The Breadwinner

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Summary: Seventh graders love this book!
Review: My seventh grade social studies students are about half way through this book, and they absolutely love it! I actually hear moans when we have to stop for the day! Paravana and her family are quite familiar with their sibling rivalries, chores, hopes, fears; even my most unwilling readers are being drawn in. The setting is "known" to students as a result of September 11; the suspense keeps them turning the pages; the realism of the characters makes them realize that this could happen to them. I strongly encourage parents and teachers to share this book with children to give them a sense of the world and the connections we all share.

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Summary: The Breadwinner
Review: The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis is an interesting book relating to current issues in Afganistan. The book centers on the changes in the life of a successful Afghan family under the rule of the Taliban. While not neccesarily well-written, it is nonetheless enjoyable from a current issues standpoint. I would reccommend this book for ages 12+ as it contains some violent content.

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Summary: The Breadwinner
Review: The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis is the story of an eleven-year-old girl, Parvana, who lives in Afghanistan under the oppressive rule of the Taliban. After her father's imprisonment (for having a foreign education), she must disguise herself as a boy in order to safely leave the bombed out apartment she shares with her mother and siblings and be her family's "breadwinner".
While the plot is based on stories from the author's interviews with Afghan women in refugee camps, the reader senses that the story is little more than a stringing together of incidents. The characters are so underdeveloped that, even though one is surely sympathetic to their horrible situation, it is difficult to feel an emotional attatchment to any of them, even Parvana. If there is value in reading this book it is that the horrors of Taliban rule, as recounted in the lives of Parvana and her family, serve to remind us that we must never allow any group that seeks to limit the freedom of others to gain power.

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Summary: A need to read book
Review: The Breadwinner is a book I think everyone should read. It is exciting and a little tence. Parvana (the main character) is a girl who has to pretend to be a boy in order to get money and food for her and her family. My teacher read this book outloud to my 4/5 class. The whole class enjoyed it and I think you will too.

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Summary: The Breadwinner
Review: The BreadWinner is a fantastic book.It is full of adventure.It's about a little girl, named Parvana, who lives in Afghanistan during a time when girls weren't allowed to go outside without a man to work and get money. But one day her father went away to prison wich meant they had no other boy to go out and get the food and milk they needed. Soon they needed food so badly they shaved Parvana's hair off so she could look like a boy and could get the food.This was a new experience for Parvana. Every day she would go out and earn money by selling things or reading and writting letters for the people. Then she would buy the food for the family. If you want find out more about this book I think you should read it.

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Summary: The BreadWinner
Review: The BreadWinner is a fantastic book.It is full of adventure.It's about a little girl,named Parvana,who lives in Afghanistan during a time when girls wern't alowed to go outside without a man to work and get money.But one day her father went away to prison wich meant they had no other boy to go out and get the food and milk they needed. One day they needed food so bad they shaved Parvana's hair off so she could look like a boy and could get the food.This was a new experience for Parvana.Every day she would go out and raise money by selling things and reading and writting letters for the people to get money then she would get the food for the family.If you want find out more about this book I think you should read it.

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Summary: Breadwinner is a quality book!
Review: The Breadwinner is an intriguing look into the life of Afghan people. Ellis does an excellent job portraying the hardships they face in everyday life. The storyline is very compelling and holds the readers interest. It has a young protagonist, which young adults will relate to. Ellis develops her characters so well that the reader almost gets the feeling that Parvana's family really exists. There are many different conflicts going on in The Breadwinner that keep the reader interested. Parvana has conflicts within herself, with her family, and the overall life of people in Afghanistan. She is old enough to remember what life was like before the Taliban, so she has some real issues with her current situation. Ellis includes a glossary in the back that gives definitions and descriptions of the Afghan terms used in the story. She has studied and worked in Afghanistan and used her background to help keep the depictions of Afghan life accurate. In addition, although this book was written in 2000, it deals with current events taking place in our world today and therefore would be an excellent way to begin discussions on the topic. The Breadwinner is a great example of realistic contemporary fiction and would be a great multicultural book as well.

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Summary: The best book I've ever read
Review: The breadwinner will touch your heart a day in a life of a child in Afghanistan. Its the best book I've ever read in my life. If I could explain this in one word "amazing" I reccomend it to everybody all ages to read. You'll remember it for the rest of your life!

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Summary: insightful
Review: The Breadwinner's superficial plot concerns a young girl living under the Taliban who's father is arrested. She dresses up as a boy so she can go out and shop and earn money. It was written (very well written in fact) by an aid worker so it has more than a touch of realism. The greatest value of the book is that it provides a perspective into a very different world, and it does so skillfully and perceptively. While the book maintains a hopeful tone, the subject matter is dark, and is not sugar coated or simplified. The father's situation is eventually resolved, but by that point the protagonist has even more concerns. If you think it is a book that might be suitable for a younger child, I suggest taking a look at it first to assure yourself that your child is sufficiently mature for the material. It is a quick read for an adult.

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Summary: Breadwinner
Review: This book is awesome. It makes you feel like you are in Afghanistan with Parvana. It lets people know what is happening in Afghanistan in an easy to read way. Keep up the good work Deborah Ellis