Back in Scunthorpe

I am back in Scunthorpe, after a lovely weekend at home spent sledging and lying around the place. Oh, and reading the new Alex Rider novel.

I have to admit it, Anthony Horowitz is brilliant. He is such a great storyteller. I was racing through it thinking I am learning so much from this. I am not saying I am stealing things from him. That would be pointless. But I am saying that if you read a really good writer you can learn how to become a better writer. That is what I want to do. Improve. Every day.

I also read Auslander by Paul Dowswell last week. Stunning. An amazing story set in Nazi Germany. It is a tough read, definitely for older readers, but awesome. I emailed the author on his website to say thanks. He was kind enough to email back.

So I am in Scunthorpe schools all week. I was impressed that at least half the children in Scunthorpe support the local team. Many of them have another team (i.e. Liverpool or Man U, usually). But still...

Scunthorpe wallopped Derby 4-1 at the weekend. Leeds only managed a 1-1 with Wycombe.

Poor Derby, eh? It was only two years ago that I was in a Matlock school being mocked for being a Leeds fan by one class, as the class I'd worked with an hour before was outside the library shouting 'We all hate Leeds' through the door.

I must go back to that school and see those lads again. They'll be a bit quieter, I expect.