#WeRead – Ten-year-old author tackles obesity in her book
At the age of 10, Relebogile Mothema became a published author.
St Andrew’s School for Girls Grade 4 learner, Relebogile Mothema did a 10-week writing programme with Bala Books and walked away as a published author with her first book, Bizzarcar.
Relebogile, the second youngest of five children, started writing Bizzarcar at the age of seven and now at 10, gets to put the title of published author behind her name.
“I have a really big imagination and I thought I should call my book Bizzarcar. It is a fictional planet where everything is bizarre. There are two characters who need to go to the gym, because they are overweight. The book is also about overcoming fear,” said Relebogile.
Relebogile said that her imagination inspired her to write. She did not hesitate to tackle challenging topics as the book is also addresses obesity.
“Children eat a lot of junk food. We tend to see things bigger than what they are. The book is about overcoming your fear at your own pace,” she said. The characters she loves the most in her book are Doggie and Ghost.
“The drawings in the book are my own. They just made it look way more awesome,” said Relebogile.
Her baby brother also inspired her while she was writing the book as she encourages him to read.
Her favourite book to read is Much Ado about Nothing by William Shakespeare.
St Andrew’s School for Girls showed support by calling an assembly to honour her for becoming a published author.
In her spare time Relebogile enjoys doing crafts, saying, “I painted a picture for my mum recently”.
Her mother, Khanyisa Mothema, said that her daughter goes ‘gaga’ for reading. “She would leave ice cream, just to read,” said Khanyisa.
Head Honcho at Bala Books, Glad Kaiser, said that giving all children a voice and ensuring that no child is left behind is Bala Books’ mandate.
“We are committed to achieving this goal through learning that leads to opportunities inside and outside the classroom. As such, Relebogile is one such child,” said Glad.
He added that her book, Bizzarcar, draws attention to the social challenges around obesity that many children face today.
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