Allan Stratton

5Q 4P

I felt this book was heart wrenching, frustrating, and deeply compelling. I immediately felt a deep connection with Chanda and wanted to protect her. She is a well rounded protagonist both strong and oddly vulnerable. Stratton does a wonderful job illustrating the deep taboos that surround the AIDS epidemic in this fictional sub-Saharan village, and the culture of silence and shame that surrounds the disease.

I feel this book is accessible to a broad range of people, and can help show more anyone who is either struggling with AIDS, know someone who is struggling, or simply wanting to better understand the emotional toil of the disease gain a better perspective.

At times I found this book frustrating to read. I wanted to strangle characters, to tell them to accept the help that is being offered, or at the very least to tell someone about their problems, to not just accept it and literally run away to die, but I believe that's the brilliance of the author's writing. As a reader I became so invested in the community that I couldn't help but see how a society can cause its own destruction, and how difficult it is to break through a wall of perpetuating shame.

Quote:
"I'm tired of lies and hiding and being afraid. I'm not ashamed of AIDS! I'm ashamed of being ashamed!" (Stratton, p. 181) show less

Granny is portrayed SO convincingly that anyone who has had any experience with the early symptoms of dementia will react viscerally as they read The Way Back Home. I also love that it isn’t a perfect happy ending but instead a believable one which is all the more satisfying because it’s not fake sunshine and roses. I also love that it is more than just a story about someone with Alzheimers. The bullying pieces with the obnoxious cousin helped give the characters more flesh. This is a show more book that will stick with me long after I’ve finished it. show less

Sixteen-year-old Chanda must take on the harrowing responsibility of planning her baby sister's funeral, nursing her sick mama, mothering her little siblings, and sheltering her abused best friend--not to mention trying to keep up with school. Compounding her struggles are an obnoxious busybody of a neighbor and an oppressive aura of secrecy and shame surrounding the family. Ultimately Chanda must overcome her own fear of AIDS before bravely confronting the superstitions of her community. show more With vivid first-person narration portraying the complex emotions of an adolescent, Stratton effectively evokes a fictional Sub-Saharan Africa and chronicles the action of the story at an intense pace.

My VOYA ratings: 4Q ("Better than most, marred by occasional lapses") and 4P ("Broad general or genre YA appeal"). This is a well-written, absorbing book that addresses many serious issues--first among them the AIDS epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa, but also sexual abuse, prostitution, alcoholism, and the death of parents and siblings. The narrator's point of view will surely resonate with young adults from all walks of life, and the gripping plot will keep many glued to the page.

My me rating: 2-1/2 stars ("It was okay, I guess"). I was excited to read CHANDA'S SECRETS, because I have been seeking out fiction set in Africa and did not yet have young adult books on my radar. My expectations were probably way too high. The same narration that may well appeal to many readers just did not work for me: I wanted a wider view of Chanda's world, with less inner monologue. (THE HUNGER GAMES irked me for the same reason.) I also wish the author had set the story in a real place and adopted a more authentic style of language. Perhaps I would be less fussy if my reading had not come on the heels of THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN (set in real towns near Spokane, with an utterly convincing adolescent narrator) and THE NO. 1 LADIES' DETECTIVE AGENCY (set in real Botswana, with a female protagonist my own age). Or perhaps not: I was hooked by the first part of the book, which intimately depicts Chanda's experience planning and attending her sister's funeral and tells the heartbreaking history of her family, but I felt betrayed by the Spielbergian climax and ending. show less

High adventure awaits in this Shakespearean tale of missing heirs, evil magicians, and a Bluebeard-style wicked ruler. The author's gleeful embracement of the conspicuously awful (torture chambers, descriptions of rotting corpses, and being buried alive...) reminded me of the more gruesome Grimm tales, with a bit of Lemony Snicket thrown in. I, personally, loved the various objects the over-the-top Necromancer used for eyeballs in his loathsome empty sockets. I was hoping for a bit more show more character development. The heroine and hero seemed little changed by their adventures. I also thought the heroine's love of puppetry was going to be put to more significant use. show less