As we are still in the generous holiday mood, have a look at a marvelous book, well written and delicious to view. It would be so beneficial for it to find its way into your library for reasons on multiple levels.
Conceived on a visit to Malawi last year, When The Rains Come is written for children by poet and writer Tom Pow. The book is in support of a truly amazing clinic, established to save the lives of new mothers and infants. And it would not be there if it was not for MUMs, the Edinburgh-based charity, Malawi Underprivileged Mothers.
The book is available from bookshops and the MUMs website,
http://mumsrecipes.org. It tells the tale of a family encountering some of the realities of life in today’s Africa, while nurturing the imagination with tales of the animals that inhabit the continent, including King Tortoise to the Lion and the Elephant. The illustrations of Malika Favre are powerful and work so well.
Pow is an experienced and successful writer. But this book uses more than his skills. It communicates his passion for Malawi and the people who live there.
He reminds us of the basic humanity we all share. African children face many uncertainties of life but still love a bedtime story and long to sleep unafraid.
The MUMs charity has grown too. As short a time ago as 2005, it was a filthy, unhealthy place where dedicated but demoralized staff helped 12,000 women give birth every year in squalid conditions. One baby died every day and one woman almost every week.
One in ten Malawian children will die before the age of five, and one in every 200 women can expect to die in childbirth. Around 10 per cent of the population are HIV positive, and the number of pediatricians can be counted on one's fingers. In a population of 13 million, it remains a humanitarian disaster.
Please buy this worthwhile and beautiful book for your children, your grandchildren or any little one in your life. Enjoy the magic in story and pictures, and make a small contribution to saving lives in the
warm heart of Africa.
I so love the fact Nancy, that you are bringing awareness to the suffering of the African people, and thrilled that books are being written that African children can Identify with. God Bless Tom Pow and the MUM. Great interview Nancy.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice comment, Susan! It's so good, especially at this time of year, to hear such stories. I really appreciate your taking the time to say this.
DeleteWonderful story, and the illustrations really speak to me. Tom Pow's words grab the plight of these women and children. "When the Rains Come" is powerful as well as very kid friendly. Thank you, Nancy, for bringing this to our attention.
DeleteI have added it to Facebook, Twitter and Google+, as well as my Pinterest Book Reviews.
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Thank you, Margot, again for your continued support. I appreciate all you've said here. It is wonderful to find someone like Mr. Pow and others affiliated with the charity who is such a champion of the children of Africa.
DeleteI love books that support causes--buy a gift and support a cause at the same time. :) Thank you, Nancy, for sharing this. The illustrations look wonderful-so bright. I am definitely going to check this out. :)
DeleteThanks for your comment, Margo. It is such a gorgeous book, and each page is really more beautiful than the next. It has made such a wonderful gift for, as you've said here--a good cause!
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