Ratburger.

In 2016, Ben released his first children's book, I Am Bear; and followed up quickly with sequel, Bear Moves. He has written a young adult play for the National Theatre's Connections programme. His latest work is a comic tale of the school run entitled Get a Move On!, aimed at 5-8 year olds. Ben lives in London.

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