Palesa o rata dimela

A free picture book in Sesotho from African Storybook

Palesa o rata dimela is a picture book in Sesotho for ages 5–8 that you can read free online in Pagine — no download, no cost.

📖 Read it free →

Language

Sesotho

Publisher

African Storybook

Reading level

ages 5–8 · kindergarten to 2nd grade · Leveled reader

From

South Africa

Source

Global Digital Library

Licence

CC BY 4.0

Price

Free — read online, nothing to download

About this book

Palesa o rata dimela is a short illustrated picture book in Sesotho. It is written for ages 5–8 and is graded as Leveled reader, so it works as a read-aloud for little ones and as practice for children learning to read in Sesotho. The book comes from the Global Digital Library and is shared under an open CC BY 4.0 licence, which is why it is free to read.

How it begins

Enwa ke Palesa. Lebitso la hae le bolela 'palesa' ka puo ya habo, ya Sesotho. Hoseng Palesa o bua le sefate sa dilamunu. "Sefate sa dilamunu, ka kopo hle, re fe dilamunu tse ngata." Palesa o ya ka maoto sekolong.…

Opening lines quoted from the openly licensed book (CC BY 4.0).

Reading together in Sesotho

• Read it aloud first, pointing at the pictures; then let your child “read” the pictures back to you.
• Ask open questions: what happened, how did the character feel, what would you do?
• Growing up with two languages? Talk about the story in whichever language feels easiest — the understanding carries over.

More free books in Sesotho

• Hoja …?
• Lara, maleshwane e mosehla
• Lenyalo la Tlhapi le Kgoho
• Ho batlana le moya wa hwetla
• Moru wa dinoha
• Moqebelo o mong o tjhesang haholo
• Bese ya mmala wa botala ba lehodimo
• Diaparo tsa ka tsa sekolo

See all 125 free Sesotho books by reading level → · Books in 200+ languages · 👩‍🏫 Assign this book to a class

Frequently asked questions

Is “Palesa o rata dimela” free to read?

Yes. “Palesa o rata dimela” is free to read online in Pagine on any phone, tablet or computer — no payment and nothing to download. It is openly licensed (CC BY 4.0).

What language is “Palesa o rata dimela” in?

It is written in Sesotho. Pagine has 125 free children’s books in Sesotho.

What age is “Palesa o rata dimela” for?

It is best for ages 5–8 (Leveled reader). Younger children can enjoy it read aloud.

Track reading with the free Pagine app

Log books, set goals and build a daily reading habit — free on iOS, Android and the web.

Get the free app →

Credits: Palesa o rata dimela — African Storybook, via the Global Digital Library. CC BY 4.0. Source: https://content.digitallibrary.io/st/book/palesa-o-rata-dimela-2/ · Page updated October 2026