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by Devendra Veda (Author), Elisa Hung (Illustrator)
In this first book of the Indigenous and Ethnic Culture series, readers are transported to Tanzania, Africa, to experience a day in the life of Naserian, a young Maasai girl. The story follows Naserian, a young Maasai girl as she makes the lengthy and potentially perilous journey across the Tanzania grasslands to her school. Her family wants one thing for her, but she has other dreams. The series is intended to provide a glimpse into the life of minority cultures from different parts of the world and how such cultures are forced to adapt to survive in a world that threatens to leave them behind. The Maasai are a semi-nomadic group of people who are found in Kenya and Tanzania. Traditionally, herding livestock is very important for the Maasai way of life. Livestock products are sold and traded for needed goods such as grain and charcoal. It is also the means by which some Maasai parents pay for school uniforms and school fees. Changes in the world are forcing many Maasai to adjust their way of life in order to survive. Many Maasai have turned to small-scale farming where they grow maize and other crops to supplement their pastoral diet of milk, meat, and blood. Some Maasai go on to look for work in the city and live a more modern life in contrast to their traditional rural lifestyle.
