The Writers of Wales Database

THOMAS, RUTHIE

Email: pinksugarmice@aol.co.uk  
Website: www.pinksugarmice.co.uk

Singer, songwriter, novelist, poet and book reviewer. Ruthie’s childhood and early teenage years were spent in Cardiff. She travelled around Canada with a mentor Julie Smith; a pastor from Toronto, and sang in churches throughout Ontario and New Brunswick Provinces. Ruthie then moved to London where she continued singing, writing and also facilitating workshops to introduce gospel music to children. Her work ‘Song of the Robin’ with actress Rita Tushingham and children’s voices from Kensington & Chelsea was used in an Educational programme for BBC World Service Radio, and raised money towards a new unit for Sickle Cell patients at North Middlesex Hospital. Ruthie returned to Wales in 2009.

Her first collection of hymns and songs was published in 1993 in Reflecting Praise; a hymnbook that concentrates on women’s contribution to hymnody. She has since been published in several hymn and song collections including in Christian Aid’s Hunger for Justice. Her work is also included in the Stainer & Bell, HymnQuest database of hymns, songs and carols. She is the first black hymn writer published in Britain.

Ruthie’s poem ’Smile Martin’, a response to Martin Luther’s ’I Have A Dream’ speech, was chosen in 2000 as a wining entry for its originality by the current Archbishop of Canterbury, and is published by McCrimmons. She also studied children’s literature and writing for children achieving an MA in Writing for Children from King Alfred’s University College, Winchester. Her children's novel Ruby Tucker (Penpress, 2008) supported the Children's Hospital, Noah's Ark Appeal, Cardiff. Ruthie is a member of the Arts Centre Group.

Reviews:
On writing for children

"…I particularly admire the way you are able to enter the mind of a schoolgirl…"
P D James


With respect to Ruby Tucker (Penpress, 2008)

"…A strong feel good factor that appeals to both boys and girls…"
Waterstones

With respect to Different (Roperpenberthy, 2010)

"...I know of few other stories set in this context and it gives a distinctive working of the tradition particularly in relation to the experience of the supernatural..."
Prof. June Boyce-Tillman, MBE

"...I liked the vehicle of Hester’s (one of the characters) capitalised thoughts: they epitomised her youth while making her inner voice more authentic and accessible to a younger readership. One theme the story carries well is the difference between young and old and how adults can either ignore the young or feel threatened by them...In this story, Ruthie Thomas confronts the reality that hypocrisy can exist within the church and that adults are capable of misguided trust..."
Pearl Newton. A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council


Selected Publications:
Novels
Ruby Tucker (Penpress, 2008)
Different (Roperpenberthy, 2010)

Contributed to:
Hymns and Songs
Reflecting Praise (contributor) (Stainer & Bell Ltd, 1993)
Big Blue Planet (contributor) (Stainer & Bell Ltd, 1995)
Sound Bytes (contributor) (Stainer & Bell Ltd, 1999)
Songs For The Millennium (contributor) (Church House Publishing, 2000)
First Fruits (contributor) (Canterbury Press, 2001)
Hunger for Justice (contributor) (Christian Aid & Kevin Mayhew, 2004)

Poetry
Let There Be (contributor) (McCrimmons, 1999)



Ruby Tucker (Penpress, 2008)

Crunchy, chewy, jelly juicy, strawberry crunchies! The craving for a bag of these sweets is just too much for Ruby Tucker. Problem is, she has spent her pocket money and begging or borrowing isn't working. It's then that she allows herself to do something she knows she shouldn't. That's when things start to go horribly wrong...Dudley, an irritating and smug classmate, traps her with his suspicions and is insisting on being paid to keep quiet. Things get even worse that same night when Snatcher, a strange and terrifying looking boy-creature, arrives as she is tucked up in bed, goading for more mischief. How can Ruby get out of the mess and rid herself of Dudley's threats and Snatcher's nightly visits?

To purchase a copy of this title from amazon.co.uk, please click on its front cover

Different (Roperpenberthy, 2010)

At the start of the church's annual convention, schoolgirl Hester Henry, wayward daughter of the pastor, receives an unexpected Word from the Lord for someone she doesn't even know. Riddled with humour against an offset of hatred, jealousy and the supernatural.

To purchase a copy of this title from gwales.com, please click on its front cover