Zama arahambaye!

A free picture book in Kinyarwanda from Global Storybooks

Zama arahambaye! is a picture book in Kinyarwanda for ages 5–8 that you can read free online in Pagine — no download, no cost.

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Language

Kinyarwanda

Publisher

Global Storybooks

Reading level

ages 5–8 · kindergarten to 2nd grade

From

Rwanda

Source

Global Storybooks

Licence

CC BY 3.0

Price

Free — read online, nothing to download

About this book

Zama arahambaye! is a short illustrated picture book in Kinyarwanda. It is written for ages 5–8, so it works as a read-aloud for little ones and as practice for children learning to read in Kinyarwanda. The book comes from Global Storybooks and is shared under an open CC BY 3.0 licence, which is why it is free to read.

How it begins

Murumuna wange aryama atinze cyane. Byuka kare, kuvera ko mpambaye! Ni ngewe ufungurira izuba. Mama aravuga, “uri inyenyeri y’igitondo.” Ndiyoza, ntabufasha na buke nkenera. Nshobora kwihanganira amazi akonje n’isabune y’ubururu inuka. Mama anyibutsa, “Ndiwibagirwe amenyo.” Nkasubiza, “Ntibishoboka, hoya ngewe!” Nyuma…

Opening lines quoted from the openly licensed book (CC BY 3.0).

Reading together in Kinyarwanda

• 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 Kinyarwanda

• Gakuru na Gatoya
• Hanze mu busitani.
• Kanyana n'ipusi ye
• Kwihishana, gutanga agatego no guhishura
• Ni zingahe?
• Nta bwoba mfite.
• Uracyari umwana cg urakuze?
• Kubara Inyamaswa

See all 94 free Kinyarwanda books by reading level → · Books in 200+ languages · 👩‍🏫 Assign this book to a class

Frequently asked questions

Is “Zama arahambaye!” free to read?

Yes. “Zama arahambaye!” 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 3.0).

What language is “Zama arahambaye!” in?

It is written in Kinyarwanda. Pagine has 94 free children’s books in Kinyarwanda.

What age is “Zama arahambaye!” for?

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

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Credits: Zama arahambaye! — . rw, Level ?. From Global Storybooks (global-asp.github.io/storybooks-rwanda). CC BY 3.0. · Page updated October 2026