Deborah Ellis interviewed refugees from Afghanistan in her work in Canada. These books are based on the stories she heard from the women and children she met.
Book one - The Breadwinner. Eleven year old Parvana pretends to be a young boy so she can move freely in war torn Kabul. Dad is imprisoned for being educated abroad. The rest of her family disappears while visiting another city. She remains at home caring for friends and waiting for Dad. Survival is an incomprehensible tale of determination overcoming desperation.Book two - Parvana's Journey - Parvana continues her search for her family alone. Along the way she picks up an abandoned baby, a boy who lost a leg and is living in a cave and a young girl trying to care for a grandmother. The last sentence of the book allows you to hope.
Book three - Mud City - Parvana's friend Shauzia, introduced in the first two books, has made her way to a refugee center in Pakistan but she hasn't given up dream of living in Paris. Her encounter with well meaning ex-pats is enlightening.
After I read this trilogy, I wanted to chain myself to the White House fence until the war was ended. These brave, determined characters and the real people they represent deserve peace.
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