When five-year-old Sulwe’s classmates make fun of her dark skin, she tries lightening herself to no avail, but her encounter with a shooting star helps her understand there is beauty in every shade.
Featured in WOW Review Volume XIII, Issue 4.
Sulwe
Primary (ages 6-9)
Material appropriate for primary age groups
A Story About Afiya
Some people have dresses for every occasion but Afiya needs only one. Her dress records the memories of her childhood, from roses in bloom to pigeons in flight, from tigers at the zoo to October leaves falling. A joyful celebration of a young girl’s childhood, written by the late Coretta Scott King Book Award-winning Jamaican poet James Berry.
Story Boat
When a little girl and her younger brother are forced along with their family to flee the home they’ve always known, they must learn to make a new home for themselves — wherever they are. And sometimes the smallest things — a cup, a blanket, a lamp, a flower, a story — can become a port of hope in a terrible storm. As the refugees travel onward toward an uncertain future, they are buoyed up by their hopes, dreams and the stories they tell — a story that will carry them perpetually forward.
This timely, sensitively told story, written by multiple award–winner Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Sendak Fellowship recipient Rashin Kheiriyeh, introduces very young readers in a gentle, non-frightening and ultimately hopeful way to the current refugee crisis.
A Different Pond
A Different Pond is an unforgettable story about a simple event – a long-ago fishing trip. Graphic novelist Thi Bui and poet Bao Phi deliver a powerful, honest glimpse into a relationship between father and son – and between cultures, old and new. As a young boy, Bao and his father awoke early, hours before his father’s long workday began, to fish on the shores of a small pond in Minneapolis. Unlike many other anglers, Bao and his father fished for food, not recreation. A successful catch meant a fed family. Between hope-filled casts, Bao’s father told him about a different pond in their homeland of Vietnam.
Read two takes on A Different Pond in June 2019’s My Take/Your Take.
The Kuia And The Spider
Absorbing New Zealand tale of the Kuia (a grandmother) and the spider. Ideal for reading aloud.
The Marae Visit
When the class visits the marae they have lots to learn and lots to do. And they have lots of fun! This is a wonderful story about what to expect when visiting a marae.
Little Kiwi and the Treaty
Years ago a group of kiwi travelled to find a place to settle. Much later another group arrived and wanted to settle there too. Both wondered who these strangers were and they began to fight each other, until eventually they made a treaty and agreed to share and to live together. Listening to Koro’s story the little Kiwi learns about identity, family history, treaties and living alongside other groups.
William’s Waitangi Day
When the teacher asks about Waitangi Day, everyone else knows what they’ll be doing, but William doesn’t even know what Waitangi Day means. Then, with the help of his friends he begins to understand what it’s all about and has a great Waitangi Day hangi too!
Fox On The Ice
One winter afternoon, Joe and Cody went ice fishing with their papa, their mama, and Cody’s little black dog, Ootsie. It was the perfect day to fish. The sky was clear, and the sun made the snow sparkle like diamonds.Brothers Joe and Cody are spending a chilly winter afternoon ice fishing with their parents. Cody is helping Papa fish, while Mama and Joe doze in the sled. Suddenly the sled dogs sit up and sniff. A fox is across the lake, her fur as bright as flames. The sled dogs give chase, pulling Mama and Joe along on a wild ride.Written in both English and Cree, Fox on the Ice is a wonderful, lyrical story of celebration from award-winning author Tomson Highway, capturing a passing way of life for future generations. Illustrator Brian Deines has created an evocative masterpiece of shimmering oils depicting the beauty of northern Manitoba.
Weka’s Waiata
Koro and Kuia, the Weka chicks’ grandparents, are coming to visit. But how will the Weka chicks greet them? Fortunately the little Kiwi has a plan Weka’s Waiata is a sequel to Ruru’s Hangi and The little Kiwi’s Matariki, winner of the Best Picture Book at the 2016 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults.