Yesterday was a glorious day for many. #bookshopsopenagain The opening of bookshops is an absolute boon for this country which has gone through some of the harshest lockdowns worldwide (NYT) and I can’t wait for the weekend when I get to go out with a big bag to fill it full of books I will struggle to make time to read but I don’t care. I’ll also go out with my gold sharpie in the sneaky hope some bookshops have #theboyiam in stock (I know the situation for smaller shops is hard right now and lots of debuts aren’t stocked unless they are the huge hitters...please everyone #chosebookshops and ASK FOR THAT DEBUT YOU REALLY WANT TO GIVE TO A FREIND!) But (and It was bitter sweet for me as I’ll admit I’ve been going through a tough time recently. lockdown has taken its toll, the mark of the year passing and trauma from the first week my babies arrived has haunted me, working in the same room for nearly 2 years (what with twin pregnancy, then repeated lockdowns) has had an effect on my energy. I miss people hard, But the tinest bit of socialisation exhausts me. Twin sleep regression has also taken its chunk. My depression is taking regular bites behind the eyes... I’m battling through, like those of us with depression do. If you don’t see me often, or alone it’s hard to tell. So when the amazing @notagainben sent me these pics I burst into floods of hot tears. It’s hard to say how impactful it’s been to launch without seeing your book on a shelf in a bookshop, in a store window or on a book table has been, until that moment. I’ll probably be a cast-iron mess when I pop into Kingston this weekend to see if my book is stocked, but to know that the amazing Waterstones and Foyles in the centre of London have #theboyiam out on those glorious book mountains I used to dream of seeing my book of as a kid back in Brum, is a dream come true and gave me a much needed boost. Thank you, Ben; and to all the debuts and bookish peeps who are out on treasure hunts to find our books that have been so virtual and invisible while our libraries and shops have been shut. I can’t express the words any more than that. https://www.instagram.com/p/CNmr_S1rdyK/?igshid=16sd8p3n3q1m7