Everything you need for your book club

• Watch the Q&A with Alake
• Book Club: Zo and the Forest of Secrets Extract
• Book Club: Zo and the Forest of Secrets Reader Questions
• Check out Alake's reading recommendations

About Alake Pilgrim

Alake Pilgrim writes from the uncanny islands of Trinidad & Tobago in the Caribbean, where people are connected to Africa, India, China, the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East. She has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia, thanks to the Booker Prize Foundation Scholarship, and an MA in Latin American & Caribbean Studies from New York University.

Her stories have twice won the regional prize for the Americas in the Commonwealth Short Story Competition. They have been published by The Center for Fiction in New York, the Small Axe Journal, and in the groundbreaking international anthology New Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby (Myriad Editions and HarperCollins). Zo and the Forest of Secrets is her debut children’s novel, and an evocative, atmospheric, and layered fantasy adventure set in the author’s home of Trinidad.

Snack Recipe: Mango Chow

We’re taking your tastebuds to Trinidad – the hot, sweet, sour and salty flavours are guaranteed to make your tastebuds feel as lively as your book club conversations.

You will need:

• A bowl
• A knife
• A chopping board
• A peeler
• A spoon

Ingredients:

• Mango
• Chilli (to taste – we used half a red chilli) or chilli sauce
• Garlic (to taste – we used half a clove)
• Coriander (about 2 tablespoons chopped)
• Salt (a pinch)
• Lemon or lime juice

Method:

1. Gather your ingredients and finely chop the garlic, chilli and coriander.
2. Prepare your mango by peeling it – we found it easiest to use a potato peeler but if it’s very ripe, you might want to ask an adult to use a knife. Slice the fruit around the stone and then into cubes – they can be any size – we chose to dice them into roughly 1cm cubes.Place the mango into a bowl.
3. Add the other ingredients and stir. Place in the fridge for at least half an hour to let the flavours mix. Enjoy, either on its own or on crackers with a good book.