City Boy
Grade 4–7—Orphaned by "the Disease," Sam is taken by his aunt to live in her rural Malawi village, leaving behind his computer, his private school, and the comforts of city life. Slowly he comes to terms with his loss, and with his new and confusing world, one with no electricity and quite different ideas of family and sharing. Though his adjustment is difficult, Sam finally begins to accept his circumstances and finds comfort in the people who surround him. The contrast between urban and rural lives is exemplified by the issue of Sam's blue running shoes, a gift from his mother before her death, but the object of envy and ridicule where people wear flip-flops or no shoes at all. For young U.S. readers with only a hazy idea of life in this part of the world, this moving story will go a long way toward adding detail about both modern city life and the more traditional village ways.—Kathleen Isaacs, Children's Literature Specialist, Pasadena, MDCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.