Le petit garçon qui avalait la rivière - by Rodrigue Atchaoue

A collection of folktales from Benin. 


The hunter's children were so happy with their gift: a singing tortoise. They must have been too precious to their father for him to give them such a present. They gathered around the tortoise—them, their friends, their friends' friends, and their friends' friends' friends—and asked it to sing for them. And without being asked twice, it would poke its head out of its shell and sing, accompanying itself on its guitar.


 A singing tortoise, a rooster beating an elephant, a calabash chasing the one who cultivated it. 


The entire universe of African storytelling in general, and Beninese storytelling in particular, unfolds here. Rodrigue Atchaoué makes children think, and with his playful stories featuring characters that will not be easily forgotten.