Exciting African Bed Time Stories For Kids

Bedtime storybooks for kids are a way of handing down African heritage, culture, and even history to your kids. What is more, is that it is a medium through which they can improve their communication skills. The thing with stories is that they endure. As an African parent you probably still remember the interesting African bedtime stories and folklore told to you by your parents around a fire under a moonlit night. Through those verbal stories, you made sense of the world around you. The same way your kids can make sense of their own world through stories.

Fortunately, these days you don't have to wait for a moonlit night to tell your kids stories. African Bedtime storybooks for kids abound, which you can read to your kids after tucking them in for the night.

Seven African bedtime storybooks for kids

The following bedtime storybooks were written by writers from the African continent. Insiders who understand the uniqueness of African stories.

Chicken in the Kitchen by Nnedi Okorafor, Mehrdokht Amini.

 The book contains nice illustrations, ideal for kids from four years and above. The book follows Anyaugo, a young girl who sees a giant chicken in the kitchen a day to the New Yam Festival. The chicken threatens to spoil their preparation for the New Yam Festival. Madness follows when Anyaugo and her friend follows the chicken.

The Magic Gourd by Baba Wagué Diakité

The story is about a rabbit coming to a chameleon's rescue. The chameleon gifts him a magic gourd that refills itself with food and water always. But a king steals it away from the rabbit. Your kids might want to find out what happens to the king or if the rabbit will ever regain his precious gourd.

My Rows and Piles of Coin by Tololwa M. Mollel, E.B. Lewis

This is a book with an interesting ending. The story is about a boy who wants to save money to buy a red and blue bike. He plans to teach himself to ride so that he can ferry his mother's loads to the market. But when the time comes, he doesn't have enough money to buy the bike.

Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu

 The story comes with great imagery. In the book, Zahrah is considered to have magical powers because she was born with vines in her hair. However, Zahrah disagrees. A series of events puts her in a position where she has to be brave in order to save her friend's life. The book is for children aged ten and above.

Desmond and the Very Mean Word by Desmond Tutu

This is a story of forgiveness. Desmond takes his bicycle for a ride, but he meets a group of boys who say very mean words to him. Desmond is hurt so he responds by saying mean things back, though he discovers that this doesn't help him feel any better. Through Father Trevor, Desmond comes to understand his feelings. He learns to forgive without waiting to be apologized to.

Safari ya Angani by Francis Atulo

Written in Swahili, the follows the popular story of how the tortoise came to have a cracked shell. The tortoise wanted to eat in the sky so he asks the birds for a ride. The tortoise is left with a cracked shell when the birds lose their grip on him and he falls from the sky.

Who is King? Ten Magical Stories from Africa by Berveley Naidoo, Piet Grobler

The book features two brave and clever girls, including the mighty Elephant, lazy Ox, trickster Tortoise, mischievous Monkey, boastful Cockerel, hapless Hippo, and the woman who had a mouse child.

The book boasts of variety. Within it is a collection of ten interesting animal and magic stories from across the African continent—South Africa, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi, Lesotho, etc.

Read also: Must-read Nigerian children’s books for 10 years and below