THE blend of humour, warmth and wisdom Allene Norris stirred into her book Grannies Like Us obviously struck a chord and it became a local bestseller.

Now the grandmother of four, who lives in Darlington, is amazed to be receiving requests for and comments on her book from the four corners of the globe.

"I'm astonished to find that I'm on about 45 websites," she says. "I've had people contact me from France, Germany, Canada, Australia and even Saudi Arabia. I've been asked to go and do a book signing in Cyprus."

Allene's next project is to get a series of children's bedtime stories into the shops.