Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson, Omar Mohamed

3 reviews

kelly_e's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative medium-paced

5.0

Title: When Stars Are Scattered
Author: Victoria Jamieson & Omar Mohamed
Genre: Graphic Memoir
Rating: 5.00
Pub Date: April 14, 2020

T H R E E • W O R D S

Intimate • Heartbreaking • Compelling

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Omar and his younger brother, Hassan, have spent most of their lives in Dadaab, a refugee camp in Kenya. Life is hard there: never enough food, achingly dull, and without access to the medical care Omar knows his nonverbal brother needs. So when Omar has the opportunity to go to school, he knows it might be a chance to change their future . . . but it would also mean leaving his brother, the only family member he has left, every day.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I was looking for moving graphic novel with depth and after doing a little research I managed to compile a short list of options. List in hand I made a trip to my local library and surprisingly they had a copy of When Stars Are Scattered on the shelf, which made my choice easy.

This graphic novel is based on Omar Mohamed and his brother's time spent in a refugee camp in Kenya. It details the day-to-day life of a child refugee through direct dialogue and thought and stunning artwork. Intended for younger readers, this is an important read for readers of all ages. While this is one single story out of millions of stories, it is brought to light in a sensitive manner without shying away from the difficult truths.

Overall, When Stars Are Scattered opened my eyes to everyday life in refugee camps. Omar story is one of resiliency and hope, while I know this isn't always the case. It is also a reminder life isn't all bad even in the most harsh of circumstances. For instance, Omar found hope through friendship, education, and responsibility.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers of all ages
• social studies teachers

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"Be like a star. Shine your light. Shine your story. For stories will lead us home."

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parasihir's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

My heart breaks when I read this book. The part about stars really took my breath away and I would never see them the same ever again. When the Stars are Scattered is the best title for this book. Please read it to understand more about refugee's life, hope, education, and dreams. 

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bookswithlauren's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

This was an incredibly written and beautifully illustrated graphic novel. 

With such an important and relevant story to tell, the graphic novel route was a great choice. Having the visuals to go along with the text and speech throughout only gives the reader a more in-depth experience with a situation that thousands and thousands of people in the world experience.

'When Stars Are Scattered' took me on a journey with two brothers and with my emotions. It is both a powerful and educational story and I loved every single moment of this reading experience.

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