Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Torn Apart The Partition of India by Swapna Haddow

2021  

This tells the story of Ibrahim and Amar at the time of the partition in India in 1947.  Ibrahim, Muslim, is separated from his family as they flee to Pakistan. Amar is Hindu and lives on the streets of Delhi. Despite the fact that Amar’s best friend was killed by Muslims he decides to help Ibrahim get to the border. We don’t get to find out whether Ibrahim survives or meets his family again.   Neither do we learn whether Amar eventually gets a better life for himself.

Unusually for this age group we have two first person narratives.    

This book almost become a hi-lo.  It is short at just 119 pages but the text is blocked and uses an adult font with difficult ‘a’s and ‘g’s.  It is quite a tricky subject.

There is a glossary of the most important words at the front of the book and a longer one at the back.

The author gives us a note about what happened in 1947 and there is also a useful time line.

This is a thought-provoking book for the young reader.   

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