Arsenal and England winger Theo Walcott recently swapped his ball for a pen, so that he could write a series of stories about a footballer called TJ. We chatted to the Premier League star just days before he turned 21 and he told us about books, birthday cake and bad Polish rap.

What are the books about?

I don’t want to give too much away, but the first one is called T.J. and the Hat-Trick. Basically, T.J. goes to a new school and there’s a teacher who wants to manage a team, but they have no facilities to play on. They play their first match with T.J. in goal and then something happens, but I won’t say what. The second book, T.J. and the Penalty, is about finding your best position as a player.

The main character is called T.J., which was your nickname at school. So is T.J. you?

T.J. is very much similar to me. A lot of the stories are true, but some are fictional. It’s a lot of my childhood memories that I plucked out of my memory banks.

What made you want to do the books?

A lot of kids these days play video games and aren’t out as much, so if you relate books to football, hopefully you can encourage more kids to read.

So what can we expect in the future? Sci-fi, crime thrillers, romances…?

I can’t really see that! But hopefully, if the books go well, there could be a cartoon.

What have you most enjoyed reading?

I wasn’t the keenest at reading when I was young, so I didn’t read as much as I should have done. But I remember studying An Inspector Calls. I loved just picturing myself in the character’s shoes. And I remember reading Thierry Henry’s biography. He was my hero and the subject I most wanted to know more about.

Did you read a lot of comic books?

I did now and then. Iron Man was my favourite, but I liked Spider-Man too. I went as Iron Man to a fancy dress party once.

Do people expect miracles from you after your hat-trick against Croatia?

Maybe there was an expectation that I should be scoring a hat-trick every game. It’s still probably the best moment in my career so far. This season has been very frustrating for me with injuries, but I’m fully recovered now and enjoying the last bit of the season.

Arsène Wenger said that you could have been a 100m runner. Do you think you could have made a decent sprinter?

If I had the running style, maybe I could have. I’m glad I didn’t, to be honest. The 100m is probably the best event in athletics, but my running style wasn’t made for it.

Of all of the players that you’ve come up against, who’s been the toughest?

I’d say Man United’s Patrice Evra. He’s playing in one of the best teams in the world and for France. He’s got pace, power and likes to go forward.

Since Thierry Henry is your hero, what did you think when his handball stopped Ireland from qualifying for the World Cup?

He’s a fantastic sportsman and very similar to Zinedine Zidane: a lot of people remember Zidane’s head butt [he was sent off in the 2006 World Cup final] as the last thing about him. For me, it wasn’t right to do and it’s a shame for Ireland. They worked hard and probably deserved to win. Thierry is a fantastic player but it’s very hard to try and support someone when that happens.

What kind of music do you listen to?

I listen to a bit of R ’n’ B, hip-hop or Motown. Anything really. As long as there’s a good beat, I’ll listen to it. I’m very easily pleased!

Which players have bad taste in music?

Lukasz Fabianski. He plays Polish rap that’s probably unbelievable even back in Poland! He offered me his headphones to listen and I threw them straight back. Sorry, Lukasz!

Do a lot of your team-mates play football on consoles?

I play FIFA 10 all the time and I’m just gonna say it: I’m the best in the changing room!

Who’s the worst at it?

Aaron Ramsey, bless him, is the worst at FIFA and he’ll probably accept that. He’s such a nice lad and hopefully he can make a speedy recovery [he broke his leg recently] because potentially he’s a fantastic player for us… just not at FIFA!

Will you be allowed cake on your 21st?

Oh, I’ll have a couple of slices! Our game’s on a Saturday and my birthday’s a Tuesday, so that gives me plenty of time to recover!

T.J. and the Hat-Trick and T.J. and the Penalty will be available from 29 April.