Too Small Tola
“Tola lives in a run-down block of apartments in the megacity of Lagos, in the country of Nigeria.” Three delightful episodic stories begin with “Too Small Tola,” in which Tola’s big sister is too busy studying, and her older brother is too obsessed with soccer, to help Grandmommy shop. It’s Tola who accompanies her grandmother through the bustling city to the market, carrying the things they buy in a big basket on her head. Her reward for the hard work her siblings avoided comes in the form of tasty treats on the way home. In “Small but Mighty,” Tola helps fill jerry cans at the pump before school after their building’s water goes out. A boy who intentionally trips her gets his comeuppance when all the women in line take a stand against his bullying. And in “Easter and Eid,” Tola enjoys helping the tailor, Mr. Abdul, measure her family for new Easter clothes, and takes pride in her perfect measurements. When Mr. Abdul breaks his leg, Tola steps in to measure his Easter and Eid customers in a tale, like the others, with a supremely satisfying conclusion. Atinuke continues to strike just the right tone in her charming, perfect-for-reading-aloud stories full of details of diverse contemporary life in Lagos, not to mention astute observations about human nature. ©2022 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Onyinye Iwu
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 6-9
Age Range:
PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
Bullying and Teasing
City Life
Community
Grandmothers
Helpfulness
Humor
Nigerians and Nigerian Americans
Siblings
Diversity subject:
Black/African
Christian
Publisher:
Candlewick
Publish Year: 2021
Pages: 88
ISBN: 9781536211276
CCBC Location: Fiction, Atinuke