Children’s literature can no longer be simple: Emirati writer
Published on: Saturday, November 12, 2022
By: Sherell Jeffrey
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Children’s book author Rama Kanawati sharing her thoughts at the book fair.
SHARJAH: Emirati writer and critic Dr Fatima Al-Ma’amari says children today are overwhelmed with information and need much more than simple stories to keep their brains active.Speaking in a panel titled “Children’s literature and the future” at the 41st Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF), she emphasised the need of adaptability in children’s books.
She said children today can be anything they want, but this makes them confused a lot of the time.
“In a world inundated with information, children’s literature must help them make the correct choices,” she said, referring to the need of stimulating young brains intellectually, emotionally, and psychologically.
She also said that more visually and verbally engaging literature was needed to help children cope with today’s problems, adding that creativity in a child’s head is crucial.
Children’s book author Rama Kanawati said that the ideas in children’s books are very different from how things are in real life.
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“Telling stories isn’t enough to match the imaginations of young minds. Globalization and the technological revolution have made young people less interested in learning new things.
“The world we live in now is very different from what is shown in children’s books.
“As children get more choices, their minds are changing, and the books need to reflect that,” she said.
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