Renowned Writer Visits Library

In the quest to reverse some children’s perceptions about the onerous task of reading, the library of Great Marlow School invited an author to come and talk to the students. Now in the eyes of a child pretty much the only author that springs to mind is David Walliams, perhaps with the odd other famous name thrown in.

“Please Miss, my mum says I have to read some really old famous books that will make me clever, can’t we get Mr Dickens in?”

“No Henry,” cried the librarian, “we cannot invite Dickens in, not unless you want him back as a zombie or vampire and that would never do.”

“Henry, go and see your history teacher, that will be a two hour detention learning about Mr Dickens, deceased.”

Our author was very much alive, arriving slightly bleary eyed from Kent, on time and raring to go. The theme of the talk was ‘Change the Channel’, he believes that changing a book should be as easy as clicking the remote. Now when I set about my quest to find an author the one thing I was looking for was someone who might be able to inspire students to ‘change the channel’. You do not have to keep reading a book you do not like, why would you? Click Click Click, don’t like that one choose another.

I think at this point I should introduce our guest, Mr Tony Lee, New York Times best seller for Graphic Novels, a writer for Dr Who, amongst other things, with many accolades to his name. We have had a few of his books in the library for some time, purely on the basis that the students like them. They are frequently released from the confines of the library to amuse and scare the lucky reader. Hopefully, they are read late at night and under the covers by torchlight as they are those sort of scary tales that make your heart skip.

Mr Lee was what is known as a reluctant reader, no, not even that, he hated books as a child, far too long, too many words full of “blah blah blah”. Until, one day, along came an author to visit his school and his life was transformed, because he realised that he did not have to read books 200 years old, and yes he did have choice, lots of it. Mr Lee strode about the stage, making his pitch and if you look at the photographs on the website you will see that a picture really is worth a thousand words. Every face in a room, of hundreds, really was just looking at him, listening to what he had to say. Feedback has been hugely positive, inspiring, not boring, funny; one of the more creative comments from a Year 7  is, “He drove us along like a hamster on a wheel.”

So apologies Mr Walliams, we love you dearly, but in your absence we will invite Mr Lee in again, and if he happens to bring along a super hero, a villain, or even Dickens caped and fangs bared , we will be entertained and pick up a book, safe in the knowledge we have changed the channel to the right one, the book channel.

Annette Fisher – Librarian