National Year of Reading

I'm grateful to have been able to make a contribution to this event, thanks to Drum at Southgate Publishers and actor Edmund Pegge. It is quite different from the usual run of dressing up to a theme or having an author visit a library or school. It is about that most important start to reading - being read to.

Being read to is a memory given to me by my mother and passed on to my children and it is a memory I would wish for every person on this earth. That warm, fun and loving moment between caring adult and developing child is a basic building block to any future.

The key is not to get precious about what you read but to make sure you enjoy the whole experience on a regular basis. That is what we've created - a little booklet of tips and techniques called How to Enjoy Reading Aloud to young children. Various literacy professionals said it couldn't be done but sales of thousands to libraries, schools and early years centres round the United Kingdom say otherwise - such a delicious experience.

If you want to see it go to www.southgatepublishers.co.uk

Thanks to the Crediton Courier for this photo of the launch of Enjoy Reading Aloud