Abiyoyo Returns

Thirty years later...

The little town that was once threatened by the giant Abiyoyo has grown by leaps and bounds. But now that the townspeople have chopped down all their trees, every year they have floods and droughts. Worse yet, there's a giant boulder blocking up the site of their new dam! Something has to be done.

Well, the young boy who helped make Abiyoyo disappear way back when now has a little girl of his own. And she knows the only way to save the town: Bring back Abiyoyo to help move the boulder. "Bring back Abiyoyo?" the townspeople cry. "The giant that eats people up?" But the little girl has a plan for that, too....

Fifteen years after Pete Seeger's storysong "Abiyoyo" came to life as a picture book, his beloved giant is back in a wonderful new story. With Michael Hays's brilliant illustrations and a sing-along score included, Abiyoyo Returns is destined to become a family favorite.

Based on a South African tale, this story tells what happens when a giant who had been banished from a town by a magician thirty years earlier is called back to save the town from flooding.

Thirty years later...

The little town that was once threatened by the giant Abiyoyo has grown by leaps and bounds. But now that the townspeople have chopped down all their trees, every year they have floods and droughts. Worse yet, there's a giant boulder blocking up the site of their new dam! Something has to be done.

Well, the young boy who helped make Abiyoyo disappear way back when now has a little girl of his own. And she knows the only way to save the town: Bring back Abiyoyo to help move the boulder. "Bring back Abiyoyo?" the townspeople cry. "The giant that eats people up?" But the little girl has a plan for that, too....

Fifteen years after Pete Seeger's storysong "Abiyoyo" came to life as a picture book, his beloved giant is back in a wonderful new story. With Michael Hays's brilliant illustrations and a sing-along score included, Abiyoyo Returns is destined to become a family favorite.

Children's Literature

A once small town is growing by leaps and bounds. But there are terrible droughts and the people of the town decided they must build a dam. This work goes along very nicely until they hit a boulder. It is huge. No matter what they do, they cannot move that boulder. Then someone suggests, "Bring back Abiyoyo!" Abiyoyo is the giant with long fingernails and slobbering teeth who eats people. Everyone fears him, but certainly he can move that enormous boulder. The townspeople decide that feeding Abiyoyo will make him happy. Soon, he even learns to brush his teeth. So with Abiyoyo's help the village gets its dam and the people learn that sharing will tame the monstrous Abiyoyo. Michael Hays brilliant full-page illustrations bring to life the characters in this marvelous tall tale and add dimension to the text. Readers will enjoy this story by master storyteller and singer Pete Seeger. 2001, Simon and Schuster, $17.00. Ages 4 up. Reviewer:Sue Reichard

Pete Seeger is a national treasure, arguably the most influential figure in American folk music as well as an important advocate of social causes. He lives in Beacon, New York.

Michael Hays has illustrated several picture books, including the sequel to Abiyoyo, Abiyoyo Returns. He lives in Chicago, Illinois.