Shayle Bester – Illustratör

This is the third story about the COOL Nguni calf named Gaps. This time, Gaps and his cousin Sugarbean want to grow mealies and beans for the Farmers' Show. Will they win the prize for the best crop? Gaps's real name is 'Gaps Between the Branches'. This is because it looks like he is sitting in the shade of a tree, and the sun is making shadows on his hide. Sugarbean's name is 'Sugarbean' because her hide looks like speckled sugar beans.

Early one morning three tired, dirty, hungry elders – Blessing, Wisdom and Love – knock on the door of a family home. The family wishes to invite them in but they can only choose one visitor to enter their home. Which of the three do they pick? This fable is told across the continent and belongs to all of Africa and its people. Although the setting and characters are quintessentially African – from the rhythms of their speech to the patterns on their clothes – the message is universal. This is a book for every child and family. Well written and beautifully illustrated, this book will have children wanting to read it over and over again. This story originally appeared in the Sunday Times Storytime: 10 South African Stories for Children in 2014.