Gizo-Gizo!: A Tale from the Zongo Lagoon

Winner of the 2017 Children’s Africana Book Award for Best Book, Young Readers! Gizo-Gizo the spider is a lazy, selfish fellow. So when he starts a gold mine that pollutes the Zongo Lagoon and makes other animals sick, naturally he ignores everyone else’s concerns. “Someday, when I am rich, I will buy this place,” he tells them. “I can do whatever I want!” But when the fish groan with upset stomachs and the frogs wince from sore throats caused by the filthy water, Tortoise and Crab decide that things have gone too far. They come up with a clever plan to teach their friend Spider a lesson and make him clean up his mess. Originally written and drawn by students from Cape Coast, Ghana, this community-created, contemporary folktale examines environmental sustainability and personal responsibility. And with colorful illustrations inspired by West African textiles and a text that includes Hausa words and phrases, it also provides a great platform for cross-cultural exploration.