Hi, my name is Sarah Bankuti and I live in Newmarket, Ontario with our daughters, Alice, Aviv and Gwen.

Before becoming an author I was a nanny and childcare provider. My time was spent reading children’s books, making up games and stories with the children I looked after.

When our daughter Alice, was 10 months old we rushed her to Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto and after staying for 3 days we found out she has a brain tumor in her cerebellum. I remember hearing the doctors say she had brain cancer but I could not understand it – she was so young, how was that possible? We lived in and out of Hospital for the next few months and after the shock wore off I started looking for books for her. Books to help her with what she would go through. The doctors said because of the nature of her brain tumor she would be on and off treatment for a very long time. Yes she will lose her hair at some point. Yes she will be on chemotherapy and then inhibitors. If they do not work the next step would be radiation. I realized she will not have a easy or normal childhood- I wanted to collect as many books for Alice that would help her with everything.

After a few weeks of searching I was really disappointed. I found hardly any books. I was even struggling to find books where the main characters didn’t have long beautiful hair, let alone no hair. Alice loved Disney Princesses, so at night I started to make up stories about a Princess just like her – a brave Princess that also has a port and travels to an enchanted forest to see the healers every week.  A princess that is sad when she loses her hair, but then she finds out about hair fairies and that being bald is the sign of a warrior. A princess that defeats night monsters by making them laugh. 

My husband suggested I look into getting my stories published. I started writing down my stories and each character is based on a child we have come to know that we have lost or is still on their healing path. I hired an amazing editor, Brooke Vitale who help my stories flow. Kristina Dutton’s illustrations brought my characters to life.

Watching my daughter see the books and Princess Lily for the first time will always stay in my mind. She straight away pointed at her port and was so happy that their was a Princess just like her.

Alice is now 5 years old and has a little sister, Aviv, who adores her at 2 years old. Alice completed 17 months of chemotherapy and is having a break from treatment. We know she will need more treatment or surgery at some point, right now though I love that she can be a child again. She has MRI’s every 3 months and then we wait anxiously for the results. Alice is my Princess Lily. A brave, strong warrior Princess.