boy+overboard

__BOOK REVIEW__

Recently I have read two novels about what refugees go though whilst trying to get to Australia to find peace in their lives. Both books were good and I recommend both of them to anyone who wants to read about this subject. The second book is a little easier to read but you get a lot more out of the first. **
 * The first book I read was called Walk in My Shoes by Alwyn Evans. The story is written like a diary by a young girl, named Gulnessa, who came from Afghanistan. She came with her mother (Fatimeh), sister (Zahra), two brothers (Zainullah and Hassan) and their neighbour’s son (Abdul), who she secretly likes, to live better lives in Australia. They were escaping the Taliban, who were starting to really harass them and the rest of the village. Gulnessa’s father had already been captured by the Taliban and Abdul’s father had been killed by the Taliban. Hassen was to be captured next along with Abdul, that’s why they had to escape. The story describes their journey from a remote Afghanistan town, to Perth in Australia, and then on to a detention centre, and then back to Perth where they ended up living. **
 * The book is divided into two halves, the first half being the journey to Australia and what they went through in the detention centre. The second half focuses on what they went through when they were allowed to live in Australia. The first half really dragged on whilst they were in the detention centre, but improved when they were saying what they went though at their village, to the immigration officers. **
 * The second book I read was called Boy Overboard by Morris Gleitzman. This story was written as if the main character (Jamal) was telling the story. The novel starts off with Jamal and his mates playing soccer, which is banned in Afghanistan, when his little sister, Bibi comes over and wants to play as well. The story then goes on to the family’s struggle to get out of the country and to Australia. Jamal’s father is a taxi driver and they use his taxi to get to the capital city, where they sell it and use the money to pay a smuggler to get them over the border. When in Indonesia and boarding the fishing boats Jamal and his sister get separated from their parents and put on a different boat. Whilst on the boat to Australia Jamal, his sister and new found friends encounter pirates and other problems. This book was sad because Jamal believes that he is in Australia but is really in a detention centre on Christmas Island. The book doesn’t go on to their time out of the detention centre and only told a little bit about what they did when they were in the detention centre, where as Walk in My Shoes does. **
 * If you want to learn more about a refugee’s journey for freedom then I recommend Walk in My Shoes, but if you want an easy read that still gives a bit of information then I recommend Boy Overboard. **
 * By Ryan. M 8G **