Stacey Fru is a South African writer. Having published her

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

''Smelly Cats'' in 2015, she is thought to be Africa's youngest published author by the news provider ''

Independent Online ''Independent Online'', popularly known as ''IOL'', is a news website based in South Africa that serves the online versions of a number of South African newspapers, including '' The Star'', '' Cape Times'', '' Cape Argus'', ''Weekend Argus'', '' ...

''. In 2016, she founded the Stacey Fru Foundation, a charity dedicated to improving access to education for children in South Africa's rural areas. Fru was shortlisted for the 2020

International Children's Peace Prize The International Children's Peace Prize is awarded annually to a child who has made a significant contribution to advocating children's rights and improving the situation of vulnerable children such as orphans, child labourers and children with H ...

Life

Fru is the second of four children in her family. Her first book ''Smelly Cats'' was written without her parents' knowledge and published just before her eighth birthday. According to the South African news provider ''

'', the publication of her debut novel made her Africa's youngest published author. In 2016, she founded the Stacey Fru Foundation, a charity dedicated to improving access to education for children in South Africa's rural areas. In 2017, she became an ambassador for

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...

. Her 2019 book ''Tim's Answer'' was the first book in South Africa to be published simultaneously in print,

Braille Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...

and via the

Digital Accessible Information System Digital accessible information system (DAISY) is a technical standard for digital audiobooks, periodicals, and computerized text. DAISY is designed to be a complete audio substitute for print material and is specifically designed for use by peop ...

Recognition

Fru's work has been recognised with several honours: she was the recipient of the 2019 Pan-African Award for Literary Work, the 2020 Outstanding Young African Entrepreneur award, and the 2020 Global Child Prodigy award. She was among those shortlisted for the 2020

. In March 2021, she was included in a list of the 100 most influential young South Africans published by Avance Media.

Works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fru, Stacey 2007 births Living people Writers from Johannesburg 21st-century South African women writers South African women children's writers South African children's writers South African child activists