World Book Week - Clare Azzopardi



Clare Azzopardi, one of the most prolific and most popular authors, visited San Anton School to meet with the Grade 4 students.

Ms Azzopardi introduced her friend Lupu Lupettu to the students even though a substantial number of them knew him already, having read the books. The adventures of the energetic wolf are written by French author Orianne Lallemande, and Ms Azzopardi translated them into Maltese.

The Grade 4 students were then treated to two stories, this time from picture books penned by Ms Azzopardi. The first one was Mingu, the tale of a family who finds an injured flamingo that was shot by a hunter. The second was Il-Qtates ta' max-Xatt, about an elderly couple who feed a colony of cats.

Finally, Ms Azzopardi was kind enough to sign the children's books. It was a great day for the Grade 4s, one that they won't easily forget.

*This visit was made possible thanks to Merlin Publishers.



World Book Week 2013 - Author Visits

 

As has now become customary, a number of local authors visited San Anton School during World Book Week. First in line was Clare Azzopardi, one of the best Maltese authors, who last November launched her very first YA (Young Adult) novel, Frejp. As the title states, the story revolves around two girls who steal their former friend's mobile phone and use it to hack into her Facebook account, with devastating consequences. It is a book that speaks volumes about the value of friendship and how hard, but ultimately rewarding, it is to build a true and honest rapport with someone.

Rita Antoinette Borġ also brought her latest book with her even though her audience was much younger. Meg is the titular hero of Meg the Egg, a book that tells the tale of a little chick who finds the outside world overwhelming and doesn't want to hatch. However, when the nefarious Howl steals mother hen, Meg has no choice but to become the hero that she truly is.

Brian Abela, the author of Ponds of Wonder, entertained his audience, the Grade 5s, with numerous anecdotes about how he became an author. You could hear a pin drop as he recalled the short story he had to write for a class credit and which got his teacher's praise and eventually encouraged Mr Abela to put finger to keyboard.

Finally, Rachel Balzan Demajo came over to meet the Grade 7s and to present to them her very first literary endeavor. The book, called The Golden Lizard,  tells the tale of Billie who finds herself stranded on a mesmerising island in Moorea. The children were dazzled by Ms Balzan Demajo's delivery, peppered with the genial interventions of her friend the lizard.

It was a great week, with lots of exciting activities and guest authors. As always, the students enjoyed every minute of it and they can't wait for next year's World Book Week!

World Book Week 2012

A number of guest speakers visited San Anton School to celebrate World Book Week, a five-day long book bonanza that has become a staple in the school's calendar.

The week kicked off with Rita Antoinette Borġ, an award-winning author who is always a hit with the young students. Ms Borġ introduced the Grade 4s to her colourful puppet parrot that hails from Australia, which in turn sparked off a lively discussion about different animals endemic to different continents. Immediately afterwards, Fuxa made her appearance. The hero of Ms Borġ's book is an enterprising hedgehog who decides to cross a very busy street, giving everyone a huge fright. Thankfully, everything turns out for the best, and Fuxa and her friends put an end to the adventure by indulging in a scrumptious picnic.

Professor Joe Friġġieri certainly needs no introduction. He is one of the leading scholars and authors on the island, and who currently has two of his poems included in the Matsec syllabus. He was kind enough to visit the school and talk to the Grade 11 students about his poetry and the rest of his impressive oevre, which includes short stories, plays, academic essays, research and and even song lyrics. It was a stimulating talk, peppered with a lot of Professor Friġġieri's erudite anecdotes about characters and events that influenced his work and piqued his intellectual curiosity.

Clare Azzopardi is unarguably one of the most loved children's authors. Her series of books featuring the meanders of sweet Jake Cassar, and the two books about the nefarious machinations of the notorious Saver DeMolizz, have helped not a little to encourage children to read. Ms Azzopardi visited the school to talk to the students about the second instalment in the DeMolizz saga, U llum jispiċċa l-każ tal-aħwa DeMolizz, which was launched late last year during the Malta National Book Fair. A lot of the Grade 8s were excited about the talk because they had already read the first book and were really curious about the second volume.

Trevor Żahra visited the Grade 9s who are currently using one of his books as a reader. Fuklar Qadim u Bnadar Imċarrta is a class text and the students were really looking forward to meeting the author of one of their favourite books. Mr Żahra delivered an engrossing presentation on Fuklar, replete with intriguing anecdotes and several words for thought about aspects of the book that might well pass under the radar on a first reading. The session ended with an animated Q & A session that spilled over to creative writing, how one can harness the imagination and book publishing in general.

Clare Azzopardi żżur San Anton

Clare Azzopardi, waħda mill-iktar awturi maħbubin, żaret San Anton fil-1 ta' Diċembru. Iltaqgħet l-ewwel mal-istudenti tal-Grade 10 u kellmithom dwar il-ktieb tagħha li ħareġ is-sena l-oħra, Il-Każ Kważi Kollu tal-Aħwa De Molizz. Il-ktieb jirrakkonta l-ġrajja ta' żewġt aħwa, Saver u Klawdjo De Molizz, li għandhom mibegħda kbira lejn tfal intelliġenti. Tant ma jistgħux għalihom li jiffurmaw aġenzija għat-twaqqigħ tal-iskejjel: kull m'għandhom bżonn huma l-firem ta' diversi studenti u l-iskola ssir frak. Pero' l-affarijiet ma jmorrux kif basru fil-bidu...

Clare qrat xi siltiet mill-ktieb u wara l-istudenti kellhom l-opportunita' li jistaqsuha domandi, dwar l-istorja tal-aħwa De Molizz, dwar il-karriera tagħha bħala kittieba u anki dwar xi xogħol li qed taħdem fuqu bħalissa.

Immedjatament wara ġew il-Grade 6. Clare ippreparat xi affarijiet fuq is-sensiela ta' Jake Cassar, it-tifel li flimkien m'oħtu Melanie, jivvjaġġa ta' sikwit fir-Renju tar-Re Pankrazju IV. Hawnhekk ikollhom diversi avventuri u jiltaqgħu ma' kreaturi bħall-furuni u s-sriek.

Wara li qratilhom xi siltiet mill-kotba u rrispondiet għall-mistoqsijiet li kellhom, Clare għamlitilhom eżerċizzju ċkejken. It-tfal kellhom stampa ta' sħabha li fiha kellhom ipinġu l-affarijiet li l-iktar jieħdu gost jaħsbu dwarhom. Meta lestew, il-librerija mtliet kollha sħab bil-ħolm tal-istudenti.

Fl-aħħarnett, Clare ġentilment iffirmat il-kotba tat-tfal u wegħdithom li la jkun hemm avventuri oħra ta' Jake Cassar, terġa' tiġi żżurhom!

Din iż-żjara ġiet organizzata minn MERLIN LIBRARY.