(A West African Tale) by Verna Aardema, Leo Dillon, Diane Dillon (Illustrator). This book won the 1976 Caldecott Medal
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears is an African folktale The story is about a mosquito who tells a lie to an iguana and sets off a series of events that affects everyone who lives in the forest.
The story explains why mosquitoes buzz in peoples ears, and why we shoo them away. (if the fear of being bitten is not explanation enough).