Award winning children’s author Meg Rosoff recently joined pupils, teachers and librarians in Farnborough to launch Reading Force, a scheme that aims to encourage reading groups among Forces families and friends and with their local communities.
Meg, is best known for her novel How I Live Now, which won the Guardian Award (2004) and is currently in pre-production for a film to be directed by Kevin MacDonald (Last King of Scotland and Touching the Void). It was also shortlisted for the 2004 Whitbread Awards. Her second novel, Just In Case, won the prestigious Carnegie Medal in 2007. She is a keen supporter of the Reading Force initiative.
“The venture is also supported by 145 (South) Brigade, Hampshire County Council, Rushmoor Borough Council and Kingston University,” said project leader Alison Baverstock, from Kingston University. She has extensive experience in managing local reading projects and is herself a forces wife.
Reading Force aims to bring together groups of family and friends who would discuss the same book (or books) and record their responses in a single scrapbook. Participants – ideally minimum three, maximum eight – may be from a single family or several families; if possible several generations should be included and additional friends within the local community.
“The scheme aims to encourage reading, writing about reading, and the pleasure to be gained from improved self-knowledge, and the communication skills that result,” said Alison Baverstock. “It is aimed at everyone with Service links. This is a specifically Aldershot and district has benefitted from strong support from schools and libraries that have many Services children within their community.
“Forces families are often separated by training and overseas postings and it is sometimes hard for them to feel part of a stable community. Reading Force will help reinforce a sense of belonging. Reading, and talking about reading, is fun, brings families and communities closer together. Crucially, those on operational tour will also be involved and contribute,” said Alison.
Participants will use the pre-printed scrapbooks that will have information on how the scheme runs and showing what might be inserted and where. Each completed scrapbook would include the entire group’s feedback about the chosen book and provide a permanent record of the project. Producers of the best and most creative scrapbooks will receive attractive prizes, including family tickets for Thorpe Park. Children’s author Alan Gibbons will attend the prize-giving day in September.
