In verse, Oh Give Me a Home relates the story of a girl’s inside-out view of America as she journeys from Ethiopia, searches for friends and belonging.
In elementary school, Jane knows that Maji, Ethiopia, cool and green, perched on a mountainside of waterfalls and monkeys, is the perfect place to live. Or it would be perfect if she had a pet or a best friend.
Jane is full of ideas that include schemes for an animal to play with. A real pet, not the dik dik that dies, the monkey that tries to bite her fingers, nor the elusive cat that lives in the shed and has just absconded with her litter of kittens. But her plans are derailed as Jane learns she is to move back to America with her family.
America and Africa collide as Jane tries to answer the simple question, “Where am I from?” Entering grade school in suburban America for the first time, will she find a best friend a continent away from her real life in Africa? Or is America–where she meets her relatives for laughter and frolicking and big holiday meals–her real home?
Title alpha Oh Give Me a Home: A Mostly True Story in Verse
Category Biography Middle Plus
Pages Count 240
Genre Nonfiction
Topics Belonging. Emigration and immigration. Ethiopia. Idaho. Friendship. Sisters. Family.
Trim Size 8" x 5 1/2"
JLG Span Winter
Language English
Rights type Print
Publication date 2025-07-07
JLG Release Date Feb 2026
Minimum grade 5
Maximum grade 8
Reading level Middle
Format Print
Biography Middle Plus (Grades 5-8)
Biography Middle Plus
Biography Middle Plus (Grades 5-8)
For Grades 5-8
This 14 book collections offers middle-grade readers fascinating biographies and compelling personal stories that provide a view into history or perspective on the issues of our times.