Overview
Anna Hibiscus lives in Africa. Amazing Africa. She lives with her whole family in a wonderful house. There is always somebody to laugh or play with. She loves to splash in the sea with her cousins and have parties with her aunties. But more than anything else in the world, Anna Hibiscus would love to see snow.
Synopsis
Anna Hibiscus lives in Africa. Amazing Africa. She lives with her whole family in a wonderful house. There is always somebody to laugh or play with. She loves to splash in the sea with her cousins and have parties with her aunties. But more than anything else in the world, Anna Hibiscus would love to see snow.
Children's Literature
Anna is a delightful child who lives in a big white house in Africa. She is surrounded by her parents, brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles and numerous cousins. She lives a sheltered life protected from the outside world. On one occasion she was bored so she decided to sell large bright oranges from her garden outside the wall in the city. When she saw how small and brown the other children's oranges were she realized how blessed she was to have such a garden. Life is always full of joyful activities. Her Aunt Comfort, who lives in America, is coming home to visit and Anna wonders whether she has forgotten the proper African ways. Will she remember to show respect by kneeling in front of grandmother and grandfather? Will she wear traditional clothes and eat properly with her fingers? That is not to say that they are not modern. Her cousins drive to the university, send text messages and e-mails and speak both their African language and English. For Anna there was one thing that she wanted more than anything else—to see snow. How she manages to do this is a delightful part of the story. Reviewer: Leila Toledo
Editorials
Children's Literature -
Anna is a delightful child who lives in a big white house in Africa. She is surrounded by her parents, brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles and numerous cousins. She lives a sheltered life protected from the outside world. On one occasion she was bored so she decided to sell large bright oranges from her garden outside the wall in the city. When she saw how small and brown the other children's oranges were she realized how blessed she was to have such a garden. Life is always full of joyful activities. Her Aunt Comfort, who lives in America, is coming home to visit and Anna wonders whether she has forgotten the proper African ways. Will she remember to show respect by kneeling in front of grandmother and grandfather? Will she wear traditional clothes and eat properly with her fingers? That is not to say that they are not modern. Her cousins drive to the university, send text messages and e-mails and speak both their African language and English. For Anna there was one thing that she wanted more than anything else—to see snow. How she manages to do this is a delightful part of the story. Reviewer: Leila ToledoKirkus Reviews
Linked short stories star Anna Hibiscus, who lives in a large house in a compound in "amazing Africa" with baby brothers Double and Trouble, parents and extended family. The first title in this appealing new series introduces Anna's world. The family goes on vacation, an auntie visits from America, Anna learns what it is to do hard work and she gets an invitation to visit her Canadian grandmother. Her world grows in Hooray for Anna Hibiscus! (978-1-935279-74-7): She starts school, sings before a large audience, tries a hair experiment and visits a very poor neighborhood. These stories celebrate the extended family and the combination of traditional ways with conveniences of the modern world; they contrast Anna's relatively privileged life with that of others in her country and reflect the Nigerian childhood of the author, a storyteller now living in Wales. Tobia's sketches, pen-and-ink with a gray wash, will help early readers visualize the family, unfamiliar customs and clothing and Anna's community. A third title has already been published in England. A welcome window into an unfamiliar world. (Fiction. 5-9)