A LOCAL WRITER is celebrating after writing her second book in a bid to show youngsters that anything is possible.

Swallow enthusiast Jill Hopkins has written Wings, the sequel to her first book Nidae’s Promise, to show the endless possibilities to youngsters as they set out on a memorable adventure.

Wings tells the tale of a flying adventure of a young boy Jamie, and his 17 year old cousin, Laura embarking on an voyage to South Africa following the migration of the swallow where they discover some wonderful places and people. But will they find the secret they are searching for?

Jill has been associated with planes since an early age and has always been fascinated by them, her inspiration for the sequel comes from her husband Rodney Hopkins who is a pilot himself and was based in South Africa for 10 years, and he then became a commercial airline pilot for Thomas Cook.

Jill said: "I suppose being married to a pilot helped a lot, although my husband flew airliners, but I also spent time with the POM flying club instructor Captain Edward Hawkins who talked me through flying a Piper Cherokee 'plane."

Mrs Hopkins who is from Great Barugh has based the book close to home in North Yorkshire and hopes that it will be an inspiration to the younger generation to get involved with airliners, particularly girls.

Jill said: "Laura is the pilot of their Cherokee aeroplane, so I hope it's a story that might encourage girls to follow their ambitions and learn to fly."

It’s a story that is very close to home for Jill and her family so has taken much time and effort to ensure the story is well researched and as accurate as possible, and not as far-fetched as it might first seem.

"It’s perfectly doable." she told the Gazette and Herald.

‘Wings’ is a book for nine to 90 year olds and has now gone on sale in Hopper’s in Malton and is available online from Amazon and on the Kindle.