Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears

Aardema, Verna (1975). Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears. New York: Dial Press.
This book is the retelling of an African folk tale. The mosquito tells the iguana a story. The iguana not wanting to hear what he has to say puts sticks in his ears. This sets off a chain of events that lead to the death of an owlet. Mother owl is so sad that she does not do her job of waking the sun. The king Lion calls a council meeting to find out what happened. Iguana who still cannot hear is finally located and explains why he has the sticks in his ears.The mosquito feels so guilty about her part that she whines in people's ears to find out if they are still angry with her.
I love the illustrations in this book. It is neat style. The pictures look like wood cuts that would have been created in Africa. The colors of the book are very muted which again gives it a foreign feel. The pictures are simple as is the story.