The Big Five - by Bella Makatini (Board Book)

About the Book

A playful and informative story about wild animals and about the love between a child and a grandparent.

Book Synopsis

"A sweet celebration of family and introduction to some perennially popular animals." --Kirkus Reviews

Included in CBC's Fall 2026 Showcase: The Wisdom of Elders!

Danny is spending the week with his grandpa. Grandpa has a painting of five animals. "Those are the big five," says Grandpa, "the most famous animals from my homeland," Grandpa tells Danny about one animal each day.

A playful and informative story about wild animals and about the love between a child and a grandparent. For animal lovers ages 3 and up.

Review Quotes

A little boy connects with his African-immigrant grandfather over a shared loved of the "big five" animals of Grandpa's homeland. On a five-day visit to his grandfather's house, Danny enjoys the paintings and colorful masks on prominent display. Grandpa commits to teaching Danny about the big five animals, with each one designated to a day throughout Danny's visit. From Monday through Friday, Danny's grandfather tells him about elephants, lions, rhinoceroses, leopards, and buffalo, introducing them by their attributes via a guessing game. "The third animal has thick skin and two horns on his nose," prompts Grandpa, to which Danny responds: "That's the rhino!" Grandpa then adds, "Do you know what a rhino is good at? Grazing!" Abbot's colorful illustrations are jovial and heartwarming, adding amusing details, such as a depiction of a smiling rhino with grass drooping from its mouth next to Grandpa and Danny, similarly munching on cucumbers. While talking about these animals, Danny and his grandfather play and learn and make a host of diverse friends along the way. The African country that is Grandpa's homeland is never specified, but perhaps it is South Africa, where the Dutch author traces part of her heritage. Grandpa has deep brown skin and graying black hair while his grandson has tan skin and fluffy brown hair. A sweet celebration of family and introduction to some perennially popular animals.-- "Kirkus Reviews"

About the Author

As a child, Bella Makatini (1980, 's-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands) already liked to write. She asked notebooks for her birthday to fill them with her stories. She continued writing, also during her studies in communication sciences and sociology, and at her job as a project manager in research. With The Big Five, Bella won the international children's story competition of Inclusive Works in the toddlers category.

Judi Abbot was born and raised in Italy. She studied illustration at the art school in Milan. She now lives in London with her family. Judi usually works with acrylics, collage, and colored pencils, but she's also good with digital media. In addition to her work as an illustrator, Judi organizes creative workshops for children in bookstores and libraries.