How Do You Say Hello?; Ashleigh Barton, illustrated by Martina Heiduczek

All across the world, a simple word, or sometimes words, has/have the power to bridge barriers, to greet a fellow person and to make strangers feel welcome. Salut, g’day, hello, ciao, yassou, anyoung, witaj, privet… so many different ways to say hello. Which one do you use…

Inclusive and diverse and told in bouncy rhyming prose, this fun, illuminating and educational picture book celebrates cultural diversity and the many, many ways that people greet each other throughout the world. On a global tour that visits all corners of the planet, How Do You Say Hello? is filled with happiness, fun and good times with joy, warmth and cheer radiating from every page as children and adults greet one another in various locations and scenes. 

Beginning with a friendly opening that invites readers to join in with the fun and to learn new ways to greet the people that they know and those that they meet, it is then time to visit thirteen different locations and to learn the language of ‘hello’ around the world. Each greeting is introduced with four short lines of delightful rhyming text - the phrase for ‘hello’ standing out in different coloured font - and double page illustrations are bursting with colourful scenes and happy faces. Whilst none of the places are identified until the end, names and the depiction of people give subtle clues as to where in the world we might be. Further information is provided at the end that explains each of the greetings and identifies the locations.

If we want children to grow up to be global citizens and to understand and embrace other cultures and nations then books like this serve a valuable purpose. Greeting people in their native language when we visit other countries is the minimum courtesy and young readers will love learning new words and phrases that they can use on their travels and possibly in their everyday lives if any of their peers have a different first language. Imagine the smile on faces if a child turned up at class and greeted a Turkish boy with a ‘selam’, a Japanese girl with an ‘ohayou’ or their teacher from Wales with s’mae - guaranteed good times, a wonderful bonding experience and what an incredible way to make others feel valued.

​I loved learning about all of the different ways to say ‘hello’, being an avid traveller, learning to greet people is always one of the first things I do when preparing to visit a new place. Japan, Nepal, South Africa and South America are definitely on my bucket list of countries and continents to visit. Whilst I don’t quite have my plane tickets booked and my bag packed, I do now have my ohayou (Japan), namaste (Nepal), habari (Tanzania) and oi (Brazil) ready to go. I wonder which greeting you will be using next?

Another fine entry in this heartwarming, positive and feel-good series. A lovely book to look through and read together or to share with a small group of young children.

Recommended for 3+.

With huge thanks to Harper Collins and ABC Books for the copy I received in exchange for an honest review.