Ten-year-old Isabella pens book as she battles cancer
A brave young girl battling cancer has written a book which she will be selling alongside Walsall FC players this weekend.
Isabella Lyttle, aged 10, will be joined by Saddlers players Luke Leahy, Jordan Sangha and Liam Kinsella to sell her signed book The Secret Adventure of Fantasy Friends for £5 each.
The proceeds will go towards a campaign to raise £200,000 to help get the St Francis School pupil to America for potentially life-saving treatment.
The youngster from Walsall started writing the 25-page story when she was nine years old while she was getting treatment for cancer and it tells the story of a group of friends who get sucked into a book and have to overcome an evil character.
Isabella, who has the rare cancer neuroblastoma, will be selling the book by the Virgin travel shop from 12pm to 2pm on Saturday at Tesco on Littleton Street.
More from Isabella's fight:
Her father Mark Lyttle said: "She is quite creative and it has kept her distracted. Obviously it is quite boring to be stuck in bed and not feeling very well. She could not always do it because of her treatment and the sickness knocked it out of her and made her tired.”
A social worker from CLIC Sargent, who supports young people with cancer and their families, popped by her bed one day and helped to get the book publishing when she heard Isabella was writing it.
They originally printed 100 copies but had so much interest that they have had to have another 200 published.
Mr Lyttle added: “She said this book is too ‘babyish’ and not long enough so she wants to do better. She is already critiquing herself.
“Her life is in the hospital and her life is the cancer. Anything to try and do normal stuff is great. Not many children can say they are a published author – she is really chuffed.”
Isabella was diagnosed when she was only three and a half years old.
Since then Team Isabella, a group of determined fundraisers, have been trying to raise money in any way they can.
They were at a Walsall football match in December where supporters donated £2,000 and defender Luke Leahy donated his £100 match appearance fee towards her cause.
Plus she is the star of a video that went viral called ‘Isabella should not know the C word’.
Isabella and her father, who is a keen reader, are already planning on writing a second book.
Neuroblastoma is a rare cancer that around 100 children are diagnosed with in the UK each year in the UK.
Although it mainly affects people younger than five, it can also occur in older children, teenagers and adults.
The book can also be bought on Kindle or online at Amazon.
