Jacqueline Wilson unveils adult sequel to her children's novel The Illustrated Mum
Jacqueline Wilson has revealed that she will be releasing the adult sequel to her children’s novel The Illustrated Mum (Penguin Random House Children’s, 1999) in summer 2025. Wilson unveiled a statue of herself covered in tattoos to announce the new adult novel. Picture Imperfect will be published by Transworld in hardback, audio and e-book on 28th August 2025. The statue will now reside at Waterstones Brighton, before embarking on a mini-tour of the UK later in the year.
Wilson said: "I’m hoping that readers who have been with me a long time will immediately know what the tattoos I’m sporting on the statue reference – The Illustrated Mum. It’s a book that holds a special place in my heart and when I was on tour last year, many readers asked me to revisit it so I’ve put pen to paper for them. I am very excited to revisit these beloved characters and I hope readers will love seeing what they are all up to now."
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Picture Imperfect catches up with 33-year-old Dolphin, who is now living in a tiny studio flat, working in a tattoo shop by day and collecting her mum from police stations by night. The synopsis continues: "Dol yearns to climb out of the rut she is stuck in, but has no idea where to begin. Could gardener Lee and his daughter Ava be her chance for a wholesome family life? Or maybe a steamy romance with roguish actor Joel is just what she needs. And what about the offer from her sister Star, now a successful doctor, to move to Scotland and live with her young family? As the choices threaten to overwhelm her, will Dol fall into the role of extra in someone else’s story once again – or find the strength to forge a brand new path of her own?"
The Illustrated Mum won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize in 2000 and follows sisters Dolphin and Star as they cope with their mother Marigold’s bipolar disorder.
This is Wilson’s second adult novel in the past year, after Think Again, her first adult novel since the 1970s, which was published in 2024. It was the bestselling adult debut hardback of 2024.
