Internet Archive Book: The Night Has Ears

Well, it's May, so I'm ready to start posting a proverb book every day now, along with some proverbs from each one. Today's book is The Night Has Ears: African Proverbs by Ashley Bryan.

Each proverb has its own illustration by the author, and you can find out more about Bryan's work in my Bookshelf blog. As Bryan explains in the introduction, he began finding proverbs in his research on African tales for his other books. In addition, as a child, Bryan's mother instilled a love of proverbs in him. Hence this book!

Here are a few of my favorites :-)

• If you cannot dance, you will say: The drumming is poor. (Ashanti)
• However long the night, the dawn will break. (Hausa)
• Patching makes a garment last long. (Yoruba)
• A log may lie in the water for ten years, but it will never become a crocodile. (Songhai)
• Treat your guest as a guest for two days; on the third day, give him a hoe. (Swahili)
• The goat is not big in a cow town. (Vai)
• You may grow taller, but no taller than your head. (Bassa)
• Take the drowning child from the water before scolding it. (Grebo)
• No one tests the depth of the river with both feet. (Krahn)
• No one knows the story of tomorrow's dawn. (Ashanti)

Here's the illustration for the log who wants to be a crocodile:

The proverbs are fascinating on their own, and even better with the illustrations!

The Night Has Ears:
African Proverbs
by Ashley Bryan