Beautifully illustrated story about a girl who is so excited to go back to school so she can learn to read and write. She takes a shortcut through the jungle to get to school faster and encounters several dangerous animals that threaten her, but let her go when she promises to write their names for them after school.

My four-year-old was captivated, but also very confused when she couldn't find the spider on the spider page. I was confused about that, too. Why don't we see the spider until almost the last page? I suppose it will remain a mystery.

My daughter did not ask why the animals wanted to have their names written down, though I thought she might. I realized a child probably understands that seeing your name in print has power.

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Beautiful pictures filled with colors and the letters of the alphabet. The book is about a little girl who persuades the animals who might hurt her to let her go to school so that she can write their names for them. And she's able to prove to her father that she learned something important in school. Takes place in Africa and teaches about how to learn to read. ( )

With the recent war over, the children in Ayobami's part of the world are able to return to school, and the little girl sets out early one morning, eager to get to the distant schoolroom. When the paper boat her father makes her as a guide is destroyed, she is distraught at first, until the hippopotamus tells her about the way through the jungle, in exchange for her promise to write his name. Each animal Ayobami encounters thereafter lets her pass, in exchange for the same promise...

Originally published in Spain as Ayobami y el nombre de los animales this engaging story from author Pilar López Ávila emphasizes how much of a blessing education truly is, and how much some children must struggle to obtain it. The setting is in Africa, but no specifics are given, as it concerns the country in which it occurs, or the war that has just ended. I believe the name Ayobami is of Yoruba origin, so perhaps the author was thinking of somewhere in West Africa, perhaps Nigeria. The accompanying artwork by Mar Azabal is just gorgeous, capturing the beauty of the animals Ayobami meets and of the world around them. I liked how each scene had key letters floating throughout it. Recommended to anyone looking for children's stories that emphasize the importance education, or that have an African cultural setting. ( )