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jybaker's review against another edition
4.0
Controversies notwithstanding, I thought this book was moving and relevant. It helped me put a face to the suffering that has been happening in Syria, giving added context to current events.
readingwithk's review against another edition
Due to the nature of this book, I don't feel right giving it a star rating. I think this book is important.
bookaphore's review against another edition
5.0
Bana, an eight-year old Syrian, bears witness to the atrocity she has weathered during her childhood. She narrates her life growing up alongside a war. At first she recounts her life before the war, exhibiting an awful contrast between that chapter of her life and the one stolen by war. She describes the bombs that terrified her but which she endured, knowing them so well by now that she has learnt to distinguish each type of bomb - a skill no child should have had the opportunity to master. We follow her as everything becomes more and more intense - attempting to escape her beloved country while it goes up in flames; suffering the death of loved-ones.
Soon she starts tweeting about the war, taking the voice of children all over Syria, describing her everyday life to the world. People all over our planet were moved by what she had to say, her messages ranging from ”Good Afternoon, I’m still alive” to “The tooth fairy is afraid of the bombing here”. Her charity transpires in many of her tweets, such as: “There are millions who have bigger problems than us”, while she also asks questions that, on the surface, might seem plain, but which should be considered by so many adults of our world, for instance: “Why would they bomb us and kill innocent people everyday?”
She was put in a frightening and ridiculous world, deprived of possibilities and opportunities that other children may have had. Bana is sometimes downcast throughout this most terrifying chase for time, but her main emotion is that of hope. Her parents gave her the strength to wake up every morning and love the present, love the wonder of being alive. It is beautiful to watch how her mind matures becoming optimistic and positive, with her greatest wish being world peace.
So many people would do well to listen to her as we often forget how veracious children are - they are as smart as adults and understand things like war just as well. They may not have as much experience (although Bana does) or knowledge - but the logic and empathy is there. Here, we perceive the reality of war and are touched by a desire for peace.
Soon she starts tweeting about the war, taking the voice of children all over Syria, describing her everyday life to the world. People all over our planet were moved by what she had to say, her messages ranging from ”Good Afternoon, I’m still alive” to “The tooth fairy is afraid of the bombing here”. Her charity transpires in many of her tweets, such as: “There are millions who have bigger problems than us”, while she also asks questions that, on the surface, might seem plain, but which should be considered by so many adults of our world, for instance: “Why would they bomb us and kill innocent people everyday?”
She was put in a frightening and ridiculous world, deprived of possibilities and opportunities that other children may have had. Bana is sometimes downcast throughout this most terrifying chase for time, but her main emotion is that of hope. Her parents gave her the strength to wake up every morning and love the present, love the wonder of being alive. It is beautiful to watch how her mind matures becoming optimistic and positive, with her greatest wish being world peace.
So many people would do well to listen to her as we often forget how veracious children are - they are as smart as adults and understand things like war just as well. They may not have as much experience (although Bana does) or knowledge - but the logic and empathy is there. Here, we perceive the reality of war and are touched by a desire for peace.
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