The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Stuve-Bodeen, Stephanie

Elizabeti's School

32 pp. | Lee | September, 2002 | Trade ISBN 1-58430-043-4 $$16.95

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Christy Hale. This is a story at once universal and specific, set in a contemporary Tanzanian village. Elizabeti (Mama Elizabeti) is excited about going to school for the first time, but also a bit apprehensive. Details of the school day root the story in its place and bring Elizabeti's world to life. The message that home is "the best place to be" but that school has its uses, too, will resonate with anxious new pupils. The mixed-media illustrations are striking.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2002