Ivy Wallace and Pookie

Ivy Lillian Wallace was born at Grimsby, Lincolnshire, on 7th October 1915 and educated at Harrogate Ladies College. Her father, a keen amateur botanist taught her the need for accuracy in her drawings of plants, and these drawings later became a central part of her Pookie books.

It was assumed that Ivy would become a full time artist but as a dare she applied for work at Felixstowe Rep and later appeared on stage with Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson. At the outbreak of the Second World War, she was chosen by The British Film Company to appear in Government training films.

She went on to do war work in a police station and it was while manning a police switchboard that she doodled a picture of a fairy sitting on a toadstool with a little rabbit in front. She then decided that fairies were "two a penny" and so rubbed out the fairy and gave the rabbit wings. After naming the rabbit Pookie she wrote a story about him: "This is the story of Pookie, a little white furry rabbit, with soft, floppity ears, big blue eyes and the most lovable rabbit smile in the world," were the opening lines.

So confident was she that in 1946 Ivy took a train from Grimsby to London and arrived at the offices of the publishers Collins without a prior appointment. But the response was less than encouraging and she returned home crestfallen, leaving her manuscript behind.

A few weeks later she was contacted by William Hope Collins and asked to attend the Glasgow office where the Children's book section was based. Not only did William accept the book he also fell in love with its author. Their relationship met with strong disapproval because William was married with children. But in 1950 Ivy and William were married and went to live near Biggar in the Scottish borders.

During the 1950s and 1960s Ivy's books became a publishing phenomenon, beautifully illustrated by their author they became a worldwide success. The stories were translated into several languages and Pookie clubs were formed in places as far afield as Australia, Canada and South Africa. The stories were broadcast on Australian radio in Pookie's Half Hour and the 'little rabbit with wings' became so popular that thousands of children attended Pookie rallies.

Altogether Ivy Wallace wrote nine Pookie books and seven Animal Shelf books but after her husband's death in 1967 she lost interest in writing and her books went out of print. She continued to receive letters from fans asking her to revive the Pookie series and in 1994 she and her two daughters founded their own small publishing company and reissued the books. 80,000 copies of the Pookie books were sold in three years and the Animal Shelf series was made into a thirteen part animated series and screened on television.

In 1997 Ivy Wallace was the subject of a documentary on BBC Scotland and an exhibition of her drawings was held in Glasgow during that same year. Ivy Wallace died at the age of 90 on the 13th March 2005.

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