New Zealand’s first Te Awhi Rito Reading Ambassador, Ben Brown, woke up to the power of reading when the spine of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer hit him squarely in the head.

His father’s insistence could no longer be ignored and, later, when reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and questioning Mark Twain's liberal use of the ‘N’ word, a less physical, but equally powerful imperative was delivered: ‘Keep reading son, you’ll understand.’

‘Keeping reading, you’ll understand’ was a message repeated throughout Brown’s talk and is the way many boys in the audience may come to a clearer understanding of his thoughts and chosen topics. In a meandering, yet captivating talk, Brown reflected on the passage of time “50 years since Te Petihana Reo Māori, 50 years since the first live telecast of a rugby test match in New Zealand [we won by the way, Ben!]”, Postcolonialism, and the power and reliability of the printed word. And while challenging and philosophical, it was great to witness someone so well read and passionate speak to a group of young people on equal terms and not just speak to what they already know.

Some glowing endorsements of Brown’s talk include a year ten class reading in complete silence for the whole of the following lesson, a group of senior students delaying his departure as they dug deeper into his views and ideas, and a Year 10 in the Social Studies classroom saying, “I might read a book now.”

Thank you to Ben Brown, for visiting our school, our librarian Kate Innes and National Librarian Bridget Schaumann for organising the visit, Mr Mahutariki and his senior Māori class for the mihi whakatau, and to that Year 10 boy who is thinking about reading a book - you should! I reckon that’s a pretty smart idea.