Some friends talk with words.
Some friends talk with smiles.
And some friends talk through friendship, the truest voice of all.
That’s the idea at the heart of Playing Together, a beautiful new picture book written by KEEN London parent Jovita Lall, inspired by and dedicated to her son Ryan, one of our KEEN athletes.
If you’re new to us: KEEN London runs free, weekly one-to-one supported sports and activity sessions for children with additional needs across London giving them an accessible space to play, move, and be themselves.
We’ve been waiting for exactly the right moment to share this news, and today, International Day of Friendship, felt like it. Playing Together is a gentle reminder that friendship doesn’t depend on spoken words. At KEEN London over 70% of the children that attend sessions have autism and over 50% are non-speaking. For these children, connection can be found in play, presence, and shared moments.
At our recent summer party, Jovita read Playing Together aloud to KEEN families for the first time, and watching our athletes’ faces light up as the story unfolded was a perfect, real-life example of everything the book is about: connection that doesn’t need words.
Watch Jovita’s reading below and order your copy here
