Children's book an oasis of life's simple virtues

Emmy Fitri, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A Forest of Fables
Fifth graders of Mentari Elementary School Jakarta Books
24 pp
In a culture where appreciation in a good cause is hard to express explicitly, the experience of the student authors of A Forest of Fables is a rare achievement.

Starting out as a simple school project, the book generated wide media coverage, as proceeds from the book sale is not going to their personal accounts -- it will go entirely to the less fortunate children in remote Aceh and Nias, both of which were devastated by natural disasters.

No less than a minister has been charmed by these students and their good cause -- as well as their colorful fables.

Consisting of 24 illustrated fables, the book is a compilation of the students' own stories, with their major theme, Indonesia's endangered species. (It must be noted, however, that some do not particularly follow this theme.)

Written in simple but spellbinding English, the stories are fluid and flowing. The fact that all authors, aged between 10 to 11 years old, are all not native speakers of English, attests to the accomplishment.

While A Forest of Fables may have been meant for children, adults too can enjoy the stories, which are all enjoyable and can be lingered over during a break from a boring lunch.

Following simple topics like friendship, care, honesty and solidarity, the student authors offer imaginative tales about simple virtues that even adults of this hectic metropolis may have forgotten to mind.

Darren's "The Three Friends and the Apple", for example, tells the story of how an eagle, a tiger and a snake get along so well despite their personal traits. One of them, the eagle, is being selfish over an apple, but then he apologizes for this inconvenience. It is a sweet tale -- but a hard value to learn.

Another story is Michelle's "The Squirrel Who Wanted to be Enormous", which centers on a tiny squirrel who wants to be "not himself". He wants to be bigger, as he is often stepped over by other, bigger animals. For example, he tries to eat grass like cows, because the cow tells him that grass will make him grow big. At the end of the story, he comes to the understanding that he must be content with what and who he is.

In a running race, a cat competes with a proud, large elephant who is confident that he will beat the cat -- and the cat wins. The author of this cute story, "The Elephant and the Cat", Azza, concludes,"Don't judge others by their size!"

And there are 14 other stories within this book with different morals and of course, animals.

Thanks to the hard work of publishing company Jakarta Books, which helped print A Forest of Fables and promote it, the book has sold over 400 copies since its publication in April.

Perhaps, what is more endearing than the children's intended messages in their fables is their will to share with others -- a rare attribute in this day and age, when people tend to be more individualistic and care less about others.