Bintou longs for braids like adults but they say she is too young. In the African culture displayed in the book, braided hairstyles were only for mature elder woman. She aspired to be like her sister and those around her with gold coins and seashells in her hair. She wanted so badly to fit in and feel beautiful within her physical attributes such as hair. She does a good responsible deed of getting help for drowning boys, she then earns a reward. She wanted her reward to be nice braids like everyone else but she keeps her tuffs and adds blue and yellow birds like in her dreams. The tuffs she decided made her different which could be good, she was beautiful without copying others. She finally felt happy and pretty. The illustrations done by Evans transforms you into Bintou's culture and environment very well. ( )

Bintou wants braids like her big sister, but she is told she is not a "grown up" girl yet. When Bintou saves the lives of two boys in the village, she is given the opportunity to get braids as a reward, but she must decide if she will choose to go against her grandmother's advice. Colorful illustrations and a story kids will relate to about both wanting and feeling anxious about growing up. ( )

I would highly recommend this beautifully illustrated book. It conveys wonderful messages about bravery, how girls should focus on playing and acting like little girls, and ancestral wisdom is expressed in some West African cultures. Children of all ages with certainly enjoy this book.

Personal Response: This online book was read very well with an energetic, happy voice.

Curricular or Programming connection: A program dealing with being happy with yourself - self-esteem. ( )

Personal Response:
I read this story through my library's subscription to Tumblebooks. I enjoyed how Bintou's story is told through a mix of auto-narration and moving images that focus on different aspects of the illustration while the narration plays. I enjoyed the moving images within a static background as well.

Curricular Connections:
I would use this story in a story time about online books, using a projector to display the book, or for a story time about Africa or heroes. ( )