On Sunday, the 31st of July 2016, Alpha Primary School in Lenasia hosted the first ever Jozi Books & Blogs Festival.

The program throughout the day made it easy for those of us that wanted to attend specific sessions.

It was a great opportunity to learn more about literary giants of South Africa, such as Dr Don Mattera and Mr Ahmed Essop.

Personally, I’ve become intrigued by Dr Don Mattera and look forward to reading his works soon. We also got acquainted with some amazing female authors, such Mishka Hoosen, Nozizwe Cynthia Jele & Pamela Power.

I also had the great pleasure in meeting some amazing bloggers.
Shagufta Pasta is one of my favourite bloggers, hailing from Canada by origin, her blog Serious Planning is a must read if you’re a ‘bookaholic’ as she gives some amazing reviews and feedback about books. She also has her own YouTube channel if you prefer to watch instead of read.

Saaleha Idrees Bamjee is also very well known, especially for her photography. Her amazing photography skills are requested by many a blogger and I must admit, I can see why. Check out her blog Saaleha.com to view and subscribe. Saaleha is also known for her poetry and prose that frequently gets nominated for awards. Masha Allah.

Naseem Mayet is a Sports & Food blogger from the popular ‘Foodsburg‘ , Sara Essop is a Travel blogger and Khadija Patel is the executive editor of the Daily Vox.

In addition to being in the company of such accomplished people, Alhamdulillah, I got to interact a with a few more authors, namely Rehana Sha Bulbulia and Ayesha Ally.

Rehana Shah Bulbulia’s book ‘Miracles‘ was on sale, as was her previous books, ‘Happily Ever After, Journey To Jannah‘ & ‘Falling in Love with Muhammad SAW‘.

So much more took place at the Jozi Books & Blogs Festival and we do so hope that it becomes a yearly event, perhaps spread over 2 days as some workshops we missed while attending others.

Make it a point to attend the next one as you won’t be disappointed in doing so.