Ipswich in Summer 2019-2020

IPSWICH MUM TURNS FESTIVAL FUN INTO CHILDREN’S BOOK

An Augustine Heights mother of two hopes to encourage young people to explore ways of life different from their own with a fun, new children’s book. First-time author Chi Kalu was inspired to write Africa Day by events at a cultural festival. It tells the story of a young boy named Emeka and his mother, as they explore African culture – including food, fashion and music – at a festival. “It’s an original story. It’s my story, it’s something that actually happened,” Ms Kalu said. “I took my two boys, who are 13 and 11 now, to the Africa Day Festival in Brisbane a couple of years ago and they were really taken by it. “It kind of touched me in regards to not just their excitement but I guess our responsibility as individuals or parents

or even a community to expose children to different things, different people, different ways of living.” Ms Kalu said she hoped the book would be a gateway for parents to encourage their children to be curious and learn more about the world. “The idea is for young children of any background to discover things, in this case about Africa, but it’s not just about Africa really, it could be St Patrick’s Day, Oktoberfest, Diwali Festival – just having that interest and exploring different things and enjoying them,” she said. “I think it’s important because it really helps us to understand people, not just their names, but also what they like, the kind of meals they eat, the kind of clothes they like to wear – that all defines culture.” Subscribe free to Ipswich First news alerts at Ipswichfirst.com.au/subscribe/

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