2025 CABA honor book

The 2025 Children's Africana Book Awards (CABA) were celebrated on Saturday, November 1, 2025 in Washington, DC and I had the honor of accepting a chapter book honor award for Kingdom of Dust.

The awards are presented annually to the authors and illustrators of the best children’s and young adult books on Africa published or republished in the U.S. Africa Access and the Outreach Council of the African Studies Association (ASA) created CABA in 1991 to encourage the publication and use of accurate, balanced children’s materials about Africa. The Center for African Studies at Howard University is the institutional base for the Awards.

The event opened with several activities for families run by a staff of wonderful volunteers. Children could spin cotton, complete a "Dress a Camel" craft, explore the tradition of masquerade, or make autograph books to have authors sign later in the day. Book sales were provided by Loyalty Bookstores.

The highlight of the program was a performance by the Taratibu Dancers! Their group aims to cultivate creativity, discipline, and confidence in youth through a dynamic blend of performance, culture, and personal development. The young artists performed several pieces that incorporated rhythmic dance, singing, and spoken word poetry. It was so inspiring!

I also enjoyed a wonderful school visit on October 31 at the Ida B. Wells Middle School, where I spoke to the entire the sixth grade! The visit was sponsored by An OpenBook Foundation, which provided a signed copy of Kingdom of Dust to each student.

Again, I am honored to have received this award and thank CABA, the Center for African Studies at Howard University, An Open Book, and my publisher HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books for making the trip possible.