Episode 1 - Jo Cotterill, Imogen Bond & Robert Cooley

2025-08-03

EPISODE 1 In this, our first episode we speak to Jo Cotterill, author of a Library of Lemons, Jelly, A Storm of Strawberries and her hugely successful collaboration with Esme Higgs - The Starlight Stables Gang. Jo reflects on her choices of books as a child, which led her on to a career in performance and helped develop her own sense of empowerment as an adult. Our guest from EmpathyLab in this episode is Managing Director Imogen Bond who tells us about her love of picture books in particular and our teacher reflection comes from recently retired Year 2 teacher Robert Cooley, who c...

EPISODE 1

In this, our first episode we speak to Jo Cotterill, author of a Library of Lemons, Jelly, A Storm of Strawberries and her hugely successful collaboration with Esme Higgs - The Starlight Stables Gang.

Jo reflects on her choices of books as a child, which led her on to a career in performance and helped develop her own sense of empowerment as an adult.

Our guest from EmpathyLab in this episode is Managing Director Imogen Bond who tells us about her love of picture books in particular and our teacher reflection comes from recently retired Year 2 teacher Robert Cooley, who chooses a book given to him by one of his own teachers.

BOOKS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE

Paul - Mr Majeika by Humphrey Carpenter

Imogen - April's Garden by Isla McGuckin, illustrated by Catalina Echeverri

Jo - Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Montgomery, The Ordinary Princess by M.M Kaye, The Swish of the Curtain by Pamela Brown

Robert - The Goalkeepers Revenge and Other Stories by Bill Naughton

USEFUL LINKS

Jo Cotterill

WEB: www.jocotterill.com

INSTA: @jocotterillbooks

EmpathyLab

WEB: www.empathylab.uk

INSTA: @empathylabuk