Rosenblatt, Darcey Lost Boys, 288 pages. Henry Holt (Macmillan), 2017. $17.
Language: G (1 swear, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG-13 (piles
of bodies, beatings)
Reza’s mother has been pressuring the twelve year old to join
Iran’s army in the fight against Iraq in 1982.
His favorite uncle, however, is an Iranian rebel, who has nurtured
Reza’s love for Western music, so he has been resistant. When his best friend, Ebi, joins up, though,
Reza feels obligated to stay by his side.
The boys are shattered, however, when they find out that their final
purpose for the Iranian army is to act as human minesweepers. When Reza finally wakes up, he has been sent
to a detention camp and Ebi is missing, perhaps dead. Life in the detention camp is harsh, made
harsher by a guard with a cruel streak who seems to have it out for Reza.
Rosenblatt has chosen a little known (for Americans) war as
the background for a book about hope and courage. The descriptions of life in the detention
camp would be excellent to read aloud in any modern history class to help
students connect to the harshness of life in a war zone. In elementary schools, I would only suggest
this for sixth graders. For middle
schools, hand this to your boys who read books about war – its an easy sell and
a very good look at another aspect of war.
EL (6th grade only) – ADVISABLE; MS – ESSENTIAL Cindy, Library Teacher
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