GIFT OF THE SUN
by Dianne Stewart & illustrated by Jude Daly
The plainspoken tale of a rural South African who seeks to simplify his life by selling his encumbrances. Thulani prefers basking in the sun to milking his cow, so he sells the cow and buys a goat. He continues to trade down, until he is left with nothing more than some sunflower seeds. In a twist of fate, the sunflower seeds lead Thulani back to prosperity. After he acquires a whole yard full of animals, he becomes so busy trading them that he doesn't have any time to languish in the sunshine. He realizes that milking cows leads to some of his best thinking. Daly's atmospheric illustrations—a folk-art style that finds precision in the shape of seeds—capture the spare beauty of life in rural South Africa. (Picture book. 5+)