Rasam writes a children’s book about his life in New Zealand: ‘As a child I had to deal with a lot of discrimination’

Because of his appearance, he was seen and treated as different at school. Now as an adult, Rasam Moghimi (34) shares his experiences by writing a children’s book. He hopes with his book ‘We’re all just birds‘ teach children that everyone is equal, no matter what you look like. “I didn’t have the right color for a Kiwi.”

Rasam moved with his parents from his native Iran to New Zealand as a baby. This is where he grew up and spent most of his life. But in a country with a mainly white population, he stood out because of his dark appearance, which regularly caused him to receive unpleasant comments. Something that didn’t bother him. “As I got older, I really didn’t accept those comments anymore. That’s when I decided to turn the negative into something positive,” says Rasam. “Now as an adult I still sometimes hear discriminatory comments, often disguised as a joke.”

All equal

It was Rasam’s dream to always write a children’s book. That’s why he started writing down his experiences for his first children’s book ‘We’re all just birds‘ (‘We’re all just birds’). The story is about a weka, a bird from New Zealand, who grows up with a kiwi family. The young bird is told at school that he is different from the other birds in the class. But he soon discovers that, despite his appearance, he is just a bird just like his classmates.

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Reading and learning at the same time

The cover and story of ‘We’re all just birds‘ stand out because of the brightly colored drawings and descriptions of animals and plants. They were created by the Belgian illustrator Sien Verschueren, who gets her inspiration from her travels through New Zealand. At the back of the book there is a legend explaining the flora and fauna that Sien uses in her illustrations. “It is an overview of various New Zealand animals and plants. Children can playfully search for the flora and fauna in the book and learn something about it.”

Big dream as a children’s book writer

Rasam has been living in Utrecht for two years and works in daily life as International sales and marketing manager. Despite his current position, he could not let go of his dream as a children’s book writer. Rasam wrote the story about the weka in the rainforest of New Zealand, but it was ultimately in Utrecht where his book was actually published and his first edition rolled off the printing press. The book also supports the Utrecht-based ‘Trees for All’, a non-profit organization that plants trees. “Holding your own book in your hands for the first time is amazing and surreal. Because of this, Utrecht will forever be in my heart.”

Holding your own book in your hands for the first time is surreal

Speaking at primary schools

Rasam is now often invited to primary schools to read his book and explain it to children. “It is very important to make it clear to children at a young age that we are all equal. Even though we all look different, we all have feelings. We deserve to belong, to be accepted and loved.”

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New book

Rasam already has new ideas for next books, but for now he is focusing his energy on ‘We’re all just birds‘. “It’s a busy period now, so I won’t start the next book until I really have the time. I have plenty of ideas and I even have some sentences on paper,” says Rasam.

Sold worldwide

Rasam’s books are now being read in various countries around the world. He sent them to the United States, Australia, France and of course New Zealand. But closer to home you can find the book at the library on the Neude and at children’s bookstore Paper Moon and of course via the website of ‘We’re all just birds’.

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