Student authors have a health message for people of color

Student authors Mst Labone Begum and Shuvomita Dey hold their just-published children’s book that discusses the need for sun protection for all people.

By Alan Madlane
It’s no secret that Hamtramck has some talented youth at work, and in a wide variety of academic, athletic and practical areas.
Two such, Mst Labone Begum and Shuvomita Dey, have successfully written and published a book, titled “Sun-kissed.”
It is a children’s book that brings home a message to, literally, save one’s skin, as in, from the ravages of the sun’s UV (ultra-violet) rays.
Here is what the Hamtramck High School students have to say about their book.

The Review: How did the idea for the book first come to you?
Mst Begum: I’ve always loved writing, whether it was for homework assignments or just scribbling down ideas at home.My goal has always been to write a book — but not just any book.
My real goal is to produce works that empower and educate readers, enabling them to get a deeper understanding of a topic.
I had never been taught the value of sunscreen, which surprised me as a Bangladeshi woman moving to the United States. I used to get terrible sunburns every summer, and I never realized how many people thought they didn’t need sunscreen, due to their skin tone, until I started questioning them about it.
I researched this concept on my own, determined to find the truth, and discovered that it is a harmful falsehood. All skin tones are at risk from harmful UV rays, which can increase the chance of developing serious conditions, including skin cancer.
I want to use my work to spread the word about how important it is for everyone, regardless of skin tone or background, to wear sun protection.

The Review: What then moved the idea from being “just an idea” to becoming an actual project?
Mst Begum: As soon as I decided on this topic, I began working on several rough drafts. I wasn’t sure what kind of novel I wanted to write at first.
I saw that my friend Shuvomita, with whom I did AP Art, was producing pieces of art that mirrored mine. I informed her of the book, and asked if she would be interested in working with me. She wanted to help me make it happen and was overjoyed that I asked.
We then talked about how the misconception about sunscreen has its roots in childhood, and how educating young people about sunscreen is essential if we want to increase public awareness of it. At that point, we made the decision to write the book for young readers.
The writing would be simple, but the message would be clear.

The Review: Do either of you personally know persons of darker skin pigments who have had issues with skin cancers?
Shuvomita Dey: We do have family members who have experienced skin issues due to being out in the sun for too long without sunscreen or other protection, so not necessarily skin cancers.
However, we are well aware of the myth that darker skin doesn’t need sun protection since we have encountered that several times.

The Review: What age group did you tailor this to? If younger children, is it meant to actually be for the parents’ information in the end? If for older children, are they meant to read it alone and then try to get their parents to make sure they have the appropriate products for their skin protection?
Shuvomita Dey: We chose our target audience as younger children, while also considering that their parents would guide them through concepts like melanin and UV rays.
In a way, it’s a topic that adults should consider for their kids’ safety, as well as for their own. But, we do suggest “Sun-Kissed” (especially) for children of ages 6-9, as the (vocabulary) level is best suited for them.

The Review: Not that you would include a bunch of boring statistical material in a kids’ book, but did you do any actual research on the phenomenon of skin cancers among people of color? If so, were you surprised by any of the results?
Mst Begum: We both did general research about sunscreen. Our book is made for children, so it didn’t need any medical statistics. Again, we wanted this book to be a conversation starter among parents and their children, to talk about sun safety. I believe the best way to do that is by giving people a basic understanding of sun safety, without throwing in too much information about it.
While researching the topic, I learned, through the National Library of Medicine, that “Although White individuals have higher incidence of melanoma, clinical outcomes are worse among patients with skin of color.” Such a realization inspired me to write this book.
Regardless of skin tone, I want to encourage everyone to prioritize sun protection by addressing these inequities, especially in Hamtramck where the population is mostly Asian people.

The Review: When a kids’ book is a cautionary tale about something that might frighten them, how do you approach that exactly? With humor? Did such considerations inform the illustration style?
Shuvomita Dey: I would say the best way to approach that would be the illustrations. Kids love visuals, and they especially love seeing characters that look like them or that they can relate to. Other ways to approach such messages could also be giving the tale a happy ending, and/or using humor.

The Review: Describe, if you will, the process of taking the book from the idea stage to finished, sellable product on Amazon. Did you have to, for example, involve lawyers? Were you mentored through the process (either the creating or the marketing) by teachers, parents, medical people, or anyone?
Mst Begum: When I was drafting the book, I asked many of my English teachers at Hamtramck High School to provide feedback to me, and used it to keep writing drafts until I was happy with the final version.
I also asked family members and friends to provide feedback. I did this because I wanted to make sure the book was easy to comprehend and that the pictures were easy to understand, even if people didn’t know English well.

The Review: What are your hopes and expectations for sales, or for the reach of your book? Are you employing the Amazon tools to boost your sales on their platform? Is the book available any other way than through Amazon?
Shuvomita Dey: We hope to reach as many people as we can, but our focus is largely the local communities in Hamtramck, for example, the Muslim population.
We haven’t really used any Amazon tools to boost our sales, since we are on a small budget and we aren’t concentrating on the profits, but more on putting the message out there. The book is currently only available on Amazon.

The Review: Do you plan to publish another, and if so, what would that be about?
Shuvomita Dey: We are thinking about (producing) more books, but want to focus on the one that’s published right now.

The Review: Please, feel free to talk about anything else that you would like to that we didn’t already cover, or to emphasize anything else.
Mst Begum: My goal is that the book will start a conversation about how important sunscreen is, regardless of whether you decide to buy it. Everyone has to prioritize sun protection, and understand the risks associated with UV exposure, regardless of their skin tone!

Posted Oct. 4, 2024