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What Strange Paradise



by
Omar El Akkad

Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
Penguin Random House
Imprint
Knopf (Adult)
ISBN
9780525657903
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Language: Strong Language , Discrimination: Xenophobia , Violence: Death
$21.90   $18.25
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From the widely acclaimed, best-selling author of American War: a new novel—beautifully written, unrelentingly dramatic, and profoundly moving—that looks at the global refugee crisis through the eyes of a child.

More bodies have washed up on the shores of a small island. Another overfilled, ill-equipped, dilapidated ship has sunk under the weight of its too many passengers: Syrians, Ethiopians, Egyptians, Lebanese, Palestinians, all of them desperate to escape untenable lives back in their homelands. But miraculously, someone has survived the passage: nine-year-old Amir, a Syrian boy who is soon rescued by Vänna. Vänna is a teenage girl, who, despite being native to the island, experiences her own sense of homelessness in a place and among people she has come to disdain. And though Vänna and Amir are complete strangers, though they don’t speak a common language, Vänna is determined to do whatever it takes to save the boy.

In alternating chapters, we learn about Amir’s life and how he came to be on the boat, and we follow him and the girl as they make their way toward safety. What Strange Paradise is the story of two children finding their way through a hostile world. But it is also a story of empathy and indifference, of hope and despair—and about the way each of those things can blind us to reality.

POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Language: Strong Language , Discrimination: Xenophobia , Violence: Death

Details

Format

Print

Page Count

256

Trim Size

7 1/2" x 5"

Dewey

F

AR

0: points 0

Genre

Fic

Scholastic Reading Counts

0

JLG Release

Oct 2021

Book Genres

Realistic Fiction

Topics

Islands. Emigration and immigration. Refugees. Friendship. Islamophobia.

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Cover Art

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Praise & Reviews

The Horn Book

El Akkad follows up the sharply imagined second Civil War portrayed in American War with an investigation of the world refugee crisis. The only survivor of his ship's Mediterranean passage, a nine-year-old Syrian boy named Amir is rescued by a homeless girl native to the island where he has landed.

Praise & Reviews

The Horn Book

El Akkad follows up the sharply imagined second Civil War portrayed in American War with an investigation of the world refugee crisis. The only survivor of his ship's Mediterranean passage, a nine-year-old Syrian boy named Amir is rescued by a homeless girl native to the island where he has landed.

Grades 11 & Up
Adult Crossover High Plus
For Grades 11 & Up
For the more advanced high school reader who is ready for adult reading, our ACH Category is a great choice. With more sophisticated and challenging themes, the 12 books in ACH open up new worlds for teen readers.
Take note: These selections often contain mature situations and language that could be considered controversial.

14 books per Year
$309.26 per Year
Interests
Fiction,Mature Readers,Novels,Realistic Fiction
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Grades 11 & Up
Adult Crossover High Plus
14 books per Year
$309.26 per Year

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