Ashraf, a South African boy who lives in a big city, dreams of the African wild

I liked this book for a couple of reasons. First I liked that the illustrations really connected to the text. Second, I liked that it was a short story but contained a little bit of information about the African culture. Lastly, I liked that the story showed two sides of Africa, the city and the wild, and a little boys imagination. Cute book. ( )

Summery –
Ashraf is a little boy who lives in Africa. It states in the book that he never seen a live wild lion before, and that only in books has he. The book then goes on to explain the city in which he lives in as he is walking. Ashraf finally gets to the library but ends up renewing the book he loves the most.
My point of view-
This book would be good to show students that what we think may not be what is really happening. Most people think of Africa and as place with lions everywhere. It could show them not to stereo type places, people and things.
Classroom
Make paper lion masks
Talk about the place we have been and how they are different than what we thought. ( )

While the surface story of "Somewhere In Africa" deals with a young boy, Ashraf, and his desire to see real African wildlife, the undertone of this book has a much deeper meaning. Highlighting the differences between urbanized South African and the Saharan Plains, Ingrid Mennen, presumedly intends to touch on the subject of cultural and regional misconceptions. The bringing of focus to the city aspect of African life, and and the neighborhood that Ashraf lives in, shows both the uniqueness and commonality of human culture. This book would serve as a great read aloud session for geography. ( )