Children’s author gives books to Reay pupils on visit to her old school

A visit by a local children’s author proved to be “an amazing experience” for pupils and staff at Reay Primary School.

Pauline Steven, formerly known as Banks and now Scullion, was born in Reay and began her education there in 1970.

On a visit to give a talk about her writing, she gifted a set of her books to every child in the school.

Pauline (59) says her time as a pupil at Reay gave her a solid foundation before moving on to Thurso High School.

She and husband Alan received a warm welcome from head teacher Fiona Macleod and her team on their recent visit, and there was an enthusiastic response from the young readers.

Pauline told them that one of her bucket-list goals had been to write a book – a dream she fulfilled during Covid.

Her first book, Gilly the Giraffe Goes to Scotland, tells the story of a South African giraffe exploring Scottish tourist attractions and discovering connections between Scotland and South Africa.

Pauline went on to create a series exploring the British Isles, while keeping the same format.

Her family inspired the next set of adventures, beginning with Chazza the Chamois Goes to England. “Chazza” is a nickname for her daughter Charlene, and the book features an Italian goat visiting England.

Next was Darsey the Dormouse Goes to Wales. “Darsey” is what many of Pauline’s family call her son Darren, and this time a French dormouse explores Wales.

Then came Bertie the Bear Goes to Ireland, featuring an American bear on holiday. The book was inspired by Pauline’s daughter, who sometimes called her “Bert”, though more often it was “Mum”.

By gifting a set of her books to every pupil at Reay, Pauline said she hoped they would find both fun and educational value in her stories. The children were delighted with the gesture.

The head teacher prompted the students to ask Pauline some questions, which ranged from the time it took to write the books to where the illustrations came from – and whether her hands hurt from all the typing.

Pauline, who moved back to the village more than six years ago, said: “I enjoyed the chance to answer their questions and engage with the bright young minds of Reay.”

Mrs MacLeod said: “It was a real privilege having Pauline visit our school. It is always great having an author in to speak to the children and bring the book to life, but having an author who is a former pupil of Reay Primary School made it even more special.

“Pauline was excellent with the children, describing her journey to becoming an author and answering all of their questions. The children and staff thoroughly enjoyed her visit and found it interesting and informative.

“Pauline was so kind, gifting a set of four books to every child in the school. Many of the children were very keen to have time that day to begin reading her books.

“Pauline has agreed to return to school to assist the children with some writing lessons and we are all looking forward to this.

“On behalf of everyone at Reay Primary School, I would like to say a massive thank-you to Pauline – and not forgetting her assistant, Alan – for giving up their time to come and talk to the children and staff. It was an amazing experience for all of us.”

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