What Do Animals Think About?: Empathetic Questions For Ethiopian Animals in Amharic and English

Do animals enjoy beauty? Can a bird love the sunrise? Do pelicans have secret places they go? Take a glimpse into the mind of a crocodile in this delightful dual-language early reader, with side-by-side text in Amharic and English. Thought-provoking, playful questions lead young bilingual readers into the vibrant ecosystems of Ethiopia to think about life from a four-legged (or two-winged) perspective. Creative and unexpected open-ended questions provoke conversations and stimulate curiosity and empathy by asking about what life might look like through the eyes of an Ethiopian animal. The people and animals of East Africa come alive in vibrant watercolor illustrations by Glory Art Works, with text inspired by the student artwork. Book sales benefit Open Hearts Big Dreams, an organization dedicated to increasing literacy in Ethiopia through dual-language early readers. Ready Set Go Books, an Open Hearts Big Dreams Project, is focused on increasing the literacy rate in Ethiopia through giving readers books with stories in their heart languages, full of colorful illustrations with Ethiopian settings and details. Profits from books sales will be used to create, print, and distribute more Ready Set Go Books to kids in Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country. Ethiopia’s population is 44% children, ages 0-14 (43 million out of 97 million total). Only 5.5% of children attend pre-school or kindergarten, and the adult literacy rate is 49%. Our books are based on wise Ethiopian sayings that often rhyme in Amharic. If an adult says the first half, many children can chant the second half. Sometimes the meaning of these sayings is clear. Sometimes it has to be puzzled out and argued over. But sayings and idioms and proverbs help people express truths and beliefs in unusual ways. Open Hearts Big Dreams Fund (OHBD) is a 501(3)(c) not for profit organization that believes the chance to dream big dreams should not depend on where in the world you are born. Our focus is to support nonprofit organizations and their programs that provide literacy, K-12 education, and leadership as well as that support the parents and communities where the kids live, in Ethiopia.