The audience was treated to a literary feast at the inaugural book festival

Page 11 headline: Stories brought to life at Wee Mac book festival

Words and pictures by Colin Smeeton

Arran school pupils and visiting families were treated to an audience of many of their favorite and award-winning authors at the inaugural Wee Mac Children’s Book Festival.

The festival took place over two days last week, with the first day reserved exclusively for school pupils on Arran and the second open to visitors and families.

The Book Festival attracted more than 21 authors, illustrators, publishers and literary figures from across Scotland, who presented informative talks and fun events for younger readers, at various locations around the island, including Arran High School, Arran Library, Arran Heritage Museum and at Brodick Hall.

The festival included informative age-appropriate talks by famous and lesser-known authors, as well as informal fun sessions with illustrators, singers and musicians.

Among the best-known authors were Theresa Breslin, a critically acclaimed author of over 50 titles, and the internationally renowned poet Carol Ann Duffy, whose poems form part of the English curriculum at Arran High School.

Local writers and illustrators also featured in the festival, with festival organizer and author Alison Page playing a central role in many of the events.

Local illustrator Tony van Breugel was warmly welcomed by the audience, as were well-known authors whose books are based on Arran, such as Elizabeth MacKay and Angela Proctor.

A familiar face to many on Arran, author Angela Proctor of the Thumble Tumble series visited the book festival with over 70 students from St. Bridget’s Primary in Kilbirnie.

Angela, who is a regular visitor and owns a house on Arran, co-sponsored the visit, enabling many of the students to visit Arran for the first time.

The planned events included activities for children ranging in age from preschool to young adults and people of all ages.

Rossie Stone appealed to teenagers and gave inspiration to Arran High School pupils, talking about overcoming the challenges of dyslexia.

Rossie is dyslexic, and after previously being labeled as stupid by his peers, he went on to create Dekko Comics, a company that turns wordy information into engaging comic narratives to aid learning.

Hugely popular with children under five was Alan Windram, publisher and author of One Button Benny books, who regularly takes his highly interactive event around the country.

Using his guitar, Alan captivates his young audience with songs, images and stories that encourage audience interaction and participation.

Another visitor to the Wee Mac Book Festival was author Stuart Reid, who has appeared at more than 2,000 schools, libraries and book festivals worldwide.

He has hosted book events at the Edinburgh Fringe, worked with BBC Learning and appeared on ITV’s Get Britain Reading, and has also appeared on radio and in countless newspapers and magazines.

As well as the literary events, children could also enjoy the stimulating environment of the PlayTalkRead bus which visited the Brodick Beach car park, or play with the therapist Scooter who visited the Heritage Museum or take part in a singing event with TV presenter Linda NicLeòid.

The Brodick Book and Card Shop hosted informal book stalls at various festival locations where festival goers could purchase books from their favorite authors.

Wee Mac Children’s Book Festival organizers hope that children and young people will be inspired to become lifelong readers, and after meeting some authors, they are encouraging them to become writers too.

The Wee Mac Book Festival was originally planned for 2019, but was delayed due to the pandemic.

Organized by volunteers with support from North Ayrshire Council, Caledonian MacBrayne, Scottish Book Trust and the Arran Society of Glasgow, the event was the final attraction of the Mclellan Arts Festival.

Teenager and young adult author Chris Vick speaks to students at Arran High School. 01_B37WeeMac01

Theresa Breslin addresses students in the Arran High School auditorium. 01_B37WeeMac02

Playworkers on the PlayTalkRead bus: Alison Small, Camila Richardson, Siobhan Duncan, Maryann Cunningham, Kevin Judge, Megan Purvis. 01_B37WeeMac03

Book and card shop owners Claire Johnston and Thomas Fleming set up a series of bookshops selling visiting author books. 01_B37WeeMac04

Renita Boyle entertained youngsters at Arran Library. 01_B37WeeMac05

Elizabeth MacKay reads her book to Brodick and Whiting Bay primary students. 01_B37WeeMac06

BBC Alba children’s TV presenter Linda NicLeòid reads a story in Gaelic and English. 01_B37WeeMac07

Kate Milner talks to visiting pupils at the Arran Heritage Museum. 01_B37WeeMac08

Corrie Primary pupils read to therapist Scooter who visited Arran Heritage Museum with owner Iris Syne. 01_B37WeeMac09

Author Carol Ann Duffy meets students from Arran High School for her well-received talk. 01_B37WeeMac10

Rossie Stone talks to students about her dyslexia-friendly comics company Dekko Comics. 01_B37WeeMac11

The Bookbug mascot visits the Book and Card Shop, which was the official supplier for the festival. 01_B37WeeMac12

Renowned illustrator of Corrie’s Capers books and a host of other titles, Tony van Breugel. 01_B37WeeMac13

Publisher and author, Alan Windram with two of his One Button Benny books. 01_B37WeeMac14

Alan Windram entertained his young audience with singing, guitar and readings from his book. 01_B37WeeMac15

Author and illustrator Debi Gliori entertains her young audience in the Garden Room at Arran Heritage Museum. 01_B37WeeMac16

Former TV scriptwriter and children’s author, Alan Dapré with Tartankatten Grød. 01_B37WeeMac17

Children enjoy fun drawing and coloring activities at the Alan Dapré event at Arran Heritage Museum. 01_B37WeeMac18

Brodick Primary Pupils are eagerly awaiting to hear from Elizabeth MacKay, whose book Wee Granny’s Magic Bag and the Pirates is set on Arran. 01_B37WeeMac19

Young visitors to Arran Library are delighted to meet Wee Mac, the book festival’s squirrel mascot. 01_B37WeeMac20

Visiting students from St. Bridget’s Primary, Kilbirnie, arrives in Arran for the book festival. No_B37WeeMac21

Suitably dressed youngsters join author Angela Proctor for a photograph on Brodick Promenade. No_B37WeeMac22

Fans of the Thumble Tumble series ask author Angela Proctor questions about the books. No_B37WeeMac23