Two Awesome Ugandan Picture Books to Read This Ugandan Independence Day with Your Children

Uganda is a country located in East Africa and is affectionately known as the “Pearl of Africa.” Home to over 33 million people and a diaspora of over 1.5 million people of Ugandan heritage living and/or working outside Uganda.

On 9 October, Ugandans around the world celebrate their country’s independence day! What a better way to join in the celebration of Ugandan culture, history and heritage while building the next generation of global than with books?

I am excited to use Ugandan Independence Day as a time to celebrate Ugandan culture and their contributions to the world while inspiring our young readers.

Sleep Well, Siba and Saba is a picture book written by Ugandan-American children’s book author, Nansubuga Nagadya Isdhal. This beautiful story set in a contemporary Uganda.

Sleep Well Siba & Saba is about two sisters who always seem to lose something! But in their sleep they would dream of the items they lost and where they lost it. That is until one night when they both dreamt of things that they did not lose.

This story is beautifully illustrated with aspects of Ugandan culture interwoven in the narrative. Pick up this lovely title here.

Give Up, Gecko is a rhythmic retelling of a popular Ugandan folktale.

After a long period of no rain the animals in this story are thirsty! They decide that they will dig for water and the one who finds the water will be the leader of the animals. To make the challenge fair they decide they will stomp the earth to get to the water. From large to medium the animals try to no avail. Then the small Gecko’s turn comes next and the animals soon learn that size does not matter.

To balance this picture book be sure to discuss that this story is fictitious. You may even want to compare the animals found in this story to the wildlife found in the safari and savanna regions of Uganda. Pick up this lovely title here.