When I was about 13 or so, my teachers began an assault on my imagination. My English teacher was the first. During a library session, he told us all to go find a book, read it for a while, and then at the end of the lesson to read out the opening page. I picked The Hobbit. It was something I'd read lots of times before and found … [Read more...]
Pencil case envy
It’s the last weekend before my kids go back to school. When I was a kid, this was the most dreaded weekend of the year. I loathed school, and that loathing was never more acute than after six weeks of summer holidays. They say you can’t remember pain, but I very clearly remember the fear I felt the day before I started secondary school as a … [Read more...]