Elizabeti's School

by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen, Christy Hale (Illustrator)

Overview

In this contempory Tanzanian story, author Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen and artist Christy Hale once again bring the sweet innocence of Elizabeti to life. Readers are sure to recognize this young child's emotions as she copes with her first day of school and discovers the wonder and joy of learning.

It's the first day of school and Elizabeti can hardly wait. She puts on her new uniform and feels her shiny shoes. School must surely be a very special place!

Shortly after arriving at school, however, Elizabeti begins to miss her family. What if Mama needs help cleaning the rice? What if her baby sister wants to play? What if her little brother wants to go for a walk? But soon Elizabeti is making friends and learning her lessons. Best of all, she shares her experiences with her family that evening - and can apply what she has learned right away.

In this contempory Tanzanian story, author Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen and artist Christy Hale once again bring the sweet innocence of Elizabeti to life. Readers are sure to recognize this young child's emotions as she copes with her first day of school and discovers the wonder and joy of learning.

Check out the other titles in this series:

ELIZABETI'S DOLL • ELIZABETI'S SCHOOL • MAMA ELIZABETI

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781600602344
Publisher:	Lee & Low Books
Publication date:	09/01/1998
Series:	Elizabeti
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.25(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD590L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 7 Years

About the Author

Stephanie Stuve-Bodeenwas a Peace Corps volunteer in Tanzania and was inspired to write the Elizabeti series from this experience. The series has won numerous awards. She now lives in Wisconsin with her family.

Christy Haleis the author and illustrator of several acclaimed children's books, including four published by Lee & Low, and she has illustrated numerous other award-winning picture books as well. Hale also works in the children's book field as an art director, a designer, and an educator, offering programs at schools, libraries, and museums. She lives with her husband in Palo Alto, California. You can learn more about her at christyhale.com.

Editorial Reviews

"This is the perfect story for sharing with young children." — School Library Journal

"Throughout, Stuve-Bodeen distills the essence of the school experience, perfectly capturing a child's emotional state and confirming the universality of first-day jitters. Accented with lively African-inspired paper, Hale's illustrations contain the texture of Tanzania. Together, the talented team offers up another winning peek at a life that's different but the same." — Kirkus Reviews

"A skillful mix of the familiar, the unfamiliar, and the downright idyllic." — Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Elizabeti, the little girl with the rock doll (Elizabeti's Doll, rev. 11/98) and the demanding but affectionate little brother (Mama Elizabeti, rev. 7/00), is going to school for the first time. As in the previous books, Stuve-Bodeen tells a story at once universal and specific, set in a contemporary Tanzanian village... Details of the school day root the story in its place and bring Elizabeti's world to life. Hale's mixed-media illustrations are once again striking in their juxtaposition of softly speckled backgrounds with brightly patterned fabrics; here they match even more exactly the intimate quality of the text, with effective use of close-ups and warm family groupings. The book's message that home is "the best place to be" but that school has its uses, too, will resonate with anxious new pupils everywhere. Some readers might question Elizabeti's unfamiliarity with the schoolyard games and the numbers one through five (especially as her older, school-seasoned sister would presumably have brought home what she learned, just as Elizabeti does), but young children will be too busy grabbing Stuve-Bodeen's reassuring lifeline to notice. — The Horn Book

Best Children's Books of the Year - Bank Street College of Education

From the Publisher

In the beginning there was Elizabeti’s Doll (1998), then, Mama Elizabeti (2000). Now, Stuve-Bodeen and Hale team up for the third installment in the series set in Tanzania. In this addition, Elizabeti is excited to start school. Hale’s mixed-media illustrations picture the preparation: in the opening spread, Mama braids Elizabeti’s hair; a trio of vignettes shows the girl as she tests out her new uniform, twirling her skirt and touching her shoes ("No more bare feet! Elizabeti smiled. School must be a very special place"). But excitement soon leads to anxiety—and back again—as Elizabeti enters the schoolyard. At first Elizabeti pulls away from the action, relying on big sister Pendo for safe keeping; an invitation to a join a game of machaura—American children will recognize the game as a variation of jacks—increases her comfort level. When Elizabeti goes home, however, her enthusiasm wanes. After all, her own shoes are much more comfortable than school shoes, her dress is softer and Obedi the cat has given birth to kittens right under Elizabeti’s bed. It is this event that signals Elizabeti’s change of heart, for she has learned in school how to count to five and uses her newfound skill to count the kittens. Soon, she shows off her knowledge of the alphabet and challenges her mother to a game of machaura. It’s enough to make her realize school might not be so bad after all. Throughout, Stuve-Bodeen distills the essence of the school experience, perfectly capturing a child’s emotional state and confirming the universality of first-day jitters. Accented with lively African-inspired paper Hale’s illustrations contain the texture of Tanzania. Together, the talented team offers up anotherwinning peek at a life that’s different but the same. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews