Sense Pass King: A Story from Cameroon

If memory serves, I have never reviewed a book on this site before, so this is as good a place to start as any.

I myself don't have any kids, but I am disturbed by the fact that it is very rare to ever see a white child playing with, say, a black doll. Obviously this is not the fault of the child.

I think that the sooner a child is exposed to the beautiful diversity (yet similarity) of humanity, the better it is for them and their world. I would hope that my fellow white people have had enough of the superficial and artificial world of Barbie, and are ready to open their eyes to the fact that beauty, art, love, expression, emotion, pain, and happiness occur in all shades, hues, shapes, and sizes.

Beyond this being a fun, meaningful story about a smart girl, the illustrations really convey a feel and a location. The clothing and faces and hairstyles in these pictures are stunning. Sure to grasp and ignite the imagination of children, and many adults also.

When the pages of this book start turning, you are engulfed in a world of beauty and color. Buy this book so you can entertain your children in a healthy way while also instilling in them the fact that just because not everyone looks alike doesn't mean we are all somehow "different" (in the negative sense).

Cultural diversity is, for me, humanity's greatest gift to all of us. Explore it, nurture it, love it! Also, protect it and encourage its appreciation in those around you. I wish this were a whole series of books with a different character and story for each. If this illustrator worked with other authors so as to give this sort of treatment to stories, locations, and peoples of India, China, Vietnam, Chile, Ethiopia, etc... it'd be a great "world primer" for children.

Easily one of the best kids books I've ever been around.


The Best Red Clover Book   October 21, 2003
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

This book is a fairy tale. Some of the things that make it a fairy tale is there is a 7 headed fire beathing monster. She can talk to animals. She is smarter then the king. The king tried to kill her three times and never succeeded. When they do something three times that is a pattern in fairy tales. I recommend this book to everybody that likes fairy tales!


Sense Pass King   February 15, 2004
carolyn jackson (Rochester, NY)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Trina Schart Hyman excellently illustrates this picture book retelling. It is a folktale from the West African nation of Cameroon. The plot centers on a young girl named Ma'antah, who is so smart that she is self sufficient and can speak many languages by the time she is three years old. The people revere her. The king, on the other hand, is jealous that the girl is earning more respect than he is. So he concocts several plans to have her killed. Ma'antah outwits him every time. Tchana's protagonist is a brave child who is both confidant and a quick thinker.

Though this is a very delightful story for an adult to experience and it offers very different themes in a different social context, it has some elements that may be disturbing to some western childcare givers or parents. Children in this story are treated like adults. For instance, the wife that the old king intends to marry, and Ma'antah at first helps him to secure, is a child who is even younger than Ma'antah.

It is important to include international literature in readings with children to develop cultural literacy. However, this plot is very unusual to a western reader. Though the ending fits well into western ideas of good versus evil, themes like the arranged marriage of a very young child-princess to an old, cruel king would seem strange and frightening to most modern children(and parents). Many might suggest this reading is inappropriate and confusing for many young picture book readers.

On the other hand, the wise Ma'antah prevents the marriage, even though it is not due to concerns about pedophilia, but rather the king's betrayal of her. She then becomes ruler of the people. She uses her wit and character to achieve greatness. This story read to a western child breaks cultural barriers by suggesting that even very young females can be leaders.

Also, the idea of a young female ruler taking care of another younger female child as a happy ending may seem strange to a child from America. It would require much explanation, in my opinion. The illustrations are beautiful. The story is presented in an artful way.

I think this book is inappropriate in the classroom, but parents may choose to read it with much caution.