Little Lion

When little lion becomes lost in the Ethiopian countryside, he turns to his animal friends to help, but they are afraid to help him! Playful illustrations of endangered African animals like elephants and servals detail the sometimes tense relationships between predator and prey as little lion searches for his mama. Questions about the food web and the circle of life arise naturally as emerging young bilingual readers develop their vocabulary and fluency in Ethiopian languages, as well as conversations about independence, friendship, how to ask for help and how to be helpful. Side by side text in Shinasha and English help readers connect words to concepts. Part of the Ready, Set, Go! series of early bilingual readers by Open Hearts Big Dreams, a nonprofit devoted to increasing literacy in indigenous Ethiopian languages.

Open Hearts Big Dreams Ready Set Go (OHBD-RSG) Books were created to help increase the literacy rate in Ethiopia through giving readers books with stories in their heart languages, full of colorful illustrations with Ethiopian settings and details. Profits from book sales are used to create, print, and distribute more OHBD-RSG books to kids in Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous country. Ethiopia's population has a high percentage of children ages 0-14. Only a small percentage attend pre-school or kindergarten, and the adult literacy rate is around 50%.

Some of our books are based on wise Ethiopian sayings that often rhyme in Amharic. If an adult says the first half, many children can chant the second half. Sometimes the meaning of these sayings is clear. Sometimes it has to be puzzled out and argued over. But sayings and idioms and proverbs help people express truths and beliefs in unusual ways. Other books are based on STEAM topics, cooking, colors, counting and more.

Since late 2017, OHBD has published over 150 unique OHBD-RSG bilingual titles in a number of Ethiopian, African and global languages plus English and has plans to publish more titles and add more languages. New titles or languages are added monthly; follow our author page to get new release announcements. Open Hearts Big Dreams Fund (OHBD) is a 501(3)(c) not for profit organization that believes the chance to dream big dreams should not depend on where in the world you are born. Our mission is to inspire and enable youth in Ethiopia through Literacy, Innovation, Inclusion and Leadership Projects in collaboration with individuals and organizations in Ethiopia and globally.