Böcker av Chantal Grosléziat

An homage to the rich cultural heritage of Guadeloupe, Martinique, Haiti and Réunion featuring 30 traditional songs. Imagine a daily island hubbub with warm breezes, salt water, and music flowing through a marketplace of cinnamon, freshly roasted coffee, bananas, and raw cocoa. This collection of 30 traditional French-Creole lullabies and nursery rhymes from Guadeloupe, Martinique, Haiti, and Réunion pays homage to community, family ties, work, love, and life's passages. Lyrics appear transcribed in their original French Creole dialects and translated into English, followed by extensive notes on the origin and cultural context of each song. The musical picture book is accompanied by a CD featuring 30 songs recorded by an ensemble of local musicians with indigenous acoustic instruments. WINNER OF THE PARENTS' CHOICE RECOMMENDED AWARD AND MORE

Representing 11 languages originating from Central and West Africa and brought to life with lavish illustrations, this collection's rhymes and lullabies soothe babies to sleep as the songs travel from one country and one language to another. Lyrics are reproduced in the original language and translated into English, followed by notes on the origin and cultural context of each song. The accompanying CD features 29 songs from 10 countries--including Rwanda, the Ivory Coast, and Senegal--each one unique in language and sound, recorded with indigenous instruments and exquisitely performed by women, men, and children. This delightful, enchanting production captures the staccato rhythm of the children's rhymes and the poetry of the language as well as a sense of the heritage and tradition of each culture.