Spelling Bee Update: Cavan, Tyrone and Fermanagh
Another week, another three Spelling Bees! This week saw us visit Cavan, Tyrone and Fermanagh for their respective county bees. With only three Spelling Bees now remaining, it’s not long until we reach the Provincial and All-Ireland Final.
Cavan Spelling Bee:
Knocktemple N.S. was the host for the Cavan Spelling Bee. The winner on the day was Adam Kelly from Killygarry N.S.. Coincidentally, Adam was one of the runners up in the 2012 All-Ireland.
Cavan Spelling Bee Winner – Adam Kelly from Killygarry N.S.
Tyrone Spelling Bee:
The winner of the Tyrone Spelling Bee was James Rice from St. Patrick’s Primary School in Dungannon. James will now go on to represent Tyrone in the Ulster Final in June.
Tyrone Spelling Bee Winner – James Rice from St. Patrick’s Primary School in Dungannon
Fermanagh Spelling Bee:
A great welcome was extended to all schools from St. Ninnidh’s Primary School in Derrylin for the Fermanagh Spelling Bee. On the day Caitlin Waterson from St. Mary’s Primary School in Teemore was declared the Fermanagh Spelling Bee champion.
Fermanagh Spelling Bee Winner – Caitlin Waterson from St. Mary’s Primary School in Teemore
Win an Epic Goodie-Bag!
Epic, the latest CG action-adventure comedy by the makers of Ice Age and Rio, hit cinemas on Wednesday, May 22nd. Telling the story of an ongoing battle between good and evil over the potential destruction of the natural world, Epic follows a teenage girl who finds herself magically transported into this secret universe. Can she save the world?
To celebrate this release, we’re giving away Epic goodie-bags containing a stationery set, plush toy, backpack and adventure set. Just complete the form below with the correct answer by Friday, May 31st to enter the draw!
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Eason Spelling Bee Update – Armagh, Derry and Donegal
Last week saw us begin the first of the County stages in Ulster with visits to Armagh, Derry and Donegal. You will find updates on these Spelling Bees below. We are now only a few short weeks away from the Provincial and All-Ireland stages of the Eason Spelling Bee.
Armagh Spelling Bee:
Eight spellers took park on Monday in the Armagh Spelling Bee, which took place in Portadown. Ryce McClatchey from Millington Primary School was the winner on the day and will now go on to represent Armagh in the Ulster Final in June.
Armagh Spelling Bee Winner – Ryce McClatchey from Millington Primary School
Derry Spelling Bee:
Five schools took part in the Derry Spelling Bee which was held in the Central Primary School in Limavady. After a closely fought tie-break, Tara O’Boyle from St. Brigid’s Primary School in Mayogall was declared the winner and now goes forward to the Ulster final.
Derry Spelling Bee Winner – Tara O’Boyle from St. Brigid’s Primary School in Mayogall
Donegal Spelling Bee:
Our third spelling bee of the week saw us visit Gaelscoil Adhamhnin in Letterkenny for the Donegal Spelling Bee. 31 spellers took part on the day with Jamie Griffin from St. Bridget’s N.S. in Convoy becoming the Donegal Spelling Bee Champion.
Donegal Spelling Bee Winner – Jamie Griffin from St. Bridget’s N.S. in Convoy
Final County Spelling Bee Dates:
- Cavan – Mon 20th May – 11am – Knocktemple N.S., Virginia, Co. Cavan
- Tyrone – Wed 22nd May – 11am – St. Patrick’s Primary School, Dungannon, Co. Tyrone
- Fermanagh – Thu 23rd May – 11am – St. Ninnidh’s PS, Derrylin, Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh
- Monaghan – Mon 27th May – 11am – Gaelscoil Ultain, An Cnoc, Muineachan, Co. Mhuineachain
- Antrim – Wed 29th May – 11am – St. Patrick’s & St. Brigid’s Primary School, Ballycastle, Co. Antrim
- Down – Thu 30th May – 11am – Castlewellan Primary School, Castlewellan, Co. Down
May/June Eason Events Round-Up
Make sure to get into your local Eason store this month for the chance to meet and greet bestselling authors! See below for details of the great events happening around the country throughout May:
Thursday, May 2nd
- Michael Grant launch night for Light – 6pm in Eason O’Connell Street
- Image Magazine promotion, with in-store makeup artists and goodie bag giveaways – 4pm to 8pm in Eason Dundrum.
- Leesa Harker book launch and signing of her new book, Maggie’s Feg Run – 6pm in Eason Donegall Place
Friday, May 3rd
- Michael Grant book signing for Light – 4pm in Eason Dundrum
Thursday, May 9th
- Danny Morrison, author talk and signing of Rudi – 6:30pm in Eason Donegall Place
Friday, May 24th
- Dawn Porter signing of her new book, Paper Aeroplanes – 4pm in Eason Dundrum
- Jamie Laing from Made in Chelsea signing his new book Candy Kittens – 1pm in Eason Dundrum
- Jamie Laing from Made in Chelsea signing his new book Candy Kittens – 4pm in Eason O’Connell St
Monday, May 27th
- Dawn Porter signing of her new book, Paper Aeroplanes – 12pm in Eason Foyleside
Saturday, June 1st
- Kirk Norcross from TOWIE signing his new book Essex Boy: My Story – 12pm in Eason Donegall Place
- Kirk Norcross from TOWIE signing his new book Essex Boy: My Story – 3:30pm in Eason Craigavon
Wednesday, June 12th
- Rick Yancey, author talk, Q&A and signing of his new book The 5th Wave – 5pm in Eason O’Connell St. You can get tickets at the O’Connell St Information Desk or by calling (01) 8583800.
Spelling Bee Update – Wexford, Wicklow, Westmeath, Meath and Louth
Over the last 2 weeks we visited Wexford, Wicklow, Westmeath, Meath and Louth for their respective County Spelling Bees. This now completes the Leinster county stages of the Spelling Bee. Next up is the County Spelling Bee stage in Ulster and dates can be found below. Updates from the last 2 weeks can also be found here.
Wexford County Spelling Bee:
27 spellers took part in the Wexford County Spelling Bee on Wed 24th April which was held in Boolavogue N.S. Evan Kiely from Gusserane N.S. in New Ross was declared the winner and will now go on to represent Wexford in the Leinster Final in June.
Wicklow County Spelling Bee:
St. Joseph’s N.S. in Glenealy played host to the Wicklow Spelling Bee. 11 spellers took part in the Spelling Bee on the day. The contest came down to a tie-break with Laura Creighton from St. Brigid’s N.S. in Manor Kilbride crowned the winner.
Westmeath County Spelling Bee:
11 spellers took part in the Westmeath County Spelling Bee on Tue 30th April which was held in St. Manchan’s N.S. in Tubber. The winner on the day was Aisling Kelly from St. Etchen’s National School in Kinnegad.
Meath County Spelling Bee:
26 spellers took part in the Meath County Spelling Bee on Wed 1st May which was held in St. Columbanus N.S. in Ballivor. A large crowd was in attendance on the day with Rian Mary Kearns from St. Mary’s Primary School in Trim declared the winner after a tie-break round. Mary will now go on to represent Meath in the Leinster Final in June.
Louth County Spelling Bee:
18 spellers took part in the Louth County Spelling Bee on Thu 2nd May which was held in Scoil Mhuire na nGael in Dundalk. This was our last county spelling bee in Leinster. We got a great reception from the host school and coincidentally the winner on the day, was David Alajiki from the host school. David will now go on to represent Louth in the Leinster Final.
County Final dates for the Ulster Spelling Bees as follows:
| County | Date | Time | Location |
| Armagh | Mon 13th May | 11:00 | Presentation Primary School, Thomas St., Portadown |
| Derry | Wed 15th May | 11:00 | Limavady Central School, Limavady |
| Donegal | Thu 16th May | 11:00 | Gaelscoil Adhamhnin, Glenn Cearra, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal |
| Cavan | Mon 20th May | 11:00 | Knocktemple N.S., Virginia, Co. Cavan |
| Tyrone | Wed 22nd May | 11:00 | St. Patrick’s Primary School, Dungannon, Co. Tyrone |
| Fermanagh | Thu 23rd May | 11:00 | St. Ninnidh’s PS, Derrylin, Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh |
| Monaghan | Mon 27th May | 11:00 | Gaelscoil Ultain, An Cnoc, Muineachan, Co. Mhuineachain |
| Antrim | Wed 29th May | 11:00 | St. Patrick’s & St. Brigid’s Primary School, Ballycastle, Co. Antrim |
| Down | Thu 30th May | 11:00 | Castlewellan Primary School, Castlewellan, Co. Down |
Eason is Gold Winner in An Post Integrated Direct Marketing Awards!
We’re celebrating today in Eason HQ! Our Children’s Literacy Campaign was named the Gold Winner in the ‘Best DM & Digital’ category of An Post’s Integrated Direct Marketing Awards (IDMAs) last night.
Aimed at promoting children’s literacy throughout Ireland, our ongoing campaign has three main strands:
- The Eason Spelling Bee, which grew from just 12 participating schools in 2011 to a massive 800 schools in 2013
- Get Into Reading – our drive to promote the importance of reading with children, supported by our weekly Story Time readings in every Eason store in the country
- Our partnership with children’s charity organisation, Barnados
Group Head of Marketing David Field was delighted that Eason received such recognition for its focus on bringing the gift of reading to children. “This award highlights the importance of bringing children’s literacy to the forefront in modern Ireland. In our initial research, we were surprised to discover that almost 20% of Irish parents of children under the age of 8 never read to their children. We believe that reading is not only an essential skill, but also a catalyst for expanding young imaginations and creating a lifelong connection with the magic of the written word.”
This IDMA Award comes just six months after Easons.com scooped the ‘Website of the Year’ and ‘Best Customer Experience’ prizes in the 2012 Retail Excellence Ireland Awards.
Protected: Dan Brown Competition Entry Form
Guest Article: Mary Beth Keane on Writing Historical Fiction
Mary Beth Keane, author of Fever – about an Irish immigrant battling her way through life in 1900s New York – explains why character detail trumps historical and cultural precision when writing historical fiction.
I never expected to write historical fiction, though some of my favourite novels of all time are in that category. Never great with names and dates, I figured historical fiction was for people whose minds work in a more straightforward fashion. Once, taking an American History exam when I was in high school, I couldn’t remember the exact dates of James Madison’s presidency but I remembered that Dolly Madison, his wife, was said to have a ritual of peeking from an upper floor window whenever his carriage departed their home for the Capitol. I offered up this titbit in exchange for hard facts. I did not get an A.
When it first occurred to me that Mary Mallon, who was better known to history as “Typhoid Mary,” would make a fascinating character, it wasn’t immediately clear to me that I should be the one to write her story. Everything about early 20th century New York was sepia-toned in my imagination. The clip-clop of horses on the avenues, the long skirts of the women brushing the sidewalks – it all seemed too distant, too quaint. I began by reading about the politics of the period, the manoeuvres of politicians and their staff, but how much did that tell me about what the average person thought and felt? Nothing. In order to get my arms around Mary’s story I had to walk alongside the people making their way in this world and not just observe them doing so. I had to understand their worries and their hopes. If they harboured secret ambitions, I had to discover them. Thinking back to high school, I knew that I remembered that detail about Dolly because it I found it moving that even a President’s wife peeks out of windows. I identified with Dolly, saw myself in her, and recognised her vulnerability. I had to get there with Mary Mallon.
Now that the book is written, many of the responses I’ve gotten have been about the research, how it must have been overwhelming, difficult to keep track of. It was those things at times, but research was also a crutch when I didn’t want to do the truly difficult work of writing fiction. I knew, when I was getting too focused on how many buttons a woman might have on her corset, or what route, precisely, the subway took when it first opened, that I was avoiding the task at hand, which was getting to the centre of Mary’s life – the confusion, fear, and frustration she must have felt, and later, a battle-worn sort of peace. The heart of a good novel must always be character, and where is the most important research for character done but inside the writer? Advice to those embarking on historical fiction? Close the books and face the blank page. Begin.
- Mary Beth Keane
Eason Spelling Bee Update – Kilkenny and Carlow
Last week we visited both Kilkenny and Carlow for their respective Spelling Bees. Updates for both events can be viewed below.
Kilkenny Spelling Bee:
19 spellers took part in the Kilkenny County Spelling Bee on Tue 16th April, held in Presentation N.S. in Parnell Street, Kilkenny. Kevin Murphy Kennedy from C.B.S. Primary in Kilkenny was declared the winner and will now go on to represent Kilkenny in the Leinster Final in June.
Kilkenny Spelling Bee Winner – Kevin Murphy Kennedy from C.B.S. Primary
Carlow Spelling Bee:
Ballon N.S. played host to the Carlow Spelling Bee on Wednesday. Eight spellers took part in the Spelling Bee on the day. The contest came down to a tie-break with Jordan Hennessy from Scoil Chomhghain Naofa in Killeshin crowned the winner.
Competition: Meet and Greet Dan Brown
Win your chance to meet and greet Dan Brown at our exclusive Inferno launch event in O’Connell Street on May 20th! Every day this week, we’ll be posting questions on Facebook, Twitter and the Easons.com blog. Get the right answer to the daily questions and we’ll post further instructions on Friday.
Here’s today’s question:
What kind of sciences is Katherine Solomon working on in The Lost Symbol?
You don’t need to post the answer anywhere, just make a note of it yourself and keep an eye on Facebook, Twitter and the blog this Friday!
Best of luck!
