Beverley Naidoo

Rather clever book about persecution. The author has basically written a book set in an area like Jerusalem/Palestine but doesn't mention mention either and you don't know which side the charcters are supposed to represent. Adam, Zak and Leila live as Nons in an area the Permitted people rule. Adam and Leila's mother might lose her permit to live there and if she does, she could be deported back to where she was born.
Zak does something though that backfires and could have horrible show more consequences for him and for Adam and Leila.
This novel makes you think. It puts you in other people's shoes and it is a little bit terrifying because it presents the "there but for the grace of God go I" scenario. It also made me think of refugees and of Trump/ Mexicans and the stupid American wall. show less

This is such a powerful children’s book. I’m quite ashamed to say that I haven’t read a fiction novel about people seeking asylum in Britain before. How these two children were treated upon their arrival was difficult to read. At one point the siblings are abandoned, lost and alone, asking for directions but no one will help them and it hurt my heart to know that in busy London, when you’re just trying to battle the crowds, this could be easily done. They don’t know the customs, show more they get robbed and they don’t know where to go, or who can help them. I’m just relieved this story had a happy ending because I don’t think I could have coped otherwise. The sad reality is that happy endings don’t come for everyone in similar situations. show less

Burn My Heart

Burn My Heart will have you biting your nails and butterflies bumping against the walls of your stomach. This is a truthful, deeply serious and valuable contribution missing from the historical fiction stacks in school libraries.

You are the vicarious witness to the fear, prejudice and misunderstanding endured by the Kenyan people during the 1950s. After fighting alongside the British soldiers during WWII, black inhabitants were not allowed to share power with the British show more settlers. Further, they adopted a parental philosophy toward the black citizens, believing them incapable of governing themselves.

Beverly Naidoo brilliantly unravels the untold history of hate that pitted white settlers against African citizens. Through the eyes of young Mathew, she is able to show both sides of the conflict. You read about the Africans who want results quickly and terrorize the British landowners through fear and bloodshed, and any possible means to force compliance. A secret society called Mau Mau, was formed to organize terror attacks, conscript membership and create ruination and ultimate surrender by the white landowner. Yet, others would rather place their efforts on peaceful negotiations, and an immediate end to the Mau Mau.

This is a novel of anxious intrigue that will hold you captive as the story builds to the end. You’ll love this thriller of a history lesson with an added message of forgiveness A perfect addition to middle and high school libraries. Highly recommended. show less

When their baby sister falls seriously ill, two young South African siblings set out from home to make the 200+ mile journey to Johannesburg to find their mother, who works as a housekeeper for a rich, white family.

This middle grade book has some issues, I think. It seems clear that the point of the novel is to point up some of the major problems with apartheid, but at the same time it seems to downplay those problems too much. The dangers and massive injustices inherent in that system are show more mentioned and then, weirdly, glossed over quickly, and the ending is a little too pat and trite.

It's possible I'm overreading these elements, because I was aware going into it that the book was written by a white woman from South Africa. Naidoo has a history of standing up for equal rights and speaking out against apartheid, and that's wonderful, of course, but I still don't know how I feel about white people writing stories for PoC. Maybe, at the time, it was an important step toward handing that authority over? So maybe it was a good first step in children's, but I do know for certain that there are now, happily, more and better versions of this kind of story out there by #ownvoices authors. show less