lupita nyong’o to publish children’s book about a dark-skinned girl’s journey into self-love

Academy Award winner and Black Panther star Lupita Nyong’o is adding “author” to her extensive resume. Nyong’o is writing her first children’s book titled Sulwe, to be published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers next January.

Sulwe, which means “star” in Luo, Nyong’o’s native language, will be a picture book telling the story of a 5-year-old Kenyan girl who has the darkest skin color in her family, and she struggles with feelings of shame because of it. “As the story unfolds Sulwe embarks on a whimsical adventure in the night sky that, coupled with advice from her mother, helps her see beauty differently,” according to the New York Times.

The story takes its themes from Nyong’o’s own life, as she tells the Times she struggled with her complexion growing up just like Sulwe. In 2014, she addressed issues of colorism in a touching acceptance speech at Essence’s Black Women in Hollywood.