Songs from the Baobab

PreS-Gr 2—This fabulous book and CD presents 29 African lullabies and nursery rhymes collected by Chantal Grosléziat from a number of African countries, including Congo, Mali, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Togo, Senegal, Rwanda, Guinea-Conakry, and the Central African Republic. Eleven languages are represented, such as Lingala, Bambara, Mina, Susu, and Sango, among others. Native speakers perform these tunes that are quite different from Western music—some a cappella and some accompanied by traditional instrumentsp such as berimbau, sanza, reed flute, kora, or xylophone. Titles include "Uélé molibá mákási" (Uélé, River With a Very Strong Current); "Ka baga ne ma" (Don't Provoke Me); "Ndi le e" (Sleep); "So diyara" (The Joyful House); "Yum-maa yehii jaabe" (Your Mother Has Gone to Search for Jujubes), and others. In the book, each double-page spread features one or two songs/rhymes. Elodie Nouhen provides interesting stylized illustrations, with the appearance of paintings on fabric. The book also includes the performers' names, the lyrics in the original language with an English translation, and background information on each song/rhyme. The final pages feature a map of Africa with the country names marked and information about the African languages in the book. This excellent production will be a boon to units or programs on Africa as well as multicultural studies.—Beverly Wrigglesworth, San Antonio Public Library, TX