Meet Hadassah: A Book-Loving Au Pair from South Africa

Celebrating National Literacy Month with Hadassah: A Book-Loving Au Pair from South Africa

The upcoming month of September is National Literacy Month, a time to cherish the joy of reading and the magic of words. At AuPairCare, one of our core AuPairCare Gives Back tenets is “Literacy & Libraries”, making National Literacy Month an especially important time in our community. In honor of National Literacy Month, we are thrilled to introduce you to Hadassah, an incredible 21-year-old au pair from Durban, South Africa who shares our passion for books and reading.

Hadassah arrived to the U.S. in November of last year, and, in her words: “it’s been an adventure ever since”! Hadassah lives in Arlington, Texas with the Power family, where she looks after four children from ages five to 10 months, including an adorable pair of twins!

Hadassah's love for books began early, starting when her mom would take her to the library as a way to pass the time. "We can really credit my mum for my love for reading,” she says. “As a child she would often take me to our local library. As cliche as it sounds books were so magical to me and I was able to experience so much through reading!”

With a passion for sharing her literary experiences, Hadassah runs her very own book blog on Instagram at @hadassah.s_. Her blog is a platform where she connects with fellow book lovers, sharing reactions, reviews and, of course, book recommendations.

"During the pandemic when I found myself with all this extra time, I decided to start posting about [the books I was reading],” explains Hadassah about the accidental origins of her book blog. “Some publishers reached out to me and I started reviewing books for them on my Instagram account."

But that’s not the only way Hadassah has incorporated her love of reading into au pair life. Since she’s been on program, she joined a book club with her host mom! Hadassah explains, "My host mum would often ask me to tag along with her...Fast forward a few months and I’m a regular at ‘mums club’ with her now.” She added: “Even just at home, we often read together and exchange recommendations.”

And of course, Hadassah bonds with her host kids by reading to them every day. The twins’ current favorite go-to book? Good Night Moon.

This upcoming National Literacy Month, join us in celebrating the joy of reading with Hadassah and countless other members of the AuPairCare community who are passionate about books. We love that AuPairCare au pairs like Hadassah can cultivate their interests while creating life-long relationships on program. Happy National Literacy Month!