David Higginbottom (14 October 1923 – 10 May 2016), pen name Nicholas Fisk, was a British writer of science fiction books, mainly for children. His works include Grinny, You Remember Me, Space Hostages, and Trillions. He also wrote the Starstormers series of novels. Fisk died in May 2016 at the age of 92. Early life Fisk was born in London. His father, William, author of Frightfulness in Modern Art (1928), was an artist and art teacher. His mother was the sister of the Irish actor Micheál Mac Liammóir. He was educated at Ardingly College, West Sussex. Books Space Hostages A group of children are kidnapped by a critically ill Flight Lieutenant aboard a top secret spacecraft. Left to command the ship alone, they struggle to return safely home. The book explores the dynamics of the global cold war and interpersonal relationships between the children. Published in 1967. Trillions A mysterious shower of tiny crystals fall all over Earth. No-one knows where they came from, or what their purpose is, but they certainly behave strangely. Bonding together they mimic strange, and sometimes threatening, shapes. A boy with a microscope is just as likely to find out the answers as all the scientific pundits. Published 1971. Grinny Grinny deals with a normal family in middle England whose lives change when they are visited by aliens. The alien takes the form of an apparently benign elderly relative who can play mind tricks on the adults in the family but decides not to use this method on the children (although the sequel You Remember Me has the second alias used by these aliens, 'Lisa Treadgold' announcing that this decision was for the purposes of studying human children in what her race deemed to be a natural unaltered state. They do not bother with this process in their second attempt). This Granny-esque figure is eventually caught out by the children's ingenuity (they realise she is no normal human being when she expects what they describe to her as a "cast-iron conker" to be made of cast iron). Published 1973. Animated as an episode of CBS Storybreak. You Remember Me In You Remember Me, the same breed of aliens from the previous book, Grinny, return to Earth and make another attempt to take over the planet, this time by inhabiting an attractive television presenter who can apply her mind tricks to many thousands as she presents