South Korean girl, 11, to write travel book on UAE

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

What does the average 11-year-old do to break out of boredom? For South Korea’s young Grace Joo-eun Choi, the pursuit of excitement and gainful occupations led her to opening the doors to art, baking and travelling, before the 11-year-old decided to put it all down in her first book, The Way Out Of Boredom: Italy, published by Austin MacAuley in Sharjah Publishing City.

The young author, artist and baker relished celebrity moments at the recently-concluded Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival (SCRF 2023), where she shared her experiences of how she put pen to paper during the global pandemic when she was in Italy with her family, where her father, a career diplomat, was posted at the time.

The talented Choi has also self-illustrated her 40-page work with lively and lovable characters like Fluff Ball, the protagonist. Explaining how the character and her adventures reflect Grace’s own, she said: “Fluff Ball goes to all the places I have visited; she travels across 10 different cities around the beautiful European country and visits all the iconic attractions in each."

“I never thought much about my travels. In fact, I used to get bored on some of these excursions with my family. But after COVID-19, I realised the importance of going out, and wanted other children my age to develop the same appreciation by reading my experiences in this book,” she added, revealing excitedly that the sequel will be based on her travels across the UAE.

Grace is looking forward to her years in the UAE where her father Choi Young-joon has been posted as the Deputy Consul General in Dubai. “I love the malls, the ice skating rinks, and other adventure activities, here," remarked the optimistic young author whose mother has published original works spanning the worlds of art and cooking in the Korean language.

When asked about whether she follows a definitive creative methodology or writing process, Choi explains: “There is no method when I write. Whenever I get an idea, I pen it down. Then usually within six months my first draft is ready. My mother helps me with the design process and the final revisions before my work is commissioned to a publisher.”