‘FLU IN FAIRYLAND’

Erandathie Damunupola recently released her first illustrated story,

‘Flu in Fairyland’, a story based on real life experiences of living through the Covid-19 Pandemic. An overactive virus created by Nuka the elf goes out of control leading to a large spread of a viral flu in the fairyland. The book is an interesting mix of information blended with imagination, written with the hope of a better tomorrow. Presenting a theme of hope and togetherness, ‘Flu in Fairyland’ presents the message of nothing being impossible in unity and camaraderie.

The inspiration for ‘Flu in Fairyland’ was found when Erandathie was looking for a hobby to engage in with her three children, Chenuli,

Menuki and Thenuka. Her children are avid readers, and creative, which Erandathie noticed and suggested to write a story together. Initially, they had intended the book to simply be a birthday present for their father, however it transgressed into being their first story to be published.

Basing the book on the current pandemic, the four creators of the story would often engage in thorough discussions incorporating what they saw and read on the news and internet, and the speculation surrounding the end of the pandemic is what instigated the plot of the story. Another intriguing aspect of the book is that the characters in the story are based on her children.

The journey of publishing their first storybook encountered a few hiccups along the way. When it was time to present the book to a publisher, Erandathie faced a certain challenge. “I realised the illustrations done by my youngest daughter would not do justice to the story. So I took it upon myself to redo the illustrations.”

Erandathie is also a lecturer in English language and an artist dabbling in many creative fields including sketching, painting, writing poetry and writing and illustrating children’s stories. Writing a book together with her children would normally not fit into her usual 24-hour schedule, yet the first lockdown in 2020 gave Erandathie this opportunity.

The book is an interesting mix of information blended with imagination, written with the hope of a better tomorrow