Synopses & Reviews
Nhamo’s mother is dead, and her father is gone. She is a virtual slave in her small African village. Before her twelfth birthday, Nhamo learns that she must marry a cruel man with three other wives and decides desperately to run away. Alone on the river, in a stolen boat, she is swept into the uncharted heart of a great lake. There, she battles drowning, starvation, and wild animals, and comes to know Africa’s mystical, luminous spirits. Nancy Farmer’s masterful storytelling makes this a truly spellbinding novel and readers will be cheering for Nhamo from beginning to end. A gripping adventure, equally a survival story and a spiritual voyage. Nhamo is a stunning creation while she serves as a fictional ambassador from a foreign culture, she is supremely human. An unforgettable work.
Review
A Junior Library Guild Selection
"Brutally beautiful, this is a story that both inspires and sounds an alarm, a story of courage and heart. Just like Musas ability to tap into water, it asks us to tap into our own humanity, even though it might be more deeply hidden than we can imagine."
—Kathi Appelt, Newbery Honor-winning author of The Underneath
"A thrilling, imaginative soul quencher. Crowders stunning debut is sure to become a modern classic."
—Rita Williams-Garcia, Newbery Honor-winning author of One Crazy Summer
"Spare, unflinching, and beautifully written, this novel walks the line between magic and reality."
— Franny Bilingsley, National Book Award finalist for Chime
"Thirst and heat are palpable as kids and dogs fight fatal dehydration. . . . A wrenching piece with a wisp of hope for the protagonists if not for the rest of their world."
—Kirkus
"The writing, especially the descriptions of the drought conditions and extreme thirst, is excellent."
—School Library Journal
"The direct powerful prose in this first novel dramatizes the exciting contemporary survival story. . . . Fans of Gary Paulsen's Hatchet (1987) will want this."
—Booklist
"Taut yet descriptive, Crowder's writing dramatically captures the characters' desperation; the blistering heat and their acute hunger and thirst are entirely persuasive."
—Publishers Weekly
* "Crowder's spare storytelling and third-person narration provide young readers some safe distance for witnessing the tragic events, while well-chosen details and taut descriptions effectively convey the intensity of the situation."
—Bulletin, starred review
Synopsis
Nhamo's mother is dead, and her father is gone. Before her twelfth birthday, Nhamo learns that she must marry a cruel man with three other wives -- and decides desperately to run away. Through the course of her journey, she faces drowning and starvation and comes to know Africa's mystical, luminous spirits.
Synopsis
A mesmerizing debut middle-grade novel about a boy, a girl, and a dog struggling to survive in an African land after the water has run out.
Synopsis
In this haunting, lyrical novel told from three perspectives, Sarel has just witnessed the violent murder of her parents. But she is not completely alone on the drought-ridden land. Nandi is the leader of a pack of dogs who looks out for her pups and for skinny Sarel-girl. Nandi knows they are all in trouble, and she knows, too, that a boy is coming—an escaped prisoner with the water song inside him. A hard-hitting but ultimately hopeful survival story.