This week is Book Week and the School has been enlivened by workshops with authors, special book related activities and preparations for the big parade that took place this morning. Once again this year we were delighted that the Year 7 and Year 12 girls joined the Blinkbonnie and Raymond House students in costume to celebrate reading and end the festivities. As many of you know, I tend to do most of my recreational reading via audio book these days and recently I have been interested to immerse myself in three books set in Africa, in preparation for my forthcoming vacation to South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda and Zimbabwe during the September break: A Primate’s Memoir by Robert M. Sapolsky, tells the story of a naturalist working with baboons; An African Love Story by Daphne Sheldrick, is about the author’s work with elephants, and the well-known Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen. My top picks for younger readers this year have been Nevermoor and Wundersmith - Jessica Townsend’s action packed tales of Morrigan Crow – which I found slightly reminiscent of the Harry Potter series. I have also enjoyed Any Ordinary Day by 7:30 host, Leigh Sales and The Land Before Avocado by Richard Glover, which was a fun romp through the various decades of my life!!

Parents often lament to me that their daughters don’t read as much as they would like them to, particularly as they get older. Our girls are keen observers and look to us to set the example – whether it be in the respect we show in our relationships, in our obedience (or not) of traffic signals and road rules, in our own management of screen time, and in our reading habits. So this week, I encourage you to share your reading with your girls, or, if it has been a while since you escaped into a book, consider picking one up again when your daughter is watching! And remember that Lowther Hall has a parent Book Club to which all are welcome! Happy Book Week!