City Boy
After Sam’s mother dies of AIDS, Sam’s grief is compounded by culture shock when he goes to live with his aunt’s family in the small Malawi village where his mother grew up. He and his mother had lived in the city, where he attended private school and lacked nothing, from the latest computer game to fancy running shoes. Those shoes, and the few books he brought with him, become a symbol of his difficulty adapting to village life. Sam’s cousins and the other boy who lives with his aunt are fascinated by Sam’s things. Sam does not want to share, but in his aunt’s spare home sharing is a way of life. His aunt is loving, firm, and clear on her expectations for Sam as his painful struggle to fit in is complicated by his sense of loss and sadness. Sam’s changing living situation and the details surrounding it, from the AIDS crisis to the contrast between urban and rural living, are made accessible and understandable for readers in this affecting story. ©2009 Cooperative Children's Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 10-13
Age Range:
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
Aunts
Change
City Life
Economic Hardship and Poverty
Economic Privilege
Grief and Loss
HIV/AIDS
Malawians and Malawian Americans
Rural Life
Sharing
Diversity subject:
Black/African
Physical Disability/Condition
Publishers:
Clarion, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publish Year: 2009
Pages: 188
ISBN: 9780547223100
CCBC Location: Fiction, Michael