A Q&A interview with Alice Albinia

Alice Albinia is an internationally acclaimed author whose books for adults include Empires of the Indus: The Story of a River and Britannias: And the Islands of Women, both of which explore both geography and culture, and how they interact. Her first book for children, Once Upon an Island: An Atlas of Islands from Around the World does the same, introducing young readers to the geography, history and stories of islands from Chile to Sicily, Madagascar to Orkney. Her book foregrounds the stories of women of the islands.

In this Q&A, Alice answers our questions about her book.

When did your interest in the physical world and islands in particular start? Does this
go back to your childhood?

Yes, with islands I think it goes back to family holidays in the Hebrides, seeing the tide come in and out, creating and eliminating islands. But I suppose anybody growing up when I did would have been aware of the fragility and wonder of the natural world, as I guess all children alive now must be.

How did you select the islands that feature in the book? What drew you to them?

I knew that I wanted to begin in the south of the world and work my north and see where that took us. I was interested in seeing how people live on islands in very different contexts – rivers, lakes, along coasts, as well as far away from other landmasses in seas and oceans. But I was also searching out islands with potent stories of women, in the islands’ histories, mythologies, social arrangements. And I asked friends and colleagues all over the world for their ideas. It was a real collaborative effort.

Are there any islands that you did not include that you would like to revisit in a future
volume?

Lots… In February I visited Sri Lanka for the first time and wished I’d included it. That’s going to happen to me all the time I imagine!

Your book was shaped by interviews with women from the islands, how did you
contact them? Do you have a favourite conversation or one that was particularly inspiring?

I loved speaking to the women I interviewed, it was one of the best things about writing the book. Some women I wrote to out of the blue, others were friends of friends, some were actual friends. I was inspired by all the things that these independent-minded women told me, but particularly inspiring was Maria Valili in Lesbos, talking about switching to farming organically, and what a joy that was, and Maikara Ropata, wisdom keeper in Te Ao Māori, who spoke to me from Waiheke island, Aotearoa New Zealand.

What is it about islands that means they preserve women’s stories more than the mainland?

Islands keep all sorts of secrets, and as I found when writing my previous two books, The Britannias, and Cwen, one of those secrets is sometimes that small islands are places where women have been able to move with freedom. Not always of course; but there are many positive examples, some of which are included here.

How much do you hope the book will inspire young people’s love of the natural world?
How important is it to you to do that?

I think it is vital. But children are there already: they love the natural world, naturally. It’s what happens when they grow up which is the problem.

Are you working on another book for children and young readers?

I’m mulling over a few but I’m actually working right now on two books for grown-ups. But who knows what will come out first. Children are wonderful readers and very funny audiences so it’s definitely inspiring to write for them.

If you were you to choose an island to live on, which would you pick and why?

Maybe Chiloé, in Chile, in the south of the world…There are penguins and dolphins and 400 different types of potato.

Once Upon an Island: An Atlas of Islands from Around the World by Alice Albinia, illustrated by Helen Cann is published by Magic Cat, 978-1917044349, £16.99hbk.