Written by Raya Rashna Rahman and illustrated by Inshra Sakhawat Russell
I participated in the Multicultural Children’s Book Day because there is a world of diverse books out there for all of us to discover. #MCBD’s #readyourworld is a fantastic attempt to bring these voices and stories to the fore.
As part of this effort, I received a copy of a very special book: An unexpected friend written by Rashna Rahman and illustrated by Inshra Sakhaway Russell. Raya Rahman has collaborated with Save the children to deliver a poignant and powerful story. Faisal, a Rohingya refugee, finds a bird in the refugee camp he is living at. He brings it home to his sisters so they can take care of it. While the bird is recovering Faisal continues to live his hard life. While gathering firewood with his friend, he hurts himself. The bird and Faisal nurse back to health together. When the bird is strong enough, Faisal decides to let it go free. It is hard as he has grown so attached to it, but he understands it is time for the bird to leave in peace. He comforts himself with the memories he has made with his friend.
Throughout the book, we get glimpses into the plight of the refugees living in camps in Bangladesh. There are parallels in the experience of the bird, hurt and desolate without a home and the plight of the Rohingya community who find themselves homeless. Rohingya Muslims have been facing persecution in their home country, Burma, and many are seeking refuge in neighboring Bangladesh. They live in camps where life is hard – schools are makeshift, medical facilities are scarce, living quarters are small and the conditions are often dangerous. Yet, when Faisal finds the bird he decides to take care of it. The letting-go of the bird feels symbolic of all the things he must have had to let go when he had to leave his home. It is painful, but he realizes that the most important thing is that his family and friends are with him. The story highlights the spirit of survival in us. It shows how empathy for others, even when you yourself are in distress, can be empowering and life-changing. It is a reminder to us to look at lives beyond us, to explain to our children the plight of refugees and have a conversation about helping others in need.
A great activity that could accompany this book is understanding our world. We spent some time pointing out Bangladesh and Burma on our globe. This lead to further discussions of migration and of refugees from and in different parts of the world including the plight of Rohingya Muslims.
My sons also suggested making a game of shadow play – using our hands and gestures to make shadow shapes that look like birds. We will have to try it soon and post some pictures of it too. A great activity when you are out camping.
I am so fortunate to share this book with all of you. Empathy for people who don’t have a voice is really, really important and something our kids really need to learn.
Multicultural Children’s Book Day was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen. MCBD’s missions is to not only raise awareness for the kid’s books that celebrate diversity, but to get more of these books into classrooms and libraries.
FREE RESOURCES from Multicultural Children’s Book Day
· Free Multicultural Books for Teachers
· Our New FREE Teacher Classroom Physical and Developmental Challenges Kit http://ow.ly/kcbZ30p3QWz
· Free Empathy Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians, and Educators
· Free Understanding Developmental & Physical Challenges Classroom Kit
TWITTER PARTY! Register here
Hashtag: Don’t forget to connect with us on social media and be sure and look for/use our official hashtag #ReadYourWorld.