Genius blues
There’s something spine-tickling about seeing a Michelangelo sculpture in the flesh, or rather pale, silky […]
Bridges over troubled waters
What a time of walls. As a Brit living in Ireland, it’s been the saddest […]
Brave new worlds
Books that come to life to fight leprechauns, one-legged grannies with swords made from verrucas, […]
Momentous
The dictionary defines momentous as ‘very important or significant, especially in having a bearing on […]
The eyes have it
The French writer and all round clever-clogs Montaigne described a close shave at his 16th […]
What makes a great pupil?
Teachers are easy to grade; we’ve all had good and bad ones. But pupils? We […]
What makes a great teacher?
Even though schooldays last a fraction of a lifetime (a sixth if you start school […]
Galway Dreams
I was in Dubray Bookshop in Galway for World Book Day (Days, thanks to the […]
World Class
One of the highlights about being a children’s writer in Ireland is – you’ve guessed […]
Hooray for Grey
Wouldn’t it be easy if everything in life was yes or no, black or white, […]
Inside Out
There seem to be as many voices proclaiming about the refugee crisis as there are […]
Books and beyond: stories for everyone
Saving the universe from evil flying books with the 4th class heroines of St Vincent […]
Imagine-a-nation
I love the idea from writer Taiye Selasi that she doesn’t come from a particular […]
Crumlin Fun
Hooray for the wonderful Crumlin teachers. Hospital can be a scary place for the most […]
Scuppering Silence
Words are amazing. Even if you disagree and say they’re boring they’re amazing, because without […]
And the good news is …
We’re just back from South Africa, that miracle of a country – though you wouldn’t […]
Class Act
Huge thanks to Mercier Press and Barker & Jones bookshop for contributing proceeds from the […]
Class Act Launch
All invited to the launch of Class Act on May 9th. Hope you can make […]
Washing feet gives you wiiings
I’ve never given feet much thought. Mine are mercifully far away, rarely cause trouble and […]
Class Act
My new book’s arrived on the doorstep, shiny and exciting and just a bit scary. […]