By Jacinta Nwachukwu
Mrs Teresa Ameh, an accomplished author of children’s books, has urged parents to encourage reading habit among their children.
Ameh said that this would boost their confidence while interacting with others.
She gave the advice at the launch of her 9th and 10th books entitled: “The Rise of the Phoenix and Mariamo and the Bowl of Cashews’’ in Abuja.
Ameh, who is also a civil servant with the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), said children who don’t read, grow up to becoming adults who don’t read.
She said there were adults who could not express themselves in public because they were not used to reading.
“I’ve been writing for children for 20 years now, and with each book, I am pleased to say that there are some improvements.
“We are trying to bring up children that can compete with other children around the world on any topic,’’ she said.
She added that as a psychologist by training, she had passion for writing for children to create a positive effect on them.
“For me, with a lot of words, I am a great storyteller. My son and I used to engage in stories every night,” she said.
According to her, such stories have positive effects on the child because the stories are packed with lessons on what to do or not to do.
“And that’s how one day I was just like, if I can have this effect on my child, why don’t I just put it in writing to reach out to other children out there?’’ she said.
On her other initiatives, the author explained that she initiated a reading foundation called “Aunty Talatu Reads Foundation’’ to encourage reading in children and empower the girl-child.
On her part, reviewing the book “Mariamo and the Bowl of Cashews,’’ Salamatu Sule, appreciated the writer for her creativity.
Sule said that “stories shape childhood, colours shape memory’’ and the writer understood both with remarkable depths.
The reviewer explained that the author of the book illustrated three key lessons while amplifying the role of the mother figure in the life of her children.
She listed the lessons in the book to include the mother as friend, teacher and mentor; everyday experiences as teachable moments and friendship, trust and emotional bonding.
Earlier, the chairman of the occasion, Alhaji Tijani Ahmed, the Federal Commissioner, NCFRMI, commended the writer for her work of creativity, saying “children are the leaders of today not tomorrow”.
Ahmed was represented by the Director Haman Resource of the commission, Malam Bello Mohammed. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Benson Ezugwu/Deji Abdulwahab
