Emeka's Gift

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

This unusual counting book cum photo-essay weaves into its narrative details of life among the Igala people of southern Nigeria. ``One boy''-Emeka-walks to the neighboring village to visit his grandmother, wondering about a suitable gift for her. He passes various possibilities along the way (``four new brooms,'' the ``big grown-up hats'' modeled by five youngsters, etc.) and imagines how Granny might react to each one. In the end he can only share a hug with Granny, who declares that she has received ``the best present of all.'' Using a simple framework, Onyefulu (A Is for Africa) sprinkles informative sidebars alongside her tale of Emeka's journey, enhancing the reader's understanding of a lesser-known culture. Lucid, attractively composed photographs of Igala people and their artifacts add to the book's multicultural import. Intelligently rendered and ultimately heartwarming. Ages 3-9. (May)

Mary Harris Veeder

Photographs taken in a village in southern Nigeria are assembled in a counting story. On the way to visit his grandmother, Emeka sees people and objects--in groups numbering from 2 to 10. Each spread, whether one or two pages, contains a large photo of the people or objects, together with a panel featuring the number and a description and another panel showing some larger aspect of this world. For example, along with Emeka's thoughts on the eight water pots, is a brief box with information on the importance of water and its storage during the dry season. There is a nice balance between difference and sameness here: children play games in familiar ways, even when the games aren't familiar, and, refreshingly, the emphasis is on the artifacts of daily life rather than museum pieces.