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Bother, Trouble and an RAF childhood Flying and travel are in my blood – as the daughter of an RAF officer and a Canadian teacher, I visited four of the world’s continents before starting school. My dad was stationed in Aden long, long ago in the 1960s, and my very earliest memories are of this exotic, magical but sadly so troubled place. Slides that were made of wood as metal in that heat would have given your backside a nasty shock! Goats and camels wandering through the streets. The shark nets at the beach. And, best of all, a two week [...]

Hello Reading Force families!  I'm Emma, I'm a Pad Brat and I will be writing a monthly blog about reading and Forces life. School has been back in session for a month now and I’m sure there’s been some good times (friends, lunch time, home time) and some challenging times (teachers, lessons, homework!) so I thought I’d bring you a list of books to get you through it. When I was at school my Year 9 form tutor decided we should all keep a diary – at the same time I was enjoying reading The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot. [...]

Hi! I'm Emma, I'm 27, a Pad Brat and I will be writing a monthly blog about reading and Forces life. To tell you a bit about my background: my Dad was in the Army, he joined the Light Infantry for almost thirteen years before joining The Royal Logistic Corps in 1995. Currently he's working at 237 Bde Sp Sqn RLC. My Mum and brother work for West Midland Reserve Forces & Cadets Association and I've spent some time in Cadets as a teen and later worked at the RFCA also! So we're still pretty embedded in Forces life! My main passion [...]

The Reading Force team asked me if I’d be available to work with forces children at Hornbill School in Brunei in March this year. As a forces child myself, I was delighted to hear more about Reading Force; how it encourages families to read together, talk about books and fill in scrapbooks about the books they’ve shared. Families do this together at home and when a parent is away on deployment or exercise. After our 16-hour flight to Brunei, we - Alison Baverstock and Elaine Boorman from Reading Force and I - were met at the airport and whisked off to our hotel [...]

Need some inspiration to choose a new book from the library or bookshop? We’ve picked a handful of books we think you’ll love. The Lie Tree, for teens and young adults, is the first children’s book to win the prestigious Costa Book of the Year Award since 2002 – for good reason! This Victorian murder mystery will grip readers of all ages. Jacqueline Wilson has a new not to be missed book – The Butterfly Club, about Tina, one of three triplets, heart-warming and engaging as ever. If it’s fast-paced action and adventure you’re after there’s the extraordinarily funny and original [...]

The vote in favour of air strikes against Syria had an immediate impact on one group of people: those charged with doing the striking. And while our first thoughts may be of aircrews required to carry out what has been voted for, and the wide range of people who support them such as ground crews, we know that the families of all military personnel involved in the campaign to defeat IS are immediately impacted too. Of course all potentially involved will have been on a high state of alert for weeks now, and that’s part of their role. In the run [...]

Now is the time to take out Christmas books from the library or dig out the ones you put away with the Christmas decorations last year – or treat the family to a new book. There are so many fantastic Christmas stories to get the family in the festive mood, and these are a few favourites from the Reading Force team. Stick Man by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler Age 3+ Stick Man is trying to get back to his family tree in time for Christmas, but many mishaps stop him having a smooth journey home. Poor Stick Man is picked [...]

On Friday 9th October 2015 pupils in schools all over the UK will be showing their support for soldiers, sailors, airmen and their families, by dressing up in Red, White & Blue and donating £1 each. Red, White & Blue Day is held every year and in 2015 will be taking place on 9th October, or any day of your choice during October & November. This year the event will feature specially created lesson plans and films which tell the story of how the RAF beat back the Luftwaffe from the skies of England during September 1940. The Battle of Britain [...]

Children’s author, Tom Palmer, blogs about why he is so pleased to be part of the Reading Force Roadshow. There is no way I could have written my Rugby Academy series of books without the help of the children and teachers at Albrighton Primary School and the RAF Cosford base where many of those children’s parents are based. My problem was I wanted to write books about children whose mums and dads were in the forces – but I knew nothing about what those children’s lives would be like. There was only one way I was going to be able to [...]

A child being able to hear the voice of their parent who is posted away from home is very precious and helps them feel closer. Story book Waves makes this happen by recording Royal Navy and Royal Marines parents reading a picture book story for their child. Then a team of specially trained volunteers adds a soundtrack to make a personalised CD that the child can listen to over and over and whenever they want. Families who have made Storybook Waves CDs joke that they get listened to so much they are the only CDs to get worn out! At Reading [...]