Book Descriptions
for Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus! by Atinuke and Lauren Tobia
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Anna Hibiscus is back in two more unique and engaging chapter books about a young biracial (Black/white) African girl and her family. Good Luck Anna Hibiscus! opens with a drought in Anna’s city. (The specific African country and city in which Anna lives are intentionally not revealed.) It has not affected her family’s well, but Anna and her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins realize they can and should share the water they have with others. In other chapters, Anna’s twin baby brothers, Double and Trouble, engage in antics worthy of their names. And running through the book is increasing anticipation for Anna’s upcoming visit to her maternal grandmother, Granny Canada. She must have warm winter clothes, and this means a trip to the shops. There are tears and disappointment for Anna before some delightful haggling between Grandmother and one of the vendors leads to success. In Have Fun Anna Hibiscus!, the time for Anna’s trip to Canada finally arrives. A last-minute complication at the airport is overcome with good fortune, but despite her warm clothes, Anna is unprepared for other dimensions of the visit. These include Granny Canada’s dog, Qimmiq, and the attitudes of some children in Granny’s neighborhood after Anna proves a disaster at ice skating but, with Qimmiq’s help, a great success at sledding. “Africans can’t do that!” one boy shouts. Anna replies, “I could not skate because it was my first time. Not because I am African … I only want to be friends with people who want to be friends with me, Anna. Not because I am African.” Author Atinuke, who introduced Anna in Anna Hibiscus and Hooray for Anna Hibiscus! (U.S. editions: Kane/Miller, 2010), continues to reveal rich dimensions of childhood, family, and culture in this delightful series. (Ages 4–8)
CCBC Choices 2012. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2012. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
Anna is spending Christmas with her granny in Canada. She can't wait to see snow for the first time! And how will it feel to be so far from home?
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.