Ossiri and the Bala Mengro (Travellers Tales)

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In September 2020, 24 individual copies of Ossiri and the Bala Mengro were given away to teachers, librarians, or literacy folks serving kids ages 4-9. Our thanks to Child’s Play for the generous donation! Bay County Public Library Teach the good with the bad. Frequently, teaching about the history of minorities focuses on tragedies, hardship or inequality faced by that group in the past (or present). When government ministers are asked about including GRT groups in the curriculum they often reference the compulsory teaching of the Holocaust in KS3. While it is of the utmost importance that these parts of history are learnt about, and in this case that the mass murder of millions of Gypsies and Roma people is included in that teaching, it should not be the only thing that is taught about these groups. Ossiri is an ambitious child, who, inspired by the talented travelling musicians that perform at family celebrations, dreams of learning to play an instrument herself. Here, we see the rise and fall of Ossiri’s dream- her resourcefulness shining in the face of adversity and the continuous desire to perform, regardless of those who tell her to stop. There is something quite special about Ossiri’s passion, which becomes increasingly magical and heartfelt as her audience evolves into someone quite unexpected. It is very warming to see how starkly the trio distinguish acts done with the heart and soul, and those motivated by greed, mixed in with an endearing touch of humour. Free Kindness Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians and Educators: http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.... Ossiri and the Bala Mengro tells the tale of a young Traveller girl, Ossiri, whose family worked hard as ‘Tattin Folki’, or rag-and bone people who recycled old scrap metal.

She has spent most of her working life as a journalist and has made many films for the BBC, as well as working as a correspondent for The Economist, contributing to British broadsheets, including the Guardian, Sunday Times and the Telegraph. She also freelances regularly for other papers, including a stint providing roving political analysis for The Economist, where she has worked as a Britain correspondent, during the 2010 general election, with a similar stint for Prospect in the 2017 snap election. June is Gypsy Roma Traveller (GRT) history month. This presents a perfect opportunity for pupils to learn about a culture they often know little about and for the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils to be given a chance to showcase and celebrate their culture. Co-authors Richard O’Neill and Katharine Quarmby wrote Yokki and the Parno Gry and Ossiri and the Bala Mengro in the hope that positive representation of GRT characters can help change attitudes. Find out more here and buy them here.My grandson was reading this book with his class at school. Rarely had he been inspired to talk about his school work so much. he enjoyed the book so much that he wanted his own copy and was determined to read it himself. Anything that inspires and encourages kids to read is a good thing I was extremely intrigued when I first spotted this story, as I have not read or heard of any tales told from within the Romani travelling community. I am so glad that O’neill, a renound Romani storyteller, partnered with Quarmby and Tolson to authentically give voice to a lesser known way of life. Ossiri came from a family of "Tattin Folki" - Travelers who were rag-and-bone people, recycling material they collected - and she worked hard. But her secret dream was to be a musician. Creating her own instrument, a Tattin Django, from found elements, she set out to make music, only to be discouraged by her family's negative reaction. Then she found herself playing for the Bala Mengro - a hairy ogre - and making her fortune... Ossini is a sparky Traveller girl, who longs to make music, so she makes an instrument from wood and recycled bits. When she goes off into the hills to practise, she wakes a sleeping ogre – the ‘Bala Mengro’ – which is “huge and hairy as a Shire horse”. What follows from this is both wry and heart-warming. The story unfolds using language that is lyrical yet spare, in the tradition of other picture books. But the authors happily include Romani words and phrases, which works quite wonderfully. The Littles and I absolutely loved the illustrations inside the book! They were beautiful and so colorful. I loved the use of greens and blues with pops of red. They were eye catching. At times the Littles would lose interest in the story they found the illustrations eye catching and would great their own story about Ossiri.

It’s not particularly easy to find children’s books about Gypsies, Roma or Travellers. You will also want to feel confident that the story will portray these communities in a positive and non-stereotypical way. So here are a couple that look brilliant:Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content. Using the Multicultural Children’s Book Day holiday, the MCBD Team is on a mission to change all of that. Ossiri and the Bala Mengro, produced by Bradford-based creative arts organisation Spin Arts, is a new family friendly dance and music show inspired by the book of the same name, written by award-winning Romany Gypsy storyteller and author Richard O’Neill, and performed by Irish/contemporary dancer and musician Keira Martin. If you work with older children you might want to plan a full lesson for GRT history month (though I think Ossiri and Bala Mengro looks so incredible I’d read it to all ages!). Avoid stereotyping. Teaching about the culture of an ethnic group means walking a fine line between highlighting group traditions, while avoiding making out that everyone in that group does or is those things. As stereotyping fuels further prejudice, children and young people should always be pushed to recognise the groups’ heterogeneity.

This delightful book will translate easily to online programming offerings. The possibilities in terms of activities are endless. In the past, I’d struggled to translate the work of the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura, also known as the Recycled Orchestra, (the children’s orchestra of Asunción, Paraguay), but Ossiri and the Bala Mengro offers a jumping off point for our younger online participants. I can’t wait to try these out! —Jonathan Dolce, Aston County Library ABOUT THE BOOK The young people involved are members of the community advocacy organisation Leeds Gypsy and Traveller exchange (Leeds GATE) that works across West Yorkshire.

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Gypsy and Traveller young people part of a new performance project in Bradford, working alongside award-winning artists Think about the GRT pupils in your class. You might think you don’t have any but given that there are at least half a million GRT people in the UK, a large proportion of whom are under 18, and 75% of whom don’t declare their ethnicity, it’s very possible that you do but don’t know it. If you do know you have GRT pupils, you might want to let them know beforehand and perhaps ask if they have any thoughts on your plans or want to share anything themselves. They and their families might even want to get involved in helping you plan though you should also stress that there is no pressure on them to represent their entire community or culture. A Traveler girl creates her own musical instrument from a willow branch and lots of recycled objects. She plays it enthusiastically, but it sounds terrible! Ignoring warnings not to awaken the ogre in the hills, Ossiri goes there to practice playing her instrument. Will she wake the ogre, and will it appreciate her playing? Told by a Romani storyteller and a picture book author, this original tale offers a fascinating insight into Traveling lifestyles and cultures. The illustrations, which remind me slightly of Lowry paintings, cleverly evoke the bold colours and style of Romani culture. Like the text, they include details of Traveller lifestyles that children will surely love to examine. For instance, one spread shows all the tiny pieces that Ossiri assembles to make her ‘Tattin Django’. Another gives us a wide-angle view into a Traveller camp at night. This tale of ‘Tattin Folki’ – or rag and bone people – vividly conjures a ‘Traveller’ way of life inside Britain that few ‘settled people’ know, and it comes from a collaboration between a Romani storyteller and a picture-book writer to capture oral stories before they are lost.