An East Kilbride teacher, who has penned an enchanting novel for children and young people, is sharing her book and home schooling tools in a bid to rekindle the joy of reading during lockdown.
Author Nena Hamilton, who teaches English at Calderglen High in East Kilbride, has combined her full-time teaching career and motherhood with writing ‘The Book of Almost Anything,’ – a labour of love to which she devoted five years.
Writing under the pseudonym K H Dawson – a tribute to her grandmother, Kate Dawson – the novel follows the fortunes of 13-year-old Christopher, who is struggling to fit into a new school.
But this sensitive and charming boy has another story. He lost his confidence and developed a stutter when his mother died suddenly and inexplicably.
Christopher goes to live with his grandmother, Nana Kathy, in the family residence of Milaw House, which is full of magic.
His overpowering father tries to get back into his life and stamp his authority, believing that his son has a wild and fanciful imagination and makes up stories.
But in the garden of his gran’s house, the teenager stumbles across an ancient ‘lean-to’ – and everything changes for Christopher. Because, what he discovers there, is beyond his wildest dreams.
Nena, who lives in East Kilbride with her wife, Kerry, and their two-year-old daughter, Anna, is a quarter of the way through writing the second part of trilogy, ‘The Book of Almost Anything.’
For parents and carers to use while home schooling, she has also created imaginative materials in a free, lockdown learning pack, with answers to set tasks, available on her website: www.khdawson.com.
Also on her website, young bookworms can read the first four chapters of her inspirational book for free.
“The aim is to help the wider community during this crazy time of lockdown,” explained Nena, who is currently remotely teaching around 100 Calderglen High pupils, from S1 to S5.
“What I’m trying to do is enable parents, carers and teachers to have something that’s a little bit extra to inspire our younger generation and entertain young ones. There are free activities around the book itself, with answers, and there’s an audio version of chapters one to three for little ones and for not-so-confident readers.
“It’s all about trying to bring some fun and enjoyment back into reading.”
It is Nena’s hope that ‘The Book of Almost Anything’ and its associated learning tools will be a means of escapism from winter lockdown blues and will instill in children and young people a passion for reading.
It was through the encouragement of her own parents and her grandmother – who inspired her pseudonym – that Nena fell in love with reading at an early age.
Her passion for literature led her to the University of Glasgow, where she successfully completed a degree in English Language and Literature.
Nena then went on to achieve a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (English Secondary) and worked in various schools, before settling at Calderglen High, where she has been sharing her enthusiasm for literature and language for 16 years.
Her first novel, “The Book of Almost Anything,” was published in November 2020.
It is on sale for £6.51 on Amazon, and is available to download for the cheaper price of 77p.
Members of Amazon Prime can download the e-Book for free – and you can even lend your copy to a friend or relative for 14 days at no charge.
• K H Dawson is giving nine to 14-year-olds a chance to win a signed copy of her first book, along with a pack of reading goodies.
To enter the competition, draw a picture of what you think the old lean-to looks like – it could be the interior, exterior, or both. There’s lots of description of Milaw Garden’s lean-to in chapters one to three, which entrants can use to spark their imaginations.
Send entries in photograph form with your name, age and address/email to: Email: k.h.dawson@outlook.com or Twitter: @KHDawson1
The author will start posting pictures of entries on her Twitter page as soon as she receives them.
You can also keep up to date with news at her website, www.khdawson.com.
