The Stolen Ones: and How They Were Missed

by Marcia Tate Arunga, Isaiah Townsend (Illustrator)

The Stolen Ones: and How They Were Missed is a well told, colorfully illustrated story about children about and for children.

There are many stories about Africans related to the slave experience for children. This book is a much needed addition to children's literature. The Stolen Ones, tells the young reader and the adults who read with them, about African American women going to Africa on a Cultural Reconnection and while there making a discovery that surprises and pleases them. The Stolen Ones is the story of Nia who is taken to a far away home. The story does not follow the usual story line of Nia's slave experience the story tells what is happening at the village she was taken from. This is wonderfully illustrated book. A must add for all children's literature collection. While reading the story of Nia, children and their parents learn Kiswahali words and interesting things about African village culture. The included glossary of the Kiswahali words allows them to study and learn these words.

The author Marcia Tate Arunga has placed the significance of Cultural Reconnection Missions into a format that allows young children to relate to how they are connected to a common ancestor with African children. The Illustrations by Isaiah Townsend will keep children and the adults who read with them flipping the pages of this book over and over. Sure to be a favorite for young readers of all ages.

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Marcia Tate Arunga is Teaching Faculty in the BA in Liberal Studies program of Antioch University Seattle.

Marcia specializes in human development, intercultural communications and globalism with emphasis on developing cultural competency. As an education and training consultant, Arunga has contracts with the Race and Social Justice Initiative (City of Seattle), the Seattle Housing Authority's Yesler Terrace Redevelopment Project and the Village of Hope. She recently completed a children's book to be published in 2009, entitled The Stolen Ones, and How They Were Missed. She also volunteers as an instructor of college-level sociology at Monroe State Prison. She is the cofounder of Cultural Reconnection Missions, responsible for leading over 75 women from the Pacific Northwest. She is an activist with the Village of Hope, which is committed to reducing the recidivism rate of Washington State prison population.

Affiliations
Cofounder - Cultural Reconnection Mission
Convener - African American Kenyan Women's Interconnect (AAKEWO)
Adviser - Parents for Student Success
Member Seattle Chapter - National Black Child Development Institute
Board Member - Praxis Institute for Early Childhood Education
Member - Village of Hope
Volunteer Instructor - University Behind Bars
Member - Black Prisoners Caucus
Member - Organizing the Diaspora - African Union