Pupils, librarians and teachers from 10 schools, gathered in the Main Hall at Latymer Upper School, to celebrate the inaugural Trinity Schools Book Awards.
Students from 14 of the 22 schools in the Trinity Group of independent schools in the South East took part in the book awards this year. They read the Junior or Senior Award shortlists, voting for their favourite, and entering student competitions for the best responses to the books.
Joining the festivities were a stellar list of award-winning writers including: Paul Dowswell (author of Eleven Eleven); Judith Kerr (author of When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit); Lindy McKinnel (for Robert Westall, author of The Machine Gunners); Bea Ballard (daughter of J. G. Ballard, author of Empire of the Sun); and Elizabeth Wein (author of Code Name Verity ). A thrilling surprise visit from Michael Morpurgo (author of Private Peaceful) – who had just stepped off a plane from Dubai – added more stardust to the Awards Ceremony.
When asked which book he wished he had written, Michael Morpurgo, without pausing for a second to reflect, replied, “Tolstoy’s War and Peace.”
Ms McCargar, Librarian at Latymer Upper said,
“TheTrinity group librarians created this themed book award in order to promote reading for pleasure in our schools, and we’ve been so encouraged by the response. … Michael Morpurgo’s arrival excited the whole Hall. I hope the buzz will inspire even more students and teachers to take part next year.”
