Like Water on Stone by Dana Walrath
2014; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 68; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/bcc.2015.0072
ISSN1558-6766
Autores Tópico(s)Politics and Conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle East
ResumoReviewed by: Like Water on Stone by Dana Walrath Elizabeth Bush Walrath, Dana Like Water on Stone. Delacorte, 2014 353p Library ed. ISBN 978-0-375-99142-4 $19.99 Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-385-74397-6 $16.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-385-37329-6 $10.99 R Gr. 9–12 Convinced of the essential goodness of his countrymen, the paterfamilias of the Armenian Christian Donabedian family ignores both history and the advice of relatives abroad and citizens at home to emigrate before the predicted and almost inevitable bloodbath that will be World War I. The situation soon deteriorates, and his oldest sons are taken away by Turkish soldiers and shot; his oldest daughter, married to a Kurd, is in dire danger; and the pleadings of his youngest son, Shahen, to move to America now have the clear ring of wisdom. When another band of soldiers arrives at the homestead, the parents make a horrifying self-sacrifice to give Shahen, his twin sister Sosi, and littlest child Mariam time to run. An exhausting and dangerous two-month trek leads them to Aleppo, where an Arab merchant hides them among his Muslim family until war’s end and the long-hoped-for letter from America arrives, inviting them to join their uncle’s family. The novel, written in verse, presents a steep learning curve for readers who have little background on the war and the Armenian genocide. The cast of characters at the front of the book and the glossary at the back, as well as an author’s note, are lifelines for keeping track of personal names, foods, musical instruments, etc. Add to this the spare imagery of the poetry and the inclusion of an eagle that not only observes and comments on the action but also intervenes in the children’s behalf, and readers have a challenging but moving experience ahead of them. Patience pays off, however, and the ensuing tale (inspired by Walrath’s desire to reconstruct a chapter of her own family history) is both tragic and uplifting, a fitting contemporary successor to Bagdasarian’s moving Forgotten Fire (BCCB 1/01). Copyright © 2015 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
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