Mary Nnah
Children’s book author and founding publisher of Clever Clogs Books, Olubunmi Aboderin Talabi recently launched latest book, “Why Do You Wash Your Hands?”
The book is targeted at promoting the importance of hand washing amongst children, parents, teachers and families.
According to the UNICEF, hand washing with soap has been cited as one of the most cost effective interventions to prevent communicable diseases.
For Talabi, this is a major reason why the book was written. “Why Do You Wash Your Hands? deploys a fun and pictorial style to help children and their parents understand the importance of regular hand washing and learn the different occasions before or after which they should wash their hands” she said.
“The book launched during the month of Global Hand Washing Day, was also in line with UN’s declaration of 2019 as the year of Indigenous Languages as it comes in a compendium version of four languages. This makes it the first Nigerian children’s picture book to be published simultaneously in four Nigerian indigenous languages – English, Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba,” Talabi further added.
There were special readers who read the various versions of the book. Popular media personality and comedienne, Chigul read the Igbo version while Director of Business Process & Technology at Prime Atlantic Group, Foluso Gbadamosi read the Yoruba version. Haruna Abu, who also worked as translator for the book read the Hausa version and ten-year-old Ms Tiara Adeniyi, read the English version of the book.
Other special guests spoke on the significance of being proud of our indigenous languages and teaching them to our children.
Guest and speaker at the book launch, Dr. Ola Brown of The Flying Doctors Nigeria, couldn’t conceal her excitement about the book, Why Do You Wash Your Hands? being published in different Nigerian indigenous languages.
Drawing from her experience growing up in the UK, she shared that there are Nigerians in diaspora who are ignorant of their heritage and a book such as this helps to revive that and also show non-Nigerians that beautifully printed Nigerian-themed books can also be created in Nigeria.
In an insightful author’s chat with Chigul, Talabi identified her book as ‘the perfect bedtime story’ and further encouraged Nigerian parents to embrace the culture of reading bedtime stories to their children as it is not only essential for children’s cognitive development, but also fosters the parent/child bond.
The book launch which was held at Victoria Island in Lagos had parents, children and other respected public figures in attendance including Nigeria’s first female Minister of Industry, Chief Nike Akande OON, CON; Founder of Childsville School, Lady Gbeminiyi Smith; Managing Director, Punch Nigeria Limited Ademola Osinubi and foremost Nigerian architect, Jumoke Adenowo to mention a few.
