A WOMAN has kept a promise to her grandchildren to write a book about their favourite toys.

Marion Cooper spent four years writing a children's book about the 'special' toys that her four grandchildren couldn't get to sleep without.

The book, entitled 'Jasper's Clever Plan' is for sale at a Bridport book store, the Book Shop, on South Street.

Marion, 79 and originally from the Isle of Wight but now living in Dorchester, said: "My grandchildren asked me four years ago if I would write a story about their toys, their special toys which they wouldn't go to bed without.

"The children were very involved with the whole process, I would always take draft copies to them and they were delighted to read it and read their parts.

"I never went in with the expectation that it would be picked up by anybody, it was about the promise to my grandchildren."

Jasper's Clever Plan was published by Fuzzypig Books, a local company based in Dorchester. The story follows a friendly Canadian bear, who is rudely awoken from his sleep by the other toys in the playroom being very noisy,

Marion, who writes under the name Marion Mackett, has had numerous jobs throughout the course of her life, including as a magistrate and a police officer. However, she spent the bulk of her career in adoption - where she worked on a large number of reports.

Marion said: "I’m used to writing reports where you have a beginning, middle, end and it all has to conclude in the end, similarly to a book really. I thought it can’t be too difficult.

"I started writing something and wasn’t too satisfied so I joined a course on children’s book writing. I was the oldest there and everyone had these marvellous ideas as to why they wanted to write a book and mine was simply that my grandchildren had asked me to."

The book can be purchased from the Book Shop, from Marion herself at marionpcooper@aol.com or from www.fuzzypigbooks.co.uk