First published in the Jamaica Observer
Sharon Leach: What is the age range of children you’re targeting to read Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows and do you think this age group can be receptive to these themes?
Juleus Ghunta: There are many themes in the book that literate children (5 years and up) will be able to understand on their own: the importance of strong human connections, the power of one's imagination, the value of reading. But as I wrote in the ‘Letter to Grown-ups’ at the front of the book, we want adult readers, including trained childcare providers, to help children process some of the more complex themes around ACEs and trauma recovery. The book will also serve as an introduction to ACEs for many adults. Our target audience is therefore quite broad. In her endorsement, Journalist Kate Chappell says the book “achieves a brilliant target of addressing two types of readers: one is a young person who may feel comforted, seen and hopeful by reading this book. For the adult reader, they may see themselves in the young character who experiences ACEs, and they may also see alternative ways of reaching these young people who desperately need specialised attention.”
We’re still, unfortunately, living through this pandemic. With the education sector arguably being among the hardest hit in Jamaica, how important is it that this book should make an appearance now?
Before the pandemic, twenty-five per cent of Jamaica’s children were living in poverty. That percentage has skyrocketed since. A quarter of all high and primary school students have not been engaged in formal learning of any kind since March 2020. For many of these children, school was their only escape from rampant abuse and neglect. The book puts much of this into context, highlighting the nexus between abuse and academic challenges, and between poverty and mental illness. It helps us understand why we must do everything in our power to return children to school. This is the perfect time to publish it.
Are you afraid that, with all the upheavals of COVID-19, its message will get lost if parents aren’t able to buy copies of the book?
Parents are not the only target market. This book will be purchased by childcare practitioners as well as civil society organisations, NGOs, policymakers, politicians, and business leaders who want to effect change in children’s lives. We wanted to produce a book that would have universal appeal and I believe we achieved that. In her endorsement, Community Manager of New Zealand’s PACES Connections, Adriana van Altvorst said the book “is an extremely valuable resource for children, parents, and all professionals who work with children, and is relevant across different countries and cultures.” We hope businesses and NGOs will buy and distribute the book to parents and others who are struggling financially. We hope it will be read widely around the world. The questions Rohan raises are not just for the Covid-19-era. Those questions will still be relevant to humanity well into the next century.
Why did you decide to place your focus on writing children’s books?
My childhood was largely shaped by abuse and neglect. When I learned to read at age twelve, I searched for stories with protagonists who encountered and overcame similar adversities but such books were scarce. I am trying to fill a void because many children’s writers, especially those from the Caribbean, do not write books that explore difficult issues, despite the severe adversities our children endure. We have ignored our children’s complex interior lives: their pain, their traumas, their emotions, and their longing to be seen as resilient rather than fragile, as discerning rather than unperceptive.
Which children’s authors do you draw inspiration from?
J K Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series. I needed a bit of magic to survive my childhood years. Her stories made me comfortable with creating imaginary beings that helped me to see myself as greater than I was. As a fourteen-year-old, I was already living on my own and needed to be in a kind of parallel universe where I felt safe and loved. I also like Oliver Jeffers’ work: The Incredible Book Eating Boy and The Heart and the Bottle. Whenever I need a reminder of why my approach to children’s literature is important, I read Matt de la Peña’s essay 'Why We Shouldn’t Shield Children from Darkness'.
Juleus Ghunta is a Chevening Scholar, poet, and an advocate in the Caribbean's adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) movement. He holds a BA in Media from The University of the West Indies, Mona, and an MA in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford. His poems and essays on ACEs have appeared in 30+ journals across 15 countries. His picture book, Tata and the Big Bad Bull, was published by CaribbeanReads in 2018 and he is the co-editor of the December 2019 and March 2020 issues of Interviewing the Caribbean Journal (The UWI Press), which are focused on children's literature and ACEs in the Caribbean. Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows will be published on December 31, 2021.
Comments (1)