Katrin Tchana

The Sense Pass King is a traditional folktale from Cameroon. Ma'antah was an extraordinary child and the people in her village thought she was very clever, with more sense than the king. So they called her the "Sense Pass King." she was only four-years-old. The King was very jealous and tried many ways to get rid of her. But each time she succeeded in thwarting his efforts. She helped the people in the village and over the years she became very popular, but the king was not happy. Then he made her come and live in the palace to control her. But she gave him advice, and when the king followed this advice, the villagers were happy. On a voyage across the see, she saves the king and the people on the boat by killing a monster. When they returned, the king told the villagers that he was the hero. His soldiers told the people the truth, and Ma'antah recevied the recognition she deserved.
A note from the author at the end of the books, says that her husband heard this story growing up from his mother. The original character was a boy, but the author decided to make her a girl to encourage girls to be brave and clever. The illustrations are done by Trina Schart Hyman. She uses bright watercolor images to depict the characters in the story and the setting in Cameroon. The culture and people in the images seem to be represented authentically.… (mere)