Where's Jamela

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Mama and Gogo are tremendously excited about the new house they are moving to, but Jamela likes where they are and doesn't want to go. She starts putting her books and school things into a box, but eventually gives up, packs herself away and goes off to sleep. And just when the big truck is about to drive off, Mama suddenly shouts, "Wait, wait! Where's Jamela?" Mrs Zibi, Greasy Hands and even Christmas the chicken make an appearance in this delightful new African township story in which Jamela finally discovers that there's no place like home.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

Third in the series that includes Jamela's Dress and What's Cooking, Jamela?, Where's Jamela? by Niki Daly finds the title character disappointed that her mother's new job means moving to a new neighborhood. When the packing is done, Jamela is nowhere to be found-until she emerges from an unlikely hiding place and is given a warm sendoff by friends and neighbors. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

School Library Journal Review

PreS-Gr 2-Readers can almost hear the happy sound of Mama's bangle bracelets jingling as she pumps her fist with joy when she finds out that she has secured a new job-and with it, a new place to live. However, young Jamela isn't happy at the prospect of leaving all of the things she loves best: her squeaky front gate, her friends, and the evening star that she can see from her bed. Moving-day mishaps abound, and when a grumpy Jamela takes refuge in a packing container, she precipitates an upset that involves visits to numerous neighbors, affording youngsters a full view of her winsome world. A lovely generosity of spirit on the part of the adults in her life allows Jamela to redeem herself, regain her dignity, and settle in to "her new room in her new home-under the same old sky." A glossary of the South African words that so effectively flavor this treatment of a familiar theme is appended. Daly's warm, easy watercolors are full of motion, and convey both the unique sun-seared heat of the South African setting and the universality of common human experience. The endpapers are alive with Jamela's crayon drawings of her new house. With his gift for respecting children and the child in each of us, Daly offers a reassuring reminder that the love of family and the warmth of friendship (and even stars) move right along with us, no matter where we go.-Kathy Krasniewicz, Perrot Library, Old Greenwich, CT (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

Gr. K-2. In this tender, affectionate follow-up to What's Cooking, Jamela?0 (2001) and Jamela's Dress 0 (1999), 0 the first double-page spread reveals a jubilant scene: Mama kicks up her heels while waving a letter notifying of "a job and a new place to stay." But Jamela slouches at the kitchen table, exuding worry instead of excitement. She "loves their old house," especially the "bedroom window and the world she saw out of it." The fact that the "world" outside is a South African township, and that Mama's news represents economic progress, matters as little to Jamela as it will to most American children. Childhood issues rather than political ones drive Daly's storytelling, and his focus remains squarely on the scary prospect of bidding farewell to the familiar and comfortable. It's a funny packing mix-up that lightens Jamela's mood--along with the excitement of exploring the new house, which brims with cozy possibilities. The closing scene of Mama and Grandma Gogo tucking Jamela into her new bed, their contented profiles framing an expansive view through the window, is both reassuring for little ones anticipating their own changes of scene and hopeful for those with knowledge of the underlying history: the world of nonwhite South Africans is slowly getting bigger. --Jennifer Mattson Copyright 2004 Booklist

Horn Book Review

(Preschool, Primary) The irrepressible Jamela (Jamela's Dress; What's Cooking, Jamela?) is back, and Mama has some exciting news -- a new job and a new place to live. But Jamela's not too happy about the plans; she loves ""their old house with its squeaky front gate to swing on"" and the sights and sounds of their neighborhood: ""Mrs. Zibi shouting at her chickens, dogs barking, and children playing."" Fed up with all the fuss over the move, Jamela packs herself in a box and promptly falls asleep. The ensuing search for Jamela adds drama, and, as in the other Jamela stories, her friendly community rallies to help save the day. Young readers will delight in knowing where she is all along, and in Jamela's eventual pleasure at discovering her new home, complete with a squeaky front gate. Daly maintains the child's perspective with immediacy of experience and lots of sensory details. Jamela's abundant energy spills over into the cheerful line-and-wash illustrations. Encircled by family and friends at an impromptu tea party in her new kitchen, Jamela is assured of love wherever she goes. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Book Review

Bright-eyed, expressive faces and slightly exotic locales (to US audiences, anyway) give this South African moving-day-blues tale an extra lift. When Mama receives news of a new job and a new, larger house to go with it, she dances about the kitchen. Young Jamela, however, finds the prospect of leaving her familiar old house, familiar neighbors, and the star that shines through her bedroom window considerably less appealing--so much so that, to escape all the commotion of packing up, she climbs into a large box, and falls asleep. Panic ensues when the movers are ready to leave, and Jamela is nowhere to be found. When she does pop up at last, she and her mother get an exuberant sendoff from their friends, and that night, Jamela finds the same star in her new bedroom's window. Like Jamela's previous outings, this will captivate young readers with its engaging protagonist and warm portrayals of close family and community ties. (Picture book. 6-8) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.