Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Hope and friendship grow in new children’s book
AN AUTHOR has turned what many children in South Africa go through into a book to try to give hope.
The name of the book is
uMtshato weNtlanzi neNkukhu.
The book is about an orphaned chicken named Cikizwa.
While growing up, she was mistreated by other animals because she was orphaned.
After meeting a fish named Gumbi, they become friends and as other animals mock their friendship it becomes stronger and they end up getting married.
Author Madoda Ndlakuse said the book is both a picture book and a story book which is meant to be read to children between 3 and 6 years old.
He said the book is meant for children to interact with their parents by getting involved in identifying the different animals in the book.
“The children that the book is targeting don’t necessarily know how to read but seeing pictures of the animals can help educate them,” he said.
Ndlakuse said he also wants to inspire children to never give up no matter what they are faced with in life.
“Losing a parent does not mean it is the end of the world. Look at Cikizwa, she managed to find love and be happy,” he said.
He said at first he only released a Xhosa version of the book but because of the demand it was translated to English.
Ndlakuse said he still gets a lot of support from parents and schools.
“When people call they ask what happened after the marriage between the two, so they want me to write another book showing her happily ever after,” he said.
He said he gets calls from different parts of the country and children are turning the book into drama by performing it in schools.
To buy a copy of the book, call Ndlakuse at 066 486 9449. It costs R100.