Is it alright to do wrong, to do right?

Spent the morning with Orla Mackey's 4th and 5th Split class (or should that be combined class?) It was a treat. I was greeted with a beautiful rendition of Siyahamba - word perfect they were .. it sounded beautiful. I have videoed part of it and will upload. My camera ran out of space so it stops quite abruptly!

They then had a bag of curiosity containing all their questions and we went through those. Very thought provoking questions, some of which I am still thinking about. For example, 'is it alright to do wrong to do right?' A hard one. We discussed it in the light of the struggle against Apartheid. When Madiba died Ms Mackey and her class spent the entire day talking about him, his work, his history and they have done lovely work on the subject. That's teaching and learning that is lovely to witness.

After that the 4th Class were pitted against the 5th Class in an epic battle. There were a series of pictures held up and they had to identify the connection between each picture and the book (they have started with The Butterfly Heart and are moving onto The Sleeping Baobab Tree next). It was a draw - and the plans were to finish the competition before going home to see whether a winner could be found. I would not have got all the answers ... their knowledge was brilliant!

Finally, each member of the class had brought with them an item that related in some way to the book - this included Djembe drums, melted candles (from a description of HIV/AIDS in the book) a little house made of cardboard that resembled Winifred's house and included a mulberry tree for Winifred as she had expressed a wish for a tree, a beer tankard, a snake (stuffed.. not real), a diary, a rosary, a branch of a tree, a twin sister (!)  and many more. Hugely inventive!

So, all in all a great visit - a mega thank you to Ms Mackey and to everyone in her class. I loved the time I spent with you!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8BRqxD-HPo&feature=youtu.be]

Lubuto Libraries

“When I come to the library I feel like I am coming to a place that is safe, important, no disturbance, no noise, no bullying, no fights…I am a member here.” – Boy at Fountain of Hope, age 11

I have over the past while been in touch with Jane Meyers, the founder of Lubuto Libraries in Zambia, and just wanted to share a little of the work they have been doing there. Much more can be found on their website here and I am not going to repeat it.

I do however want to highlight a couple of the things they do in the hope that readers of this blog will be inspired to go and find out more.

Firstly The Lubuto Collections. A website that has two sections -  a 'Learn to Read' section in the various language groups present in Zambia, and a collection of Zambian stories - again in many different languages, including English. All available online! How brilliant is that? Stories rescued from obscurity, from out of print booklets - and brought back for adults and children alike.

Also, Lubuto Libraries has a particular focus on street children, children without opportunity. The libraries create a space where these children can read, be read to, take part in drama and performing arts and use laptops to learn.  These libraries do not just take random book donations, they gear the libraries towards the needs to the children and donations are accepted accordingly. They are, above all, thoughtful libraries! I cannot do it justice in a short blog post - suffice to say it's a great project - do yourself a favour and take a wander around their website - it is extremely informative. I am delighted that  my own books have found a home in the libraries there.

Here below is Mulenga Kapwepwe, Chairperson of the National Arts Council of Zambia and a Lubuto Library Project Adviser, on the subject of bringing back Zambia's literature.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IWruYnap_U]

Madiba

I, along with millions of other people, learnt last night of the death of Nelson Rolihlala Mandela.  And yes, he was 95 years old and he was very ill so it was not unexpected. But that doesn't matter. He may have been 95 years old, he may have been very ill but he was still himself. And mightily beloved. It is the thing about death, the bald, awful knowledge that that person no longer lives; that we can no longer talk to them, that we cannot hear them. In the case of Madiba there is his family who now know this - a huge extended family, many of whom shared his home. There is his wife, Graca Machel, who has herself lived through such tragedy but also lived a life full and strong. Their loss is inconceivable. For many others not just in South Africa but all over the world, his loss is felt deeply.

Speaking for myself I do not mourn him for his role in the process of reconciliation in South Africa, I do not mourn him for his lack of bitterness, I do not mourn him for his statesmanship. I mourn him for who he was. And I know it is hard to separate the man from the politician, the man from the revolutionary and I am not trying to do that. But it was in his inner life that he was so special. He was a person who loved life. He was a good man. A clever man. A thoughtful man and a kind man. No one was beneath him, and I cannot think of any political leader who matches him in this. And this was not humility, it was a genuine interest in other human beings. He was curious and caring. And funny, really funny. He was not, however, as Saki Macozoma so aptly said tonight, a teddy bear. Madiba had a core of steel and an authority about him that would be remembered by those who crossed him and those who were lead by him. He knew his own mind. With his death we have lost that. Over the past years we have also lost many of the generation who grew up with him: Oliver Tambo, a gentle soul and a fierce revolutionary, Walter Sisulu, softly spoken, highly principled and Govan Mbeki. People like Phyllis Naidoo, people for whom the struggle for justice and for an end to Apartheid was their life. That generation moved to a different tempo and their beliefs shaped the way they lived and shaped the way that South Africa was born. I feel lucky to have been a part of that.

In President Zuma's announcement of Mandela's death he said ' we saw in him what we seek in ourselves.'  and that is so true. I am so sad he is no longer with us, I wish he could have had many more years in freedom. I wish I could turn the clocks back. But we can't - and so I am glad he is at least now free from pain and sadness. And I hope that in some way his death leads to a renewal of vows amongst South Africans - a renewal of the things we do look for in ourselves: kindness, fairness, hope, generosity, honesty and integrity.

Below is a recording of Another Country, a Mango Groove song written at a time when South Africa was on the verge of becoming a democracy. A dark time when many lost their lives. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMmUtvYL4B8]

When she was bad, she was horrid

Saw an interesting comment by Michael Connelly, writer of the Harry Bosch series. On being asked about his Irish roots, he replied: “ Yeah, I have complete Irish roots, and I went to Catholic schools and all of that ....But, you know, I don’t consider myself an Irish crime writer or an American crime writer, I consider myself a storyteller. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that if a character is interesting to the reader, it doesn’t really matter where that character is or where the writer is. That kind of story crosses all oceans and all boundaries.” 

It gets to the nub of writing - it is what we should all be, just story tellers with good characters. Characters that readers are interested in and who they care about. The genre is secondary - it is why good crime fiction does so well (in my view) it is because the stories are so good. Your attention is held. And you have characters in them that you care about (even more so in series where you have a central recurring character - think Jo Nesbo and Harry Hole.)

I am reminding myself here as much as others - I have a tendency to wander off from the story. Sometimes this is good as it leads the story to new places - other times it is just bad (like the little girl who had a little curl right in the middle of her forehead .. when she was good she was very very good, when she was bad she was horrid!). Note - I am not suggesting here that when I am good I am very very good ... it just brought the nursery rhyme into my head. The 'horrid' still stands.

Wandering off in the middle of a story can lose you your reader - which is why I try to keep my reader in my head. They change shape depending on what I am writing - but sometimes they are a very specific person. I read aloud a piece I have written and wonder what they would think of it. It is not to say that I do not write for myself, I do, but that is not enough - I write so others can read - and if I don't think about them I do them a disservice.

Anyway that came into my mind as I was talking to a lovely writers group during the week and it made me, once again, think about writing. The why, the what and the wherefore.

PS It is also about the words and how they are strung together - the last line of this little poem bears that out. Apart from rhyming with forehead, the use of the word horrid is just so perfect!

One Book Project - Kilkenny City Vocational and Grennan College

Really looking forward to working with the students at Grennan College in Thomastown and Kilkenny City Vocational School on a One Book Project with The Sleeping Baobab Tree. I will be working with the English Teachers and students as they do what will hopefully be lots of fun, cross curricular projects around the ideas thrown up by the book.

Last year I spent many satisfying hours working with a Second Year group in Kilkenny VEC on creative writing and was impressed with the work being done at the school - and especially impressed with the work done by the students in my group.

As I understand it a One Book Project allows students to view a work of fiction through the various prisms of their subjects - already I can visualise possibilities in Biology, Geography, English, History, Art, CSPE, music perhaps and Maths ... I hope so. Should be lots of fun and I am looking forward to my part in it all.

Here's a picture of a Baobab tree, apropos of nothing other than the book's title and it is my favourite tree.. and the wide blue sky.

Elmore Leonard

So, Elmore Leonard died today. He lived a good life, long and full. I, for one, spent many hours contentedly reading his books -  his ear for snappy dialogue is second to none. Great writer.

Don’t talk about writing. WRITE!

Previously I wrote a post on the how to books of writing in which I focussed on Elmore Leonard's Ten Rules of Writing. Today it's Ray Bradbury.

Mainly because I am trying to give myself his advice: 'Don’t talk about writing. WRITE!'

I need that advice because when I get an initial idea I talk about it, as it develops I talk about it and then I talk some more. By the time I've finished the book has almost been written (in my head) and I am (almost) bored by it.

So, from here on, I will take his advice as my Rule Number 1.

Perhaps Rule Number 2 should be: Read intensely. Write every day. Then see what happens. Most writers who do that have very pleasant careers. (courtesy Ray Bradbury as well)

It is easy to let the rest of your life get in the way - and mostly there is no reason why it shouldn't as long as there is always a space in your day, wherever you are and whatever you are doing, to fit in some writing. It is not impossible.

I will leave Rule Number 3 for the meantime - I reckon these tow are enough to be getting along with and I need to get to them instead of writing this post!

Writing yourself

I am assuming it is true for all authors, but know that this is true for me: a lot of me has gone into every piece of writing I've done. I am not sure how it could be otherwise. I tried once, as an exercise, to see if I could write something in a genre and style unlike my own - just to see if I could do it. I could, with difficulty, but the result was highly unsatisfactory and when the laptop courteously enquired as to whether I wanted to save it I said no.

Both The Butterfly Heart and The Sleeping Baobab Tree tread on ground familiar to me as a child growing up in Zambia. Writing them has freshened up warm and rich memories and brought them back into the forefront of my mind. I am grateful for that. The other pieces of writing I have been working on are a novella set on Death Row in South Africa prior to the abolition of the death penalty and a full length novel set in South Africa again in the late eighties. Both of these delve into more recent memories of mine and writing them enabled me address the memories and find a place for them.

With the as yet unpublished  full length novel,  called Turn Left at the Camel Thorn Tree, the story allowed me to look at the question of belonging (it's alternate name being Who Here Belongs) and a sense of place. Having lived in many places and never truly been of those places, it is a question that intrigues me.   And I use the word intrigue advisedly, as it does not distress me - just interests me. I feel privileged to have lived in all of the places, including here in Ireland.

With the novella, called No Shoelaces,  the issue is simpler. The novella attempts to take readers into the belly of a place manned by people whose only function is to keep people alive until it is time to kill them. Scheduled date and time. Luckily the place in question now houses a Death Row museum in South Africa. But not so in many other parts of the world. America springs to mind. As does Pakistan which recently ended a five year moratorium and announced plans to execute the 400 prisoners who the government says are under sentence of death. Other groups put the number as high as 8,000. A popular move in Pakistan, something no doubt that Nawaz Sharif is well aware of, but in my view a huge step backwards for the country.

In talking about 'writing yourself' I am not for a moment talking autobiography - it is just that the adage 'write what you know' holds true for me. It is quite simply just easier. And more real. I for one am going to stick to it.

Every Four Seconds

I was struck yesterday by a news item about a UN report that states that the number of refugees in the world is now at a twenty year high - with a person leaving their home to seek refuge and safety every four seconds. Every four seconds. That is the state of our world. Syria alone now accounts for 1.6 million refugees. And world wide 46 percent of refugees are under eighteen - essentially children by our own definition.

So last year approximately 2 million children left their homes, sometimes with parents, sometimes without, to find a safer place to live. Children born into war, prejudice and starvation. These two million joined the seven million who are already out there.

Contrary to the image portrayed by some sectors of the media the majority of these refugees are being supported and looked after by the developing world - 86 percent of all refugees are in the care of the developing world.

And a statistic that took me by surprise, one in four of all refugees is from Afghanistan - and has been for the past 32 years. For 32 years there has been a steady stream of people fleeing Afghanistan in search of safety. A country that the US has spent $636,000,000,000 being at war with (and this number increases every second - see Cost of War website for the figures)

Today is World Refugee Day - the UN has a page detailing how people can help refugees and you can find it here.  Small things can make a difference.

June 16th, Mbuyisa Makhubu and the children.

As part of my writing life I visit a lot of schools and libraries - many of the children I meet are aged eleven, twelve and thirteen. An age at which children should be children with all the freedom that entails. In Soweto in 1976, and in the rest of the country in the years beyond that, children were out on the streets facing grown men in uniform. Men armed with tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition. Children who were often the same age as the children in fifth and sixth Class that I now visit. Hundreds of schoolchildren, who left home that morning in their school uniforms, said goodbye to their parents, perhaps to their siblings and their grandparents and walked to their deaths. The next time their parents would see them would be in Baragwanath hospital or in the morgue.

Brave brave children who took on a system that was set up to humiliate them from birth. A system that ensured they would have no future. A system that had decided they should learn their subjects in Afrikaans in order for them to understand the 'baas' (boss, for those not from SA) when he gave them orders. A system that had declared they would be granted access to an education that would prepare them for a life as 'hewers of wood and drawers of water'.

In June 1976 they took on that system and many of them died for it. The spark that started it was the issue of learning certain key subjects in Afrikaans (introduced in 1974) and this affected both teachers and pupils. The protest started off peacefully, around 15,000 students marched towards Orlando Stadium in Soweto - but police were waiting for them.  It is best remembered by those who were there,and Independent Lens interviewed some of them in this short film . It is worth watching this if only to see the how young some of these little ones were who were taking on what was a very powerful state.

Soweto 1976 Independent Lens PBS

The picture, shown in the film,  that has come to represent June 16th is of Hector Pieterson being carried in the arms of Mbuyisa Makhubu, with Hector's sister at his side. Hector was dying. he was thirteen years old. He, along with Hastings Ndlovu, was one of those shot and killed in that initial volley of fire.  

Mbuyisa's face that haunts me in this picture. It haunts me because of what became of him. 

A year after this photo was taken - an iconic photo by now - Mbuyisa went into exile. He has never returned. No one knows what has happened to him. Stories have been told of him in Nigeria, of him becoming unwell, of him dying - but to date his family do not know what became of him. His mother appeared before the Truth Commission - and her plea at the end of it was:

All of us are going to die but I do want to know how my child died and when did my child die. And I've come here because this is my last hope, that maybe the Commission could help me find out what happened to my child.

She died in 2004 never knowing what had happened to her son.

Gowran National School

Went today to visit 4th Class at Gowran National School here in Kilkenny. They are officially (well, as far as I know!) the first class in the country to have read The Sleeping Baobab Tree. Was a lovely visit, lots of very interesting questions on the book - and they read The Butterfly Heart just before this, so lots of comparative questions. All good! Thank you to their teacher, Emer O'Keeffe, who organised the visit. As music came up in conversation I was also delighted to hear that she had heard my brother's band, Mango Groove, on a visit to South Africa - so for her, I have added in a video of one of their songs.

Here is the class

And here is Mango Groove

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v16CwfkppeI]

Make Me Care - Clues to a great story

SCBWI (The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) is a great organisation. There is a chapter of it here in Ireland and similar ones all over the world. It was founded in LA in 1971 by a group of children's writers and has gone from strength to strength since then. One of its services to writers is a magazine they bring out every two months, the SCBWI Bulletin - and without fail it is jam packed full of useful information, opinion pieces and reviews. It is an invaluable resource.

This month one of the articles is entitled TED Talks that May Change the Way You Work, Think and Live. For those who don;t know TED go and take a look - http://www.ted.com/ It's tagline is: Riveting talks by remarkable people - free to the world! And so it is.

One of the talks mentioned in the SCBWI article is by Andrew Stanton - The Clues to a Great Story. Definitely worth a look. He makes many valuable points in his talk but one of them stands out. To quote - 'When you're telling a story, make me care. Please. Emotionally, intellectually, aesthetically. Make me care.'

How true is that? Of any story in any genre any format and for any age. Perfectly true.

Anyway, will not transcribe the whole talk but worth a look and a listen. Lots to be learned.

Many other links recommended to TED talks in the article - including those on the Power of Introverts, Ken Robinson on Education, Jill Taylor on accessing the creative, bliss filled part of our brain and Elizabeth Gilbert on Your Elusive Creative Genius. .

And all for free!

Gobblefunked

A lovely review just in of The Butterfly Heart courtesy of the crew at Gobblefunked (great name!) in Australia.  Have put the review in below but you can find it on their website at gobblefunked. Go and take a look, lots of reviews! THE BUTTERFLY HEART

JUNE 9, 2013 BY LC

Zambia is the butterfly in the heart of Africa, and like a butterfly it is beautiful but fragile.

Within reading the first few pages of Paula Leyden’s debut novel The Butterfly Heart (2011), it is not difficult to imagine you are sitting beneath a baobab tree on a warm Zambian evening. Leyden effortlessly describes the sights, sounds and smells of Zambia and contrasts their beauty against the phenomenon of child brides.

Bul-Boo and her twin sister Madillo could not be any more different if they tried. They squabble about anything and everything, sometimes not talking for days. But when their school friend Winifred becomes withdrawn and unlike her usual bubbly self in class, they unite to get to the bottom of it. It seems young Winifred has a dark secret. One that will change her life forever. She is to be married off to her cruel uncle’s friend. A man old enough to be her grandfather and thirsty enough to drink all the beer in town. Time is running out and it is up to Bul-Boo, Madillo and their neighbour, Fred, to save their friend before she loses her childhood, innocence and future.

After much contemplation, the school friends decide to ask the local snake man, Ifwafwa, for help. A mysterious old storyteller, Ifwafwa is a very wise man who knows evil and how it can quickly erode a young person’s life. He is very fond of Winifred and knows that he must act to save her from the forced marriage awaiting her. He sees the sadness and pain in her mother’s eyes, a woman who is a shadow of her former self after the death of her husband and the violence she endures daily. He wants to help give her and young Winifred a voice. Bul-Boo knows of Ifwafwa’s power but also of the sluggish nature of his decision making. Impatient as ever, she is getting restless but she must learn to trust in a higher power and in the wise old man.

Ifwafwa. Yes, that’s what they call me. The Puff Adder. Slow and heavy, but fast to strike.

Winner of the 2012 Eilis Dillion Award, this book is a wonderful introduction to Zambian culture and human rights issues. Leyden was born in Kenya and spent her childhood in Zambia, something which is evident in her lyrical writing and vivid imagery. She is respectful of the traditions of this beautiful country but is well aware of the many problems facing it today and the effect these problems will have on future generations. Steeped in history and witchcraft, this book is a wonderful debut novel and leaves readers wanting more. Thankfully, Leyden’s second book, The Sleeping Baobab Tree was released in May 2013 and it revisits the school friends on their next adventure.

Writing and David Bowie

Watched a brilliant documentary the other evening on David Bowie entitled Five Years. What was consistently striking about it was his dedication to his craft and the fact that he constantly evolved and changed what he was doing. Musically he never stood still - as evidenced by the extraordinary variety in his music throughout his life right up to his recent release The Next Day.

Like him or hate him there is a lot to admire about him and a lot to be reminded about as writers.

Number one is discipline. The discipline to sit down and write, to research, to promote, to learn more  about the craft - but above all to write.  To use the time that you have (and this varies for everyone, it can be snatched moments between work, children, daily life or it can be unfettered time) in the best way. It is a mega cliché but time passes and once it has gone it has gone - so you owe it to yourself as a writer to use it well.

Number two is to make sure that with each project you take on you extend your abilities, move yourself on - go forward. This is no different than in any type of work or occupation if you are lucky enough to be working in an area that allows for this - take yourself to the next level. Make it better. Stretch your brain. Never be satisfied. In writing we can do this as it is self directed, it is up to us as writers to manage what we do and how we do it.

Number three is cooperation - and this is different for musicians than for writers. The evolution of a song is very different to the evolution of a novel. Writing is a solitary occupation - but it does not have to be lonely. Being part of a writers group is one way of cooperating - or getting the corners rubbed off you! Sharing your writing with a partner, your children, writing friends, illustrators is another. This is not for everyone. I know of writers who work till its done and then let it out into the light. I am not like that - I like feedback, I think it improves my writing.

And Number Four is I suppose be true to yourself. To do this you have to know yourself, but when you do be true to who your are. Because it shows.

Now I just have to go and remind myself to listen to my own advice - far easier to give advice than to follow it.

Book Titles

The title of a book is so important - and not many people have titles as consistently good as Gabriel Garcia Marquez (in my humble opinion) - and I suppose that is linked to the fact that not many people write as well as he does (again ... in my humble opinion..) Think of these:

Love in the time of Cholera

One Hundred Years of Solitude

Chronicle of a Death Foretold

The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World

No-one writes to the Colonel

Memories of my Melancholy Whores.

The General in his Labyrinth

Other titles I like, from other authors

Up in Honey's Room - Elmore Leonard

The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver

Of Mice and Men - Steinbeck

And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street - Dr Seuss

Death is a lonely business - Ray Bradbury

Dandelion Wine - Ray Bradbury

Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe

Looking for Transwonderland - Noo Saro Wiwa

OK I'll stop now ... but it is a hard thing getting a title right, and it does matter!

First Review in of The Sleeping Baobab Tree

The indefatigable Mary Esther Judy over at Fallen Star Stories (and Dubray Books Galway) has just written (on a public holiday - dedication beyond compare) a beautiful review of The Sleeping Baobab Tree. Thank you Mary Esther - I am so pleased it spoke to you in this way!

THE SLEEPING BAOBAB TREE

Author: Paula Leyden

ISBN: 9781406327939

Walker Books

Sister Leonisa is always telling her students grim and gruesome stories. One day, she tells them all about Ng’ombe Ilede… the place of the sleeping cow; the place of death. As Bul-boo and Madillo arrive home filled with her horror stories, next-door neighbour Fred (himself always full of tales of woe) informs them he is to go to that very spot with his fearsome witch great-granny, Nokokulu. Also, that night they learn that patients from their mothers’ AIDS clinic are mysteriously vanishing; one of the vanished just happens to be Freds’ wonderful Aunt Kiki. Is all of this a strange coincidence or fate? With Bul-boo and Madillo stowing away in the boot of the car, Nokokulu drives a doom-laden Fred out into the Zambian wilds for an encounter with mystery and magic the three will never forget. At the sleeping baobab tree, anything could happen.

It is such a joy to return to the lives of Bul-boo and her twin Madillo in the butterfly heart of Africa. Leyden’s descriptive text gives full texture to the place, the people and the beliefs of Zambia with a strength that allows the reader to believe they are there. While Bul-boo and Madillo again provide a sense of the duality of human nature; the pragmatic meeting the superstitious; this story primarily belongs to Fred, who struggles with his inbuilt sense of impending disaster at every turn. The relationship between the three friends provides a strong, yet easy dialogue with the aspects of loyalty, mystery, common sense and confusion that make up their emerging world-view. Add to this the frightening and yet stabilising character of Nokokulu, a symbol of roots and tradition as strong as the ancient Sleeping Baobab Tree, and we have an impressive dialogue with a social structure in conflict with itself; which of the old way to keep and which to throw away; how to move fully into the contemporary world and remain who we truly are; a quality that allows the story to easily relate wherever the reader may live.

It may seem that these are heavy, burdensome concepts for young readers to take on, but not at all. The story is not weighed down by messages or agendas. It is adventurous, mysterious and humourous. The friendships are tangible. The characters are identifiable and become easily lodged in the readers’ hearts and memories. The situations in which the friends find themselves are believable and are depicted from a child’s-eye view that never speaks down to the reader, but leads them through a wondrous and heart-felt journey.  As with Leyden’s first book; ‘The Sleeping Baobab Tree’ is simply beautiful, and an absolute joy; a rare and wonderful gift.

(Note: There are teaching notes available for both of Paula Leyden’s books, making them ideal novels for class use.)

The Sleeping Baobab launched

Only getting round to putting up a few pictures of this now. Was a lovely launch - great crowd and they all seemed merry! Lots of family there, plus members of my writing group Gemma Hussey and Jean Flitcroft, plus members of my young writers group from the Kilkenny Vocational School, a spectacular cake made by Nicky Read of Nicky's Cakes and all taking place at the wonderful Stonehouse Books. A big thank you to Liz, Tara and Claire for all the work, and to Palmyra Restaurant for the delicious food. Best hummus I've tasted. Also great to see Dubray Books well represented at the launch with their children's book club, and The Book Centre as well! As I have said many times we are blessed with our booksellers. Conor Hackett, the Walker Rep in Ireland was down from Dublin - thanks Conor for making the trip and for being part of such a wonderful publisher. I was lucky to have Tom my partner there - author of Old Friends,  and all our children - Amy, Christie, Kate, Aisling and Maurice, as well as my parents and a great representation of the O'Neill clan. Christie, as you will see from the pics, did the reading - far better than I could have done. Greatly appreciated. And Gemma spoke as well before I mumbled my thanks! So, a big thank you to everyone who was there - and to the two visitors to Kilkenny who wandered in from the street wondering what the hubbub was about and then bought a copy of the book! An unusual memory of a visit to Ireland, the launch of a book set in Zambia.

The Wondrous Kilkenny Bookshops

What is not love about the Kilkenny bookshops? Stonehouse Books, The Book Centre and Dubray books all with beautiful window displays of The Sleeping Baobab Tree! How privileged am I, as an author, to be living in a city like this? And not just bookshops - but bookshops staffed by dedicated and passionate booksellers. Couldn't ask for more.

St. John's and The Butterfly Heart

As mentioned in the last post I spent a while last week in St. John's School, Kilkenny. Below you will find some examples of the work Ms. Mackey's class has been doing on The Butterfly Heart. One of the groups did an Alphabet Book - they used every letter of the alphabet in words relevant to the book. I cannot scan the whole thing in so have just put in two pages to give you an idea. That group was Patrick, Katie, Lenka, Tony and Liam. The other groups have their names on the pages.

Thank you again, all of you, for the effort you have put into reading and understanding the book. I hope one day some of you might get a chance to visit Zambia and see it for yourself.

Beat the Author

Yesterday I spent some time with two Fifth classes at St. John's School here in Kilkenny. A treat it was. For the first hour I was with Orla Mackey's class (she of the Wondrous Teaching Notes fame!) . They have finished the book and as part of my visit Orla had organised a Beat The Author Quiz. Essentially it was Me vs. the world - being tested on my own book! Under normal circumstances you would be forgiven for thinking that this was a slam dunk - who would know their book better than the author? Well, I'll you who - Ms. Mackey's Fifth Class. I scarcely had time to even think about ringing my bell, let alone answering the very hard questions,  before someone in the class had the answer. We ended up in a draw but only because some very kind students took pity on me and joined my team.

The children had lots of questions and also read out for me some of their work - which ranged from eulogies for various characters (literally brought a tear to my eye) to an oral history of Ifwawa to poems, an alphabet, a last will and testament - endless things and every one of them wonderfully done.

As a finale Gary, who was the winner of the 'Talk for as long as you can about Butterfly Heart' competition (a pause of four seconds and you were out!) stood up and spoke about the book. Two minutes and fifty one seconds later he stopped. He was brilliant! I heard later that he he performed this for another teacher and FIFTEEN minutes later he was still talking. A remarkable feat, well done Gary! I also got to hear about Merrylegs, a wonderful little pony who belongs to Tony - Merrylegs is lucky to have such a knowledgeable and careful owner.

So, thank you Ms. Mackey's Fifth Class - I loved the time I spent with you and am sure one day I will be back.

I will write about Mr. Roche's class again when they have finished the book as I promised them I would come back into to talk to them. What surprised me though was that even though they are only half way through the book they had lots of very interesting and thoughtful questions for me - they really made me think. So I am looking forward to a return trip where I can take some photos of their  work and chat to them some more.