The Michael Morpurgo Question
A few weeks ago I helped to judge the Jewish Book Week Primary Schools poetry prize. The quality of the entries delighted me; the quality of the eventual winners astounded me. So I was honoured to be there today when the prize-winners read their work and received their certificates.
It was a pleasure to hear the poems again, especially as they were all read aloud so well. Is there such a thing as Judge's Nachas? Let's just call it the satisfaction of confirmation that you chose some worthy winners. In truth, Ella Grodzinki's poem, which won in the older category, hadn't left my mind since I first read it, and I will never forget some of the lines in Moshe Waxman's poem, which won in the category for younger poets:
Green grass is a cow's prey.
Orainge is a mitye tiga
That can not resist a deer.
One of the winning poets couldn't make it, and one other chose not to read his poem himself, but there just happened to be an excellent substitute at hand to fill in.
If I ever write a poem, and if it ever wins anything, and if the poem is to be read out at Jewish Book Week (and the Pope will be there to hear it of course, just after his Barmitzvah), I will be calling Michael Morpurgo.
His voice enthralled an audience of hundreds for over an hour. He didn't even resort to such attention grabbing stunts as juggling, acrobatics, singing, making hardback books disappear up his nostrils, or low-brow gags (all cheap tricks that I frequently rely on when I give my own author 'performances').
None of that. He just read a story.
But what a story. And what a way to tell it.
It was called The Mozart Question. With it, the author mesmerised me as deeply as if Mozart himself had been standing there dancing a jig. The story was about a young writer going to Venice to interview a world famous violinist. But it was also about the power of music, secrets and story-telling itself.
There was also time for a handful of questions from the floor. As an author myself, I have come to know how often the same questions get asked over and over again. But Michael Morpurgo's final lesson to me (one of many), was a demonstration in how to answer everything as if it had never been asked before - with wit, with charm, with passion.
And without the aid of a violin.
Ladies and Gentleman, I give you... The Maestro, Michael Morpurgo.
Joe Craig is the author of the Jimmy Coates series, action-thrillers for 8-13 year olds, or anyone who loves a gripping read. It is sold in countries across the world, and has won several awards. Drop in on Joe at www.joecraig.co.uk, or read his own regular blog at http://turkeyonthehill.blogspot.com.
It was a pleasure to hear the poems again, especially as they were all read aloud so well. Is there such a thing as Judge's Nachas? Let's just call it the satisfaction of confirmation that you chose some worthy winners. In truth, Ella Grodzinki's poem, which won in the older category, hadn't left my mind since I first read it, and I will never forget some of the lines in Moshe Waxman's poem, which won in the category for younger poets:
Green grass is a cow's prey.
Orainge is a mitye tiga
That can not resist a deer.
One of the winning poets couldn't make it, and one other chose not to read his poem himself, but there just happened to be an excellent substitute at hand to fill in.
If I ever write a poem, and if it ever wins anything, and if the poem is to be read out at Jewish Book Week (and the Pope will be there to hear it of course, just after his Barmitzvah), I will be calling Michael Morpurgo.
His voice enthralled an audience of hundreds for over an hour. He didn't even resort to such attention grabbing stunts as juggling, acrobatics, singing, making hardback books disappear up his nostrils, or low-brow gags (all cheap tricks that I frequently rely on when I give my own author 'performances').
None of that. He just read a story.
But what a story. And what a way to tell it.
It was called The Mozart Question. With it, the author mesmerised me as deeply as if Mozart himself had been standing there dancing a jig. The story was about a young writer going to Venice to interview a world famous violinist. But it was also about the power of music, secrets and story-telling itself.
There was also time for a handful of questions from the floor. As an author myself, I have come to know how often the same questions get asked over and over again. But Michael Morpurgo's final lesson to me (one of many), was a demonstration in how to answer everything as if it had never been asked before - with wit, with charm, with passion.
And without the aid of a violin.
Ladies and Gentleman, I give you... The Maestro, Michael Morpurgo.
Joe Craig is the author of the Jimmy Coates series, action-thrillers for 8-13 year olds, or anyone who loves a gripping read. It is sold in countries across the world, and has won several awards. Drop in on Joe at www.joecraig.co.uk, or read his own regular blog at http://turkeyonthehill.blogspot.com.
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