It Takes a Village

Children's Books

Cowen-Fletcher, Jane

Geography & Cultures

Scholastic. Inc.

A little boy takes great delight as he sits on his mother's zooming machine--her lap--in her wheelchair, and she becomes a train, a buckboard wagon, a spaceship, and other machines, in a story that addresses the issue of a handicapped parent.

Mama Zooms

scholastic

A boy's wonderful mama takes him zooming everywhere with her, because her wheelchair is a zooming machine.

In a story based on the West African proverb, "It takes a whole village to raise a child," a young girl proudly watches her brother and then realizes that the entire village has been watching them both.

Like Osa's Pride (Grifalconi, 1990), It Takes a Village (Cowen-Fletcher, 1994) depicts both universal and cultural specific themes. In the story, Yemi is learning to take responsibilities, watching her little brother while her mother is busy. And she is proud of being able to take such a responsibility. The positive portrayal of sibling relationship seems to be a common and preferable theme in many children's books. The culturally specific value, collectivism, is carried out through the story naturally and in an authentic manner. Cowen-Fletcher's first hand experience of living in Benin and her careful note in the end of the story add the authenticity to this story. In addition, Heath's study (1983) of child rearing practice among African Americans in rural areas of South Carolina also reveals this collective aspect of African culture. The author/illustrator is sensitive about the pronunciation of the child's name and explains it before the story. However, she does not explain the meaning or pronunciation of some Benin vocabulary in this book, such as "Yay gay" and "Cho". It would have been more helpful had she adds notes for these two words.

Demco Media

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. A boy's wonderful mama takes him zooming everywhere with her, because her wheelchair is a zooming machine.

Literature & Fiction

Turtleback Books

Baby Angels

Candlewick

Tap into the nationwide fascination with angels! With gentle rhymes and warm pastels, Jane Cowen-Fletcher's fetching creation will soon have readers of all ages believing in baby angels.

Baby Angels: Board Book

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Cowen-Fletcher, Jane. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Cowen-Fletcher, Jane

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Cowen-Fletcher, Jane. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

It Takes a Village

Mama Zooms

Mama Zooms

It Takes a Village

It Takes a Village

It Takes a Village

Mama Zooms

Mama Zooms

Baby Angels

Baby Angels: Board Book