A former ballet dancer turned author has pledged to donate half of the profits from her second children’s book to Hope House Children’s Hospices.

Eleanor Dixon and her husband Shaun are part of the Shropshire Club, which has raised thousands of pounds for our charity over the past 13 years through hugely successful Balls and other events.

But with all events cancelled during 2020 because of the pandemic, Eleanor decided she would like to help Hope House in a different way.

“They’ve had a lean time of it with people not being able to run the normal fundraising events and this is one way in which I can help,” she says.

Eleanor’s book, The Graceful Ghost, is a timeless, fast-paced story aimed at children 9+ years old. It combines humour and emotional conflict in the world of a ballet boarding school.

The novel is full of authentic detail because Eleanor herself trained as a ballet dancer at the Hammond School in Chester and has danced in many countries across Europe. She also ran her own ballet school in Athens for several years, before returning to Shropshire.

“You don’t have to be a ballet maniac to enjoy the shenanigans in this book, but it’s all the better if you are,” she adds.

The Graceful Ghost is Eleanor’s second book, and she is currently working on a six-book series called Tally and the Angel which she hopes to launch next year.

The Graceful Ghost costs £6.99 in paperback and is available from Amazon. 50% of the first year's profits from sales of the book will be kindly donated to Hope House Children's Hospices.