Miplanet

Launch of Instant Mobile Book set to encourage global teenage literacy
• MXit launches Africa’s first IM Book in bid to combat illiteracy in teens
• Books available at a fraction of the cost of the printed version, making it accessible.

MXit, the global social networking and instant messaging giant, has launched Africa’s first IM book in a bid to encourage literacy and a love of reading amongst youth. From today, MXit users will be able to download an entire book on the MXit network for a mere R13.50 (50 Moola per chapter), which is a fraction of the cost of purchasing literature in traditional bookstores.

Juan du Toit, International Marketing Manager for MXit, says “This is a very exciting project for us because it allows us to add online reading to the already broad online social networking and chatting model that encompasses the MXit lifestyle offering. As MXit is so widely used by the youth as their preferred communication tool, we hope to encourage the youth to develop a love of reading. We will therefore look to provide our users with more titles in the future.”

With the advent of mobile mediums (mobile phones and smart phones), as a primary means of communication for social interaction and information sourcing, it made sense for MXit to expand its content offering to include literature. According to UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), 26 percent of the world’s adult population is illiterate and 98 percent of these people live in developing countries. Africa as a continent has a literacy rate of less than 60 percent.

The first book offered on MXit’s MBooks platform is Emily and the Battle of the Veil, a fantasy novel written by Karen Brooks, which can be downloaded on MXit by visiting Tradepost (Tradepost – MXit Mix – Entertainment – Mbooks). The book can be downloaded as content and read at the users own time and convenience.

Emily and the Battle of the veil is a fantasy novel based on the life of a 13-year old girl in South Africa.
“With the launch of Emily and the Battle of the Veil, we saw an opportunity to assist authors in breaking the status quo of the traditional publishing industry, as well as giving young readers and aspiring writers an opportunity to read new literature or showcase their work”, says du Toit.

“It is also a darn good read and we are incredibly lucky that Karen Brooks felt strongly enough about teenage literacy that she was willing to adapt her book to digital format.”

Karen Brooks draws on her psychology and counselling background to create a fantasy world which explores many teenage themes like relationships between family and friends, self-esteem and social acceptance.

“MBooks is the evolution of eBook. I thought that access to books via a digital medium was a great way to give everybody access to my novel. More importantly, Emily and the Battle of the Veil is suited to teenagers and I wanted to make it accessible to them – hoping that it will foster a love for reading and writing,” says author, Karen Brooks.

“I also found the concept of a zero carbon footprint very appealing. As book lovers we did not traditionally think about the impact on the environment, however I am pleased that the next generation will have the same access to literature that we did, but in an eco-friendly way”.

Said du Toit, “One in five people over the age of 15, do not voluntarily take part in a literary environment. We agree with the United Nations that literacy is a human right. This is MXit doing our bit for literacy as we recognise that most of our users are in the 15 to 24 years-old age bracket”.

The launch of MXit’s first MBook follows the launch of an online maths initiative called Imfundo Yami Imfundo Yethu, which offers online mathematics classes to learners. It is a joint programme undertaken by Nokia South Africa, MXit and a Finnish company that created the mathematical software.

MORE ABOUT EMILY AND THE BATTLE OF THE VEIL

Emily and the Battle of the Veil, is the start of the spiritual journey of Emily May Harrison, who at the age of 12 is sent to boarding school in Kingstown, after having lived all her life in the small village of Paradise Beach, with her Gran, Mamasita and her best friend, Sam. Unaware that she is part of something bigger, she begins to learn that Thoughts are Things.

In Kingstown, she meets up with the sassy, spiky-haired street-kid Josh (her guide in worlds known and unknown), his mother Miriam (who knows things) and the mountainous, jolly, long-nosed Edwina who owns (what looks outwardly like) a bookstore.

Having dreamt about them for years, it is in Kingstown that Emily finally comes face to face with her Shimmers: Pugly (a phenomenal flyer and teacher), Elvis (a jiggly, wiggly handful) and The Elder (a being of substance), who live in a parallel world called Aurana.

But in finding her Shimmers, and crossing over into Aurana, she starts a chain of events, where the Balance is threatened. Emily becomes visible to Admonai, of the Shadows and Admonai’s side-kick, Silenkis, using his Circles of Influence, seeks to use the Lost Ones to harm her.

This book reminds you that “….All is Not as it Seems…”

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Karen Brooks

Karen Michelle Brooks has a BA. Psych degree. She is currently based in Cape Town and has written for the past eight years, though this is her first novel. The second novel of the series, Emily and the Sprites of Light is due out in June 2009.

About Mxit

MXit is a free instant messaging program for both mobile phones and PCs. It allows members to chat to other MXit users anywhere in the world. It also allows users to send text messages to and from mobile phones and PCs using GPRS or 3G instead of using standard SMS technology, which is expensive.
The social networking element of the business is the cornerstone of its growth. MXit is a new generation company that boasts 13 million members and is growing by 18 000 users per day. It is in constant evolution to match the needs of its users and is set on becoming one of the biggest instant messaging mobile networks in the world and the preferred mobile social network for communicating with young people in Africa and globally.

MXit introduced mobile messaging to South Africa. It started as a mobile game developer and evolved into a mobile instant messaging company, allowing its users to send messages at a fraction of the cost of traditional SMS.

To download MXit: Open your mobile browser, type in www.mxit.com/wap and simply follow the prompts.