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Exiles. Russia (Federation). Siberia. History. Juvenile fiction.
World War, 1939-1945. Juvenile fiction.
Exile (Punishment). Juvenile fiction.
Friendship. Juvenile fiction.
Families. Juvenile fiction.
Exiles. Russia (Federation). Siberia. Fiction.
World War, 1939-1945. Fiction.
Friendship. Fiction.
Families. Fiction.
Siberia (Russia). Social life and customs. Juvenile fiction.
Siberia (Russia). Social life and customs. Fiction.
This sequel to A Boy Is Not a Bird (2019) continues the fraught WWII story of 12-year-old Natt Silver, finding the boy and his mother now exiled from their Eastern European home to 20 years in Siberia, "where life is hell." Once there, Natt's mother is tricked into stealing a handful of potatoes and is sentenced to a year in a prison many miles away, leaving Natt, whose father is incarcerated in a Siberian Gulag, alone and on his own. Knowing that being invisible is necessary for survival, he becomes a figurative ghost. Through a combination of wits and luck, he is then reunited with his mother and the two receive the miraculous news that Natt's father is alive and will meet them in Moscow. Based on a true story, Ravel's novel offers a compelling picture of life in the U.S.S.R. under the reign of Stalin and of one family's extraordinary adventures in surviving its depredations. An abrupt ending suggests a third novel may be forthcoming.
No-vo-si-birsk. No-vo-si-birsk.
I repeat the word over and over, trying to turn it into something ordinary instead of the name of a strange new place a million miles from home.
Our train journey is over at last. The city of Novosibirsk, Siberia, is our final stop.
Surely nothing can be worse than life on Train Two, Carriage One?
But... what if it is worse?
As we fold what remains of our filthy, smelly blankets, my mother tries to pretend, as usual, that everything is splendid.
"Novosibirsk!" she says happily. "What good news! It's a really big city, 400,000 people, and it's in southern Siberia!"
She's ignoring the fact that her left toe is black and blue and probably infected, one of her eyes is red and puffy, she has welts all over her body from insect bites, and she's so skinny I'd never know it was her, if I saw her from the back.
Excerpted from A Boy Is Not a Ghost by Edeet Ravel
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
Winner, Quebec Writers' Federation Janet Savage Blachford Prize for Children and Young Adult Literature Finalist, Governor General's Literary Award for Young People's Literature In this sequel to the award-winning A Boy Is Not a Bird, a boy is exiled to Siberia during World War II. Based on a true story. Torn from his home in Eastern Europe, with his father imprisoned in a Siberian gulag, twelve-year-old Natt finds himself stranded with other deportees in a schoolyard in Novosibirsk. And he is about to discover that life can indeed get worse than the horrific two months he and his mother have spent being transported on a bug-infested livestock train. He needs to write to his best friend, Max, but he knows the Soviet police reads everyone's mail. So Natt decides to write in code, and his letters are a lifeline, even though he never knows whether Max will receive them. Every day becomes a question of survival, and where they might be shunted to next. When his mother is falsely arrested for stealing potatoes, Natt is truly on his own and must learn how to live the uncertain life of an exile. Practice being invisible as a ghost, change your name and identity if you have to, watch out for spies, and never draw the attention of the authorities. Even then, he will need luck on his side if he is ever going to be reunited with his family. Key Text Features author's note Illustrations map Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.3 Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.6 Describe how a narrator's or speaker's point of view influences how events are described. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.7 Analyze how visual and multimedia elements contribute to the meaning, tone, or beauty of a text (e.g., graphic novel, multimedia presentation of fiction, folktale, myth, poem).