“A good tree needs a lot of branches”

By Kelly Carmody

Jun 15, 2023

Treehouse fun: Murchison Primary School students Levi Hetherton, Angus Young and Darcy Sunner at the Book Bash event on Wednesday, which was held online with author Andy Griffiths. Photo by Kelly Carmody

Writing legend Andy Griffiths, who is responsible for more than 33 bestselling books alongside friend and illustrator Terry Denton, ignited the minds of students at Murchison Primary School on Wednesday, June 14, as part of State Library Victoria’s first annual Book Bash.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

The free, one-hour live-streamed event and interactive classroom writing workshop gave students the opportunity to be inspired, learn storytelling techniques, and ask the popular children’s author burning questions about him, his life and his much-loved Treehouse series.

With 1000 schools participating in the event and only five regional Victorian schools chosen to ask questions, Murchison Primary School Year 3/4 teacher Narelle Wood said the school and students felt honoured to be featured.

“It was a wonderful opportunity for our country kids to not only interact with Andy but also tune in to the state library,” she said.

“The event was mainly aimed at the senior year students, but we thought it was important for all ages to be involved and inspired.”

The event, which was visibly engaging, saw keen writing enthusiasts glancing over Mr Griffiths’ novels while he spoke of the reasoning behind The 13-Storey Treehouse novel, the series that followed and his inspiration and journey to becoming an author.

Online inspiration: Author Andy Griffiths was part of State Library Victoria’s Book Bash Wednesday. Photo by Kelly Carmody

Mr Griffiths explained to students that a book could start with a simple idea but then by adding characters, pictures and some fun complications along the way, a book can come to life. And in reference to his Treehouse collection, he said “a good tree needs a lot of branches”.

Year 4 student Macy Harrap was chosen by the library to ask her question during the live event; she was curious about what the author’s childhood hobbies were.

Question time: Murchison Primary School Year 4 student Macy Harrap. Photo by Kelly Carmody

Question time: Murchison Primary School Year 4 student Macy Harrap was the lucky student who got to ask author Andy Griffiths a question at the online Book Bash event. Photo by Kelly Carmody

“Riding bikes, bush adventures, annoying my sisters and my parents, and writing stories all the time,” Mr Griffiths said.

The author also admitted to collecting weird and interesting objects, a habit he maintains to this day. His unique way of interacting and inspiring further reading and writing was enjoyed by students and teachers.

“Encouraging the reader and writer notebooks is something we already do, so it was great to have him mention how important they are,” Mrs Wood said.

“Our students were engaged, they were having fun and he was heaps of fun.

“It was very entertaining.”