Hold the hand of the child that lives in your soul
For this child nothing is impossible
Paulo Coelho
Author of The Alchemist
As a child I was fond of reading books.My papa offered me my first illustrated children’s book in French ‘Toto et Titi’ when I was three. I delved in the pages of my treasured book and I had a dream. I dreamt of my name on the front cover of the book.
I cherished the dream for a long time. Writing a book for children sounded like impossible… a poetry book for adults crossed my mind often. Yet I hold on to the dream of writing a book for all the children in the world.
This dream became true when many many years after, I wrote and published my debut children’s book, The Princess and the Crow.
Many of you may have read that book and many of you are aspiring authors.
Hold the hand of the child that lives in your soul and make the impossible become possible NOW.
MV WAKASHIO , a Japanese- owned bulk carrier ran aground on the coral reefs, off the coast of the tropical island Mauritius, on 25 July 2020.
Wakashio was empty of cargo but had an estimated 200 tons of diesel and 3,800 tons of heavy fuel oil on board.
Little by little, with the strength of the heavy waves, cracks arose in its hull. Fuel oil started to spill on the turquoise blue sea of the coastal district, Mahebourg. In no time, the oil spill reached its shores, destroying marine life, seaweeds, and corals.
The inhabitants ran to the rescue of the lagoon. They made floating booms with sugar cane straw to absorb the oil. In the meantime, foreign help was sought by the Government of Mauritius to block the catastrophic flood of oil from the hull of Wakashio to the sea.
On Assumption Day 2020, Wakashio broke into two. The authorities estimated that it would take decades to tow the two fragmented parts of the ship. Finally, the bow part of Wakashio was sunk in the deep ocean, far from Mauritius. It was also decided that the stern part of the ship that was stuck in the reefs would take decades to tow back. It remained as the remnant of a shipwreck in the lagoon, in the southeast of the green island.
MV WAKASHIO
The story here is told from the perspective of two Mauritian children, Angela and Oshin.
WAKASHIO the children’s book
INSPIRATION TO WRITE THE STORYBOOK.
Earlier this year, I started a campaign to urge young Mauritian children to read books.
By coincidence, MV WAKASHIO met with a terrible accident at sea and it became the talk of the town in Mauritius and in the whole world. Social media wrote about the shipwreck and posted pictures of the sinking ship.
It dawned upon me to write the story of the Wakashio for children. I felt deep inside that it was a subject that will draw the attention of children, they will pick up the book and they will start to read.
Reading books and listening to stories stimulates the imagination of children.
As Albert Einstein has wisely said-
Imagination is more important than knowledge,
For knowledge is limited,
Whereas imagination embraces the whole world,
Stimulates progress, giving birth to evolution.
I strongly believe that children of all ages should read books and good books. In this age of electronic books, it is much better for parents to encourage a child to read traditional paper books, that he can carry and read every he goes – under a tree in the garden, on the lap of his mom… even where there is no electricity or an internet connection.
Reading books starts at home. First by a mother or a grandmother reading to a child, then by an elder brother or sister reading to a child and finally by a child reading a book by himself.
Salman Rushdie, the world acclaimed bestseller author says –
When a child is born, there are two things that he requires – LOVE AND SAFETY;
The next thing the child says is –
TELL ME A STORY.
Undoubtedly stories are an important part of our adult life; without them life is boring. Most of all, children love stories as dearly as they love toys and games.
My mother was an excellent storyteller. I vividly remember the story of Cinderella and Prince Charming as concocted and told by her when I was a kid. I bemused at her facial expressions and her body movements. I traveled to fairyland, wonderland, to faraway places; I fought with dragons; I talked to birds, rats, rabbits, and other animals.
Mostly, I started to daydream of Prince Charming. Often I took a broom, bigger than myself and arduously swept the kitchen. All the time, I kept an eye on the big pumpkin that mom kept in a corner of the kitchen, wishing that it would explode and Prince Charming would jump out.
From listening to stories, and putting myself in the shoes of Cinderella, I very rapidly developed a fondness for books. From reading books, I gradually started to write stories.
WAKASHIO is my new storybook for children and my first book in French. Mauritian children are more familiar with the French language, oral and written; I have written this book primarily for them.
It is legitimate for writers to remember that children are the adults of tomorrow. They should be made aware of the important happenings of their country and the consequences of their acts from an early age. Wakashio is a tale that relates the story of the wreck of MV Wakashio in pure and simple prose, illustrated by amazing color pictures.
A mother will take you under her wings, even when you know how to fly – my quote.
I don’t know how true it is for you. For me, I always come to the help of my grown up children even when they refuse my help. A child remains a child for a mom even when he is an old man and a great granddad. I refer to child as a male because I have only boys and four of them.
I remember telling them stories, mostly imaginative, when they were very small. Later and now, I tell stories to my grandchildren.
Even later and as far back as last year, I wrote my first story book for children, The Princess and the Crow.
A few months ago, I conceived the idea of a new, illustrated book for children. I am expecting to deliver the book any time now.
A book is like a child to me. I have in all ten children, four biological children and six books. Awaiting the birth of a book gives me the same anxiety problems, coupled with short breath, cold sweat, loss of appetite and loose bowels.
Most of all, I am on top of the world as a creative writer and a mother.
Writers write because there have something deep inside their guts that they need to bring out.
My advice to writers is to write and write until you bring out what is inside you.
SOUL POETRY -Inspirational Poems, Verses and Quotes is a collection of poems, verses and quotes which driven by wild waves of inspiration I wrote over the past five years. I am not a full time writer or poet. I only write when I am inspired and words start to flow from my pen like drops of nectar on a starve parchment.
The main subject of my poetry, my verses and quotes is Love. Here, I must tell my readers to appreciate that there is only One Love whether it is maternal love, physical love, obsessive love, infatuation or spiritual love to name a few. My book also covers different aspects of human relationships, and different themes from flowers to butterflies. Being a woman, when I write about a lover, I am writing about a man. So you will find a few poems very audacious. I have never found it challenging to write love poems about men. They deserve to be admired and their charms must be carved on paper and for eternity, recognizing that the body is mere rust and dust; the soul is eternal. Behind my every poem, there lies a story. Anita Bacha
Going down High Street,Olympia, My heart overflows with nostalgia; On tree tops, I behold, Blossoms of green and gold; At the London Book Fair, Writers and poets fare; In the pages of each book, I delve and I look, Your name is engraved, By the invisible hand of God.
Anita Bacha
Sad to learn that the world greatest book event, the London Book Fair 2020 is cancelled. I have been visiting the fair stoically for the last five years to exhibit my poetry book and this is where I met the publisher of my debut children’s book The Princess and the Crow in 2016. I was craving to see my book on the shelves of Austin Macauley London. As we say in French ‘l’homme propose, Dieu dispose!’ I, however, salute the decision of the Reeds Exhibition to cancel the event.Better safe than sorry. I look forward to the London Book Fair 2021 with added zeal and ‘ si Dieu le veut’ with a brand new book.
Couldn’t be happier to be featured as one of the authors in the newly published book of Her Place. My debut poetry book Soul Poetry is my pride. I believe we all writers feel the same about our first published book. It’s a first born, the apple of our eyes.To cut a long story short, the American writer and poet Dana Vilandre spotted my book on Amazon and…hold your breath…the stories I were posting on WordPress! She fell in love with my writing and I was chosen as one of the 33 women to be featured in Her World. Beauty, thy name is Woman!
Her Place, Any Region, introduces you to Her World, Creative Collections. Enjoy a literary journey through the experiences, hearts, and minds of 33 women from around the world. Compiled in one single readable book, view life from the eyes of phenomenal female artists and authors in the form of photography, song lyrics, book excerpts, personal life experiences, prose, and poetry. We hope you enjoy this incredibly broad spectrum with which these stories are written, bringing women together to share a glimpse into each other’s lives, during a time unifying the population of women is more important than ever
Fabulous start of the week, dear followers,friends and readers 🥰 My resolutions for 2020 are to remain faithful and loyal to you; To focus on my poetry and writing career; To give the best of myself to the world . I need your support which you can give me by reading my books, my posts and my write ups. Where to find me?https://www.instagram.com/anitabacha/
When I was five, I was baffled to open a wrapped gift under the Christmas 🎄 🎅 had offered me,my first children’s book ‘Toto et Titi’. The black and white pictures were amazing. I started to dream of a color picture book and a story about little girls, birds, flowers and fruits. I entertained a thought about a witch too! In those days, when we were a British colony, often there was no electricity in the night and children slept in their mother’s lap,listening to stories of beautiful princesses and ugly witches. No wonder, now a mother and a grandmother too, I have written a story book for children, illustrated with pretty, color pictures. The Princess and the Crow will make the perfect Christmas gift for a child if you, my friend and reader, is looking for a lovely book to offer this Christmas 🎄 Published by Austin Macauley Publishers London earlier this year, the book is available for purchase worldwide on Amazon.
In the picture, Malachi and Kayla are reading the story book ‘The Princess and the Crow’. They are the grandchildren of Rekha and Jam Dookna. Their grandparents are born in Mauritius Island. They are now settled in Stratford, London. Their father, Kiran is born,educated and married in England. The kids have not yet traveled to Mauritius or to any other part of the world.
They are discovering an island surrounded by the sea for the first time. They learn that children born on an island have darker skin, that tropical birds, fruits and flowers are different.
Rekha babysits with the kids on school holidays. She gives them books to read instead of a remote control to watch tv.
Reading books helps children to learn about the world around them,broaden their imagination,vision and knowledge. It also awakens their love and compassion for others.
I was happy to learn that I sold the first copy of my children’s book,The Princess and the Crow,within few days it was put for sale on the online store Amazon.
The customer lives in Parlika, a village in Rajasthan, known as the birth place of Hindi poetry writers and shayari composers .
In the picture below, children are reading at home. Home is where education begins. When we teach our children to read and write, we open their eyes to the beautiful people and things in the whole world around them.
The second picture is that of the Noble Prize Winner of Literature in 1913, Rabindranath Tagore.
‘The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence.’ Rabindranath Tagore
Anita Bacha 