Leaving Our Mark

Magdi and Rahaf take a voyage of discovery in El-Kurru, a modern village in northern Sudan that encompasses ancient Kushite and medieval ruins! The children don't always think about the grand patchwork of stories in their village until one day after school when Rahaf discovers her neighbor Magdi attempting to write his name on an ancient pyramid. Was this okay? This question inspires the friends to investigate how we are connected to the past and how we leave our mark for the future. Through a series of conversations with relatives, neighbors, teachers, and archaeologists, Magdi and Rahaf learn that their village contains many places that preserve valuable stories from El-Kurru's past and present - through graffiti, building, artwork, and traditions - from the ancient Kushite kings and queens who were buried in painted tombs, to the medieval community whose settlement was buried under their own, to the supernatural Banat el-Sheikh (daughters of the sheikh) believed to visit the village every week and grant wishes. In the end, they discover that there is more than one way to leave their mark for the future.