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Six leading Kiwi writers and illustrators kept dozens of students enthralled and entertained during a whistle-stop tour of local schools and colleges on Monday, August 18.
The authors were taking part in this year’s Northland Region Story Tour, organised by the Storylines Trust to promote awareness of the importance of reading and books for all children and young adults.
Leading the tour and driving the bus was long-time Storylines advocate, former Mahurangi East Library manager and Snells Beach resident Anne Dickson, who is also national capability facilitator for the National Library of NZ’s Schools Services.
First stop was Warkworth, where illustrator and graphic artist Isobel Te Aho-White and fantasy, romance and young adult sci-fi writer Rachel Craw visited Mahurangi College, while writer and comedian Sam Smith and poet, editor and writer Jane Arthur were at both campuses of Warkworth Primary School.
Along with author and poet Apirana Taylor and translator Kanapu Rangitauira, the tour then headed north to visit several more schools and colleges, including those at Pakiri, Wellsford, Tapora, Maungaturoto and Otamatea.
Dickson said while the main aim of the tour was to inspire school staff and students with the magic of reading and storytelling, meeting published authors also had a wider impact.
“It’s not just about writing, drawing and the creative process, it’s the relativity as well,” she said while visiting Warkworth.
“The sharing of emotions and experiences sometimes has as much impact or even more than the actual story.”
Warkworth School Librarian Laura Le Roux agreed.
“It can often be a case of ‘if they can do it, we can too’, and if you can inspire even one kid to become a writer, it’s worth it,” she said.
