Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 4-7. In the third book in the Breadwinner Trilogy, orphan Afghan refugee Shauzia leaves the rough Pakistan border camp and joins other homeless children on the streets of the city of Peshawar. Her dream, left from the time before the Taliban when she was still at school, is to reach the ocean and a place called France. Instead, disguised as a boy, she must beg and scrounge for food and find odd jobs. In the end, she returns to the refugee camp and to the tough camp leader, Mrs. Weera, whom Shauzia thought she hated. The story is strong on message, and in a final note, Ellis fills in the recent history about Afghanistan, the Taliban's restrictions on women, and the millions of new, desperate refugees. Middle-school readers will be caught up in the cause and in the elemental survival adventure, especially because Shauzia is no sweet waif; she's mean, insolent, and rebellious. Her struggle with the rough Mrs. Weera reveals that they are both strong and brave. Royalties from the book go to help homeless kids. --Hazel Rochman Copyright 2003 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In the third book in the Breadwinner trilogy (The Breadwinner; Parvana's Journey), Mud City by Deborah Ellis, Afghani refugee 14-year-old Shauzia (Parvana's best friend) leaves the mud-walled refugee camp in Pakistan. Dressed like a boy, and accompanied by her dog Jasper, she struggles to survive and to reach her elusive dream-to travel to the sea and catch a ship to France. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-7-The ravages of war on children come to light in Deborah Ellis's final book (Groundwood, 2003) in her Breadwinner trilogy. Shauzia, 14, has traded her war-ravaged home in Kabul, Afghanistan, for the misery of refugee life in a Widows' Compound in Pakistan. The compound is a city made of mud which lacks food, water, and hope. Shauzia dreams of a life in France, convinced that it will be like the photo of lavender fields she keeps tucked in her pocket. Determined to work her way out of the misery, she dresses as a boy and escapes to the city to earn her passage. There she must compete with thousands of street children and learn tough lessons about survival. Meera Simhan provides the subtlest of accents for authenticity, and young listeners will feel transported to this war-torn area with her fine narration. Libraries circulating the first two audiobooks will definitely want this final one for their collection, and this volume also stands well alone.-Tricia Melgaard, Centennial Middle School, Broken Arrow, OK (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Shauzia, a proud fourteen-year-old from Kabul living in a refugee camp in Pakistan, takes to the streets of Peshawar dressed as a boy in hopes of earning money to realize her dream of making a life for herself in France. As in the other books in her trilogy, Ellis doesn't neglect to offer strong characterizations while chronicling the devastating realities of war. Glos. From HORN BOOK Spring 2004, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
