Young authors donate to good cause

More than a hundred excited young writers from across Auckland and Whangarei presented their book Superhero Pukeko & 7 Winning Stories at Starship Hospital, which will receive the book’s entire proceeds.
The compilation book of eight short stories is written by children aged five to 12 years old and includes illustrations by rugby star Keven Mealamu.
Room number eight at St Heliers School was the overall winning story. Their story The Pukeko who wanted to be a Super Hero tells the tale of a bird with a mistaken identity, on his search to find a licence to be a super hero.
Every cent from book sales will be donated to the Starship Foundation, with funds supporting the purchase of brain monitoring equipment.
As well as rubbing shoulders with Mealamu, the winning classes were also treated to writing workshops with authors Paula Green and John Parker, who helped them refine their stories.
The book was published by Barfoot & Thompson, whose past three story books have helped to raise a combined $80,000 for Starship.