This book is a collection of eleven tales from the Democratic Republic of Congo. They belong to the oral tradition. They have been transmitted from mouth to mouth to younger generations. They hand down traditions and customs from one generation to the next one. The protagonists of the tales are human beings, animals and objects.

The animals take on human characteristics: greediness, jealousy, honesty and empathy. The tales are told to children by adults in the evenings around a fire or under a blue and starry sky. They are not told aimlessly.

Their objective is to inculcate in children’s mind values which will enable them to have harmonious relations with the members of their communities, to be wise enough to cope successfully with life’s challenges and situations. And so children are taught to take into consideration the recommendations and instructions of more experienced people, to be considerate to other people, to be humble, wise and cautious.

They are rendered aware that, in life, every human being must be responsible of his deeds and will reap what he has sown. The tales also help children develop astounding capacities for memorization. Some tales are punctuated with songs. The latter help children to have the sense of rhetoric and rhythm.

They are also good for adults as they are a treasure, especially of the current generation who missed the opportunities to hear such tales from their grandfathers and mothers and their own parents.

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