The boy who wanted a book

Many years ago now I read a story about an African boy who carried a complex physics textbook with him everywhere he went. This intrigued a local teacher because she knew the boy couldn’t read. One day she approached the boy and asked him why he carried the book with him when he couldn’t read. He said, “I just wanted my own book”.

The story stayed with me for months. Having spent my life surrounded by books, it was hard to imagine desire so fierce that carrying around a book you couldn’t read was considered essential for happiness. This boy knew instinctively that books mean pleasure and words bring power.

Later when the Harry Potter stories were released I saw first hand how one character could capture the imagination of children all over the world; and so I began the writing journey on the following video:

Do your children love reading? I would love to read your comments below.