About Us
Agbada Books… Bringing African stories to children around the world.
Agbada Books was founded by two sisters, Udhedhe and Ufuoma – who grew up as voracious readers and wanted to pass a love of books and an appreciation and sense of pride in African culture to their children. While searching for children’s books written about Africa, they noticed that the selection of books was dominated by books written with a lot of focus on lions, elephants, and giraffes! While this is not a negative thing in and of itself, representation in media is important. African stories are so much more! Agbada Books is here to change the narrative and to showcase the breadth and beauty of African stories written by Africans, for children around the world.
All of our books are beautifully designed and printed, and meant to become a treasured part of any child’s library; with stunning artwork and endearing, relatable characters. We are dedicated to producing high quality, beautifully illustrated, and entertaining books that allow children and parents to experience the wonders of Africa, the motherland.
About The Authors
Udhedhe Olakpe
Udhedhe is a wife, mother, and engineer. As a child, she was often found with her head buried in a book, and her love of books soon grew into a dream of becoming an author. When not running after her toddler son, she relaxes by spending time with family, watching K-dramas, traveling, and dreaming up new book ideas.
Ufuoma Olakpe
Was born and raised in Nigeria and now lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband and her two energetic daughters: Nesochi and Nefechi, who are both fascinated by stories from Africa. By day, she manages IT projects and most of the time in between, you’ll find her taking a gazillion random photos and videos of her kids, singing at the top of her lungs, or cooking a new dish she found on some cooking blog.
Gaby Zermeño
Gaby is an illustrator and concept artist based in Mexico. She is a graduate of University of Guadalajara as a Graphic Designer, but now focuses on illustration. Most recently, she worked as a storyboard artist for an animated show from Netflix: Legend Quest 2. Her past clients include Cambridge University Press, Cottage Door Press, Sesame Workshop, OhMyDisney, American Greetings and Cartoon Network.
