Tag Archives: Families

One Half From The East

Ten-year-old Obayda’s father lost one of his legs in a bomb explosion and the family is in need of some good fortune. They move from Kabul to s small village. Obayda is dressed as a boy, a bacha posh. This is a longstanding tradition in Afghanistan. Families without a son designate a preteen daughter to fill the void with a simple physical transformation involving swapping clothes and cutting hair. Before she reaches puberty, she is changed back and resumes life as a girl, a gender that enjoys far less freedom and privilege. Obayda becomes Obayd and everything changes. She meets Rashim, another bacha posh. They become friends, explore the village, and play sports, but there is no forever as a bacha posh. This heart-stirring and enlightening coming-of-age story includes an author’s note. mjw

Title: One Half From The East
Author: Nadia Hashimi
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Copyright: 2016
Original Language: English
ISBN: 978-0-06-242190-6
Hardcover pages: 272
Age range: 8-12
Genre: Fiction
Book setting: Afghanistan
Author’s ethnicity: Afghan
Author’s residence: U.S.
Awards: 2017 South Asia Book Award Highly Commended
Subjects: Bacha posh, Child marriage, Gender, Prejudice and racism, Self-esteem and self-reliance

Birthdays Around The World

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Birthday celebrations of seventeen kids from around the world are shared in this fun information book. Shinobu from Japan dresses in a kimono. Mercedes in Peru eats cake and purple pudding called mazamorra morada. Alana and Kainoa have a luau in Hawaii. And Dimitry in Russia eats blini with caviar and dumplings. A note to parents and teachers gives activities for children, like locating the countries mentioned on a map, sending cards, and making a birthday paper chain. A glossary is included. The author has also written Children Around the World, Families Around the World, and School Days Around the World. mjw

Title: Birthdays Around The World
Author: Margriet Ruurs
Illustrator: Ashley Barron
Publisher: Kids Can Press. Toronto, Canada
Copyright: 2017
Original Language: English
ISBN: 978-1-77138-624-1
Hardcover pages: 40
Age range: 3-7
Genre: Picture Book, Information Book
Author’s ethnicity: Canadian
Author’s residence: British Columbia
Illustrator’s ethnicity: Canadian
Illustrator’s residence: Toronto, Ontario
Subjects: Birthdays, Celebrations

The Little Black Fish

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An old fish tells the story of Little Black Fish to her 12,000 children and grandchildren. Little Black Fish leaves the safety of his small stream to venture out and see the world. He meets many different creatures along the way, including the dreaded pelican and the helpful lizard. Little Black Fish has big questions and is determined to find answers. He makes it to the edge of the sea and finds his answers, though he does not survive. He learns about life, dangers, enemies, and friends. This famous Iranian children’s story is considered to be a political allegory and was banned in pre-revolutionary (1978) Iran. mjw

Title: The Little Black Fish
Author: Samad Behrangi (1939-1967)
Illustrator: Farshid Mesghali
Publisher: Tiny Owl Publishing Ltd. London, England
Copyright: 2015
Original Language: Persian
Translator: Azita Rassi
Original Publisher: Kanoun Par Varesh Fekri. Tehran, Iran
Original Copyright: 1968
ISBN: 978-1-910328-00-2
Hardcover pages: 48
Age range: 9 up
Genre: Fiction, Allegory
Author’s ethnicity: Iranian
Author’s residence: Author lived in Iran
Illustrator’s ethnicity: Iranian
Illustrator’s residence: U.S.
Awards: Illustrator has won 1974 Hans Christian Andersen Award for illustration
Subjects: Coming of age, Fishes, Freedom, Independence

Mrs. White Rabbit

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The wife of the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland describes her busy day and her children in her diary. Beatrix, the eldest, wants to be a supermodel and refuses to eat. There are two pages of 100 ways to cook carrots, but not one will do. The twins are wise and thoughtful boys sitting on their chamber pots. Betty is concerned about starting school. Little Eliot insists on wearing a bunny costume for Halloween and the baby cries all day. The wonderful detailed illustrations make the book. We see Alice’s foot, a portrait of John Tenniel, the Cheshire cat, the Caterpillar, Humpty Dumpty, and much more. Look for mad prices at the hat shop and Lewis Carroll’s photograph of the real Alice Liddell in the window of C. L. Dodgson Photographer. This modern twist is perfect for fans of the Alice books. mjw

Title: Mrs. White Rabbit
Author: Giles Bachelet
Illustrator: Giles Bachelet
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for young Readers. Grand Rapids, MI
Copyright: 2017
Original Language: French
Original Title: Madame le Lapin Blanc
Original Publisher: Editions du seuil
Original Copyright: 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5483-4
Hardcover pages: 32
Age range: 6-10
Genre: Fiction, Fairytale, Picture Book
Author’s ethnicity: French
Author’s residence: France
Illustrator’s ethnicity: French
Illustrator’s residence: France
Subjects: Alice in Wonderland, Characters in literature, Diaries, Fairytales, Folktales Housewives, Humor, Rabbits

Captain Jack And The Pirates

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A family day at the beach turns into a make-believe swashbuckling adventure for pre-schoolers Jack, Zack, and Caspar. They build a ship out of sand, chase pirates, become marooned on an island, discover a treasure – delicious desserts, and get captured by friendly pirates (their parents). The artwork is a mix of lively brown-tone sketches and pale watercolor paintings of the chubby-cheeked children. The trip between the car and the beach is documented on the endpapers. Told in rhyme, this delightful story is a perfect read-aloud. mjw

Title: Captain Jack And The Pirates
Author: Peter Bently
Illustrator: Helen Oxenbury
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers, New York
Copyright: 2016
Original Language: English
Original Publisher: Puffin Books, Great Britain
Original Copyright: 2015
ISBN: 978-0525-429500
Hardcover pages: 32
Age range: 3-5
Genre: Picture Book
Author’s ethnicity: English
Author’s residence: Devon, England
Illustrator’s ethnicity: English
Illustrator’s residence: London, England
Awards: Illustrator has won two Kate Greenaway medals, Shortlisted for the 2016 CLIP Kate Greenaway Medal
Subjects: Adventure, Pirates, Sea stories, Stories in rhyme

The Ballad Of A Broken Nose

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Thirteen-year-old Bart Norum has had a hard life. He lives in public housing with his alcoholic mother, his neighbors are drug addicts, and he doesn’t know who is father is. He takes up boxing so that he can protect himself, but his real love is opera. His friend Ada, who cannot keep a secret, lets his classmates and teacher know about his passion and they want him to sing in the class talent show. But Bart suffers from paralyzing stage fright. Bart is an optimist and he tells his story about bravery, fear, sports, and music in a funny and matter-of-fact style. An interesting note is that Welsh baritone Bryn Terfel is Bart’s idol. mjw

Title: The Ballad Of A Broken Nose
Author: Arne Svingen
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster, New York
Copyright: 2016
Original Language: Norwegian
Translator: Kari Dickson
Original Title: Sangen om en Brukkt Nese
Original Publisher: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag
Original Copyright: 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4814-1542-2
Hardcover pages: 224
Age range: 10-12
Genre: Fiction
Book setting: Norway
Author’s ethnicity: Norwegian
Author’s residence: Norway
Awards: 2017 Mildred L. Batchelder Award, Norwegian Ministry of Culture’s Best Young Adult Literature Prize
Subjects: Boxing, Bullies, Drugs, Friendship, Music, Opera, Talent shows

The Sun Is Also A Star

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Natasha has hours left before she is deported to Jamaica. The logical aspiring scientist believes in facts and refuses to fall in love with someone she just met. Dreamer Daniel, who lives under the pressure of pleasing his Korean parents, believes Natasha is the one. That fate has made several events fall into place for them to meet. With all of the possible futures there are, will their one day in New York City lead to a future together? Yoon’s multiple points of view in narration brings to light a variety of perspectives and emotions of the human experience. ema

Title: The Sun Is Also A Star
Author: Nicola Yoon
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Copyright: 2016
Original Language: English
Original Copyright: 2016
ISBN: 978-0553496680
Hardcover pages: 384
Age range: 14 and up
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Fiction
Authors’ ethnicity: American, Jamaican
Authors’ residence: Los Angeles
Awards: National Book Award finalist, Michael L. Printz Honor Book, and Coretta Scott King New Talent Award winner
Subjects: Immigration, Jamaican, Love, Multiple POVs, Poetry, Racism, Science, South Korean