Le ncwadi yeka

Every child should own a hundred books by the age of five. To that end, Book Dash gathers creative volunteers to create new African storybooks that anyone can freely print, translate and distribute. Then we work with partners to give those books to preschool children to own.
To find out more, and to download beautiful, open-licensed, print-ready books, visit bookdash.org.

Utya njani?
(How do you eat?)
Illustrated by Alex Latimer
Written by Diane Awerbuck
Designed by Georgia Demertzis
Translated by Sindiswa Mbokodi
with the help of the Book Dash participants in Cape Town on 20 September 2025.
ISBN: 978-1-997425-46-5
Typeset in Crimson and Source Sans
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Licence  (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
You are free to share (copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format) and adapt (remix, transform, and build upon the material) this work for any purpose, even commercially.  The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the following license terms:
You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. No additional restrictions: You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Utya njani?

Alex Latimer

Diane Awerbuck

Georgia Demertzis

UMiri uthanda ukunqunqutha isonka sakhe esiqhotsiweyo.

Utya njani, kholwane?
Nditya ndibhokoxile! Ndibamba inqonci ngomlomo wam.

Utya njani, nkubabulongwe?
Ndiqengqa ubulongwe bube yibhola. Ndihlafuna iintwana ezimanzi zize iintsana zam.

Utya njani, phangolini?
Ndikhotha iimbovane ngolwimi lwam olude, olunamathelayo.

Utya njani, msundululu?
Andinamazinyo.  Ndiginya umhlaba.

Utya njani,  hlala-nyathi?
Ndikhwela kwizilwanyana ndize nditye amakhalane azo nomphula wendlebe.

Utya njani, mnenga?
Ndiyacula ukuze ndifumane isidlo sam sangokuhlwa. Isandi sibetheka entlanzini!

Utya njani, fudo?
Ndimokotha iitolofiya ngomlomo wam  owomeleleyo.

Utya njani, ngxangxosi?
Ndinyathela iinyoka. Ndiyazibimbiliza!

Utya njani, ndlulamthi?
Ndolula intamo yam ndize ndibambe awona magqabi aphezulu.

Utya njani, nciniba?
Ndiginya amatyana ukuze ndisile ukutya kwam.

Miri, yeyiphi eyona ndlela ilungileyo yokutya?
Owu, uxakeke kakhulu ukuba angancokola!

Ukukrekretha! Ukuhlafuna! Ukumokotha! Ukunkwamla! Ukubimbiliza!

Bhodla!
Uxolo!