Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

Believe it or not, I absolutely hated reading when I was younger because the words just didn't make sense to me.  It's almost like no one took the time to explain reading to me in a way that I truly understood.  Although I was given books and had several shelves full of them, reading just wasn't my favorite thing to do.  I'm not quite sure when my dislike for reading occurred because I remembering reading a biography or maybe even autobiography on the school bus ride home in second grade about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  I read that book every single day for a long time.  However, that's the only book that initially comes to mind when I think about just going out and reading on my own.  Of course there were the stories we had to read in our textbooks, but looking back, it all seems like a big blurb. 

As I continue to remember, though....I remember my mama purchasing my very first book from the school book fair...Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters. This particular book took place in an African village where two sisters lived with their father.  Well, as we know, sometimes sisters get along very well, and sometimes they do not.  One of the sisters, Manyara was very jealous of the younger sister, Nyasha, and Manyara went out of her way to be mean to her younger sister.  Not only was Manyara mean to her sister, but she was also mean to the animals and other people in the village.  Nyasha, on the other hand, was very sweet and mild-tempered.  She did everything she could to help other people and even the animals in which she encountered. 

One day, a the king wanted to find a bride for his kingdom, and he invited all girls to come to a dinner party.  Manyara and Nyasha's father was so excited that he gathered a wedding party in their honor.  Manyara stole away in the middle of the night and headed to the palace alone in the effort to be the first girl the king saw.  She came across several people in the forest who needed her help, but she decided against it by acting rude and disrespectful towards them.  However, Nyasha waited for the next day in order to travel with the wedding party and her father.  She was very kind and helpful towards everyone in the forest she came across, and whatever they needed, Nyasha was able to give them. 

When the wedding party arrived to the palace the following day, Manyara came out of the palace crying.  Nyasha went in to see what was wrong and realized why her sister was crying.  You see, the king took the form of the animals and people in the forests as a means to gain a better understanding of the sisters' spirits.  When Manyara was rude and disrespectful to the people and animals in the forest, she was actually doing so to the king.  Nyasha's spirit and attitude were found to be favorable in the eyes of the king, which is why she was chosen to be his queen.

This book is an excellent choice for children, especially those in grades 3-5.  Mufaro's Beautiful daughter not only teaches the value of patience, but it definitely teaching the value of respectfulness.