This is the story about 'the creator' and how she made all the body parts, independently and gave everyone jobs except the stomach. The stomach becomes upset and is placed in the middle of the body. The creator then tells the stomach that its job is to growl to remind us the wonders of food. ( )

I picked up Why the Stomach Growls from the library based on the cover alone (and a quick flip through). I was thoroughly enchanted with the illustrations and it just sounded like a easy, fun read...and I was not disappointed. Why the Stomach Grows is an adaptations of an African creation story done as a school play. In this adaptation a lonely creator, who has made a beautiful world finds he is sad because there is no one there to appreciate or enjoy it. So, he creates beings, each with a singular purpose; eyes to look up on the beauty of the flowers and beauty of the world; a nose to smell the wonders; ears to hear the beautiful birdsong...and so on, each part with a specific purpose. His final creation, the stomach is laid down on the Earth, but Creator is so tired he nods off to sleep before giving stomach a purpose. This displeased the stomach and he began to cause trouble for the others...getting in the way of the eyes, tripping the feet, and being a general nuisance until there was no harmony on Earth. So the Creator comes up with a plan to make all his creations work together and gives stomach a special place right in the middle.

Overall, this is a very cute, very fun little story that children from 0-8 will get a kick out of. The text is simple and easy to read/understand, the story is straightforward and humorous in a way that kids will really appreciate (that naughty stomach), and you'll find yourself giggling in places. The Illustrations compliment the text perfectly; adding just the right touch of whimsy...the idea to retell this folktale in the guise of a school play is just perfect! I give Why the Stomach Growls five stars all the way, I'll definitely be adding it to my permanent library and would recommend it in a heart beat...it would also make a dandy read aloud story. ( )