Westmeath County Library and Arts Service welcomed John W Sexton on October 2 to launch Children’s BookFest 2008 and to mark the first National Poetry Day Ireland.
John W Sexton has been a children’s author, and written scripts for radio. He sometimes plays in a rock band, but he sees himself primarily as a writer, and in recent years he has found his passion is focused more and more on poetry.
To that end, he joined children from Rathwire National School and Raharney National School in Killucan and children from St Mary’s CBS Mullingar and Scoil na Maighdine Mhuire in Mullingar library with a view to entertain, explain, and inspire children to connect with poetry.
Whether explaining technical terms like metre, or explaining the writing process, or even just reading and showing different forms of poetry, John was able to enthrall his audience. By showing that poetry can be inspired by a story, like The Lonely Goldfish, or a personal relationship, eg Things I do with my Dad, to setting the imagination free with the whimsical idea of a room in an acorn, John showed that there are no limits on poetry.
Westmeath County Library and Arts Office is committed to helping children explore their creativity and develop their imaginations.
