The Bone Sparrow
Publisher: Orion Children’s Books
Born in a refugee camp, Subhi has never seen the outside world. At night, he dreams that the sea finds its way to his tent, bringing with it unusual treasures. And one day it brings him Jimmie: an illiterate young girl who lives near the refugee camp.
The Bone Sparrow is a beautiful, heartbreaking, hopeful and deeply moving novel that explores a tragic and relevant topic with incredibly skill. Fraillon doesn't shy away from showing the bleakness of the refugee camp, but the novel is anything but. Subhi's irrepressible spirit brightens the camp, and the novel itself. Subhi and Jimmie's discovery of friendship is a joy to read, and Subhi's relationship with his older sister and closest friend in the camp are also wonderfully depicted.
The Bone Sparrow is one of those rare, special books that will break your heart with its honesty and beauty, but is ultimately hopeful and uplifting.
Winner of the CILIP Amnesty Honour 2017.
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Books about refugees and asylum seekers (older children)
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What you thought...
Average rating:
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Tim, 09 December 2023
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it is a really good book and has a lot of detail about how it must feel to be a refugee or in a detention Centre. it really make you think about how they must be treated and how horrible it is. she really knows how to write a good interesting book
Ruby, 14 November 2023
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It was really good just like James said
Isabelle, 26 February 2019
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the best book ever
james, 06 February 2019
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Decent Book
Banana, 05 March 2018
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An Excellently written book, really pulled at the heartstrings but with unexpected humour. A beautiful tale of a miraculous friendship which is both Sad and beautiful, perfectly combined to such create a wonderful book. Showing the immorality of life at a refugee camp through the eyes of a bright eyed young boy.
Bob, 28 February 2017
This is an interesting book with an important story at its heart. The broken English can be difficult to read at times, more so when reading out loud. The infrequent curse words mean that care would need to be taken when choosing to read the book to children.