Moghira K. Mirza
This book is for 4-7 year-old children.
It is about two young girls who were born and brought up in the UK. Every year they go to meet their relations in a far away country and bring back a taste of their culture.
This year the two girls find out many new things about their country, and were delighted to discover a surprise is wating for them...
I started teaching in a pre-primary school after completing my university studies and gaining an MSc.
I came to UK in the 1980s, and later on started working for the local government as a Senior Community Liason Officer. I gained a very diverse experience in dealing with the social and educational concerns of women and their young children, living in London, coming from various ethnic and cultural backgrounds of the Asian sub-continent. I was always interested in education, and wanted to write something for the children.
I have written articles for adults but this is my first book for children.
I left work, after a stint of some ten years, in order to devote quality time with my own young children, who were two and three years old at the time. While looking after them, I started telling them stories. Some of them were the stories my elders used to tell me, whereas others I made up. These were to capture their attention; to raise their imagination, and equally, to enhance their interest and listening skills.
Now that my own children are in their teens, I have been working for the last four years with a local pre-primary school. The children there come from Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
This is my first book, under publication, about two young girls, born and brought up in this country. They visit their hometown in a far-away country where their grand parents lived. This is one of their wonderful experiences in spending time with their relations, while sharing and exploring new stories and exciting games.
There are other books in the Aamna and Aisha Series to follow.
Here is the review of the book from Jane Hindmarsh,Manager of Pre-Primary School, Buckinghamshire: 'This joyful book celebrates the cultural homeland of Aamna and Aisha, as they look forward to seasonal vegetables from a garden planted on their last visit to Pakistan.
Its strong emphasis on shared family is reflected in the continuity of th garden with all its natural abundance and hidden surprises.'
Roz Cox is a well known illustrator who has worked with: BBC, ITV, UNESCO, RSPCA and PDSA, producing illustrations, animations and puppets for educational purposes.
