So this book is one of the controversial ones that I read. I am not sure how I feel about it. My feelings are a little on both sides of the fence. I feel like it is a great way to bring up a topic like war that is hard to talk about to children. I know that they will learn about wars in history class so I don't understand why not introduce them by showing how other children live their lives. This boy Sami is the main character and the story is about how his family has to stay in the basement until the fighting has calmed. His father was lost in a bomb in the market so it is his mom, sister and himself with his grandfather. I personally like the book. I feel that it is interesting to learn and try to place yourself in Sami's shoes. I cannot imagine growing up like that. But the truth of the matter is that some children do. I feel like now is a better time than ever to introduce this to children and use it as a teaching mechanism in order to make them aware. If we ever want things to change then we need to start teaching it. But I also see the other side of the argument. I don't think children who are not in this exact situation should be burdened with it as well. It is just something that our society has set up with the ideal of what a childhood should involve.
The illustrations are gorgeous in this book. I love how when Sami's is remembering the good days the color of the pictures are light and airy and on the contrast when there is fighting going on the colors are dark. I find this gives a great effect to the book. The book also introduces children of color. This child is not the Caucasian boy we usually see in children's literature. But I hope it isn't giving the wrong impression that Caucasian children don't go through these types of hardships. I understand why this book is labeled controversial but I feel it could be a great teaching tool in schools or at home.
No comments:
Post a Comment