Choir from PS172 at Book Launch

We can’t help loving the schools out here in the US. The reason is simple…they love us!  Can you believe that a school (PS172) formed a choir and opened our book launch with two beautiful renditions of New York songs, but with the words cleverly changed to fit in with the Mokee Joe books! They were incredible and I don’t think there was a dry eye in the auditorium afterwards…least not with the adults, anyway. The choir performance was over all too quickly, but the good news is that Kath and I are visiting PS172 on Thursday and they have agreed to sing again for us…can’t wait!!

The audience at the book launch was HUGE! By far the biggest audience I’ve ever stood in

BIGGEST audience of all time!

front of. And now that it’s all over I have the pleasant job of visiting the schools and signing books for all our fans. This morning (Tues) we visited a superb school in New Jersey – PS7. The teachers (educators) gave us a fantastic welcome and before long we were in front of 250 cheering Mokee Joe fans. We saw the most amazing merchandise made by the students, including Mokee Joe earrings, Mokee Joe cups, plates, t-shirts, sweatshirts and just about every Mokee Joe article it’s possible to imagine. Wow! How impressive is that for an author to see? Kath and I were over the moon to see all the work done on our behalf. A MASSIVE thank you to Ann Hazeley for all her support and to Miss Polo and the other student teachers we met back at the William Paterson University….we owe so much to them!

Mokee Joe makes Massachusetts!

After the book launch we were driven up to Boston in Massachusetts to visit a wonderful school  – The Fenn School for boys. And what fantastic boys they were!! The audience of around 150 students provided one of the most enthusiastic audiences I’ve had the pleasure to entertain. They were so up for the books and are now avid fans. We plan to return there in the Spring and will also visit the boys’ sisters in the nearby Girls’ School. The town of Concord provided a wonderful setting for our overnight stay. The Christmas decorations were still up and it snowed overnight! When we awoke the next morning it was Christmas all over again!! A big thank-you to Audrey for looking after us and to all the teachers and boys at the Fenn School for making us so welcome. We’ll be back…

Here’s a bit of red-hot news…the fifth Mokee Joe book will be set in the spooky swamplands of Louisiana and centred around New Orleans. For those who’ve now finished Mokee Joe: Mutant Resurrection…you’ll have guessed that anyway!!  PJM