Tina Jackson

Formerly the Arts Editor of The Big Issue and now a freelance journalist and author, Tina's first novel is MARIBEL'S WARDROBE. a joyously comic and perceptive book that tells the story of a young, single woman’s emotional education by the ghosts of the past and the harsh-edged disappointments of the present.  Maribel lives a lonely, directionless life, neither knowing what she wants, nor believing that it is even out there.  By night she rides the relentless carousel of clubs, pubs, parties and one-night stands, and by day she works, reluctant and sullen, in  Faithful Friends a  local charity clothing shop for the benefit of homeless dogs, and run by the elderly but sturdy Chrysanthemum.  In the midst of her disaffection strange things begin to happen – the clothes in the shop start to offer up their ghosts, and through a series of magical encounters, Maribel starts to question the assumptions she has made about herself and the world.  But there is still a very long way for her to travel if she is really going to have a chance of happiness. 

MARIBEL’S WARDROBE is a sassy, grungey fairytale, a Cinderella with boots and attitude.  It is a tale with elements of the fantastical but utterly grounded in the unforgiving real world.  And above all it is a story about love – of friends, and of oneself.