Simi Visits Grandma (Folk Tales From Jalingo)

A young girl is taken to a fantasy animal kingdom by her grandmother’s words.

Jalingo, a faraway animal kingdom, is threatened by starvation, the animals face a real danger of extinction.

Ìjàpá- the tortoise journeyed through a mysterious underwater world to salvage his last meal. His fears turned into curious anticipation when he was faced with danger, but therein lies an opportunity to discover food reserves… enough to feed the entire kingdom. He soon found fame.

Standing on his newly found fame, he embarked on a dangerous conspiracy to upset the established order of the kingdom. Equipped with the very thing the kingdom needs for its existence- food, he reached for power.

Will he succeed? Or will the animals choose loyalty to the existing order even in the face of death by starvation?

About Femi Osewa

Femi Osewa is a designer in the architecture and creative field. He grew up in Nigeria and now calls London home.

You can find Femi on Twitter and Instagram @femmyextra

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Femi’s Inspiration for His Books

Although his career in architecture and creative design means he’s daily focused on modern life and the future, Femi’s inspiration for his range of children’s books is very much a tribute to his past.

To this day, Femi still lovingly recalls listening at the knee of his grandmother at home in Akure, Nigeria, as she told her enthralled grandson fanciful, African folk tales featuring a charming cast of characters of animals from the natural world that plays such a huge part in the global view of the African continent. However, Femi jokes that he doesn’t know why his grandmother, or those before her who passed on such tales, held such a negative view of the poor, slow-moving tortoise, who was always cast as the villain in every story!

As The Guardian newspaper noted in a profile feature of Femi: “Readers have often compared Osewa’s books to evergreen classics like the Drummer Boy, Footsteps in the Dark, The Boy Slave, and the likes. This comparison is apt because his works are among some of the few today that still bear that genuine authenticity and [are] void of sappy storytelling.”

While his own African heritage is an evident theme in most of his literary works, Femi’s books and the characters within make wonderful role models for children of all nationalities and creeds. Reader feedback has long confirmed Femi’s belief that core values such as love, friendship and determination make for valuable, lifelong lessons for young readers. Indeed, we also know via feedback from adults that it isn’t only children who actively enjoy and share in the positive, always enchanting fantasies, as brought to life in beautiful artwork throughout Femi’s books.

Explains Femi: “Many of the stories I grew up listening to cannot be found anywhere in print. If this trend is allowed to continue, sadly those stories would not be known to the coming generations.”

”Plus, perhaps one day I should at least try to save the reputation of the ‘villainous’ tortoise? Well…. I did only say ‘maybe’!”

We Must Crown The Elephant (Up, Down, Round & About Tales from Katagum)

Carrying on the exploits of animals in their imaginary kingdom, ‘We Must Crown The Elephant’ will be Femi’s second published work. Please subscribe to the newsletter below to be notified of updates on the upcoming work.

Speak with Femi on info[AT]sclk.co[DOT]uk