Mar 06 - World Book Day Explores the Talents of Local Authors
World Book Day has long been a well-celebrated event in the UK with annual handouts of book tokens to schools, dress ups, book signings, book fairs, and an extensive programme of activities aimed at influencing school children to read.
The World Book Day Charity sends out an activity pack and programme to schools around the UK, outlining events and activities that can be carried out throughout the day. With sponsorship from National Book Tokens Ltd school children receive book tokens to help towards purchasing books. Children are also encouraged to dress as their favourite fictional characters and many schools invite authors to speak, read to children, and hold signings.
In Gibraltar, the event has grown exponentially over the past few years. Book Crossing events, organised by the Ministry for Culture, have developed massively, Kimberly Andres, the John Mackintosh Hall Library Manager tells YGTV. The event sees individuals donate books and then take any they may want to read, free of charge. In larger book crossing events across the world, books can even be tracked as they make their way between readers and occasionally end up in strange corners of the World. Today's scheme saw books donated by the library, following an extensive haul of new books bought by the Ministry for Culture. Book Crossing has once again been an integral part of World Book Day in Gibraltar, but the addition of the Local Author’s book fair has given the event a slightly more alluring spin.
This morning’s well attended fair displayed works by a scope of writers, including former civil servant and casual historian Richard Garcia, whose love for historical postcards spurred the development of his extremely successful book ‘Gibraltar Through the Lens’, which follows the evolution and changing faces of Gibraltar postcards. The book features digitalized photographs of his own extensive collection and has sold extremely well in local book stores Sacarello’s and WH Smith.
Mr. Garcia also showcased his further publications, which include a Government commissioned collective history of the Gibraltar Savings Bank and a book on the development of currency in Gibraltar.
Keen traveller Vinod Mahbubani chronicled his 6-month trip around the World in a travel book dubbed ‘The Journey’. The book is aimed at interested potential travellers and those looking at booking an extended trip around the world, detailing hints and tips on how to budget, how to research and how to achieve the best experience possible. He noted that readers had claimed the story has pushed them into booking their own trip.
Vinod’s story follows him and his partner’s trip across 70,000 kilometers, with the journey beginning in Boston, USA and continuing through North America, South America, the Pacific, and Australia. The book is available on Amazon and in a host of local bookshops, and can even be found up the Coast where it is often used by teachers to teach English to Spanish students. Commenting on publishing, Vinod urged those interested in publishing their own work do research the matter thoroughly. He used a company in America which essentially self publishes.
Former Head of Administration for Gibtelecom, Malcolm Beanland today showcased his book on the evolution of telecommunications in Gibraltar, at this morning’s local author’s fair. Gibraltar Calling!... came about from an extensive knowledge in telecommunications gained from 40 years in the industry. He insisted that he wrote the book to have on record Gibraltar’s entry into the industry in the 1880s, and the development of telecommunications, including the move to the City Council in the 1920s and the merging with the Gibraltar Government in 1969.
As a participant and volunteer for previous book crossing events in Gibraltar, Malcolm welcomed this new addition to the World Book Day celebrations. He insisted that Gibraltar does have many authors to show off. He also
displayed his daughter’s works; a trilogy of paranormal, romance novels following a community that survives an atomic bomb, resulting in many individuals mutating into Vampire like sub humans. The novels are extremely popular on Amazon, with the last in the trilogy launched at the Garrison Library late last year. Venessa Wester currently lives in the Isle of Wight and also collaborates with other authors on short stories.
During the morning, students of St. Mary’s First school visited the book fair, all donning Dr. Zeus costumes. The school, similarly to other First and Middle schools around Gibraltar carried out a day of activities centered around World Book Day. Many of the children attended the story reading session at the John Mackintosh Hall, headed by actress Angela Jenkins. Organiser, Kimberly Andres was pleased to see the annual event grow this year, a
nd explained that she’d love to see the entire venue used next year, with more integration with the schools’ World Book Day programmes.
Bishop Fitzgerald Middle School’s Year 10 students were this afternoon graced with a reading by children’s book author Lorraine Mace, whose family lives in Gibraltar. Lorraine read from her new story ‘Vlad the Inhale,r’ which chronicles a small asthmatic boy with a Vampire father. When the boy’s parents disappear and his father’s Vampire family take over the castle, Vlad is forced to overcome his many fears and endure adversity. The book will be released online and in the UK in early April and Lorraine hopes to make the story, along with her other publications available in local bookshops.
Displaying her works at this morning’s author’s fair, Lorraine spoke to YGTV about her series of crime books which have proved extremely popular having been shortlisted in the final of the People’s Book Prize and gaining a nomination for the Crime Writer’s Association’s Dagger Award.
Lorraine spends her days tutoring amateur writers and is based on the Costa Del Sol. She hopes to soon bring her teaching abilities to Gibraltar and host courses for interested writers and novelists.
