If You Were Me and Lived in...the Ancient Mali Empire: An Introduction to Civilizations Throughout Time

by Mateya Arkova (Illustrator), Carole P Roman

Overview

Join Carole P. Roman as she travels back in time to visit the exciting Ancient Empire of Mali in Africa during the 1300s. Learn about the varied customs and cultures. Travel to the past to discover what you would eat and do for fun. See the land and its rich history through the eyes of a youngster like you.Don't forget to look at the other books in the series so that you can be an armchair time traveler.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781540337276
Publisher:	CreateSpace Publishing
Publication date:	12/13/2016
Series:	Introduction to Civilizations Throughout Time , #5
Pages:	80
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.21(d)

About the Author

Carole P. Roman is the award-winning author of the Captain No Beard series. Both Captain No Beard-An Imaginary Tale of a Pirate's Life and Captain No Beard and the Aurora Borealis have received the Kirkus Star of Exceptional Merit. The first book in the series was named to Kirkus Reviews Best 2012. Captain No Beard and the Aurora Borealis has been named to Kirkus Reviews Best of 2015. Each book in the series has won numerous awards including the NABE Pinnacle Award, IAN Award, Moonbeam Award 2014, National Indie Excellence Award Finalist, Shelf Media Outstanding Series Award, ForeWord Review Five Star and Finalist in the Book of the Year, and Reader's Views Children's Book of the Year 2013. Roman is also the author of the award-winning non-fiction culture series, If You Were Me and Lived in... that explores customs and cultures around the world. She has co-authored a self help book, Navigating Indieworld A Beginners Guide to Self-Publishing and Marketing. She lives on Long Island with her husband and near her children and grandchildren.

Editorial Reviews

2017-03-02
Part of a series for older elementary and young middle school students, this detailed work presents life in ancient Mali through the eyes of a young girl. "If you were me and lived at the height of the Mali (Mah-lee) Empire, you would have been born in the year 1332." The "me" referred to in this comprehensive history tale for tweens is a 10-year-old girl living in Mali's capital city as it may have looked hundreds of years ago. Packed with facts about the West African kingdom and its long reign as a world power, this softcover picture book is part of Roman's (Can a Princess Be a Firefighter?, 2017, etc.) diverse history series with titles covering such places as ancient China, the Mayan Empire, and ancient Greece. (The author's nonfiction works also include her extensive If You Were Me and Lived in… series introducing children to cultures around the world.) As with her previous volumes, Roman hangs substantial educational content on a mild storytelling framework, giving young people a personalized way into the subject through a relatable "you are there" device. Readers learn about Mali's desert geography, housing, clothing, weaponry, farmers and artisans, religious practices, education (boys were schooled; girls stayed home), governance (and brutal law enforcement), food ("grilled fish caught fresh from the Niger River…the fruit of the baobab tree"), and prominence as a major trade route for the export of salt and gold and the import of silk and slaves. (Here, Roman's reference to slavery, which still exists in that region, is a shade too matter-of-fact: "It was sad, but slaves were considered a valuable commodity rather than people.") Arkova's (Can a Princess Be a Firefighter?, 2017, etc.) well-researched images mostly occupy two-thirds of each double-page spread and are rendered in a soft, warm palette inspired by Mali's river and desert environs. Also included: pronunciation guides, a glossary, and a list of individuals—a king, an architect, a scholar, and prominent wives, among them—who were significant in shaping Mali's history. An informative addition to the prolific author's well-crafted series of illustrated books that make history relatable to a tween audience.

Kirkus Reviews