Wellington-based
children’s author Philippa Werry has a number of reasons to celebrate in April
– on the same day it is announced that her 2013 book Anzac Day: The New Zealand Story
is amongst the finalists in the New Zealand Post Book Awards for Children andYoung Adults, she is launching her latest book on the
subject, Best Mates: Three lads who went
to war together.
And later this month she will experience the landscapes and stories behind all
the desk research she has done to produce these two books first-hand, when she
travels to Gallipoli as just one of six New Zealanders selected for the 2014
Gallipoli Volunteer Programme.
Philippa’s
interest stems from the fact that both her grandfathers fought in the First
World War (one enlisted in New Zealand and was at Gallipoli, the other in
England and was on the Western Front) and her great-great-aunt was in the first
group of New Zealand nurses to leave for WWI. Her first idea for writing Anzac Day was that it would be
a way of explaining the Anzac service to children, but she soon realised you
couldn’t do that without explaining where the word Anzac came from and some of
the history behind it, and the book developed from there.
Published
in March 2013, this non-fiction title went into reprint again before Anzac Day,
and has enjoyed another two reprints since. It was selected as a Storylines
Notable Book last month, and has just been announced amongst the finalists for
the New Zealand Post Book Awards for Children and Young Adults.
It
was while she was visiting schools to talk about Anzac Day, that she realised there was a need for a book on the
topic of Gallipoli aimed at the younger market. "I wanted to show the
story of war (Gallipoli in particular) as extending beyond the battlefield to
the families left behind, and including references to what it was like for the
Turkish soldiers. The hospitals and medical staff aren't mentioned but they are
there in the background. I wanted to show how war has a lasting impact, and how
important it is for us to remember those who died in war," says Philippa.
And
so she began developing the concept behind Best
Mates, a picture book that
incorporates the work of award-winning Wellington illustrator Bob Kerr to tell
the moving tale of three young school friends who sign up to go to war
together. This, Philippa’s first picture book, is launching at The Children’s
Bookshop in Kilburnie this evening, and has started to hit bookstores
countrywide ahead of Anzac Day commemorations.
Philippa
has become so involved with the subject of Gallipoli from her research for both
books, that she put her name down for the Gallipoli Volunteer Programme and was
one of just six New Zealanders to be selected for this year's two-week trip,
which involves an in depth tour of the Gallipoli peninsula, then helping out at
the Anzac Day services on 24-25 April.
Philippa
is available for interview from Wellington before she leaves for Turkey on
Friday 14 April, and arrangements can possibly be made for telephone or Skype
interviews while she is in Gallipoli. Bob Kerr is also available for interview.
To
learn more about the Gallipoli Volunteer Programme, visit:
And
to follow Philippa’s preparation for her trip, and her travels, visit:
To
learn more about the Berry’s Boys collection see:
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