Head is all alone. Body bounces along, Arms swing about, and Legs stand around. They can't do much by themselves, so they try to join together. But how? Should Head attach to the belly button? Should Legs stand on Arms? If only they can work together, everything will be perfect. This vibrant, joyous retelling of a traditional Liberian creation story shows how much can be accomplished with a little cooperation.
Preschool-age children will love this entertaining retelling of the Liberian story about how head met arms, leg and body and learned to work together as one person. The illustrations are bright and filled with vibrant oranges, yellows and greens that capture the feeling of being in the African country where the story originated and was passed down through generations of storytellers. Children will undoubtedly find it amusing when the body parts begin to attach themselves in the wrong positions, such as head on top of belly button and arms above the ears.
Aside from being a basic anatomy lesson that you child will ace and likely tell you that the person is not being put together in the right order, this is a great introduction to the art of storytelling. Explain to your child how this tale weaved its way through grandparent after grandparent to eventually become the book in your hands. Since the story is from Liberia, perhaps this is also a good time to pull out a map and show your child where the country is located.
I shared this book with Emily, the three-year-old that I babysit, and she absolutely loves it. Over the past week, we must have read this book at least 10 times. While the head thinks it has found the "perfect" solution by attaching the arms above its ears, Emily immediately said, "That's not perfect! That's silly!" When the body finally got itself straightened out and looked like a person, she enthusiastically shouted with a big smile, "Now it's perfect!"
--Abby