"Aya" has captured the hearts of North American readers of all ages for the rare portrait it paints of a vibrant, happy, bourgeois Ivory Coast in the 1970s, based upon Marguerite Abouet's youth in Yop City. Not only is "Aya" complemented with Clement Oubrerie's gorgeous artwork, but the volumes also offer a slice-of-life peek into African culture: complete with recipes, glossaries, and wardrobe instructions for turning one's "pagne" (brightly colored fabric) into a skirt, head wrap, or baby carrier. Engaging and fun, the universal stories in "Aya" provide a much-needed context for today's heartbreaking news stories. "Aya" is the winner of the Best First Album award at the Angouleme International Comics Festival, the Children's Africana Book Award, and the Glyph Award; was nominated for the Quill Award, the YALSA's Great Graphic Novels list, and the Eisner Award; and was included on "best of" lists in "The Washington Post," "Booklist," "Publishers Weekly," and "School Library Journal."