Ali Sparkes Writer
Ali Sparkes (born 1966) is a British children's author. Her books include The Shapeshifter series, Out of this World (a prequel to The Shapeshifter and first released as Miganium), Unleashed (a spin-off/sequel series of The Shapeshifter, centred on some of the other Shapeshifter characters), Dark Summer, Frozen in Time, Wishful Thinking, Destination Earth, the Monster Makers series, and S.W.I.T.C.H. She lives with her husband and two sons in Southampton, England. Her debut book The Shapeshifter: Finding the Fox was nominated for the 2007 Bolton Children's Book Award. She has also won two Blue Peter awards: "Book I Couldn't Put Down" and "Book Of The Year", for her book Frozen in Time.In January 2012, Sparkes appeared as a contestant on the quiz show Eggheads in a team called The Incidentals, along with her parents, sister and family dentist. Sparkes won her head-to-head against CJ De Mooi, securing her place in the final round, but her team ultimately lost.When she was younger, Sparkes wanted to be an actress and appeared in many amateur theatre productions. Her claim to fame is appearing on a TV programme when she was 14 (1980).