Dubai girl publishes book, donates proceeds to charity

The 36-page book, she said, features stories from her dreams and imagination, with each carrying a moral lesson.

It's never too late or too early to pin words down on paper, or at least that's what nine-year-old Justina Jibin proved as she launched her debut novel.
Jibin, who has been writing since she was seven, launched her book 'My Imaginary World', a collection of three poems and nine stories, during the Sharjah International Book Fair.
If that's not inspirational enough, the fourth grader at AMLED School Dubai will give proceeds from the book to orphanages and homes for the elderly. "There are many poor people around the world, and I feel so sad when I see old people and children left on the roads with no one to look after them," Jibin told Khaleej Times.
The girl, who's also a classical dancer and a winner in inter-school public speaking and poetry recitation competitions, has written 25 stories in total, of which 12 were chosen and featured in her book.
The 36-page book, she said, features stories from her dreams and imagination, with each carrying a moral lesson. "I see that the world is polluted, so I wrote about nature. I also wrote about love, which is something we are missing nowadays," said Jibin.
Her stories give messages about confidence, strength and never giving up. "In one of my stories, I chase a tiger, through which I tell people that when there's a will, there's a way," she said.
Jibin aspires to become an author and a doctor to "help as many people as possible". She's currently working on improving her writing skills to publish another book.
"To achieve your dreams, you just need to keep working hard and believing in yourself," said Jibin.
Her mother Jumina said the credit for discovering her talent goes to her English teacher, who noticed the girl's storytelling skills when she was in grade 2.
"We overlooked her stories due to our busy life, but her teacher brought it to our attention and told us we had to nurture her talent further and encourage her to pin down her words," said Jumina.
Last month, the girl was selected during the international Short & Sweet Poetry to compete with over 50 people of different ages. There, she performed seven poems in five minutes.
For Jibin, there are still a lot of books to read and words to learn.
sherouk@khaleejtimes.com