Description
Have you ever wondered why turtles have cracked shells? In The Turtle’s Cracked Shell, journey with us to Nigeria, a country in Africa, for Ada-Ari’s retelling of this time-honored folktale. You will learn about Mbekwu and how his actions had a long-lasting effect on turtles all over the world. The story features fun rhymes and a moral lesson on the importance of sharing. This hardcover version includes two fun fact cards about IGBO culture: The Kola Nut and Market Days. Ada-Ari’s story books are historical artifacts – returning a piece of the African legacy that was lost over centuries of migration from the continent. The back cover of each book provides child-appropriate geography lessons highlighting the specific country in Africa that each story came from.
About the Author
Ada Ari is on a mission to promote diversity and inclusion in children’s literature. She is touring the African continent and retelling some of the most loved and shared African folktales in the form of beautifully-illustrated children’s picture books. These story books are historical artifacts – returning a piece of the African legacy that was lost over centuries of migration from the continent. These are stories that every child of African descent would have grown up with and had in their hearts and memories if they had grown up on the continent.
Her children were her inspiration. She grew up in Nigeria and did not want her second-generation American children to miss out on these stories that her grandparents and family members told her. As she took a step back, she realized a much broader applicability. These folktales are unique pieces of African culture that have existed for centuries. By sharing the stories with children of all backgrounds, she is also hoping to realize her dream – for future generations to grow up with a deeper awareness of and appreciation for African culture because they grew up with a piece of the history and legacy in a medium as unassuming as an entertaining story book.
Ada-Ari Books feature fun, kid-appropriate geography lessons highlighting the specific country in Africa that each story came from. In addition, each hardback book includes a pair of fun fact cards about the specific African tribe that each story originated from. Children will get a great story, a good moral lesson, and a geography/cultural lesson as part of the experience with Ada-Ari Books.
