Local author speaks on a young child’s experience of being partially deaf
A book about a boy child with a disability and his development is at the core for local author Thandiwe Peach.
A recent children’s book fair showcased local authors’ books centred on the growth of children reading, including one author who launched her newest book.
Thandiwe Peach was at the book fair in Fourways where she launched her book, iKamva e Lihle [a beautiful future] which is about a family that has three boys and how different each of them is.
The story is focused on a boy named Lihla who is deaf in one ear and follows his development with his disability.
The self-published book was also translated into isiXhosa by Peach and she sourced her editor and illustrator.
“My book is about hope. Sometimes how the name you are given at birth can somehow shape the story of your life. What I wanted to do with the book is have relatability because I feel in this day, we are losing the boy child,” she said.
“We talk a lot about ‘take a girl child to school’ and equality, and it is great, but I don’t want us to get to a point where we leave someone behind again. Hence, why it is focused on the boy child.”
Peach said her book was targeted towards children around the age of 10 and learners in Grade 4.
“Children are not reading books about relatability, they are not seeing themselves in the books, and that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to show that you can be your special kind of person and your story is valid.”
She said books on the other two boys in the story were still a work in progress and will be published soon.
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