Maretha at Fauna Park Tales

Another Happy Clubaversary to me – Number six! #RRBC

GRATEFUL

A BIG “THANK YOU!” to Nonnie Jules, President of the Rave Reviews Book Club and her equally awesome team, especially Paula who has always been willing to provide assistance. I’ve been a member of Rave Reviews Book Club for the past six years, and it has been a pleasure and a privilege. If you want to be part of something special, and if you are looking for real support as an author, I can heartily recommend that you join our book club where you’ll give to receive and vice versa.

I’ve had unusual circumstances during 2021, and had to make a decision whether to get further qualified as a TEFL Teacher. This meant studying day and night for about six months, starting in September to finish this course. Everything else came to a halt, including giving any meaningful support to fellow RRBC members. Therefore, I want to thank those kind members who continued to tweet about my books. I hope to be able to make it up to you, starting soon.

Both my husband and I had unusual health problems, but we are getting treated now, and hopefully this will all help to keep us on our feet.

Thank you for visiting my blog today. Please visit my author page on amazon. Here is a link to the UK site.

Happy Clubaversary to me! – FIVE Years’ Membership #RRBC

myBook.to/Friends

Published by Maretha at Fauna Park Tales

Maretha is a South African Italian, born in a small town called Montagu. She grew up in nearby Worcester in the Western Cape – a town reminiscent of living in Switzerland among the snow-capped mountains. Worcester had a small library. Young Maretha’s visits were limited to three times a week, because the librarian told her, “You spend too much time with your nose in a book and neglect your school work.” Nothing much has changed, because she's still a confirmed bookworm who constantly strives to raise more bookworms who enjoy reading, not just as a pleasant past-time, but as an excellent tool to be used when grown-up. Before immigrating to the UK to settle in Lancashire, Maretha worked as a librarian in a private school in Botswana, where one of her tasks was to encourage children to enjoy reading. That was a labour of love for this bookworm, providing valuable help in carving her own career as a children's author/illustrator. It brought her face to face with the literary industry’s toughest critics – children and preteens. She saw that many students also enjoyed reading about birds and animals, their care, habitats and general well-being, especially when a few added catchy rhymes here and there made reading sessions interesting and alive. In 2012 her job was localised and as things often happen, this unforeseen occurrence led to a new chapter in her life. To remain motivated, she wrote down everything she could remember about her family's pets – their little habits and characteristics. For example, the character of the working-dog hero in Fauna Park Tales is based on the different traits of every single dog her family ever owned. Researching habits, habitats and interesting titbits about martial eagles and eagle owls, as well as many smaller birds such as crimson-breasted shrikes and hoopoes,made it easier to illustrate them and tell a believable story. Her illustrations appear throughout Fauna Park Tales. Maretha Botha admits to being a chocoholic and unreformed coffee addict, a keen gardener and bird watcher, who likes to walk on the moors where the stiff breeze coming in from the sea, quickly clears her head, making way for more inspiration.

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