Merita Isufi’s book launch at the Albanian Embassy in London, 4th November 2022
On Friday the Albanian Embassy in London organised a book launch written by one of our community members in London, Ms Merita Isufi.
The book is called ‘Dea Starts School’ and as one reader put it on Amazon this is “a great book to further a sense of belonging and identification”.
Merita Isufi with her new book ‘Dea Starts School’
On one of her Facebook posts Merita says: “I know the feeling of many parents and children who find it difficult to adapt to new settings and situations and sometimes not even wanting to go to school.
‘Dea Starts School’ reveals that expressing themselves in language they know best is a starting point of great conversations which can help resolve the struggles from being anxious to excited.
Multiculturalism is an important part of modern, tolerant society and provides us with a variety of different languages, cultures, traditions etc.
Living with different cultures enriches our lives and helps to encourage tolerance, bring together different groups, create peace and harmony. Life becomes more interesting!”
Going to school can be a frightening thing. In this book, author Merita Isufi, shows you that if children have conversations about this with their family members, it can ease their minds. She does this with the help of illustrations and text that you can show to your children to start the conversation.
She also writes about how a native language can help us stay connected to our culture and roots and why it has a great positive impact on determining an individual’s personality. Children with a strong foundation in their first language often display a deeper understanding of themselves and their place within society, along with an increased sense of well-being and trust. Having a strong foundation in the mother tongue leads to a more positive attitude towards school and helps young children in expressing their feelings!
About the author
Merita Isufi is a mother, writer, educator and also a researcher. She lives with her family in north London and her favourite colour is purple. She worked with children for 16 years and developed a passion for writing children stories. Merita is a founder of “Successful Mothers”, an organisation with the goal of making positive social change. This has enabled her to work with thousands of people from a wide range of backgrounds. Some of her achievements include 5 national and international recognition awards for her positive impact in society. Merita believes in the importance of nourishing children’s learning at a young age. Through her bilingual writing style, she embraces cultural identity. Merita has more creative, exciting books coming up!
About the illustrator
Michele Katz (Grieder), otherwise known as “Mit” started “making books” by stapling pieces of paper together and drawing on them for her little brother at the ripe old age of seven. By the time she was in middle school, she had decided on Syracuse University for her BFA in illustration. (Fortunately the school approved of her choice!) Since then, Michele has been making whimsical art designed to make people of all ages smile, because let’s face it – – there is enough serious stuff in the world! Her work has appeared in numerous magazines and on a wide variety of products, ranging from coffee mugs to yoga mats. In addition to the 10 children’s and coloring books she has illustrated, she also designs greeting cards. Michele is a proud member of SCBWI and resides in Connecticut with her husband, pet turtle and hamster. You can see more of her work on her website at www.creationsbymit.com or join her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Creations-By-Mit-344366542465/ and Instagram at https://instagram.com/creationsbymit.