A sky-blue bench / written by Bahram Rahman ; illustrated by Peggy Collins.

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Title:

A sky-blue bench / written by Bahram Rahman ; illustrated by Peggy Collins.

Author:

Rahman, Bahram, 1984- author.

Collins, Peggy, 1975- illustrator.

Canada Council for the Arts, sponsoring body.

Ontario Arts Council, sponsoring body.

ISBN:

9781772782226

9780800024017

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 27 cm

Abstract:

Young Aria returns to school after recovering from an accident and being fitted with a prosthetic leg, but the school has no furniture and sitting on the floor is too painful. She finds a way to build her own bench, surprising and inspiring her classmates. A sensitive author's note addresses the author's experience growing up in Afghanistan during the civil war and the legacy of landmines. -- Provided by publisher.

Reading Level:

Ages: 4-7.

Grades: PreS-2.

Subject Term:

Children with disabilities -- Juvenile fiction.

Artificial legs -- Juvenile fiction.

Unexploded ordnance -- Juvenile fiction.

Schools -- Fiction.

Children with disabilities -- Fiction.

Écoles -- Romans, nouvelles, etc. pour la jeunesse.

Enfants handicapés -- Romans, nouvelles, etc. pour la jeunesse.

Jambe artificielle -- Romans, nouvelles, etc. pour la jeunesse.

Munitions non explosées -- Romans, nouvelles, etc. pour la jeunesse.

JUVENILE FICTION / School & Education.

JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Special Needs.

Children with disabilities. (OCoLC)fst00855544

Schools. (OCoLC)fst01107958

Unexploded ordnance. (OCoLC)fst01201180

Schools -- Juvenile fiction.

Handicapped children -- Juvenile fiction.

School stories.

Handicapped children -- Fiction.

Schools.

Geographic Term:

Afghanistan -- Juvenile fiction.

Afghanistan -- Fiction.

Afghānistān -- Romans, nouvelles, etc. pour la jeunesse.

Afghanistan. (OCoLC)fst01205406

Genre:

Picture books for children.

picture books.

School fiction. (OCoLC)fst02020484

Fiction. (OCoLC)fst01423787

Juvenile works. (OCoLC)fst01411637

Picture books. (OCoLC)fst01726789

School fiction.

Livres d'images.

Added Author:

Collins, Peggy, 1975-

Added Corporate Author:

Canada Council for the Arts,

Ontario Arts Council,

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Avon-Washington Township Public Library	Juvenile Picture Book Hardback	120791003031337	YHBA J P RAH	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

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Summary

It's Afghan schoolgirl Aria's first day back at school since her accident. She's excited, but she's also worried about sitting on the hard floor all day with her new prosthetic "helper-leg."

Just as Aria feared, sitting on the floor is so uncomfortable that she can't think about learning at all. She knows that before the war changed many things in Afghanistan, schools like hers had benches for students to sit at. If she had a bench, her leg would not hurt so much. The answer is obvious: she will gather materials, talk to Kaka Najar, the carpenter in the old city, and learn to build a bench for herself.

In A Sky-Blue Bench, Bahram Rahman, author of The Library Bus, returns again to the setting of his homeland, Afghanistan, to reveal the resilience and resolve of young children--especially young girls--who face barriers to education. Illustrator Peggy Collins imbues Aria with an infectious spunkiness and grit that make her relatable even to readers with a very different school experience. An author's note gently introduces an age-appropriate discussion of landmines and their impact on the lives of children in many nations, especially Afghanistan, which has the highest concentration of landmines of any country in the world.

Don't miss The Library Bus, also by Bahram Rahman

Winner of the Middle East Book Award Finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award Finalist for the Florida Literary Association Children's Book Award Finalist for the OLA Forest of Reading Blue Spruce Award Winner of the Northern Lights Book Award: Multicultural Category

Reviews (1)

Kirkus Review

An Afghan girl resourcefully finds a way to accommodate her new prosthesis. After losing her leg in an accident, Aria is finally ready to return to school with her new "helper-leg." But all the school benches have been used for firewood, requiring students to sit on the floor--which hurts Aria's leg terribly. In a montage of awkward positions, Aria attempts to alleviate her discomfort to no avail. Despite the other girls' skepticism, Aria resolves to build her own bench, insisting she "can do anything a boy can." When she consults kind carpenter Kaka Najar for help, he gives her tools and a can of sky-blue paint--the color of "courage, peace and…wisdom." With help from her mother, her little brother, and a friend, Aria proudly builds a bench and assures inspired classmates, "We can build everything we need, together!" Gently but poignantly, Collins' richly hued, cartoon-style illustrations convey Aria's discomfort, determination, and joy; family members' and friends' warm eyes and sympathetic faces are reassuring. Background characters bustle in a rainbow of jewel-toned clothing, their faces bearing a variety of expressions. Though Aria's accident is unspecified in the simple primary text, an author's note reveals that Aria's story, partially based on Rahman's childhood during Afghanistan's civil war, honors Afghan children whose lives were changed forever by unexploded ordnance. Most characters' complexions, including Aria's, are varying shades of brown. A timely, eye-opening portrait of resilience, community, and hope. (glossary) (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.