Review of LUGALBANDA: THE BOY WHO GOT CAUGHT UP IN A WAR

Henderson, Kathy. Jane Ray (Ill.) 2006. LUGALBANDA: THE BOY WHO GOT CAUGHT UP IN A WAR. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN 0-763-62782-8

In this 2007 Aesop award winning book, Kathy Henderson brings to light a piece of history from a part of the world about which Americans are so much in the dark. The story of Lugalbanda is an “epic tale from ancient Iraq.” Each of the characters is imbued with qualities which makes him believable. Henderson ensures that readers will be sympathetic to Lugalbanda, his brothers and the king by showing their human sides. Lugalbanda’s brothers, each a commander in the army, “bowed down with grief” as they were forced to leave their young brother behind. Lugalbanda showed his humility and intelligence as he won over the ferocious Anzu bird by caring for its chick. Even the king, through Henderson’s careful word choice, proved to be compassionate by ultimately putting the safe return of his army above the possible spoils of war. Ray’s illustrations add as much to the story as the text. When Lugalbanda was ill, his eyes were colorless and all seven brothers’ cried by his side. The Lullubu Mountains were as barren as the text describes. Both author and illustrator attempt to authentically represent the culture in which this story takes place. Geographic locations, maps, skin tone, hair color, eye shape—all are indicative of the area now known as Iraq. (Although the seven brothers appear to be septuplets!) The text includes an informative prologue and end notes which give the reader a 5000-year old history lesson. The origin of Lugalbanda is a fascinating story in itself.

LUGALBANDA is appropriate as a multi-sitting read aloud or for individual reading and is highly recommended for readers ages 8 years and older.

Review of SAMIR AND YONATAN

Carmi, Daniella. 2000. SAMIR AND YONATAN. New York, NY: Scholastic Press. ISBN 9-780-4391-3504-7

PLOT SUMMARY
In this 2001 Batchelder Award winner, a young Palestinian boy must go to the Jewish hospital for surgery. Samir has shattered his knee and only through a connection with his mother’s employer is he able to get a “special permit for an operation at the Jews’ hospital.” Though he dreads going to the hospital, Samir has experiences unlike any he has had in his village. A fellow patient, Yonatan, teaches Samir about space and they develop a friendship which will impact Samir for the rest of his life.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS (INCLUDING CULTURAL MARKERS)
SAMIR AND YONATAN begins as a story about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. A boy from the occupied West Bank, Samir fears Jews and blames them for his brother’s death. However, Samir takes a journey—not just a physical journey to the hospital, but also an emotional journey to a place of understanding, tolerance, and acceptance. Carmi uses setting and characterization to craft these journeys.

The setting varies in SAMIR AND YONATAN. Samir spends much of the book in a children’s ward in the Jewish hospital. This hospital is clean and quiet. Samir notes he would be able to concentrate better at school were it equally as quiet. This calm, bright atmosphere is juxtaposed with Samir’s village. As he lays in his hospital bed, Samir recalls the blackouts, curfew, hunger, and poverty of his home. Despite the difficulties, the familiarity comforts him, “If there’s a curfew I won’t…have to travel with Mom to the Jews’ hospital.”

Carmi’s use of characterization successfully shows Samir’s growth and acceptance of the people around him. He begins to draw connections between the people at the Jews’ hospital and his family and friends back home. This evolution can be seen in how Samir refers to the other characters. For example, a maternal figure in the story, his nurse is initially referred to as “the fat nurse.” Later, she is called Nurse Vardina. Finally, Samir refers to her simply as Vardina. Throughout the course of the story, Yonatan, an Israeli boy, becomes Samir’s friend. Often Samir does not understand Yonatan. However, the two develop a connection which has more to do with being boys than with the war-torn time in which they live.

The most drastic evolution is in Samir’s relationship with Tzahi. Tzahi is a rambunctious patient who runs around and boasts that his brother is a paratrooper. When given candies by his brother, Tzahi taunts the other children by eating them one by one and not sharing. He rarely looks at Samir, much less does he address him. Throughout the story, Samir’s view of Tzahi as “the other”—to be feared and mistrusted—evolves to a feeling of camaraderie. In the end, each boy accepts the other as a friend as together they share one last mischievous event before Samir is discharged from the hospital.

Carmi includes many cultural terms throughout the book. Originally published in Hebrew, the use of vocabulary such as pasha, dinars, kinnar, and narghile is to be expected. Inclusion of these words in the English translation keeps the cultural references in the forefront of the reader’s mind. A glossary defining non-English words is provided at the end of the book.

While this story is clearly set in Israel, the character growth could be generalized to cultural conflicts around the globe. Seeing groups as “the other” rather than inhabitants of the same planet allows fear and mistrust to fester. By living with each other, the children at the hospital discovered the common ground on which they stood. The frailty of human life is illustrated through the different ailments suffered by the patients in SAMIR AND YONATAN. Carmi’s facility for storytelling reveals that neither group is immune to this frailty nor are the children alone or forgotten in their suffering.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
Publisher’s Weekly notes, “A Palestinian boy comes to terms with his younger brother's death by an Israeli soldier in this slow-paced but affecting novel originally published in Hebrew in 1994.” (April 2002)
“The bitter suffering of a Palestinian family is at the center of this moving novel, eloquently translated from the Hebrew. ... {This is a} moving drama of individual kids who become friends and help each other through pain when they get a chance to know each other.” (Booklist, 2000)

Reviews obtained from Follett Library Resources and accessed at:
http://www.flr.follett.com/search?SID=c211074453f514ff63ced2a0fe154f24
and Book Review Digest Plus (an HW Wilson database).

CONNECTIONS
Other Batchelder Award Winners:
Delacorte Press for The Pull of the Ocean written by Jean-Claude Mourlevat and translated from the French by Y. Maudet. (2007)
Arthur A. Levine Books for An Innocent Soldier written by Josef Holub and translated from the German by Michael Hofmann (2006)
Delacorte Press/Random House Children's Books, for The Shadows of Ghadames by Joëlle Stolz, translated from the French by Catherine Temerson. (2005)

Children’s books on Israel & Judaism:
Waldman, Neil. 2003. The never-ending greenness : we made Israel bloom. Honesdale, PA : Boyds Mills Press. ISBN 978-1-59078-064-0
Oberman, Sheldon. 2005. The always prayer shawl. Honesdale, PA : Boyds Mills Press. ISBN 978-1-59078-332-0
Krensky, Stephen and Greg Harlin (Ill.). 2006. Hanukkah at Valley Forge. New York: Dutton Children’s Books. ISBN 0-525-47738-1

Review of PARVANA’S JOURNEY

Ellis, Deborah. 2002. PARVANA’S JOURNEY. Toronto, Ontario: Groundwood Books. ISBN 0888995148

PLOT SUMMARY
After burying her father, 13-year old Parvana continues her journey in search of her mother and siblings. In war-torn Afghanistan it isn’t safe to walk around—much less if you are a girl. Parvana wears her hair short and passes as a boy so she can continue her search in the relative safety reserved only for males in this country. Along the way, Parvana is joined by new ‘family members:’ a baby brother, an older brother and a sister. Together, they wander Afghanistan in search of food, water, shelter from bombs and their families. PARVANA’S JOURNEY reveals the wretched situation of the people of Afghanistan during the 1990s and the relentless hope held by its children whom “we force to be braver than they should have to be” (Ellis, 5).

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
PARAVANA’S JOURNEY takes the reader on a trip across Afghanistan with a 13-year old girl. Afghanistan and the Muslim culture, specifically under Taliban domination, is depicted through a variety of literary methods. Ellis uses language, characterization and setting to portray the society and culture of Parvana’s world.

Ellis’ use of language adds flavor to the text through both description and dialog. The characters’ names such as Parvana, Shauzia and Asif allude to a middle-eastern setting. The story is peppered with non-English terms like burqa, toshak and shalwar kameez. While these terms are not defined in the text of the story, context is often all the reader needs to understand the general meaning of unfamiliar words. For some culture-specific terms, Ellis provides a definition in a glossary at the end of the book.

Dialog, both internal and external, is another cultural indicator in PARAVANA’S JOURNEY. The main character, Parvana, acknowledges to herself she has “given up trying to understand why the Taliban hated women” (p.12). The children speak to each other of things such as tanks, bombing planes and empty bellies. They build shelter with plastic sheeting and pick up grains of rice to be eaten raw when there is no other food. While this type of danger and poverty can and does occur in many places around the world, it offers a view of the grim situation in which many Afghan children find themselves.

The characters in Ellis’ novel offer further insight into Afghan society. Parvana and her family are of a progressive, less traditional ilk. Parvana’s father taught her poetry, astronomy, math and English. Her mother is an organizer, helping families work together and teaching children in the camps. She also writes articles for women’s magazines which are forbidden in Afghanistan. Asif, Parvana’s new ‘brother,’ seems to have traditional male attitudes toward females. He frequently berates Parvana calling her stupid and weak. However, he is atypically patient and tender with baby Hassan. Though there are many opportunities for Asif to leave, he chooses to stay with Parvana and Hassan, as he puts it, “Just to annoy [her]” (p.193). This caveat is Asif’s attempt to save face. It shows his internal struggle between the traditional view of female inferiority and the need for family and community.

The setting, too, reveals the cultural background of PARVANA’S JOURNEY. There are descriptions of green valleys, hills and deserts. There are also descriptions of land mine fields, villages reduced to rubble and camps for Internally Displaced Persons. Thus, a picture is painted of a once beautiful country now decimated by the ravages of war.

Ellis’ young adult novel, PARVANA’S JOURNEY, offers a perspective on the lives of children in war torn Afghanistan. With no one to take care of them, Parvana, Asif and Hassan must care for themselves. Thus, readers watch the children attempt to rebuild their lives and become a family under the most adverse of circumstances.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
“In this highly readable sequel to The Breadwinner, it's wartime in Afghanistan, and thirteen-year-old Parvana must disguise herself as a boy as protection against the Taliban. After she sets off to find her mother and siblings, she forms a makeshift family with a baby and a contrary boy with one leg. Ellis deftly integrates engrossing characterizations with the harsh daily realities of war.” (Horn Book)
“A bittersweet ending offers some hope for Parvana and her family, but readers are left with a horrifyingly realistic picture of the effect of war on children. While the reading is not difficult, the grim content cries out for discussion. An unforgettable read.” (School Library Journal)

Reviews obtained from Follett Library Resources and accessed at:
http://www.flr.follett.com/search?SID=c211074453f514ff63ced2a0fe154f24

CONNECTIONS
Other books in this trilogy by Deborah Ellis:
Ellis, Deborah. The BREADWINNER. ISBN 978-0-88899-419-6
Ellis, Deborah. MUD CITY. ISBN 978-0-88899-518-6

Other novels about refugees:
Williams, Mary. BROTHERS IN HOPE: THE STORY OF THE LOST BOYS OF SUDAN. ISBN 978-1-58430-232-2
Lombard, Jenny. DRITA, MY HOMEGIRL. ISBN 978-0-399-24380-6