Sommerset, Mark
IN BRIEF
Mark Sommerset is a children’s book author and songwriter. His first book, Cork on the Ocean (2005), was followed in 2008 by, Cork and the Bottle. Both are illustrated by his wife, Rowan Sommerset. Sarah Moore wrote of his first book, ‘Rich with metaphor, Cork is a touching tale of camaraderie, taking the good with the bad, and about the voyage one makes before finding one’s soul-mate. Told in clever rhyming verse…this is a beautifully produced New Zealand book’.
ProfilePlace of residence: Waiheke Island, New Zealand |
About the Author
Sommerset, Mark (1968 –) is a children’s book author and singer songwriter. He was born in Christchurch and attended Takapuna Intermediate, and Westlake Boys High School in Auckland. He went to Waikato University and graduated with a Bachelor of Management Studies.
Sommerset has been a singer-songwriter for the past 20 years, and has also worked as a sales manager for a music export company, as well as working as a self-employed director of a design and branding agency. Since 2004 he has been self-publishing and writing his own books.
His first book, Cork on the Ocean (2005), was followed in 2008 by Cork and the Bottle. The books first came to mind when Sommerset and his wife and illustrator Rowan were sailing between New Caledonia and Vanuatu. Mark and Rowan self-published Cork on the Ocean in hardback and subsequently signed with Random House who publish and distribute Cork and the Bottle and the paperback versions of each book.
Sarah Moore from the Herald on Sunday wrote of his first book, ‘Rich with metaphor, Cork is a touching tale of camaraderie, taking the good with the bad, and about the voyage one makes before finding one’s soul-mate. Told in clever rhyming verse (somewhat Seuss-like), this is a beautifully produced New Zealand book with unique illustrations and an utterly charming storyline: certainly a book to be treasured. 5 stars.’
Graham Hepburn’s review of Cork and the Bottle, in the New Zealand Herald: Canvas Magazine describes it as, ‘… yet another quirky and enchanting rhyming tale. The themes of friendship and optimism are brought to life by Rowan’s luminous illustrations from a limited colour palette.’
Mark Sommerset is available to visit schools as part of the Writers in Schools programme.
writers in schools information
Mark Sommerset is available to visit schools as part of the Writers in Schools programme. He is able to speak to children aged up to 9 years. He is happy to read his stories, talk about being a picture book writer and discuss the process of self-publishing.
