Book Sharing Monday :: African Tales

We are studying Africa in our World Geography and I have been reading aloud stories from this beautiful book: African Tales: A Barefoot Collection by Gcina Mhlophe and Rachel Griffin.

I don't think I have come across one Barefoot Book that I didn't like! In this book, there are eight tales from eight different African countries. Each page is filled with gorgeous artwork. The art is a mixture of fabric, beads, stamps and more. Each story has an introduction which tells you a bit more about the particular country it came from and its people. There are also quick facts included. The photo below shows part of the introduction for a story from Namibia called "Nowandle, Girl of the Waves".  I added another photo to show the detail of the artwork from that same page. You can click on each photos to see a larger version too.

The stories are tales that have been passed down from generation to generation. We were fascinated by these. Each story also ends with "Cosi cosi iyaphela", which means "Here I rest my story". On the back of the title page, the author explains that this is the traditional way that Zulu storytellers finish their tales.

Here are two facts from the beginning of the book on a page that includes the map of Africa along with some interesting information about this continent.

"Africa has the most varied wildlife in the world. It is also home to some of the largest populations of wild animals, including lemurs, wildebeest, antelopes, and hyenas."

"Typical African musical instruments include drums, xylophones, rattles, clappers, bamboo flutes and ivory trumpets. While European musicians were developing ideas about harmony, Africans were developing rhythm, creating the most sophisticated percussive arrangements in the world."



If you would like to participate in Book Sharing Monday, leave your link to your book sharing post below. Happy Reading!