The book cover looked like a scenery set in Africa with setting/rising sun

[solia]

I read this when I was in about Grade 3/4 (almost ten years ago) like early 2000's, my teacher made the whole class read it, we took turns reading a page at a time.

I can't exactly remember how it went but I think there was an Africna tribal boy who for reasons I can't remember wanders in the wild and by some reasons again I can't recall meets a girl who has zero-knowledge about surviving in the wild. There is a some kind of language barrier, so he teaches the girl by pointing out objects (water, ground, sky) and exchange words.

The book ended with the girl confident enough to survive in the wild, I don't know what happened to the boy, but I do remember a scene where they tried to drink water but it was too murky. So the boy took a water plant nearby, placed in the water and drank through the plant then showed it to the girl to do the same.

At the end of the book, it also had a vocab list of words and translations used throughout the novel.

EDIT: Book found!! It's Walkabout by James Vance Marshall.

Comments

[nineveh_uk]

Australia rather than Africa, but could this be Walkabout? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walkabout_(novel)

[solia]

YES!!!! Oh my god :D I spent years trying to remember!!! Yay!!!! Thank you so much.

[calzephyr]

Hooray! I was thinking of Walkabout but thought it might be something different. Sometimes we mash details in our memories :-)