LONDON & SYDNEY EXPLORE THE WORLD

Two American girls travel through various regions of Cameroon in this illustrated kids’ book.

London is 12 and Sydney is 9, and both girls wear brown coveralls and have brown skin and black braids decorated with gold beads. There’s little story here, but the book does include a vast wealth of information about the places the girls visit in Cameroon, including aspects of its culture, history, and geography. The pair begin their travels in Douala, known for its music and dance, and where famed musician Manu Dibango wrote much-sampled music and lyrics. Readers are told that the southwest coast, Debundscha, is one of the rainiest places on Earth, and home to Mt. Fako. In Yaoundé, Cameroon’s capital city, London and Sydney visit the 1970s monument that commemorates the unifying of British and French Cameroon; then the pair watch a soccer game at Olembe Stadium. They also travel east to Bertoua, the largest but least populated region of the country, and learn how people of many faiths live together in Cameroon, where interfaith marriage is common. The girls visit Lake Chad and the Mandara Mountains, as well as Waza National Park; Mindja’s detailed, full-color cartoon illustrations include elephants, giraffes, lions, and marabou storks. London and Sydney also meet the traditionally nomadic Wodaabe people, whose “rich culture [is] centered around music, dancing, tattoos, face-painting, elaborate dressing and jewelry.” London and Sydney visit a mosque, a beach, and Foumban Royal Palace, then go to a traditional wedding. At the end of the book, the authors include several informative pages featuring examples of traditional Cameroonian food, and the illustrations make every dish, from sanga to grilled plums to soya, look mouthwatering. Almost every page includes full-page images of the two main characters, landscapes, animals, as well as portraits of famous Cameroonians—a feature that adds detail and color to the wholly informative text.

A beautiful introduction to the people, history, and geography of Cameroon.