News
Book by young South Korean girl covers travels of Italy and UAE
Bored? What do you do to find a way out of it? You could go on a travel, draw something or make yourself a quick snack. Or you could write a book and publish it with elements around all of the forementioned, as 11-year-old Grace Joo-eun Choi has done.
Grace has published her first book The Way Out Of Boredom, and she made an appearance as a mini-celebrity in her own right at the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival at the emirate’s Expo Centre. The 14th edition of the SCRF concluded on Sunday after more than 1,700 events with 68 prominent authors, writers and literary figures as guests, a Cookery Corner with 12 chefs from nine countries, plenty of entertainment, engaging skills workshops, fun and games.
Not only has Grace written the book, she has even drawn the comic characters and illustrations that serve the graphic elements on the 40-page square size book. She started writing the book during the pandemic days when her father’s work took them to Italy as a South Korean diplomat.
“It is about our travels to the country’s various iconic places which we visited, seen through the character The Fluff ball,” says Grace on the sidelines of the SCRF at the stand of her book publisher, Austin Macauley. Written in poetry fashion with rhyming lines wherever possible character, Grace traces her travels through Fluff across 10 cities in 10 days in the book.
Grace Choi’s book about her UAE experiences is to be published towards the end of the year. Supplied
“I never thought much about my travels. In fact, I used to get bored at times. But when Covid-19 happened, you realised the importance of going out. So now I want others to experience the realisation I had through this book.”
The next natural question and answer to it is prompt – the focus of Part 2 of The Way Out Of Boredom is the UAE, because her father Choi Young-joon has been posted as the Deputy Consul General in Dubai. And her best place in the country is? “This is not an answer on the expected lines, but I like the malls here the most, especially the Dubai Mall. I love skating and it amazes me to see a skating rink that big at the Dubai Mall,” she said.
The skating may be off the beaten track, but the writing, drawing and a passion for cooking is genetics. Grace’s mother is an author herself, who has written two books around art and cooking in the Korean language.
Grace displays remarkable poise as an experienced writer would, though her female lead in the book is named The Fluff. The naming process was also a bit random, the Harry Potter fan recalls. “For both my books, I have taken inspiration by characters from my digital drawing gallery. Still, me and my brother took help from a random generator to short-list three characters. I went with The Fluff.”
Grace’s favourite hero is Spiderman. The Marvel follower acknowledges she gets help as a writer from the friendly neighbourhood, but starting with her home. “There is no method when I write. Whenever I get an idea, I pen it down. Then usually my first draft is ready within six months. My mother helps me with the design process and the final revisions before my work is commissioned to a publisher.”
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Abu Dhabi Police have warned residents to stay alert as online fraud and financial scams tend to increase during the salary payment period.
Authorities said fraudsters are taking advantage of payday by using fake advertisements, phishing links and fraudulent offers to steal money and personal information.
What to watch out for
According to police, scammers are posing as legitimate businesses and organisations to trick victims through:
- Fake property rental and sale listings.
- Bogus residency and visa services.
- Fraudulent job and labour recruitment offers.
- Fake insurance products.
- False advertisements for vehicles allegedly seized by Abu Dhabi Customs.
- Fake investment opportunities.
- Counterfeit event tickets.
- Websites impersonating government agencies and well-known organisations.
- Requests to download remote access apps.
- Demands for advance payments or deposits for goods, services, training courses or fake certificates.
How to stay safe
Abu Dhabi Police urged residents to:
- Never share bank account details, passwords or one-time passwords (OTPs).
- Avoid clicking on suspicious links or responding to unsolicited offers.
- Verify sellers before transferring money or paying deposits.
- Use only official websites and mobile apps for government services.
Residents who suspect they have been targeted by fraud are encouraged to report incidents through the Aman service.
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