NATIONAL author Joffre White who was a resident in Frome for 24 years, returned to the town last week to visit young people, to inspire them to read books and launch his new book, Aura Boy, in Winstone’s Hunting Raven Books.
Joffre White visited Selwood Academy and Frome College to meet students and engage them into reading books. “At Selwood Academy I spent the day doing a show which tells the students how I became an author and we talk about books, to get them excited about reading,” says Joffre.
“I think that’s important, to get kids excited about books. Thankfully, I have a reputation of doing this. I did creative writing workshops with the Y6s and Y8s in their library. When I used to live in Frome, I used to support Frome College with regular events. They heard that I was coming and they asked me to pop in, I ended up doing two shows in the Merlin Theatre. Two theatres full of their Y10s, I talk to older children and pupils about how they can find a hero in a book, it’s all motivational communicating the message that, ‘whatever you want to do and be, someone has written a book about it.’ I tell them: ‘if you think reading’s boring go and find a book it, can be the gateway to your dreams.’ I also tell them about my journey to being an author.
“I also went to the library at Frome College and spent some time with the Y8 students and chatted to them in a Q&A.”
Joffre rounded off his week with a book launch and signing at Winstone’s Hunting Raven Books on Saturday 9th September, where he launched his first book Frog and the Tree of Spells 14 years ago, “it’s gone full circle being back in the bookshop. We left Frome to go and live in North Devon, after living here for 24 years. Some of the characters I met over the years have made it into my writing.”
There are elements of Joffre’s family life in Frome interspersed in his new book. He said, “The story became very personal because the main character, Sam, is blind and the main character is blind because at six years old, they caught bacterial meningitis. The main character is loosely based on my son because when he was young, he caught bacterial meningitis and ended up fighting for his life. He didn’t lose his sight but he lost his immune system and growth for quite a few years. His resilience as a child is in Sam’s character. My son took up taekwondo and he used to frequent Frome Leisure Centre and the main character does taekwondo, so there’s little bits of our life in Frome throughout the book.”
At the launch and signing of Aura Boy, Joffre recalled that when he drove into Frome, he noticed the town hadn’t changed much. He said, “When I drove around the corner into town it looked exactly the same. I noticed some shops were gone and particularly the banks but it looked the same. I used to love wandering around the town, walking down Catherine Hill and going for a coffee and chatting to people.”
Joffre’s other books include Earthland and Frog and the Tree of Spells. He is also an author, a patron of reading, motivational speaker and a reading and writer motivator.
