The Smeds and the Smoos follows two young aliens. A Smed, named Janet and a Smoo named Bill. The Smeds and the Smoos are rival. Janet and Bills’ families tell them stories to warn them of the others. But Janet and Bill fall in love. Make up a new story about two people, animals or aliens who want to be friends but are not allowed. This book has been in our house for one evening and it’s already been the subject of numerous requests to “read that again, please” which is pretty much the highest praise a children’s book can get. Op ‘n verre planeet woon daar Smooie en Smoue. Smooie is rooi, slaap in beddens, speel graag in water, drink pienk melk en eet brood. Smoue is blou, slaap in gate wat hulle self gawe, speel graag op hulle heuwel, drink tee en eet groen bredie. Fleur, ‘n mooie jong Smooi, se oupa het haar nog altyd teen Smoue gewaarsku soos wat Fanie, ‘n knap jong Smou, se ouma hom nog altyd teen Smooie gewaarsku het. Maar eendag ontmoet Fleur en Fanie en begin skelm saam speel totdat hulle, jare later, besluit om te trou. Maar o wee, die familie…… Dit dwing Fleur en Fanie om ‘n plan te beraam om hulle families anders te oortuig. Write a diary entry for Janet or Bill from a time when they crept off to play in the Wurpular Wood together.

One of my television songs, A SQUASH AND A SQUEEZE, was made into a book in 1993, with illustrations by the wonderful Axel Scheffler. It was great to hold the book in my hand without it vanishing in the air the way the songs did. This prompted me to unearth some plays I’d written for a school reading group, and since then I’ve had 20 plays published. Most children love acting and it’s a tremendous way to improve their reading.

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I feel conflicted about The Smeds and the Smoos. A Smed and a Smoo fall in love despite multiple warnings from their grandparents about why they should be avoiding each other, but unlike Romeo and Juliet this love story has a happy ending. This story feels hyper relevant when you look at everything that's going on in the world at the moment. Republicans vs. Democrats, Conservatives vs. Labour, everywhere you look it's a red vs. blue world and for little ones who have no understanding of politics and no idea why everyone is so angry at each other it must be quite scary. It feels like The Smeds and the Smoos has arrived at exactly the right time, bursting onto the scene to remind children that underneath we are all the same. It doesn't matter what colour you are, and oftentimes the people warning you to stay away from others have no idea what they're really talking about.

I really enjoy writing verse, even though it can be fiendishly difficult. I used to memorise poems as a child and it means a lot to me when parents tell me their child can recite one of my books. While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done.Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol. The Smeds and the Smoos visit other planets to find Janet and Bill. Can you imagine a new planet that they might explore? Design your own alien and create a character profile for it. Where does it live? Does it have any special abilities? My real breakthrough was THE GRUFFALO, again illustrated by Axel. We work separately - he’s in London and I’m in Glasgow - but he sends me letters with lovely funny pictures on the envelopes.