Episode 214 - Ashanti to Zulu African Traditions

The 2022 ALA YMA Awards were filled with firsts. The first Caldecott Honor or Award winner that's posthumous! The first LGBTQIA+ Honor and Stonewall Honor co-winner (to say nothing of its National Book Award Honor)! And all this reminded Betsy of a "first" from the past. Who was the first Black African-American winner of the Caldecott to win the Award two years in a row? That's right, we're returning to Leo and Diane Dillon. The first Caldecott Award going to a Black man was for Leo and Diane Dillon's Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears. But the SECOND Award went the very next year to the Dillons' work on Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions. We consider this second Dillon win and find time to indulge in a discussion on why the Sibert Award should be renamed the Cyborg Award (as is right). Show Notes: The bird mentioned in this book but that neither Betsy nor Kate could remember is (naturally enough) the honeybird. This is a bird that leads different animals to sources of honey so that it can have a taste. Here's a page that contains recordings of all the Newbery and Caldecott acceptance speeches, courtesy of ALA and ALSC. Here you will discover Leo Dillon's magnificent New York accent: https://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/NCWBanquetRecordings As Betsy mentions on the show, one element of this book that hasn't aged as well is the fact that if this book were to made today, it would mention in some way the urbanization of Africa, alongside the longstanding traditions of different tribal areas. This book never dares to touch on that. So if you're looking for a book that does mention both traditional elements as well as some modernization, check out Atinuke's remarkable 2021 title Africa, Amazing, Africa. Here's what Betsy wrote about it for her 31 Days, 31 Lists Older Nonfiction list: https://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2021/12/27/31-days-31-lists-2021-nonfiction-books-for-older-readers/ Kate Recommends: The podcast Sweet Bobby: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/sweet-bobby/id1590561275 Betsy Recommends: America Crime Story: Impeachment: https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/american-crime-story For the full show notes, please visit: https://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2022/01/31/fuse-8-n-kate-ashanti-to-zulu-by-margaret-musgrove-ill-leo-and-diane-dillon/