Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan, 11-year-old Parvana has rarely been outdoors. Barred from attending school, shopping at the market, or even playing in the streets of Kabul, the heroine of Deborah Ellis's engrossing children's novel The Breadwinner is trapped inside her family's one-room home. That is, until the Taliban hauls away her father and Parvana realizes that it's up to her to become the "breadwinner" and disguise herself as a boy to support her mother, two sisters, and baby brother. Set in the early years of the Taliban regime, this topical novel for middle readers explores the harsh realities of life for girls and women in modern-day Afghanistan. A political activist whose first book for children, Looking for X, dealt with poverty in Toronto, Ellis based The Breadwinner on the true-life stories of women in Afghan refugee camps.
In the wily Parvana, Ellis creates a character to whom North American children will have no difficulty relating. The daughter of university-educated parents, Parvana is thoroughly westernized in her outlook and responses. A pint-sized version of Offred from Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Parvana conceals her critique of the repressive Muslim state behind the veil of her chador. Although the dialogue is occasionally stilted and the ending disappointingly sketchy, The Breadwinner is essential reading for any child curious about ordinary Afghans. Like so many books and movies on the subject, it is also eerily prophetic. "Maybe someone should drop a big bomb on the country and start again," says a friend of Parvana's. "'They've tried that,' Parvana said, 'It only made things worse.'" (Ages 9 to 12) --Lisa Alward
In the wily Parvana, Ellis creates a character to whom North American children will have no difficulty relating. The daughter of university-educated parents, Parvana is thoroughly westernized in her outlook and responses. A pint-sized version of Offred from Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Parvana conceals her critique of the repressive Muslim state behind the veil of her chador. Although the dialogue is occasionally stilted and the ending disappointingly sketchy, The Breadwinner is essential reading for any child curious about ordinary Afghans. Like so many books and movies on the subject, it is also eerily prophetic. "Maybe someone should drop a big bomb on the country and start again," says a friend of Parvana's. "'They've tried that,' Parvana said, 'It only made things worse.'" (Ages 9 to 12) --Lisa Alward
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Used availability for Deborah Ellis's The Breadwinner
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Hardback Editions
June 2008 : Library Binding
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 1-4395-0616-7 / 978-1-4395-0616-5 Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
January 2006 : Hardback
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-307-25800-9 / 978-0-307-25800-7 (USA edition) Publisher: Listening Library Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
January 2003 : Library Binding
| Title: Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-613-44488-4 / 978-0-613-44488-0 (USA edition) Publisher: Topeka Bindery Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
April 2001 : Hardback
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-88899-419-2 / 978-0-88899-419-6 (Canada (English speaking) edition) Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre Availability: Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
Paperback Editions
2006 : Paperback
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis Publisher: Groundwood Availability: Amazon More details... |
March 2004 : Paperback
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-19-275284-7 / 978-0-19-275284-0 (UK edition) Publisher: OUP Oxford Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
2002 : Paperback
| Title: The Breadwinner: An Afghan Child in a War Torn Land Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-439-44633-3 / 978-0-439-44633-4 (USA, UK, or Canada (English speaking) edition) Publisher: Scholastic Inc. Availability: Amazon More details... |
November 2001 : Paperback
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-19-275211-1 / 978-0-19-275211-6 (UK edition) Publisher: Oxford University Press Availability: Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
September 2000 : Paperback
| Title: The breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-88899-416-8 / 978-0-88899-416-5 (Canada (English speaking) edition) Publisher: House of Anansi/Groundwood Books Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
Paperback
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-19-271906-8 / 978-0-19-271906-5 (UK edition) Publisher: Oxford Paperbacks Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
Audio Editions
January 2006 : Audio Cassette
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-8072-0974-0 / 978-0-8072-0974-5 (USA edition) Publisher: Listening Library Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
July 2002 : Audio Cassette
| Title: The Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-8072-0973-2 / 978-0-8072-0973-8 (USA edition) Publisher: Listening Library Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
Other Editions
November 2001 : Turtleback
| Title: Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-606-27711-0 / 978-0-606-27711-2 (USA edition) Publisher: Demco Media Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
October 2001 : Unknown
| Title: Breadwinner Author(s): Deborah Ellis ISBN: 0-7569-3917-8 / 978-0-7569-3917-5 (USA edition) Publisher: Perfection Learning Availability: Amazon More details... |
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