A dedication to her grandfather, Vho Elias Musida, Miss South Africa 2020 Shudufhadzo Musida shows how, through becoming his wildest dream, she was able to write her latest children’s book about finding her voice.
Fondly known as Shudu, the beauty queen and businesswoman previously wrote a children’s book in 2021 titled Shudu Finds Her Magic, where she told the story of her upbringing and how she overcame her sadness and challenges and learned to love herself.
This year, she published her latest book I am Shudu, Finding My Voice, Knowing My Strength. “The inspiration behind my latest book is identity. Last year I got to meet my inner child again after being bullied for so many years,” Shudu tells BONA. “It was very important for me to write this book, especially now, and expand on my story in a way that I never expanded on it before.”
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I am Shudu, Finding My Voice, Knowing My Strength explores themes of bullying, bravery, identity, displacement, the power of community, and mental health education.
Explaining why the book explores mental health, Shudu states, “The reason for that, especially where children are concerned, is that we need to prioritise our mental health from a very young age. There are many stats around the world that say that suicide is the leading cause of death for young people currently around the world.”
She adds, “After COVID-19, you realise that there has been a silent pandemic that has never really been addressed that COVID-19 brought to the forefront, forcing us to face our mental health. The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines health as a complete state of physical, mental, and social well-being, not just the absence of disease or infirmity. So, it’s important for mental health to actually be prioritised.”
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Shudu concludes, “The book is for all the children who have been bullied, and all the children who are bullying. It’s for children to understand that they have a voice, and even if you are bullied, your voice still matters. The book is to amplify the voices of all children and to give them a seat at the table to understand that what they bring to the table is enough to shape the world they want to see.”
Also see: Shudufhadzo shares how becoming a businesswoman changed her worldly perspective
