Esi the Brave (Who Was Not Afraid of Anything)

Illustrated by Raissa Figueroa
A bold and bright picture book about being brave when you're scared in a new, overwhelming environment

Esi is a brave Ghanaian girl who is not afraid of anything. Monsters and ghosts should be scared of her!

When she sets off for the annual Kakamotobi Festival with her parents, she’s confident she’ll be fine. Her mother warns that there’s going to be loud music and scary masks and a very big crowd, but Esi’s unconcerned. She's not afraid of anything.

But when they get to the festival and her parents suddenly disappear in a crowd of terrifying monster masks, Esi realizes that to save her parents, she’ll have to be the bravest she’s ever been. With detail-packed illustrations and a text begging to be read aloud, this is the perfect story about finding your inner strength to be brave.
Bernard Mensah grew up in Ghana, climbing trees, playing soccer, and dreaming up stories at the library. Bernard now lives in the United Kingdom with his two rambunctious boys, where he works in software and writes stories. He is passionate about Black and African representation in publishing and founded HabermanNerds to nurture and promote African storytelling. Esi the Brave (Who Was Not Afraid of Anything) is his debut and the first of several children's books.

Raissa Figueroa is the illustrator of several picture books, including Coretta Scott King Honor Award recipient We Wait for the Sun by Katie McCabe & Dovey Roundtree, and the Oona picture book series by Kelly DiPucchio. She lives outside of San Diego.
"Sensate rhymes by Mensah, making his children’s debut, offer musicality, while brightly patterned illustrations from Figueroa express big emotions in this tale of courage and culture." —Publishers Weekly

About

A bold and bright picture book about being brave when you're scared in a new, overwhelming environment

Esi is a brave Ghanaian girl who is not afraid of anything. Monsters and ghosts should be scared of her!

When she sets off for the annual Kakamotobi Festival with her parents, she’s confident she’ll be fine. Her mother warns that there’s going to be loud music and scary masks and a very big crowd, but Esi’s unconcerned. She's not afraid of anything.

But when they get to the festival and her parents suddenly disappear in a crowd of terrifying monster masks, Esi realizes that to save her parents, she’ll have to be the bravest she’s ever been. With detail-packed illustrations and a text begging to be read aloud, this is the perfect story about finding your inner strength to be brave.

Author

Bernard Mensah grew up in Ghana, climbing trees, playing soccer, and dreaming up stories at the library. Bernard now lives in the United Kingdom with his two rambunctious boys, where he works in software and writes stories. He is passionate about Black and African representation in publishing and founded HabermanNerds to nurture and promote African storytelling. Esi the Brave (Who Was Not Afraid of Anything) is his debut and the first of several children's books.

Raissa Figueroa is the illustrator of several picture books, including Coretta Scott King Honor Award recipient We Wait for the Sun by Katie McCabe & Dovey Roundtree, and the Oona picture book series by Kelly DiPucchio. She lives outside of San Diego.

Praise

"Sensate rhymes by Mensah, making his children’s debut, offer musicality, while brightly patterned illustrations from Figueroa express big emotions in this tale of courage and culture." —Publishers Weekly

2024 Elementary School Collection

The Penguin Random House Education Elementary School Collection features outstanding fiction, nonfiction, and picture books from Penguin Young Reader’s, Random House Children’s, DK, and Grupo Editorial, as well as children’s publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Explore online or download this valuable resource to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: Leveled Readers,

Read more

DK Learning Phonic Books Sampler Request

Thank you for your interest in DK Learning | Phonic Books. To download the DK Learning | Phonic Books sampler with four complete readers, please click here and complete the form. Once your information is successfully submitted, a link to download the sampler will be provided on the confirmation screen.   Click here to learn

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

“Books are a students’ passport to entering and actively participating in a global society with the empathy, compassion, and knowledge it takes to become the problem solvers the world needs.” –Laura Robb   Research shows that reading and literacy directly impacts students’ academic success and personal growth. To help promote the importance of daily independent

Read more