Nine-year-old, low-caste Kabir was born in jail in Chennai, India, because his mom is serving time for a crime she didn’t commit. He ends up living on the streets when a new warden decides that he is too old to still be living in jail. He meets Rani, a Roma girl, who helps him survive in the harsh, ugly outside world. He eventually finds his grandparents and a helpful lawyer who gets his mother released from jail. This story told through the lens of a young boy is both educating and entertaining. Kabir is brave and optimistic. Like Venkatraman’s other books, A Time To Dance, Climbing The Stairs, and The Bridge Home, this book is unforgettable. mjw |
| Title: Born Behind Bars Author: Padma Venkatraman Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC Copyright: 2021 Original Language: English ISBN: 978-0593-11247-2 Hardcover pages: 273 Age range: 10 up Genre: Fiction, Novel Book setting: Chennai, India Author’s ethnicity: Indian Author’s residence: U.S. Awards: 2022 NCSS Notable Books, 2022 South Asia Award Winner Subjects: Homelessness, India, Poverty, Prejudice, Prisoners’ families, School, Street children |
Born Behind Bars
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Paro comes from a dancing family. She dances Bharatanatyam at home with her mother and now she is about to begin ballet lessons. She is worried because the two dance forms are so different. Ballet dances twirl and swirl like fairies and Bharatanatyam dancers move like queens. Paro tries to share the traditional South Asian dance with her new ballet classmates, but they just don’t get it. Paro’s mother comes to class to perform and then everyone loves Bharatanatyam. And Paro learns to dance like a fairy queen. Vibrant illustrations complement this encouraging story about cultural competency. Back matter provides more information about the two dance forms and instructions for making ghungroo, which are both anklets and musical instruments at the same time, an essential part of Bharatanatyam. mjw
While watching a ghost story on TV one night, fifth-grader Kazuhiro Sada sees a pale figure in a white kimono sneaking out of his house. He sees the same figure in school the next day. She is Akari, a girl his classmates insist he has known since kindergarten. Then he finds out that his house sits on the exact location of an ancient temple called Kimyo. Legend has is that the name Kimyo implies the dead coming back to life. Kazu befriends Akari and they spend the summer trying to make sense of the mystery. This thrilling adventure filled with the living dead, a story-within-a-story, a meddling neighbor, and a black cat is illustrated with manga-like drawings. mjw
Eleven-year-old Addie is autistic, headstrong, and smart. She thinks differently from the people around her. She is on a campaign to have a plaque erected in her Scottish hometown in memory of the victims of the witch trials which happened there hundreds of years ago. She understands what it is like to be treated as an outcast for being different. The author is neurodivergent, too, and she insightfully tells about what it is like to be an autistic girl. She believably portrays Addie’s struggles and her beautiful friendship with a girl who is understanding and supportive
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