Children's Story Time Theme Archive -- February 2001

Children's Story Time
February 2001
BIODIVERSITY RESOURCE CENTER AT THE CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Along the Path:
African American History

Books

Albidaro and the Mishchievous Dream.
Lester Julius & Jerry Pinkney.
Publisher: P. Fogelman Books, 2000.
Pub Juv PZ7 .L5629 Al 2000
(Modern fable with African spirits)
In order to play a joke on his sister, the Guardian of Animals, the Guardian of Children sends a dream to all children and animals to make them happy. He tells them to do whatever they want and not mind their parents. The joke backfires, however, when the children become unhappy and afraid of marauding animals who will not mind what they're told. Only the teddy bears warned of the consequences, but the Guardian of Children would not listen.

Barefoot: Escape on the Underground Railroad.
Edwards, Pamela Duncan.
Publisher: HarperCollins, c1997.
Pub Juv E450 .E38 1997
(Animals witness the journey of an American runaway slave)
Dramatic text and illustrations highlight this book that takes the reader into the natural world encountered by a slave on his desperate journey to be free. When the bullfrog croaks, is he guiding the youngster to water, or is he just being a bullfrog? Along the way, the young man gets a great deal of help from the animal kingdom. The animals have seen "Barefeet" before, along with some dragged off in chains by the "Heavy Boots."

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters.
Steptoe, John.
Publisher: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, c1987.
Pub Juv PZ8.S585 Mu 1987
(Modern retelling of tale from Zimbabwe)
This story is taken from a folk tale collected in 1895. In the story, Mufaro's two daughters are very beautiful. One of them is going to marry the king and become a queen. Unfortunately, while one daughter is kind, merciful, and generous the other is mean spirited and selfish. The names of the characters are taken from words in the Shona language. Mufaro means happy man, Nyasha means mercy, and Manyara means ashamed. The book contains beautiful illustrations and a fun and charming story.

Qunnie Blue.
Johnson, Dinah.
Publisher: Henry Holt, 2000.
Pub Juv PZ7.J6316 Qu 2000
(African American family history)
The author took the name of the young girl and her grandmother, Hattie Lottie Annie Quinnie Blue, from her own great-grandmothers and her youth in South Carolina. In the story a young girl imagines what childhood was like for her grandmother, her namesake. Beautiful paintings have been used to convey a representation of family, relationships, and society in the African-American community.

Storm in the Night.
Stolz, Mary.
Publisher: HarperTrophy, 1990, c1988.
Pub Juv PZ7 .S875854 St 1990
(African American inter-generational story)
To pass the time during a stormy night with no power, Thomas's Grandfather tells stories to Thomas and Ringo the cat. Thomas is frightened of the dark, and Grandfather tells of a time when he was a young boy without power and afraid of the dark. Grandfather overcame his fears. Can Thomas do the same? As Thomas grows more and more accustomed to the dark, his senses heighten and he can hear and smell things that he could not sense before.
The lifelike illustrations and the easy to follow story will likely entertain children from first grade up.

Where are you Going Manyoni?
Stock, Catherine.
Publisher: Morrow Junior Books, c1993.
Pub Juv DT2889 .S86 1993
(Little girl in the African veld)
Above the Limpopo River and under the tall wild fig trees, follow Manyoni to school. In the parts of Zimbabwe where Manyoni lives, some children walk as far as two hours each way to get to school. In this book we follow Manyoni's journey to school as she walks past kingfishers and baboons on a long journey to get to school: her favorite place. The book also contains a glossary.

All books featured in Story Time are from the Academy Library and the Biodiversity Resource Center. If you have any questions, please contact the Biodiversity Resource Center at 415.750.7361 or biodiversity@calacademy.org