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READING ROOM APRIL 24 · The Reading Room

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Babe the bag Ride. Hello. Hello, we are at that time again.
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We are at the reading room. I'm here with Alan, Hello,
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Barry, Hello, and we have Sue Hi, Sue Hi, Sue.
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Hello, oh hi Sue. You you're there. Great so yes, so
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welcome to the reading room for this month. Good to have you all here.
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And I'm Christa on Liverpool Community Radio. So this month's book was The
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Snow Goose by Paul Gallico. Thank thank you, Barry. That's them.
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Just wanted to check the pronunciation. First written in nineteen forty or first published
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in nineteen forty in a newspaper as a short story and then published as a
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novella in nineteen forty one, and this was, of course the height of
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World War Two. So I'll just get straight on and I'll get my lovely
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panel to actually tell me what they thought of it. So I'll start with
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you, Alan, You go ahead, and what did you think of this
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novel as a book? I loved it because it's very sparse, but I
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don't think there is a word out of place. Paul Gallico was a sports
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writer by profession, and he he got me listening and reading stuff by modern
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day sports writers like Simon, Simon Barnes, Henry Winter, and Hugh mcilvanni
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who died a few years ago. But their silence very much like his,
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where not a word is wasted and not a word is out of place.
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It's i'd call it craft, but it's as a book, it's easy to
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read, and it goes, it gets straight to the point, and it's
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one of the easiest books I've ever found to emote with. Okay, okay,
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yeah, being a bird watcher as well as kind of and it's had
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a bit of free so on to it for me as well. Is that
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the feathered kind of birds? Yeah? Okay, just to make that clear,
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quite healthy, okay, Barry, what about you with the snow goose?
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Yeah, no, I I I loved it absolutely. I think that
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echoing what Alan said, really, I suppose that it gives that whole sense
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of space and desolation of that particular place and describes as in as few words
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as possible a guy who was it was isolated from society, and I think
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it's a masterpiece, to be honest, I think it's one of the books
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I've ever read. You know, I love the idea of a novella anyway,
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But also added to me is that in the addition which I've got,
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the illustrations are absolutely lovely, I think, and that makes an awful lot
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of difference to something. I know that the description gives you the whole ambience
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of it, but the illustrations just in you know, in simple pen and
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ink, I just I think they're fascinating, you know. Okay, moving
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on to you, Sue, what did you think the rest of the many
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years ago? And I have to say, and took me away from the
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hospital, and no, as you do, will be more time time,
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I think without mkay. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's interesting. H
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I mean, yeah, yeah, yeah, well it is. It's about
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Sorry did you have you finished that? Sorry to super interrupting. Yeah,
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that's good. Yeah. So it's actually about a disabled guy, isn't it,
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Philip Rayada. And he's an artist, isn't it. He lives very
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isolated in the marshalands of Essex. And one day Frith, the a young
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girl, comes with an injured snow goose who has been shot by some of
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the hunters. And to be honest, okay, I've got a bit of
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a different view to you guys. I thought it was good, but I
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thought it was a bit predictable with the love you know at the end when
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they kind of when she loved him. And I read it twice because the
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first time I read it, to be honest, I didn't really catch what
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it was saying. I kept losing my thread. It was that kind of
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book for me, and I liked the end, but I was surprised by
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the end when you know the Dunkirk and that was beautiful. But I did
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find it quite slow. I wouldn't really read it again. I enjoyed it
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a bit too a bit too short for what I really wanted. But I
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know it's very very popular. So back to you, Alan, Can you
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add something I used to work work for a company church head office was a
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switch which yeah, head office was in Nash which I used to stop in
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or in mold uh for my lunch. Was a convenience, was a convenient
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stopping point. And the whole area is quite invited. The whole book is
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quite evoive, which is why I found it so easy to deal with.
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I can, I can. I can understand and why people might not like
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it, but it's actually actually for me where I enjoyed sparse loss of it
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because it did reflect the area area. You know, there are certain surces
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mentioned mentioned in the story where you can feel you can actually feel the atmosphere
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of the area itself self, which is why I thought it was it was
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quite selcss the book. The book. Yeah, I think so. I
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think that the way that he described the place just just I suppose because his
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is writing writing just creates the sparse loess of the landscape around, you know,
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you know, that's part of his craft really in in that in that
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I wouldn't say, I mean as were I think when we did we did
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Thomas Hardy. You know where Thomas Hardy used forty five word it's worth worth
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three would do? You know? This is like this is something that I
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would you know, it's like it sort of allows you to read a phrase
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and not move on. You know, I'm concentrate on it because it's like
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it's it's all in the right place. So it's funny. It's a shame
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of shame that you didn't feel the same way. Really, but I mean
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that, I mean, that's that's the nature of things. Yeah, yeah,
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I mean, to be honest, I preferred the Thomas Hardy one not
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but I realized that That's why I mentioned that I like long sentences and I
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like kind of fluffy writing. Sue, what about you? What do you
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think my comment? Yeah, because it did really change the same thing,
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uh, and the situation, and I don't like the way the word from
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which in another play by class? Yes, yeah, I mean interesting.
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Has he written other things? Alan? Did you say he had written snow
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goose and snow and in this particular edition another short story back back and the
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only the only poor Gal ever read. Yeah, but it's as far as
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as far as I'm concerned, the man could do no wrong because he actually
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got me. He actually got me to look at other writers in a different
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light light and other genres, right right, Yeah, I did actually actually
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try and try and some of his some of his sports, I found a
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few. I found a few references may people like Simon Barnes not only sports,
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but he also writes about wildlife, particularly birds, and I just found
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award to poor Gallic an individual visual. Yeah, there are some things as
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a novella, and he's spot on awful, but there's no no, there's
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novella address how she became awful? I mean I just kind of add something
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that I did enjoy to be honest, when I thought it was very very
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clever when he describes how she's fearful at the way that he looks at her.
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I like that writing. I thought that was really really clever to see
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that, you know, he obviously looked at her as a woman when she
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came back, and she felt that energy. I did like that. There
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was a certain part of it that I did really like. Barry. Can
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you add something I think parallels with you were the idea that somebody who was
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disabled in some way, and that that was fairly explicit within this. It's
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it's it's more his reaction how he thinks the world sees his and he thinks
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that he's like somebody that the world can't love. You know, the way
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that that sort of love story grows with Frither as she grows up, which
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in some ways could be seen you know these days, my people might look
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like it and say, well, it's grooming or whatever. But to me,
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it doesn't read that way at all. You know, he just won't
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work. They don't see each other for a few years, and then she
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comes back and she's changed, and she's obviously a woman, you know,
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and the sort of page difference doesn't make any difference. In actual fact,
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he's not that old, I don't think. At the start of the story
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he's only mid twenty, but feels that he's sort of unlovable and he's looking
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for something and he can't help in the war effort, and I'm sure that
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must have held, you know, sort of hindered him as well in way.
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And then he finds that he can do something and his actions heroic and
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at the same say times she realized that she loves him, you know,
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I mean that they knew one of it. It's terrific. I think,
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you know, it's so well waste that I can't praise it. That's been
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interesting to journal work, Yeah, not not one can't probably the time to
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book film. Oh yeah, me too. But I'm between the theos.
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Ye German became first down within the No, that's really that's that's really interesting.
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You're really good, Yeah, Alan, sorry, so carry on,
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Yes, describe to virtue and when we're introduced three soul, I think and
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the contrast between the language between and I think it lies the book. It
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needs to be like a job, to be introduced like a third party viewer.
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It is right that that third party of view and the other part of
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that tale, which is, you know, the people who saw the snow
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goose felt that they were going to be saved. I thought that was very
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moving. I'm how that could have actually have happened, but it still moved
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me, if you know what I mean. Yeah, Now, this is
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why it's good to discuss the book, because I'm liking it more and more
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now when we discuss it. The irony, the whole thing is that the
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snow goose shouldn't have been where it shouldn't have been found where it wasn't the
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first place. It's a bird of the tundra. I'm I'm not a twister,
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but I like birds. I grew up around Sandwich Bay Observatory and it's
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just one of those things that first nearly seventy years I've was nearly sixty years,
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I've been quite quite avid bird watcher, not a twisterirt for me.
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Birds are integral part of the country walk. But it's there's so little said
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about the bird itself and how it came to be there. I mean,
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it's from the genus and Seredai. It's the snow goose is actually and Corriales
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skins, and it's a bird of the tundra so eastern Europe, Russia.
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And there are two particular morphs. There's a white subspecies and a dark subspecies.
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This was the white subspecies, which is the more common they have.
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They have been recorded in East Anglia, but they're they're far from common common.
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They tend to spend the time amongst pink pretty geese and I was wondering,
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is he actually running part of snow, pink pretty that has suddenly moved
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into into snow. But it's just just it's just made me smart because one
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of the areas where where yeah, I felt like hard going with lifespan is
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about six years years and you never really sure how long long the separation,
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how was it was found and taken to life. I think the implication is
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that it's a young bird, you know, and I think that it covers
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that to some degree. He thinks that, you know, it stops traveling
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and stays where it is it is. I think I think the choice of
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the bird is is absolutely specific because it's it's it's something that shouldn't really have
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been there, which is, you know, the parallel with Riard and you
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know, something out of place, which is what sort of blends them together.
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In fact, Fris and Phil the snow goose a part of a sort
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of you know, a triangular actions, which is which is you know,
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very much to the story. I love that, so can you can you
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add something to it? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, I mean I think
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you can give the person choice to a d I like one way relationship between
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the three of them, and they all want to progress for at the same
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time. And to me, I don't wonderly wondered what Mike might do and
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how myg ins on the if you be go time time m Yeah, yeah,
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I know what church should he be all be able to have? I
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will say things because I don't give the end of way. But for me
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there is one name which I should say that I'm good to supply. But
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uh after that that there has been an oport shock for I mean that you're
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wanting the way and the third time, I wow, wow, I am
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I actually uh indepenetrate with him anything for this time? Oh yes, yeah,
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yeah, I think I mean it's interesting point. I mean what it
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does for me. It's a bit like sometimes you you see a story and
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you're wondering what happened next, if you like. And I found with the
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story that you didn't need to do that because it sort of stopped, you
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know, that tale stopped. I mean there is a there is, you
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know, another tale to be told maybe, but I didn't feel like it
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was missing anything, you know, there was not sort of a cliffhanger.
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It resolved. I found it, you know, quite satisfying. One things
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I mentioned. It's also quite a common bird in North America in Canada,
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Canada now the the Native American Americans had this fixation of and it goes into
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the and the snow signifies the passing of the seasons, which the story story
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is about the passing of the seasons, but the snow is also the messenger
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of messages from between heaven and Earth and that that It's just something I read
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a while ago and it stuck with me with me that birds have a place
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in focal and I knew where we found. I went back, went sent
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the library, got found that found snow signifying other things seeing the North American
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culture. Sure you see, we're very serious on that reading room, aren't
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we. In Liverpool Community Radio, we actually do our research. So back
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to you, h why's your name is. And I's wonderful. Uh what
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little happens, it's both over all. Uh uh And and I I like
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h I like I like vala. Uh. I means the originally you're supposed
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to be a run it that it will go, which is why where you
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generally they don't have a chap to see you old Polish valance. Uh.
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But I felt a little so much in uh. And I think I have
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not think that. I know, I know she was the light to shut
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down down originally completely. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I was, you
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know the South PI got to most of the time. Time make it make
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it so pill guys right, And I think i'd have to speak to me
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custom ship ship M yes, yeah, it is real pay but then the
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world world, which do it do it? Yeah, very very good point.
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I was just going to say, so, you know they mentioned it
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before, you know, whether being a journalist and writing right now and to
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you know, to a particular length, it would be interesting to read the
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initial story which was published in the newspaper, because I mean the events of
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duhn Kirk by nineteen forty and it was it was written in the newspaper in
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nineteen ninety. It would be an interesting to see there and to see how
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he developed it into the novella. N't know, because it was obviously something
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like a label love, you know, you know. But the other thing
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is, I don't know whether you were talk about people's ages hear, you
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know, but he also wrote High Holiday was erin Marry as a television series
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sort of pre the Beverly Hill Billies or whatever. When it was earlier that
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night, you know, when I was I was being a fascinating thing.
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Was it similar to this one about it? It was nothing like that at
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all, you know. It was a sort of a precursor to maybe Get
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Smart if you remember that program. And he was a guy who looked a
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bit like Charles for the carry On films, you know. But it was
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I remark like being being really funny, you know. And the other thing
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you wrote, which was was the night before Christmas when all about the house
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another creature whisper not even a really I mean very diverse, absolutely remarkably remarkably
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diverse. Absolutely, Yeah, Alan, did you want to add something to
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that. Yeah, the original short story was even Posts in nineteen forty.
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Yeah. Interesting, Yeah, I tried to find out a bit more about
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Post he was like, because serialized in the newspaper, So so yeah,
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I have that kind of that kind of that kind of Yeah, I like
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it. I like it. Yeah, I it's making me actually really appreciate
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the book just talking to you. I think I was just short and I
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read it and thought I was at it. So I read it again and
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enjoyed it more. But like I said, I just found it was a
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bit slow and for me, quite predictable with the relationship. So can you
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add anything else for me? Yeah, yeah, yeah, it was it
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was a surprise. That was a big surprise when that happened, for sure.
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I didn't really expect anything like that. So it kind of completely changed,
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isn't it. From him being alone in the lighthouse to what he did,
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he gave him that sort of purpose. I mean there's parallels. I
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think even with Dad's Army, you know, the ideas that people who are
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left behind are not allowed because of his deformity, he wasn't allowed to sign
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up or do whatever. People felt helpless, much like the Dad's Army people.
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But then you know, given the opportunity, they made a massive difference,
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you know, and he was able to do that, and you know,
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it's a story. But he ended up as a hearing. Absolutely.
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Yeah in the book, so would beat that. What did you say?
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So what did you say? I didn't quite get that. Yeah, absolutely.
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I think everybody has to find the mean the role and role is and
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and in the book it was actually actually he met my in the trip across
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the Channel channel to rescue soldiers soldiers, most people my grandfather did some Dunkirk
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invastigation. He was in a protected profession, he was building submarine, but
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he had a family. He went from Chattel across the Kirkkirk, which is
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she is Dunkirk is not that far from cala And you see, I didn't
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know that happened, so it's actually opened up some kind of historical events for
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me. I had no idea that people went on the private boats. Yeah,
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yeah, really that we that we used and there were there were three
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hundred or four thousands of people rescuing. I mean that was a massive thing
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because because the problem being where they were, they were reaches which they were
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being held at the beaches really were two shallow big boats to come in.
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So all of the small boats went over to ferry there from the beaches to
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the larger boats at the same time as being bombed by stukers. I mean,
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I mean it was. I mean, it's it's a true story that
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you know, those those bits of it would be fascinating and you know,
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at the end of the day it was a you know, like a fairly
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major but at the same time it always seems being you know, the spirits
28:37
of British luckiness, like it's actually being like a defeating defeating in the most
28:48
Yeah, I mean there's an element you know, if you look at some
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of the history, it was like, I was was quite clean for them
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to get away, to be fair, because he felt that if they if
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they came back and the troops came back to the UK, that they wouldn't
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then go back into Europe, that he would he would be safe from which
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of course wasn't quite what happened at the end of the day. So I
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mean, maybe a tactical tactical state. But now the British Expositionary Force were
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three hundred and forty thousand and brought back, which is a massive, massive
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thing to do, very very very inspirational. Actually, YEPU, did you
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want to say something else? Quiet? I think I think, yeah,
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yeah, yeah, in the Marine Sandwich which Kent there is there is there
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is still a boat working work that did the that did a couple of couple
30:40
of trips across the Dunkirk, so exactly troops. I was a school down
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Sandwich, which I have reason to go back down the very regularly. And
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and I don't know why. That's just something that something that part of remember
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stole. And it's nice to see some history. As an American torpedo boat,
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it's being remicated. But this it's it's a Cornish crabber rabber okay,
31:12
yeah, but that boat takes if there's a vegetable to go across the Dunkirk,
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if there's want to go and they go across the cross. It's the
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kind of kind of effort to put some something back in the society. It's
31:33
really interesting. How long does it take do you think on a you know,
31:36
on a small vessel to get to if you if you I reckon,
31:41
reckon, I reckon Good six seven one way, one way, okay,
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yeah, I mean I've sailed in a race race from from Tower Bridge and
31:56
London, London to calor Callow back back and that that was fourteen hours.
32:02
But that was that was. That was okay? You did, yeah,
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Barry, you got anything else to add to think? It was the Kentish
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made was it was one of the famous books my younger day. I'm sure
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I might be might be challenged. But the club Ship Landfall, which was
32:25
a nightclub, and the docs, so you know, it's it's it's something
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still within with you know, with with our memory. Yes, for sure,
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you know. I think the other thing and I know Sue doesn't like
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to do this, you know, but you can see the version of the
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of the film with Richard Harris and Jenny I Attack is on YouTube. I
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didn't see that. I only watched the film and that's really it's very good.
32:59
She want an Emmy for her performance on that, you know, that
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was really really And also on the BBC I Player there's a dramatized version of
33:07
it which is just about an hour hour a long, which I find very
33:12
moving, even though I know the story and I find it really really very
33:15
good, and I would to anybody, well, I'm going to actually watch
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that. I normally do watch the film, but I didn't. I think
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it's been such a long time, hasn't it since we read it? Like
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I said, the radio player, you know. It's like there's a you
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know, you know, I mean there's something magical radio player, you know,
33:30
And it's just a dramatization of it. Like I say, only an
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hour an hour long, but well worth an hour of anybody who's telling in
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my view. So yeah, I like I like radio because I find I
34:10
find thinking you mentally packed out. Ye, one of of my misplacedments.
34:25
Wrong, wrong, But but it makes you think about what you're seeing.
34:30
Yeah, I love radio plays to really really good. I mean the other
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aspect I didn't mention they are, but the ustration I am. I do
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like illustration. I actually have a have a different version of the book which
34:40
has different illustrations and which I think are also I hope that you can't see
34:45
it, unfortunately, I'm maybe bringing in there again next time year. But
34:53
it really is illustrated by something called Angela Barrett this time I think probably probably
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who didn't mention the original illustrator was somebody called nic and Linta Linton, which
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it might be a version that you've got to I don't know, but I
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mean the other thing that we haven't mentioned is that apparently Peter Scott was was
35:20
was a sort of an inspiration for the character, which is, you know,
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who developed worldwide wife Sanctuary? So I thought that was an interesting idea
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as well. Apparently Union very interesting. Well, we have got an interview
35:38
coming up with Ray Douglas. He's a children's writer and a poet. But
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just before we go to the interview, and then after the interview, we'll
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choose the next book for next month. Out of ten? What would you
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choose out of ten for this book? Alan? Because wow? Because it
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was a word interesting. It's not it's not it's not well perfect book book,
36:07
but the way it's is so so so on point. It draws you
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into into it and that and that with the best of the worlds what the
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book is about. Yeah, Okay, Barry, what would you give it?
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I'll have my better a little bit really, because you're not always comparing
36:25
like with like, and I don't know whether you're weathering novellas in the way
36:30
that you know they developed, but as a novella, Wow, Sue,
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I would give it seven. I know that's just me, but I'm probably
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very young cultured and but yeah, but I know, but to be honest,
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this is why it's good to have the reading room because I feel like
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reading it again for sure, and just getting all that feeling, all that
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emotion that we've just discussed today. Anyway, don't go away. I'm going
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to play the interview with Douglas and then we'll come back and choose our next
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book for next month. So here we go, Ray Douglas interview guest.
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We have Ray on the other line. Welcome Ray to Happy Tuesday, Liverpool
37:09
Community Radio. Hi there, Christ, thanks for having me on. Great
37:14
Yes, So, yeah, you are a poet and a story writer.
37:19
Is that right? That's correct? Yeah, I write mostly poetry for children,
37:23
It's correct. Okay, So have you written a lot of poetry?
37:29
Have you been doing it a long time? Have I started writing poems when
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as a child myself? I suppose I really enjoyed doing that at school and
37:37
reading poems, little silly poems, tell stories too. But I started to
37:40
take it seriously in twenty eighteen when I put out my first book. Oh,
37:44
your first book? No right, I don't even know your second name.
37:45
Can you just like introduce yourself and just tell us how many books you've
37:50
written? Yeah? I can do that, of course. Some man.
37:52
Name's Ray Douglas and I'm the author of five different books, four of which
37:58
are the children. I started writing books, as I just mentioned, in
38:01
twenty eighteen. My first one was called the Silly Sausage Saga and other Silly
38:06
Rhymes. Okay, And were you always interested in literature and poetry from being
38:10
a young child, Yeah, I guess so. I always enjoyed creative writing
38:15
was always my favorite time at school. And I always enjoyed, you know,
38:19
story time with a teacher reading stories to us, or was reading our
38:22
own books. I suppose I always found that the poem is a bit more
38:25
memorable than the stories. I'm a big fan of roll Dall his books are
38:30
great, but for me, the rhymes of alts in rhymes and all those
38:35
w's more memorable for me, Absolutely amazing. And so you've written children's books
38:38
and have you written one adult book? I've done one adult book most recently
38:44
yet, that's right. And what's that called? The adult book is called
38:47
ever so slightly? Okay? Is it a big book? I'm just really
38:52
interested. Is it, you know, is a long book or is it
38:54
a short book? Yeah? I mean it depends on how much time you've
38:58
gotten, how quickly you reade. It's about one hundred and fifty pages long.
39:02
Okay, there's a number of phones from short homes and there was just
39:07
a page long summer, three or four pages. So is it a poetry
39:09
book for adults or a novel? It's a poetry book for adults. Yeah,
39:15
okay, and girls, have you got any questions for? I've got
39:19
Claire here and Karen? Yeah. Well it's called ever so slightly dot dot
39:27
dot so is ever so slightly thoughtful, ever so slightly lovely, ever so
39:31
slightly political, ever so slightly random, ever so slightly light hearted, ever
39:36
so slightly character driven, and then for the when it's after nine pm,
39:38
ever slightly smutty. So there's all guys of everything in there. What did
39:45
you say, Karen? She likes a bit of smug. We all do.
39:50
On Happy Tuesday. Yea, so great you got Have you got a
39:53
no question? Clare? Sounds really good that book, because I like things
39:57
that can pack you up that's not serious, know, yeah, we like
40:00
all that too, light hearses. Yeah stuff, you know, sounds really
40:05
interesting. So what made you change from writing for children to writing for adults?
40:10
To be honest, I started going to open mic nights mostly during during
40:15
the lockdowns. They started happening on Zoom and as a children's writer, you
40:19
always feel a bit am I going to be welcomed at those kind of events.
40:22
So I took the opportunity when everything was online for what can be less
40:25
embarrassing, which just sat my own Alison. You know, people are a
40:29
lot welcome into that kind of thing. But then I kind of wanted to
40:31
fit in, so I kind of started writing stuff about politics. And you
40:36
know, this is, you know, more adult stuff. I mean it's
40:38
not necessary adult as much as you know, the contents blue sometimes, but
40:42
sometimess just the ideas and the contexts behind the poems are a bit too mature,
40:45
I suppose for primary schild age kids. And how did you get adoless?
40:50
Yeah? How'd you get your poems out there? I mean I just
40:52
self published. All my books are available on Amazon. I'm also on social
40:58
media, so sometimes I just have an idea which might not necessarily make a
41:00
book, or I want to see how it goes down, so I'll post
41:04
on Facebook or on Instagram. And where can we find you on social media?
41:08
On social media? You can find me on Instagram, which is at
41:13
mister Ray Douglas. Okay, is that do o ug l a s.
41:19
That's correct yet the one mister mister Ray Douglas. Yeah, that's your Instagram
41:22
is that? Yeah, that's correct. If you go on to threads very
41:28
often stop on too well it but anyway is actually the same handle. Mister
41:32
radugs is also on threads. Okay do you sorry? Carry on? Carry
41:38
on now, if you go into Facebook and or for mister Ray Douggles again,
41:40
you'll probably find me on them page. I also have a YouTube channel
41:44
which is it's on YouTube kids, so it's just for kids that want to
41:47
Well, that's that's impressive. You have a YouTube channel. That's really quite
41:51
impressive. Hey, yeah, I know this is kind of an open question,
41:54
but how long would it take you to compose a poem? It's on
42:00
average? Yeah, how long is it going to be? I mean,
42:04
one of my most popular poems for the kids. I always tell the lies
42:07
say it took me thirty seconds. It took a little bit longer, but
42:08
that poem is you're not to giggle, you're not to laugh when your bottom
42:13
trumps and mixed bubbles in the battles. I liked it. Only take a
42:15
short time, that's hilarious. I love that I was laughing. Then that
42:19
was hilarious. So and who were you know, you said you liked Roll
42:23
Dahl? Who else are your kind of influences or what would you read if
42:28
you were reading a novel? What? What would you read if I was
42:30
reading the novel? I mean myself personally, I write like the good murder
42:34
mystery. So I've very been reading Lee Child and Peter May I was reading
42:39
recently. I love Salmon Rushie. But of course that doesn't really right,
42:45
of course, yeah, I mean I do tend to write more like Julia
42:47
Donaldson or or Spike Milligan. I suppose, oh Spike Mulligan. Yeah,
42:52
wonderful, really funny, really hilarious. And any more questions for you girls?
42:57
You know when you say you write children's people, there only for children,
43:00
but the parents read the books to the children, and you find a
43:05
lot of the times after parents enjoy the books as was the kids. Do
43:08
you find anyone? Yeah? Absolutely absolute. In fact, some of the
43:14
content in the adult book, the book for adults is actually from the kids
43:16
book as well, so the overlapp so some of the stuff is just you
43:21
know, so like heart. And you know, when I'm doing bookstores,
43:24
if I'm at book first and events like that. Some parents will pick up
43:27
the book and they'll read and go, well, I read that myself.
43:30
I really enjoy reading back to the kids because of you know, they enjoy
43:34
too. I think a lot of parents listen, you know, to read
43:37
to the kids. I know my son reads to his author. She's merely
43:43
too and he enjoys doing it. You know, Yeah, I get yeah.
43:47
I think it's great that you're Yeah, you're putting pen to paper for
43:51
sure. So what you you know, aspirations for the future, what do
43:55
you think where would you like to be saying the next two to five years.
44:00
I'm going to keep slogging away. I suppose I'd love to be a
44:04
full time poet, but I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon.
44:07
I've got a few projects coming up called the illustrating that I do illustrations as
44:10
well themselves, illustrating children's Christmas book, but a family Christmas book really,
44:16
and I've got some other ideas in mind for some more picture books. Have
44:21
you ever done any workshops that have helped you, like the Writing on the
44:23
Wall or stuff like that that they offer in Liverpool. I've not done those
44:28
workshops myself. I've delivered workshops for children of course. I've been around to
44:31
a number of libraries and primary schools doing workshops teaching kids how to write limericks
44:36
and how to come up with their own little rhymes and things. Glass was
44:39
it last year? The year before I think it was for children's mental health.
44:44
Wigan Libraries asked me to go around four different primary schools and create a
44:47
project which was installed in their libraries. Of two visits, we built these
44:54
wooden signs together with their own work and only illustrations. Really satisfying. You
45:00
know, if somebody wanted to kind of break through the world of poetry and
45:02
writing, what advice could you give them? Just write down what you want
45:07
to write down and see how it goes. And there's so many open nights
45:12
Liverpool and the wirrald of course they've got loads loads of stuff going on.
45:15
You'll always find you know, we're friendly, welcome most of the time.
45:21
Which you go to one of these nights, often they're in put Sometimes you'll
45:23
find them in museums or coffee shops. But yeah, to get up then
45:27
I have a go, maybe go and listen for the first time see what
45:30
kind of things people are smiling at, what they're laughing at, what they're
45:32
reacting to. Do you get do you get nervous when you're going to when
45:38
you're kind of reading out your poems, or you know, do you kind
45:40
of anticipate You're not sure how the audience is going to react? And I
45:45
used to, I used to, and to be honest, that the bigger
45:47
the number of people they are sort of a big, massive assembly with like
45:51
three hundred children, absolutely no problem, but three or four people in a
45:54
pub quite nerve wracking. It's it's unusual. You'd expect the opposite, isn't
45:59
you. That's yeah, yeah, you get used to it very quickly.
46:02
But yeah, I mean you do notice new poets and new storytellers they do
46:07
get the shapes. And I'll admit I got the shakes quite a few timement
46:10
And again I still do. I suppose if it's a new new poem,
46:13
I'm not really sure about it. Yeah, have you got a favorite poem
46:16
of yours? I've got a few. I've got a few which I really
46:21
enjoy reading. Yeah. Cool, And you're going to be going to bless
46:23
us with some of your poems, aren't you? Ray, I can do
46:28
that for you. That would be great. Can you read out one of
46:30
your poems and or a couple that would be fantastic. Yeah. I picked
46:32
out three to read out to quite short ones a little bit longer. It's
46:36
okay, that's great, go for it. I thought i'd start with the
46:39
first one I wrote. When I started to take it seriously, I suppose
46:43
this is a children's one, and it's called if Aliens played Football. There
46:49
we go, If aliens played football, would they be any good? With
46:52
extra feet and longer legs. You get the feeling that they would. For
46:57
sure. They can run faster and kick the ball much hard, and with
47:00
all those eyes, it's certain they get a better point of view. If
47:05
it's true like in the movies, that they can read each other's thoughts,
47:07
which can really help in football and lots of other sports, because then they
47:12
can be silent but tell each other how to play instead of shouting loudly and
47:16
giving the game away. I hope if aliens do play football, they don't
47:21
have extra feet, their legs are short, and their eyesight's bad, so
47:24
they're easy to defeat. I hope their goalkeeper is rubbish and cannot even catch,
47:30
especially since the coach said we're playing them next match. That's great.
47:36
I like that and it's very very poignant for a city, a football city,
47:40
isn't it as well? I'm sure the kids would love that. Yeah,
47:44
in a room with someone who doesn't like football exactly all right, So
47:47
Ray Douglas number poem number two, please go for it. Yeah. I
47:52
pick this one out just because if they find me. You've got calendar in
47:54
the kitchen of all those important dates on. You've got one of these multi
47:58
faith ones. You'll notice that not only we just had Easter, but of
48:02
course he's going to be called the next couple of days. He got by
48:05
Psychi at the weekend, which is the sec year Holy has just gone by
48:09
was coming up. Spring is one of those times where I think we all
48:14
become much more aware of religions around the world. And this one's about different
48:17
religious Have you got special ways and festival days which are different to others?
48:23
You know, are the food you can't eat, such as certain meat because
48:28
it's a sacred religious Now go, Do you wear different clothes from your head
48:32
to your toes for reasons that matter to you or others? Are that when
48:37
you say a prayer. It's just one of those things that you do.
48:40
Do You sometimes confuse which language to use depending on each conversation or in your
48:46
point of view. Faith not for you, but you understand and you show
48:50
toleration. So devalided on campore, yes, indeed sadly, on the day
48:55
of the bud and on Christmas it imports one another. Love it. That's
49:04
so lovely, that's so inclusive as well. That's really good. Thank you
49:08
so much. Yeah, I love them. And then poem number three,
49:13
go for it for this one. A clever things in there. It's good
49:19
names. A dragonfly is not a dragon. A catfish it is not a
49:23
cat. A sausage dog is not for dinner. And I can guarantee you
49:28
that some bulldogs aren't so bullish. Some ladybirds are not female. And if
49:34
you seek, I'm sure you'll see a peace loving killer whale. Fireflies are
49:38
not on fire, a wood pigeon isn't wood Toads can still play leap frog.
49:44
In fact, I'm pretty sure they're pretty good. Electric eels do not
49:47
need batteries of any shape or size. And when it's spreading something on your
49:52
toast, don't get confused by butterflies again, pig it's not a pig.
49:57
A sea horse is not a horse, and mag eyes not the kind of
50:00
pie that gets served up as a main course. There's a bird called a
50:04
kingfisher. Can someone worn as a king, Or perhaps they just hues random
50:08
names when they name a living thing. Because a fox glove it's not a
50:13
glove. A snowed stool is not a stool. A blue bell does not
50:16
ring out loud when it's dinner time at school. A tandy lion cannot roar,
50:22
not unlike a tiger lily, and runner beans don't do malazins. That
50:25
would just be silly. A starfish may not be famous. A pilot fish
50:30
can fly no planes. A rainbow trout is always not only when it rains.
50:36
A clown fish does not juggle or wear big shoes. He has got
50:39
no feet. And a jellyfish doesn't come with cream as an after dinner treat.
50:45
Snowdrops don't start melting, forget me, not can be forgot. Grasshoppers
50:50
don't go hopping. They use all the legs they've got, spring box or
50:53
ever present all the seasons, not just spring. So I'm certain they just
50:59
hues. Oh I love that okay, brilliant, that was a good interview,
51:07
by very much. Just give us your social before you go, so
51:12
anyone can. And we are back now with the reading room, and we're
51:15
about to choose the book for next month. So here we go. We've
51:22
got the we haven't got the tambourine, we've got the hat this month I'm
51:27
going to get actually, Alan, if you promise that you're going to not
51:30
look and not cheap closed to ask him? And what am I going to
51:36
read it out? You can read it out, have a great afternoon.
51:42
The Woman in White? So are you there? Yeah? That was your
51:46
choice, The Woman in White? So I will check that Sefton Park Libraries
51:52
have that book and and we'll be meeting in a month's time to discuss that
51:57
book. So it's the Woman in White? Bye? Who is it by
52:00
again? Wilkie Collins? Has anyone that read it yet? Oh? You've
52:05
read it so you can read it again. So that's exciting. And I
52:08
just want to thank Sefton Park Library actually for supplying the books and being great
52:13
because they do tend to get come in a bit late at times. Soon
52:19
now you've got an exhibition, haven't you If you want to tell us a
52:21
little bit about the exhibition. That sounds fantastic and that's in St. Alan's,
52:40
isn't it. We should all try and go there, you know,
52:46
Alan and Barry and myself, we should all try and go together and look
52:50
at Sue's exhibition. I think we should do that. We're all keen.
52:53
We're all keen at this moment. Sue, Okay, so we're going to
52:59
arrange the next reading room. But before that, I'm just going to thank
53:04
you all for coming and being such a wonderful panel. You're all geniuses,
53:07
Honestly, you really are. It's brilliant to have you all here. So
53:12
just do you want to say goodbye? Alan and married thanks very much,
53:16
and Sue, they'll see you all. We'll see you all next month.
53:22
By now,