33 years ago, on May 19, 1983, a 3-month old raccoon climbed more than halfway up the South Tower of the Royal Bank Plaza, then the tallest skyscraper in Toronto, Canada. According to next day’s Montreal Gazette, the crowd that gathered nicknamed the raccoon “Ricky” and watched him climb the outside of the iconic gold building to the 23rd floor. People let out a cheer as he climbed onto the window washing scaffold that had been lowered from the roof to rescue him.

Living in Toronto at that time, Marion Leigh was fascinated by the raccoon’s exploit and thought it would make a good tale for children. She dashed off a short story about Ricky, called The Expedition. This languished in a drawer for over two decades until Marion had time to think seriously about writing.

After publishing The Politician’s Daughter, the first adventure thriller in the Petra Minx series, in 2011, Marion reworked her 1983 raccoon story and issued it as a Kindle e-book called Rosie Aims High.

‘I shortened the story and Ricky became the intrepid Rosie. Then I had the great good fortune to meet Julie ‘Jools’ Hall who brought Rosie to life with her amazing illustrations. Rosie Aims High is an exciting tale of courage and determination that will delight children and adults alike,’ Marion says.

For one week, from May 16 to May 22, Rosie Aims High will be available to download as a Kindle e-book for just 99p on Amazon.co.uk or 99¢ on Amazon.com.