Kit Berry's Blog, page 6

Trick or Treat - is it on the way out?

Last year I blogged about Hallowe'en and my aversion to kids knocking on my door expecting sweets or money. Especially sullen teenagers in a cheap mask and football shirt. I told of how one year, after several visits like this, I had armed myself with a waterpistol and had squirted the hapless callers. I thought this was quite amusing as no harm was done at all, but someone reading my blog took offence and I suspect she doesn't follow me any more.

On my community site last year there was much...

Dorset Volunteers Award Ceremony, Dorchester

Kit presents Leon with his prize and certificate

The five girls who volunteered to help with the award ceremony also received a book

Craig Womble, one of the Centre's managers, and Bethany who had worked so hard

The young volunteers who won awards for outstanding achievement in community work
All photos courtesy of and copyright Steve Pallant - with thanks

I was privileged to be invited as the guest of honour to present awards at the Dorset Volunteers Award Ceremony in Dorchester last week...

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - wow!

Publicity photo for the film

I don't normally do film reviews on my blog and this isn't really one as such because I'm not going to write clever and insightful things about a film. Or nasty and disparaging things either - that's not why I blog. But last night Mr B and I went to see a film that so "blew my mind" that I felt today I had to share it with those of you who follow my blog.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus was written and directed by Terry Gilliam (of Monty Python fame) and...

Naughty authors - Roald Dahl and Maurice Sendak

I've read two interesting stories this week that got me thinking about the whole political correctness thing involved in writing for children. As many of you will know, I brought up three sons and was also a school teacher, so I've had quite a bit of experience with books and kids. My boys had literally hundreds of books because I discovered early on, when George was just a baby, that children's books at jumble sales were ridiculously cheap. Sometimes only 1p, but at most 10p. I'd come h...