juliabeaumont's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
5.0
dorothy_gale's review against another edition
4.0
4.4★: A CHILD’S LIFE INSIDE A KENYAN REFUGEE CAMP. My 10-year-old daughter read this first, and then when I noticed how high its ratings were, I decided to give it a whirl. The artwork certainly did the narrative justice, and there were a couple of open questions that turned the pages quickly for my curiosity. I think it’s beneficial for American children to read these kind of memoirs to help provide global awareness and perspective -- and the “graphic novel” format makes this true story far more accessible. And now that I finished it, my kid and I can have a conversation about it. While the memoir has positive messages of compassion and perseverance, it may serve a limited audience of ages ~9-12 for educational purposes. There is no graphic violence or blood, but there is verbal and physical bullying between children, talk of war and the loss of parents, chronic fear, extreme poverty, a few images of guns, the sounds of gunfire, the death of a farm animal by starvation, verbal child abuse, and implied physical child abuse. There is also talk of a mind-altering substance and a depiction of its effects. The language is clean. There is a subplot of a pregnant teen; she is married but it was an arranged marriage that she didn’t want. I liked that there was a feminist perspective from a male, but I wished it went beyond the limited education for girls and more into explicitly addressing their arranged marriages. After middle grades or pre-teens, I would expect a memoir of this nature to be more graphic/explicit to reflect the realities of refugee life. This book gets bonus points for having a where-they-are-now update in the epilogue AND including real photos.
It falls short of a 5-star rating because of my thoughts on RESILIENCE & PERSEVERANCE. Omar may have very well been resilient, but his mental ability to recover quickly from depression or misfortune was not made clear. This was likely due to the condensing of several years into a 264-page sequential art memoir. There were understandably a lot of feelings of anger, anxiety, boredom, and hopelessness. He was most certainly persevering, but the beliefs that drove his perseverance were also not made clear. There were brief religious elements, and strong elements of community support and positive role models -- but no direct connection to whether those things helped inspire hope or determination. Instead, he gave us: “In a refugee camp, it felt like all you ever did was wait.”
It falls short of a 5-star rating because of my thoughts on RESILIENCE & PERSEVERANCE. Omar may have very well been resilient, but his mental ability to recover quickly from depression or misfortune was not made clear. This was likely due to the condensing of several years into a 264-page sequential art memoir. There were understandably a lot of feelings of anger, anxiety, boredom, and hopelessness. He was most certainly persevering, but the beliefs that drove his perseverance were also not made clear. There were brief religious elements, and strong elements of community support and positive role models -- but no direct connection to whether those things helped inspire hope or determination. Instead, he gave us: “In a refugee camp, it felt like all you ever did was wait.”
Spoiler
He could have resorted to drugs or despair, but he kept waiting. He didn’t have to go to school, but he did. He admitted that after years of waiting, their case could have been denied... “but we were lucky.” Viktor Frankl famously said “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” This book was less about choice and attitude, and more about waiting and luck.readandfindout's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
4.5
Style/writing: 4.5 stars
Themes: 4.5 stars
Perspective: 4.5 stars
Art: 4 stars
Themes: 4.5 stars
Perspective: 4.5 stars
Art: 4 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Ableism, War, Animal death, and Abandonment
Moderate: Death, Sexism, Violence, Gun violence, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Grief
Minor: Suicide and Adult/minor relationship
hanzy's review
5.0
This is a story of waiting and wanting - not for mere desires, but for basic needs. It's a story that gives you hope and causes you deep empathy and possibly, shed some tears (I can't imagine not being affected). There were countless times where I wished I could teleport myself into the book to help, to share some food, to care. It's a book that'll help you to be grateful for all that you have and make you want to share with those that need it.
audreyliz964's review against another edition
5.0
This is such a fantastic graphic memoir. I love reading graphic memoirs, and this is up there as one of the best I've read. While it is geared toward a middle grade audience (and perfectly written for this audience), adults will also find this to be a valuable reading experience. I certainly did. This is a book that brings what sometimes feels like a faraway issue closer to your heart, and sends a message of hope.
The story is a poignant one, with both pain and joy, both struggle and hope, and paints a vivid picture of what life is like in a refugee camp. It is an incredible story of perseverance in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds, and shows the power of kindness and compassion. In addition to the fantastic storytelling, I also learned a lot.
The art is beautiful. It's simple and bright, with a wholesome feel to it. The colors are one of my favorite parts about it. I mean, just look at that gorgeous cover!
This book is fantastically written, and definitely belongs on my "favorites" shelf. Highly recommend, even to people who don't normally read graphic novels.
The story is a poignant one, with both pain and joy, both struggle and hope, and paints a vivid picture of what life is like in a refugee camp. It is an incredible story of perseverance in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds, and shows the power of kindness and compassion. In addition to the fantastic storytelling, I also learned a lot.
The art is beautiful. It's simple and bright, with a wholesome feel to it. The colors are one of my favorite parts about it. I mean, just look at that gorgeous cover!
This book is fantastically written, and definitely belongs on my "favorites" shelf. Highly recommend, even to people who don't normally read graphic novels.
artemistheactivist's review against another edition
5.0
Beautiful. Although it may not be the meaning of the book, it confronts the reader with their enormous privilege. Thank you for writing this book and making it come alive through the drawings.
margardenlady's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
I listened to the audiobook of this, but I’m aware it was originally written as a graphic novel. What an important story for all of us to hear! This is a memoir of Omar’s life in a refugee camp in Kenya. It begins with Omar as a child carrying for his brother and looking for his mother. We hear about Life in a refugee camp. The hunger. The longing. The waiting. It is incredibly poignant.
ellaneedsleep's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
5.0
hereistheend's review against another edition
4.0
bro i am weeping in public and have been for 250 pages