Our Patron of Reading, Keren David, visited our LRC on Friday 3rd May to talk about her new book, The Disconnect. Students enjoyed the events during the day and found the Disconnect cup cakes delicious!

Keren David described the idea for her book rooting from a conversation with her son, which involved Karen being concerned that he was spending too much time on his phone at the lead-up to his A Levels. During the discussion they talked about what it would take him to be phone-free for the next 6 weeks – his answer was £1, 000. Karen’s hypothetical question as well as her sons answer, gave her the inspiration and idea to write the book.

The Disconnect is about a group of teenagers who are challenged to give up their mobile phones for six weeks. During 2016, a report from digital advice group Common Sense Media found that half of teens feel “addicted” to their mobile devices – and 60 per cent of parents agree with them. Imagine what statistics may show now?

The Disconnect is Keren’s 11th book and also the third to be published by Barrington Stoke. During her visit to our LRC she talked about how  delighted she was to be commissioned by the publisher – Barrington Stoke commissions and publishes dyslexia-friendly books for teenagers written by bestselling authors.

Keren explained her interest in dyslexic readers due to her niece being dyslexic and her daughter being dyspraxic – this results in her taking longer to process which impacts on her reading taking a bit longer than average. While Barrington Stoke books are much shorter that most teen novels, they are still as sophisticated and fascinating as any other novel. In addition, the books are published on tinted paper as well as being printed with a clear font.

Come to the LRC and find The Disconnect and find out what happens when a group of teenagers are challenged to give up their phone for six weeks.

For more information on what goes on at the LRC, visit their blog page.