Book 24: Streets paved with Gold

The first story is the African version of the Sasquatch Legend. This hairy ape-man is supposed to haunt the forests and mountains of north-west America. There have been innumerable sightings of this creature, but up to now, none of the reports have been proven to be true. Some of the reports are simply mistaken identity while others are cases of fraud. Pranksters have been known to dress up in gorilla suits and wander around at night scaring the neighbours. The legend is widespread, particularly the Himalaya region bordering China, Russia and India. However, scientifically speaking, if such a creature exists, the most likely place to find it would be in Africa. The continent is ancient, biologically speaking. While the northern hemisphere was covered in ice two and a half million years ago, the climate of Southern Africa was mild. Plants and animals flourished. Species diversified. It is just possible that some of the ancient species survived into the present day.
The second story is about the difficulties of growing up in the wrong part of town. In Sarie October’s own words, she was born with a wooden spoon in her mouth (rather than a silver one). Life is tough, but Sarie is a survivor. She is a fighter, especially when it comes to fighting for her child. It does not matter how good or bad her son Alphonse is. Sarie is convinced he is a good boy. Mothers are like that.