TV AND FILM PRODUCER, HIP-HOP ARTISTE, TV TRAVEL SHOW HOST AND CHILDREN’S AUTHOR RUBY LOVELL USES HER OWN CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES OF DIFFICULTIES IN ASSIMILATING TO BECOME A STRONG ADVOCATE FOR DIVERSITY IN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE WITH HER COLLECTION OF CHILDREN’S BOOKS PUBLISHED IN THE UK
WORDS: Tina Edward Gunawardhana
Inspired by her experiences of her early childhood in Sri Lanka, diplomat’s daughter Ruby Lovell spent her time crisscrossing the world to wherever her father’s posting took her. Settling down in London where her father worked at the Sri Lankan High Commission, Ruby realised that there was a dearth of characters of colour in the children’s books she read. When she became a mother herself and started reading books to her own children, she realised that there was a severe lack of diversity in children’s literature. This spurred her to begin writing her own collection of children’s books which are doing exceedingly well across the UK. Ruby who has also worked as a TV presenter is currently working on a new travel series for British television. Her third book will be published later this year.
What swayed you to start writing children’s fiction?
From a young age I always had a passion for reading and storytelling. I remember my grandmother’s bedtime stories and how interesting and captivating they were. Later when I arrived in the UK and began to read children’s books, I noticed that there were no characters that looked like me nor from any other cultures.
All the characters were white. There was absolutely no diversity in these books. However this is not the reality of the classroom in a school nor the world we live in. This is why I was driven to bring the reality we live into children’s books and celebrate my culture, Sri Lankan culture. By doing so, I would educate and expose my culture and Sri Lanka to the world.
In a nutshell what is the theme of your book?
I have written a series of children’s adventure books. There are two published and available to buy globally and their titles are Ruby Rides an Elephant and Stop That Monkey! He Stole Ruby’s Ice Lolly!
My third book in the series will be published later this year and will be called Help! There’s a Gecko in Ruby’s Soup! All three books are an adventure that little Ruby who is half Sri Lankan half English has in
Sri Lanka when she goes on holiday to her father’s homeland.
How did the idea for the characters come about?
The idea for the characters in my books came from actual people I met in Sri Lanka and came across in daily life that I thought would make great characters in my books. My story books and story lines are also based on actual events that happened to me and my family.
For example, in my second book “Stop That Monkey! He Stole Ruby’s Ice Lolly!” which is set in Sigiriya, I was on the path to climb the Rock with my family and we were eating ice lollies and the Toque monkeys that are plentiful there surrounded us and grabbed our lollies! That’s what attracts my story books to children: they have so much detail and are captivating for children and expose a culture rarely seen by Western children in children’s books.
Sri Lankan children also love my books as they see themselves in the books and can identify with the places and events that are in the story.
