[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-world-book-day-and-the-leicester-pirates":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"The city of Leicester is so motivated to get its kids reading that, for \u003Ca href=\"http://www.worldbookday.com/\">World Book Day\u003C/a>, it hosts a \u003Cb>WHOLE WEEK of Author Events!\u003C/b> So I arrived at the rail station with my pirate gear and greeted \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Cook\">Thomas Cook\u003C/a>, originator of the first package holidays and, on the next morning, headed to the Leicester Tigers rugby stadium for a day of pirate shenanigans. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/Leicester_zpsbcebde62-4491dab120.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://www.whatever-it-takes.org.uk/teachers\">Author Week\u003C/a> brings in two visiting authors per day, speaking and doing workshops with \u003Cb>400 kids\u003C/b> each, 200 in the morning, 200 in the afternoon. I was glad to find out the other author on my day was writer \u003Ca href=\"http://www.visitingauthor.com/Home.html\">John Dougherty\u003C/a>, fellow \u003Ca href=\"http://www.societyofauthors.org/childrens-writers-and-illustrators-group\">CWIG\u003C/a> committee member at the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.societyofauthors.org/\">Society of Authors\u003C/a>. (Which means we sit in Kensington every couple months and eat biscuits together and rant about underfunded libraries and things.) Each child gets their own book to take home, so John and I signed \u003Cb>A LOT of books!\u003C/b>\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_wit_johnsarah_zps23cadab5-4ead6c7a72.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMy school groups were kids aged 5 to 7, and I had them draw with me \u003Cb>Captain Waffle\u003C/b> from \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jabberworks.co.uk/you-cant-scare-a-princess/\">\u003Ci>You Can't Scare a Princess!\u003C/a>\u003C/i>, and then design their own pirates. \\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_1_zps145569bb-ceb62025a5.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for lots more under the cut!-->\\r\nIf you want to find out more about it, here's an \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/Booking-time-authors/story-18313879-detail/story.html#ixzz2MaTVHUNC\">article about Author Week\u003C/a> in the \u003Ci>Leicester Mercury\u003C/i>. They're bringing in more than 4000 kids, no mean feat! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_wit_sarah_zpscf7f3dec-de3b6efed5.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nA huge thanks for massive organisational wranglings to \u003Cb>Ellen Lee\u003C/b> and the team from Leicester's \u003Ca href=\"http://www.whatever-it-takes.org.uk/\">Whatever It Takes\u003C/a> scheme: whatever it takes to get kids reading. You can friend \u003Ca href=\"http://www.facebook.com/whateverit.takes.7?fref=ts\">WiT on Facebook here\u003C/a> and follow them on Twitter as \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/LeicesterWiT\">@LeicesterWiT\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/LeicesterWiT_team_zpsfbaa5952-6b9755ceea.jpg\">\\r\n\u003Ci>Clockwise from top left: Ellen Lee, me, storyteller of tall tales, librarian and linguist extraordinaire \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/418582.html\">Jyoti Shanghavi\u003C/a>, head of \u003Ca href=\"http://sdsa.net/about-us/who-we-are\">School Development Support Agency\u003C/a> \u003Cb>Pete Chilvers\u003C/b>, and my lovely and super-helpful assistant \u003Cb>Katie Little\u003C/b>\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\nAnd a pirate gallery!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_2_zps6bc65dcf-6ac15ba9ce.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI didn't catch everyone's names or schools, but I'll mention those I know: the one on the right here is a 5-year-old from \u003Ca href=\"http://www.overdale-inf.leicester.sch.uk/\">Overdale Infant School\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_4_zps30a5cdcb-227ccdfd42.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLeft: a 6-year-old at \u003Ca href=\"http://www.braunstonefrith-inf.leicester.sch.uk/\">Braunstonr Frith Infant School\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_6_zpsb85a96ec-7211f6d5b3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_3_zps7a163c71-1166511084.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLeft: 6-year-old from \u003Ca href=\"http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/thurnby-lodge-primary-school-leicester\">Thurnby Lodge Primary School\u003C/a>, right: 6-year-old from Braunstone Frith\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_7_zps1067cf0e-2175dd7339.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLeft: 6-year-old from \u003Ca href=\"http://www.kingrichards.leicester.sch.uk/\">King Richard Infant School\u003C/a>, right: 7-year-old from King Richard\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_5_zps43b55024-d24dfdaa52.jpg\">\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_pirates_3_zps7a163c71-1166511084.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's a little guide if you fancy a go at it! You can also download fun, free colour-cut-and-paste \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jabberworks.co.uk/you-cant-scare-a-princess/\">Design Your Own Pirate sheets\u003C/a> off my website. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/draw_capn_waffle1-18265044d3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWhile our groups were drawing pirates, John's group was drawing giants! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_giants_zps3f51bbae-f91fa53c56.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThe night before our events, local Leicester author \u003Cb>Steve Skidmore\u003C/b> (of \u003Ca href=\"http://the2steves.net/\">The TWo Steves\u003C/a>) took a bunch of us out for yummy Indian food and Bollywood decor at \u003Ca href=\"http://www.paddysmarteninn.co.uk/ \">Paddy's Marten Inn\u003C/a>, where we talked a lot about comics.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_skidmore_dought_zps35df844a-ad3a050047.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's Steve's partner, \u003Cb>Ali\u003C/b>, and Leicester comics friend \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/selinalock\">Selina Lock\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/SignorFurioso\">Jay Eales\u003C/a>, who for years were part of the planning committee for Oxford's \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/501382.html\">Caption comics festival\u003C/a> and who have edited comics at their own small-press publishing house, \u003Ca href=\"http://factorfictionpress.co.uk/webcomic/\">Factor Fiction\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/leicester_ali_selina_jay_zps3d284685-f73d5e5e5d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOh, the Bollywood Wall of Heart-throbs was might fine. I like Leicester very much! :D \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/paddys_martens_1_zps61c95980-6bcd50bba0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOn a Leicester-related note, my fab studio mate, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.whodunnknit.com/\">Deadly Knitshade\u003C/a>, has been talking to the Huffington Post: \u003Ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/03/05/guerrilla-knitting-used-police-leicestershire-_n_2810094.html?utm_hp_ref=uk\">Will graffiti knitting make Leicester safer?\u003C/a>","2013-03-05T11:12:00.000Z","world-book-day-and-the-leicester-pirates",[],"world book day and the leicester pirates",1776628724849]