Cat Deeley’s book of joy

TV personality and now author Cat Deeley says her first book for children — ‘The Joy in You’ — encourages self-expression and is a reminder to find pleasure in everyday things

Cat Deeley with her new book

Bedtime story sessions in the Deeley-Kielty home in Los Angeles are special. Cat Deeley, the So You Think You Can Dance host (since 2006) reads ‘everything and anything’ to their two sons Milo (4) and James (2) — from information on the cornflakes box and encyclopaedias on dinosaurs to classics like Peter Rabbit and the British children’s book Guess How Much I Love You . “They love books and I love reading to them. I do silly voices and they read along. We sometimes make up our own theme tunes,” shares the television presenter in an email interaction.

Finding the words

Soon Deeley, 43, will be able to read her own book for her sons. With the release of

The Joy in You on September 15, she has added ‘children’s book author’ to her already impressive list of roles. “It is a book of moments, ideas, thoughts and feelings, top and tailed with love. I wanted to be able to show my children a snapshot of life’s journey and make them contemplate what will fundamentally make them happy,” says the former teen model who got her big television break with

SM:TV , a popular children’s show.

With wonderful illustrations by British artist Rosie Butcher, the book encourages children to believe in themselves and embrace self-expression. “After becoming a mama myself, it felt like the time was right [to author this book]. Normally at bedtime, I’m too tired to think and am completely inarticulate. I wanted to create a book for those moments, that said everything I wanted to say when I couldn’t find the words,” says Deeley.

It began with Noddy

She tells me her love for reading started as a child. “I was an insomniac even when I was little. I would read all the time when I couldn’t sleep, insatiably devouring books at all times of the night or early morning.” Her favourite author was Enid Blyton. “My obsession began with Noddy. I would remember every single word on every single page, correcting my mother if she skipped over anything. Then I progressed to

The Faraway Tree ,

The Enchanted Wood ,

The Wishing Chair ,

The Famous Five ,

The Secret Seven and

Malory Towers .”

An illustration by Rosie Butcher

It’s no wonder that Deeley wants to pass on her fondness for books to her children. The high point of this summer, she says, has been teaching Milo to read. “It’s his new passion and hopefully he will carry his love for a great book into his adult life too.” These are turbulent times and the world can seem like a scary place even for adults but Deeley, as always, is looking for positives. “Everyone is healthy and I get guilt-free time to spend with the boys. I’ve not missed a minute of James’ gabbling and his ridiculously cute little lisp.”

In between dance

In June this year, Deeley announced that the 17th season of So You Think You Can Dance had been cancelled because of pandemic-related restrictions. Understandably, the fans, much like Deeley, were also heartbroken. For the 15 seasons that she’s been a part of the show, it’s been a source of constant happiness in her life. “I enjoy the fact that when the right dancer comes together with the right choreographer, hair, make up, music, lighting, staging something magical can happen. Something that can physically move the audience in the way any great piece of art should be able to.”

An illustration by Rosie Butcher

Until she returns to set, though, Deeley finds moments of contentment every day. “The older you get the more you realise it’s the simple things that bring you cheer — laughing at a great joke, that first cup of coffee in the morning, waking up to a sunny day. Sometimes we just need to be reminded of our joyful six-year-old selves.”

Published by Penguin Random House, The Joy in You is priced at ₹1,299