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Sosu's Call
by Meshack Asare
Reviewed by Susan Thomsen, Chicken Spaghetti
In this inspiring picture book, a young boy named Sosu lives with his family in a small African village, but unlike his
brothers and sisters, he is unable to attend school because he cannot walk. Seeing his handicap, some of the villagers
believe that Sosu is bad luck or a spirit, and the boy is unwelcome at other village activities. "For many years, he saw the
world from behind his family's fence," the Ghanaian-born author Meshack Asare writes. But as a potentially disastrous storm
approaches, Sosu and his faithful dog work together to save his family and their neighbors, who finally come to accept and
even honor the courageous young man.
Asare's own watercolors add fine details to the story: we see the precarious setting of the village ("on a narrow strip of
land between the sea and the lagoon"), the poverty, and the eventual triumph of a community’s coming together.
In its list of Africa's 100 best books, the African Review of Books ranks Sosu's Call #2. (Things Fall Apart, by
Chinua Achebe, holds the #1 slot.) Asare was also one of two African writers nominated for this year's prestigious Astrid
Lindgren award, which recognizes an author's or reading organization's entire body of work rather than an individual book;
the prize goes only to those involved in children's literature and reading.
Sosu's Call was published in Ghana in 1997 and in the U.S. in 2002. Last summer’s devastation in New Orleans and on
the Gulf Coast adds a particular poignancy to Asare's picture book, which will resonate with American readers. Children will
be reassured by Sosu's strength.
The Boy Who Loved Words
by Roni Schotter, illustrations by Giselle Potter
Reviewed by Kelly Herold, Big A little a
The Boy Who Loved Words is a magical picture book for children who appreciate the beauty of language.
Selig's passion for words is the center of his world: "Selig loved everything about words—the sound of them in his ears
(tintinnabulating!), the taste of them on his tongue (tantalizing!), the thought of them when they percolated in his brain
(stirring!), and, most especially, the feel of them when they moved his heart (Mama!)."
Selig collects his words (represented beautifully by print cut-outs in the illustrations) and finds nothing wrong with his
hobby until kids began to tease him at school ("'Hey, Wordsworth,' kids would giggle, 'Here's a word for your collection—oddball!'").
Upset, Selig dreams of a Genie who tells him he is something special, a "Voidsvoith," and needs to find a purpose for his words. So Selig hits
the road, "with a pillow and blanket, apples, honey, cream soda, and his entire collection of words."
Not surprisingly, Selig finds many people need words—from a poet, to a baker, even to quarreling neighbors. In the end,
he finds true love in Melody and together they send language and music into the world. The Boy Who Loved Words concludes
with this beautiful passage: "You too may find yourself lucky if, one day, while you are thinking or writing or simply
speaking, the perfect word just seems to come to you. If so, you'll know that Selig is near. And on special days, if you
feel like humming or suddenly bursting into song, you'll know that Melody is with him. 'Upon my word!' you may say. 'How
lucky I am.'"
Potter's illustrations are beautifully colorful with an old-world feel and the newsprint words scattered throughout are
inspired. A glossary of words for the curious child is included at the end of the text.
Share The Boy Who Loved Words with the logophile in your life.
Sosu’s Call, by Meshack Asare. Kane/Miller, 2002. ISBN: 1-929132-21-2.
The Boy Who Loved Words, by Roni Schotter. Illustrations by Giselle Potter. Random House, 2006. ISBN: 0-3758-3601-2.
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