By Dhananji Rathnayake | Photo by Mark Mattos
“I hope Kende! Kende! Kende! tells readers that we all belong in America.” – Kirsten Cappy, Executive Director, I’m Your Neighbor Books
The newly published picture book Kende! Kende! Kende!, co-written by Yaya Gentille, a former early childhood teacher from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Kirsten Cappy, Executive Director of I’m Your Neighbor Books, recounts the story of a spirited young refugee girl and her family as they journey to safety.
ADVERTISEMENT
The book is written in French and English, with Lingala action words woven throughout, and includes audio read-alouds in seven languages, accessible via QR codes.
“Our goal was to ensure that every family, regardless of their primary language, could feel welcomed and understood through this book,” said Cappy.
The multilingual recordings were created with the help of community members from Angola, Burundi, Congo Brazzaville, DR Congo, Iraq, and Rwanda. The translations and recordings were produced at the University of Southern Maine’s community radio station, WMPG, with support from the Maine Humanities Council.
The book was launched on November 9 at a celebration at the East End School Community Room in Portland. In honor of publication, I’m Your Neighbor Books and PRINT: A Bookstore donated a matching book for every book purchased.
“This has been a fabulous event,: said children’s book author Anne Sibley O’Brien. “It’s showing publishers a new way to make books accessible and available to everyone.”
*The Amjambo Africa team, including Elisabeth Nguizani, Eloge Willy Kaneza, Jean Hakuzimana, and Joseph Semajambi helped with translations and recordings, while photographer Mark Mattos collaborated with the authors to source imagery to help illustrator Rahana Dariah accurately portray the landscapes and communities of DR Congo and Uganda.
More pictures
