Theme: family relationships

A Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk

By Book Importer | Published: February 2, 2011

In the little village of Duk Padiet in southern Sudan, a boy named Jacob Deng thrives on the love of his mother, the companionship of his sisters, the excitement of learning how to look after his uncle’s herds of cattle. The year is 1987, and suddenly in the night soldiers from the north invade the [...]

Descriptors: Africa, Awards, Fiction, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Realistic Fiction, Sudan » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , , , » 1 Comment

The Present Tense of Prinny Murphy

By Book Importer | Published: January 20, 2011

  An alcoholic mother, a distracted father, a best friend who spends all his time with his new “girlfriend,” and three relentless schoolyard bullies: Prinny Murphy’s past, present, and future certainly are “tense.” Adding to her misery, she still can’t read well enough to escape from remedial lessons with the dour Mrs. Dooks. But when [...]

Descriptors: Awards, Canada, Fiction, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Realistic Fiction » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Noodle Pie

By Book Importer | Published: October 6, 2010

It’s Andy’s first trip on an airplane when he and his dad travel to Vietnam to meet all his relatives. Talk about culture shock! Everyone calls him by his Vietnamese name instead of Andy and he is stunned to discover the family restaurant. For Andy and his dad- a former refugee returning for the first [...]

Descriptors: Asia, Awards, Fiction, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Realistic Fiction, Viet Nam » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Celebrating the Hero

By Book Importer | Published: October 1, 2009

Camilia Draper, an American teenager still feeling guilt and loss about her mother’s death, travels to her mother’s birthplace in Colombia for a ceremony celebrating her famous grandfather, about whom she will learn some disquieting and revelatory facts.

Descriptors: Colombia, Fiction, Latin America, Young Adult (ages 14-18) » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Crocodile Burning

By Book Importer | Published: October 1, 2009

Seraki Mandindi, young man from Soweto, South Africa, learns a life lesson and finds direction when he travels to Broadway with the cast of iSezela.

Descriptors: Africa, Realistic Fiction, South Africa, Young Adult (ages 14-18) » Other Themes: , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

The Little Blue House

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

In a very small town in rural Argentina there is a magical house. The house is vacant and has been for as long as anyone can remember, but once a year, at midnight, the house turns blue, and 24 hours later it turns back to white again. Twelve-year-old Cintia lives with her father, an angry [...]

Descriptors: Argentina, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Latin America, Realistic Fiction » Other Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

Abuela’s Weave

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

A Guatemalan story about intergenerational trust, love, and independence, this book introduces children to the culture of Guatemala through the story of a little girl selling her grandmother’s beautiful weaving at the public market. Illustrated throughout with paintings of authentic Guatemalan scenery, giving life to the country’s radiant landscape and bustling city streets.

Descriptors: Guatemala, Latin America, Primary (ages 6-9), Realistic Fiction » Other Themes: , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Fish for the Grand Lady

By Kathy G. Short | Published: March 14, 2007

In Trinidad, two brothers try fishing in a new place, hoping to bring home a big catch for their grandmother.

Descriptors: Americas, Fiction, Primary (ages 6-9), Trinidad and Tobago » Other Themes: , , , , , » Comments closed