blog post K'naan, Sting, Madonna and other musicians who've written children's books

The story of Toronto-based rapper and songwriter K'naan will be told in a new children's book, scheduled to be published on Sept. 25 by Tundra Books.

The book, When I Get Older: The Story Behind “Wavin’ Flag,” will be an autobiographical telling of the songwriter's journey, from fleeing war-struck Somalia with his family to settling in Canada, and the adjustments forced upon a young immigrant. The story will also focus on his anthemic tune, "Wavin' Flag," "a song," says K'naan in the press release, "whose ownership has been long claimed by children all over the world."

With his book, K'naan joins the recent trend of pop musicians who've made a move into creating children's books.

Here are a few others:

The Magically Mysterious Adventures of Noelle the Bulldog
by Gloria Estefan
Estefan's debut children's book follows a bulldog named Noelle who is adopted to a new home. According to the book's publisher, HarperCollins, the work "captures all the worry of an outsider trying to fit in – and all the joy of discovering that everyone has a talent that matters, and that true beauty comes from inside."

Jag
by LeAnn Rimes
The Jag of Rimes's children's book is indeed a jaguar – a jaguar afraid of nothing, except water. In the book, Jag learns a valuable lesson about standing up to peer pressure. The book is the first in what has become a successful series for the CMA and Grammy Award winner.

Queen of the Scene
by Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah's quasi-autobiographical character is a young girl with supreme confidence. In an interview about the book with CBS, Latifah talked about how sports helped her growing up: "It taught me self-confidence and try things ... to grow and share and how to be a team player and individual at the same time."

Friends for Life!
by Madonna
No musician has written more children's books than the Material Girl. With Friends for Life!, Madonna launched a series for pre-teens called The English Roses. Her ambitions are not contained to one series though, and titles for youngsters include Lotsa De Casha, Mr. Peabody's Apples and several others. 

My Little Girl
by Tim McGraw
The book follows a dad and daughter as a simple walk turns into a special day. The book is based on McGraw's song of the same name, the first single that the country singer co-wrote.  

Just the Two of Us
by Will Smith
Actor, musician and producer Smith adapted his song into this illustrated book, which, according to publisher Scholastic, "follows a father and son relationship through three stages of life: from newborn, to young child, to young man," and stands as a "call to all fathers to teach their children the values of dignity, integrity, and honour."

Rock Steady: A Story of Noah's Ark
by Sting
With Rock Steady, Sting puts a modern spin on the biblical flood narrative, painting it with an eco-warriors brush. The book, writes his publisher, "reminds us that human beings are blessed, and that we must protect the earth that has given us life." Sales of the book benefited the Rainforest Foundation.

Say a Little Prayer
by Dionne Warwick
This kids' book follows Little D, who discovers her powerful voice and performs in front of her first audience. The book was packaged with an audio CD in which Warwick performs the gospel staple “Jesus Loves Me,” which is, according to the publisher, "the first song young Dionne performed before an audience."

Related:

Listen to songs by K'Naan on his CBC Music artist page

Metric, Howard Shore, K'naan on David Cronenberg's Cosmopolis

Madonna to Blake Shelton: Image makeovers in pop music