Visually impaired teen writes first superhero book
Thobelani Manatha is pushing the boundaries of his visual impairment by striving for a brighter future as a writer and businessmen. The 13-year-old Open Air School learner from Sydenham has created his own superhero novel.
THE task of reading a book or learning for exams is not an easy one for visually impaired 13-year-old Thobelani Manatha from Sydenham who often has to use his ‘mother’s eyes’ to complete his homework and enjoy his favourite pastime.
The Open Air School learner, who relies on the Braille One Safari, which he only has access to while at school, to find his reading material, has had to overcome a number of adversities to write his first book. Titled The Mighty Force, the book is about a superhero named Wind Mad who forms a legion with other gifted individuals to defend the universe against all evil and badness. “I have a lot of words in my head and wanted to turn it into something that I love: superheroes and books,” said the Grade Six learner who aspires to be a businessman when he grows up.
The 4 000-word book is a means of escape for Thobelani who lives with his mother, Promise Manatha, an education assistant at Tape Aids for the Blind, and other family members in a crowded informal settlement. “It’s hard for Thobe at the informal settlement,” said Promise. “Navigating the area and using a communal toilet can be very hard when you are visually impaired and have a disability. He struggles a lot with his homework and revising for exams because he does not have access to the Braille machine at home. We are grateful when he goes to aftercare at The Bright Eyes Trust where he has access to a machine that makes the words bigger for him to be able to read by himself.”
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Thobelani has been a regular at The Bright Eyes Trust premises in Musgrave since he was two years old. There, he met the founder of the non-profit organisation, Carron Strachan, who assisted in getting his diagnosis confirmed and acquired the help of volunteers who have aided in Thobelani’s growth while managing his aversion to food as a toddler, his struggle with fine motor skills, his ADHD, anxiety and his low vision.
“With the help of our volunteer, Shelley William, Thobelani has done something amazing. He’s a superhero to us; the young ones look up to him. He doesn’t realise how loved he is. We still have a lot of work to do to help him with his anxiety, but reading the book that he wrote, with Shelley typing for him, goes to show the importance of places such as Bright Eyes where people can turn for help with access to volunteers who know exactly what is needed. Disabled children are just as able with the right help,” said Strachan.
Williams, who started at the trust this year, in the role of victim support with a trauma debriefing background, stressed the importance of the right care for individuals with disabilities. “We all have a rightful place in this world. It’s important for people with disabilities to believe that. With guidance and support, they can achieve anything they put their minds to, just like anyone else. Bright Eyes nurtures that mindset from a young age, which goes a long way to helping these children grow into confident and capable adults,” said Williams.
“Thobelani has had this story in his head for ages. He was thrilled when I suggested that we put the story on paper. So I recorded him telling me the story each week, and then, I’d go home and type it up and read it to him the following week to make sure it was correct and see if he wanted to add anything. I typed the story in a big enough font so that he could read the book by himself. So the story is his; the vocabulary is his. It’s been so exciting to discover his hidden talent.”
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