Nicholas D. Kristof
This is a lovely picture book about foreign aid involving the United States and a remote village in Kenya, but it's not what you think…The illustrations by Thomas Gonzalez are beautifully evocative. They show Kimeli in his Stanford windbreaker and running shoes, surrounded by villagers and, of course, innumerable cows. Over and over in the scenes, two spears or two sticks or even two giraffe necks appear in the background, a subtle echo of the twin towers.
—The New York Times
Kirkus Reviews
Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah is about to return home, to a small village in Kenya. He has been studying to become a doctor in the United States. Amid a joyous homecoming, the children in the village ask if he has brought any stories. He has only one; one that has "burned a hole in his heart." Naiyomah was in New York City on September 11. In gentle yet piercing present-tense prose, storyteller Deedy introduces readers to a young Maasai scholar who wants nothing more than to help a nation heal. In Maasai tradition, cows are sacred, and Naiyomah asks the elders to bless his cow so he can offer it to grieving Americans. In an incredible show of compassion and strength, other villagers join him. Fourteen cows in all, from one tiny Kenyan village, prove that hope and friendship can cross all boundaries. Gonzalez's saturated paintings, glowing with oranges, reds and browns, radiate a warmth that is matched only by the Maasai's generosity. A stirring, heartwarming tale that made headlines when it happened-and is now, thankfully, preserved on the page for children. (afterword) (Informational picture book. 4-8)
From the Publisher
★ "Elegant sentences. . . The suspenseful pace is especially striking when surrounded by Gonzalez's exquisite colored pencil and pastel illustrations. The colors of Kenya explode off the page." —School Library Journal, Starred Review
"A stirring, heartwarming tale that made headlines when it happened – and is now, thankfully, preserved on the page for children." —Kirkus Reviews
"A moving tale of compassion and generosity."—Publishers Weekly
"The words and the glowing mixed-media illustrations show empathy and connections across communities"—Booklist
