MY BANTU BLANKIE

An original story that takes place in the 1970s in South Africa, My Bantu Blankie is based on a true happening to a six-year-old tomboy girl who loses her blankie in a traumatizing event. The author uses vivid vintage collages of the characters against a richly portrayed African landscape filled with intrigue, to bring the reader an unforgettable experience.

Back Cover:

A page from inside the book:

Our train puffs through little towns and African villages. The *Bantu people come out of their huts and wave to us. We wave back. The little ones run alongside the train, holding out their hands for sweets and coins. They babble in their funny click-click language. I giggle and click-click back to them. Blossom says they speak *Xhoza. And that they have a king who carries a staff and wears lion skins, and scary old women who are witches and dance like chickens, with feathers around their necks and bones in their hair.

*Bantu - a group of African tribes in Southern Africa

*Xhoza - a specific African tribe that speaks a clicking sounding language, with the tongue snapping against the roof of your mouth.

Reviews:

barnes & noble reviews: 

booksbycandlelight: THE TRUTH IS POWERFUL 

This book comes as a surprise. The title has the word - blankie - in it, but this book is not cute.  It is edgy, emotional, and hits hard in the heart area. My children and I were choked up. This  book is about the emotional abuse of a child, but the author brings a powerful dimension of the  magic of self-healing and growth of a child as a solution. The images are vivid and very colorful,  popping off the page. I loved the use of real people, and my children loved all the objects and  artistic pieces to the book. The message is potent and beautiful, but this is not a book for  sissies.  

Concentrate on the positive outcome of the book in order to teach your child a valuable lesson  about tragedy. There is always more than what the eye can see.

Patricia Cheng: 

This book would make an amazing movie! 

Dana Dale: 

A must have! Colorful and vibrant with a beautiful story line. 

Catherine McCormack: 

I am a school teacher, and have read my fair share of children’s books. This book is so original.  It reads like a magazine for children, but has a storyline. As a lover of all things African, there  were so many cultural visual references that it made my head spin. It inspired me to go and visit  South Africa, and boy, it did not disappoint. I have to warn, though. This book is not for younger  children. I would say at least 8 years and up, because of the traumatic incident that occurs. But I  commend the author for healing the trauma in such a magical way!