Reviewer: Tahzen Tahir
Children are the capital of any nation, and in the future, these children must work for the construction and development of the country. A large part of children’s training consists of the written material taught in schools in the form of curriculum and storybooks everywhere.
Writing is not an easy task for children. In our country, the list of the best writers who write for children is exceedingly tiny. Tasneem Jafri’s inclusion in this list is an honour for her and us. She authors stories in Urdu as well as English. The children and adults like her novels and other writings. She is a science fiction writer fluent in Urdu and English. Most of her writings provide fascinating scientific knowledge and experiments fascinatingly.
She was recently awarded the UBL Literary Award for Children’s Writing. Many of your books have been published so far. Her latest publication ‘A Friend from other Galaxy ‘is an English novel on science fiction for children
While drafting the novel, Ms. Jafri used the terminology that children usually use somewhere every day. The story consists of 13 lessons to make reading easier for children. The novel’s eye-catching illustrations have also been included in the book, which adds to the beauty of the novel.
The author narrates a story in this novel that highlights the feelings of bravery and love for humanity in children through this science fiction. The main characters of the book are Asher and Ashu. Asher lives in this world, while Ashu is an invisible creature from another. The novel also revolves around artificial intelligence. The end of the book is slightly tragic.
On the book cover, Tasneem Jafri says that today’s children like to watch scientific and animated films and experience films made in other countries. So, we need to write science fiction for children that can generate interest in children. Children like to do experiments that show their curiosity. For this, it is necessary to provide as much scientific material as possible for children to read. In this context, Tasneem Jafari has contributed a lot to Urdu Children’s Literature to provide complex scientific information to children in an exciting and informative manner.
“A Friend from other Galaxy” is the first attempt of Ms. Jafri in English. After reading this exciting work, I firmly believe that the novel will help to increase the taste of scientific ideas in children and adults. Press for Peace Foundation publishes the book with a good layout and illustrations. The title is eye-catching, and the content is fantastic. Every child and reader interested in science should not only read this novel but also present gifts to their friends.
