A new chapter in lives of primary school students

IT’S official, there are now 74 newly-published authors living on the Sheep’s Head peninsula.

However, while the peninsula’s famous novelists include JG Farrell, Wolf Mankowitz, Zadie Smith and of course Graham Norton, these wordsmiths are all under the age of 13 and have never been published before.

The pupils at Carrigboy National School have published a collection of stories with the help of Emu Ink, an independent Irish publishing company.

The book, Tales and Scéals, has work by every pupil and features stories with such titles as Police Officer Tadgh by Tadgh O’Connor in junior infants and The Monkey Barber by Andrew Ring in 3rd class to The Worst Week Ever by Alaina O’Brien in 4th class and The Unexpected Mentos Pack by Niamh Wiseman in 6th class.

Principal Michael Cronin said: ‘The children really enjoyed the process. They all wrote out their stories and took turns typing them up. They also drew and designed the artwork for the cover.’

While there are many wonderful tales throughout the book, it was Jack Levis and his story Winning the Lotto that proves when it comes to writing, always write about your passion. Jack, the only boy in senior infants, describes what would be the first thing he would do if he won the Lotto.

Jack would, he tells the reader, buy 1,000 cows, build a big shed for them, purchase a new JCB fast-track tractor, a transport box and a trailer.

Then he would have to buy three new Masseys, for himself,  for his father, and grandfather. Of course, he wouldn’t forget his sisters. Jack would give each of them €500 so that they could build their own house. And then his mother would milk the cows and his sisters would clean out the cowshed, while his father and himself would drive the tractors.