Kenya

Materials from Kenya

The Mzungu Boy

For Kariuki, life in a small village in Kenya is one great adventure. The best part of his day is the walk home from school, when he is free from both his bullying headmaster and his mother’s long list of chores. The landscape around his village is beautifully wild, and Kariuki knows it well. One day Kariuki meets Nigel, a boy from England who has come to visit his grandfather, the fearsome Bwana Ruin, who owns the farm where the villagers work. The villagers call Nigel the mzungu boy (westerner), and view him with suspicion and fear, but not Kariuki. One day the boys decide to hunt down the meanest warthog in the forest. The hunt takes them deeper into the jungle than Kariuki has ever gone, and all at once his beloved forest becomes a frightening place. Dangerous creatures live in the jungle, including the mau-mau, the men with guns who are plotting against Bwana Ruin and the white soldiers. And when Nigel suddenly disappears, will Kariuki be able to save his friend?In this novel, the author captures a time of innocence, wild beauty, and the growing violence that eventually changed the entire structure of colonial Africa.

Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai

Wangari Maathai, winner of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize and founder of the Green Belt Movement, grew up in the highlands of Kenya, where fig trees cloaked the hills, fish filled the streams, and the people tended their bountiful gardens. But over many years, as more and more land was cleared, Kenya was transformed. When Wangari returned home from college in America, she found the village gardens dry, the people malnourished, and the trees gone. How could she work to bring back the trees and restore the gardens and the people?

Papa, Do You Love Me?

This follow-up to the best-selling Mama, Do You Love Me? captures the universal love between a father and child. When a Maasai father in Africa answers his son’s questions, the boy learns that his father’s love for him is unconditional.

Owen & Mzee: The Language of Friendship

This is the true story of two great friends: a baby hippo named Owen, and a 130-year-old tortoise named Mzee live in Kenya. In December 2004, something astonishing happen: A frightened young hippo, separated from his family by the devastating tsunami in Southeast Asia, adopted an acient Aldabra tortoise as his mother. The old tortoise, for years a loner, accepted the baby hippo as his own. In spite of their many differences, Owen and Mzee are inseparable. What’s even more amazing is that the pair seem to have developed their own” language” of soft sounds and gestures, which continues to baffle wildlife experts.

Owen & Mzee: The True Story Of a Remarkable Friendship

True story of two great friends: a baby hippo named Owen and a 130-year-old giant tortoise named Mzee.  In December 2004, a young hippo separated from his family by the devastating tsunami in Southeast Asia, adopted an ancient Aldabra tortoise as his ” mother”. And the old tortoise, for years a loner, accepted the baby hippo as his own.  They are now inseparable.