The Road to Hamana: Nana Goes Guinea

The drums call Nana east, from Kindia to Hamana - and this time, the journey isn't just to a celebration. It's to the beginning.Mba, the wise elder waiting with a carved staff and a story only he can tell, leads Nana and his cousin Bouba back to where the djembe itself was born: forged by the numu blacksmiths from lenke wood and fire, and named for peace itself - anke dje, anke be, "everyone, together." By firelight, Nana hears the legend of Soumaoro Kante, the mighty blacksmith-king whose power was broken by a single secret, and learns the truth Mba wants him to carry forward: a king's crown can fall, but the thing he builds can outlive him. Then, at the edge of a real initiation ceremony, a masked spirit named Kawa steps out of the dust and comes eye to eye with Nana himself.Road to Hamana is Book 2 in the Guinea Series of the Follow the Sound with Nana picture book collection, and the origin story at the heart of the whole journey - the djembe's own legend, told the way it has been passed down for generations. This book includes a full pronunciation guide, an in-depth vocabulary index, and a hands-on Kawa mask-making activity.