Stories are everywhere around you. Stories in books at school, in the library, or at a community center nearby. Stories from your ancestors, memories from the past, or traditions from the many cultures surrounding you. But what makes you who you are?
In You Are It, you travel with Setu and his shadow as you dive into Javanese-Surinamese and Dutch culture. Through activities, stories, and poems, you explore your own identity.
With this book, Villa Zapakara and BonteHond build a bridge between Suriname and the Netherlands, hoping to inspire children—by showing that cultural background can be a source for shaping your own identity, by sparking curiosity to listen to the stories of others, and by embracing the idea that identity is not fixed but constantly evolving.
The collaboration between Villa Zapakara and BonteHond is rooted in a shared belief: that children should have the opportunity to step into different worlds, discover new things, and from there relate to the world through their own perspective.
This book is an extension of the exhibition Kampong Villa Zapakara – Celebrate Together Javanese–Surinamese, which highlights the richness of Javanese-Surinamese culture. The exhibition runs until the end of 2026.
The illustrators and writers who created the book come from both Javanese-Surinamese and Dutch backgrounds. The book will be distributed to no fewer than 350 primary schools in Suriname and will be included in the Dutch arts education program KIDD.
