Additional information
by Durga Yael Bernhard (Illustrator), Amlaku B. Eshetie (Translator), Ready Set Go Books (Author)
From the time he wakes up until the time he goes to sleep, Yaya is constantly on the move. Everyone knows Yaya, and everyone calls out to him as he runs from place to place. Follow this energetic boy through a typical day in a West African village as he gathers firewood, picks mangos, fashions a toy from a tire, chases a monkey, and joins a drum and dance celebration. Colorful illustrations follow Yaya as he weaves through the community helping his family, following his curiosity, stopping for a bite and then running off to chase whatever has caught his interest. Side by side translations support bilingual readers, and a detailed bilingual glossary supports vocabulary development.
Durga Yael Bernhard is the author/illustrator of numerous award-winning picture books, including Trouble (a Ready Set Go book), While You Are Sleeping: A Lift-the-Flap Book of Time Around the World, A Ride On Mother's Back, and five other multicultural titles that invite young readers to discover diverse people and cultures.Open Hearts Big Dreams Ready Set Go (OHBD-RSG) Books were created to help increase the literacy rate in Ethiopia through giving readers books with stories in their heart languages, full of colorful illustrations with Ethiopian settings and details. Profits from book sales are used to create, print, and distribute more OHBD-RSG books to kids in Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous country. Ethiopia's population has a high percentage of children ages 0-14. Only a small percentage attend pre-school or kindergarten, and the adult literacy rate is around 50%.
Some of our books are based on wise Ethiopian sayings that often rhyme in Amharic. If an adult says the first half, many children can chant the second half. Sometimes the meaning of these sayings is clear. Sometimes it has to be puzzled out and argued over. But sayings and idioms and proverbs help people express truths and beliefs in unusual ways. Other books are based on STEAM topics, cooking, colors, counting and more.
Since late 2017, OHBD has published over 150 unique OHBD-RSG bilingual titles in a number of Ethiopian, African and global languages plus English and has plans to publish more titles and add more languages. New titles or languages are added monthly; follow our author page to get new release announcements. Open Hearts Big Dreams Fund (OHBD) is a 501(3)(c) not for profit organization that believes the chance to dream big dreams should not depend on where in the world you are born. Our mission is to inspire and enable youth in Ethiopia through Literacy, Innovation, Inclusion and Leadership Projects in collaboration with individuals and organizations in Ethiopia and globally.
