Olu lives near Lagos, in Nigeria; Greta lives in Milan, in Italy. The two children (both Black) are cousins. “They have never met each other in person! How would they?” A playful narrative paired with pencil and digital illustrations that look like chalk on blackboard distinguish a beguiling picture book about two children who have a close bond and a lot in common, despite the distance between them. They can’t get to one another by walking, or skating, or parade, or spaceship, or dancing, notes the text in a series of page spreads showing them separately engaged in each of these activities on side-by-side pages. “Could they get there by car? By boat? By plane? YES! But not today.” Instead the cousins “send pieces of their lives to one another” (boxes in the mail). They talk to each other (on the computer). They dream of adventures (together in their imaginations). A satisfying wordless page spread at the end of this singular, captivating story shows now-teenage Olu and Greta with arms around each other … at last! (Ages 4-8)

The geographical and cultural distance between two cousins is counteracted by the universalities of childhood and the dream of uniting.

Olu lives in Lagos, Nigeria; his cousin, Greta, lives in Milan, Italy. Though their lives may be different, their ways of living and playing are quite similar. They both roller skate; they both skip down the street; they both play with toy trains, trucks, and boats... and they both dream of meeting and being together. Debut author-illustrator Diana Ejaita references her own childhood and heritage to create a rich, poignant, and authentic portrayal of Nigeria, of Italy, and of the unity of childhood.