Children’s Books Ireland Book Clinics

This post has been updated on 13 November, with photos and details from the event itself.

Sheds Direct Ireland proudly supported Children’s Books Ireland Book Clinics at this year’s Dublin Book Festival. Book Clinics offer children the unique opportunity to visit a Book Doctor, who, after a consultation, will write them a personal prescription for new books based on their interests. It’s a great way for new readers to find something they’ll love, or for more experienced readers to find something new to dive into. This year, we supported Children’s Books Ireland and we also built a shed in Dublin Castle to host these appointments.

Setting Up

We were honoured to be allowed to build one of our sheds, The Big Blu, in the historical grounds of Dublin Castle. Our team arrived at 8am on a frankly bloody freezing morning and they set up the shed in a few hours. They installed also a Ronan Heating heater to keep the staff warm during their clinics too. They placed some poly-board which had a colourful library backdrop on it (thanks to the guys at Wrapco Signs for their help with this), to finish the scene. Like a fiddlers elbow, they were in and out with speed and grace. The job was a neat one and it set the scene for what was to come.

The Big Blu Book Clinic

The Book Clinics were held in our ‘Big Blu’ shed. We started at 12 noon on the Saturday and we were instantly booked out for the hours ahead; the organisers weren’t joking when they said you really should book in advance. Lots of families braved the cold in the early stages of the day to speak to the doctors – and I can honestly say that every child that left the shed was absolutely beaming. It was a great sight to see.

The Book Doctors in the shed, alonsgide Emma from Children’s Books Ireland and Louise from Sheds Direct Ireland

I can’t praise the Book Doctors enough for their help with all the Children across the weekend. They knew their Children’s books inside-and-out and they were so patient, kind and helpful to everyone in attendance. There were some stellar recommendations dished out and I even got a few myself for the Christmas ahead (Best Father and Uncles awards are imminent).

There was lots of activity happening all around us, from Treasure Hunts to book signings and lots more besides, so it was unsurprising to see the later clinics book out so fast. The wider Dublin Book Festival had lots on offer for older attendees too, so there really was something for everyone on the day. After a full day, they did it again on the Sunday, albeit in slightly windier conditions.

A photo from a clinic this past Summer

The Book Clinic deconstruction

Storm Debi was out in full-force when our team were disassembling our shed on Monday morning, but thankfully there were pockets of time available for our guys to safely deconstruct the shed. While it is possible to disassemble and reassemble our sheds, you’d need to be a dab-hand at assembly, as well as a highly organised person, to make it possible. If in doubt with steel shed assembly, give us a shout and we can talk you through all your options.

Once again, we’d like to thank Children’s Books Ireland for having us along, Dublin Castle for allowing us to build on the beautiful grounds and all the staff and organisers for making the project so special for so many children.