Africa

April 2, 2021

All Aboard for the Bobo Road ~ Stephen Davies

All Aboard for the Bobo Road

Written by Stephen Davies

Illustrated by Christopher Corr

Follow along as Fatima and Galo ride atop a minibus down “the most beautiful road in the world!” Readers are encouraged to count along as they share in seeing the many sights along Bobo Road, as well as the various items that are added to the minibus. This colorful journey takes place in Burkina Faso, West Africa. Read more >>

Buy the Book: All Aboard for the Bobo Road

Originally posted on April 2, 2021.

March 28, 2021

A Story, A Story ~ Gail E. Haley

A Story, A Story

Written by Gail E. Haley

Illustrated by Gail E. Haley

This is an African tale about how stories came to be. Long ago there were no stories for children to hear, because all the stories belonged to the Sky god. However, Ananse, the Spider man spins a web up to the Sky god and offers to pay for the stories so that he can bring them back to Earth. Ananse bargains with the Sky god and uses his wits to obtain and give the Sky god all that he requested in exchange for the golden box filled with stories. This book tells of how Ananse paid the price. I love the color scheme! Read more >>

Buy the Book: A Story, A Story

Originally posted on March 28, 2021.

March 18, 2021

One Hen ~ Katie Smith Milway

One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference

Written by Katie Smith Milway

Illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes

This is a wonderful story of how one small loan made a difference. Kojo, a young boy from Ghana, used a small loan to buy a hen. After selling the eggs laid by his hen, Kojo is able to repay the loan and buy more hens to lay even more eggs. About a year later, he had built up his flock to twenty-five hens and was able to use the money he was earning to buy a uniform and go back to school.

Kojo later went off to college, studied agriculture and upon graduating, decided to take a big risk and start his own poultry farm. It took some time, but Kojo eventually secured a loan and, as with his very first loan, was able to multiply it exponentially! Kojo built his farm, hired workers and completely changed his community for the good!

As Kojo’s business prospered, he too was able to provide small loans to many, just like the one he received. This is an inspiring, true story of changing the world, one person, family, and community at a time! Read more >>

Buy the Book: One Hen

Originally posted on March 18, 2021.

March 7, 2021

Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters ~ John Steptoe

Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters

Written by John Steptoe

Illustrated by John Steptoe

This is a wonderful African tale about two beautiful sisters. One of the sisters, Nyasha, was not only beautiful, but kind and compassionate. The other sister, Manyaro, was secretly bad tempered and selfish. When the time came for one of the sisters to be named queen, through a series of “tests,” Manyara’s true disposition was made known and Nyasha became queen. I enjoyed this book. It is a great reminder to always treat others with kindness and compassion. Read more >>

Buy the Book: Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters

Originally posted on March 10, 2021.

March 3, 2021

The Soccer Fence ~ Phil Bildner

The Soccer Fence

Written by Phil Bildner

Illustrated by Jesse Joshua Watson

Hector watched from outside the fence as the white boys played soccer. Separated by the rules of apartheid, Hector did not play soccer with the boys on the other side of the fence until years later after apartheid had crumbled and Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa. After the multi-racial South African national soccer team was formed and won the African Cup of Nations in 1996, it helped to unite a divided country. In fact, Hector finally joined Chris on the other side of the fence to play soccer – together! Read more >>

Buy the Book: The Soccer Fence

Originally posted on March 3, 2021.

March 2, 2021

Galimoto ~ Karen Lynn Williams

Galimoto

Written by Karen Lynn Williams

Illustrated by Catherine Stock

Galimoto, which means “car” in the language of Malawi, is also the name for a push toy made by children. Kondi went around his African village in search of wires to make a galimoto. I love the creativity encouraged in this book. I could totally see one of my sons as a young boy creating a galimoto! Read more >>

Buy the Book: Galimoto

Originally posted on March 2, 2021.