Kerry Brown, Australian International School Malaysia’s (AISM) Head of Early Learning Centre, recently published a book titled "Lest We Forget" to mark the 100th anniversary of ANZAC. The book, one of her many, captures inspirational messages of heartfelt meaning about Australia's national day of remembrance, ANZAC Day, where Australian and New Zealand Army Corps formed an allied expedition to the Gallipoli peninsula.
Kerry with her new book 'Lest We Forget'
The story portrays a young boy and his grandfather discussing the idea that there are two types of days; ones to remember and ones to forget. They both share experiences in their lives that have sparked both happiness and sadness. The young grandson talks about his happy days, like his first day of school and the day his little sister was born. He then reveals the days that upset him. In a clever and original approach, Kerry Brown uses illustrations to show a parallel story of the grandfather's experience at war; wearing his soldiers' uniform and being with his fellow diggers in the trenches. There are also dark days for the grandfather; ones he would like to forget.
Kerry explains, "I wrote this story to encourage open conversation between children and adults. I truly hope it will help bridge the ages and create a level of understanding and empathy from generation to generation."
Kerry with AISM students during a storytelling session.
Kerry Brown is a well-known Australian children's author and is currently Head Teacher of the Early Learning Centre at the AISM. She has published numerous children's picture books and is most certainly the most popular and engaging storyteller with young students at the school.
