The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
A boy with severe dyslexia has been inspired to write a short story after enjoying a novel written for him by his grandfather.
Luke McMenamin’s problem had put him off reading but the 14-year-old has new-found confidence after polishing off David Turp’s adventure story called Deep Secrets.
Mr Turp, of Pinchbeck, said: “The book has double-spaced text, enlarged font, bite-size chapters and dramatic drawings that positively encourage page turning.
“Luke has read my book cover to cover and enjoyed it so much he has been inspired to send me his first – of many, I hope – short story attempt.
“That is all I set out to achieve.”
Mr Turp (68) believes the levels of children’s reading and writing have slipped and he’s concerned that gaming consoles and iPhones are taking more of their attention.
“Dyslexia and poor reading skills, from my observations here in Lincolnshire, are becoming problematic,” he said. ”I want to hearten parents and children with Luke’s personal experience, because, sadly, the temptation for parents is to give way to all the commercial electronic gadgetry that is overwhelming in these times.
“It would surely be a shame if a generation of our children were to gradually lose interest in reading and writing.”
The project took Mr Turp two years to complete and cost about £1,750.
The book, priced at £4.99, is available in Bookmark in The Crescent, Spalding, and from Amazon Books. It can also be bought as an e-book for the Kindle.
Mr Turp admits that he’d like to “claw back some of the costs” but making money was not his primary motivation.
“The whole purpose of my book is to encourage young people, like Luke, to make the effort,” he said. “I decided to do this story in the same genre of TV detective stories that Luke really enjoys, to incite in him a lasting love of reading and writing.
“As for the story itself, I purposely resisted the notion of ‘dumbing down’ the readable content and it stands on merit as an original and highly entertaining story.”
He added: “I’m a first-time self-publisher, and I hope my story of self-publishing with the positive aim of motivating young readers with reading problems will encourage all others who wish the same.”
Luke is the son of David’s daughter Angelique, and they live in Ireland.
Mr Turp has characters in the novel named after Luke and his other grandchildren Jacob (14), Rosie-May (11) and Aimee (11),
He said the novel, published by CreateSpace, has attracted the attention of the British Dyslexia Association, which will review the detective story.
