The Shepherd's Granddaughter

By Anne Laurel Carter

Book Overview

Amani longs to be a shepherd like her beloved grandfather Sido, who has tended his flock for generations, grazing sheep on their family s homestead near Hebron. Amani loves Sido s many stories, especially one about a secret meadow called the Firdoos. But as outside forces begin to encroach upon this hotly contested land, Amani struggles to find suitable grazing for her family s now-starving herd. While her father and brother take a more militant stance against the intruding forces, Amani and her new American friend Jonathan accidentally stumble upon the Firdoos and begin to realize there is more to life than fighting over these disputed regions. Amani learns a difficult lesson about just what it will take to live in harmony with those who threaten her family s way of life."

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 088899902X
• ISBN13: 9780888999023
• Release Date: September 2008
• Publisher: Groundwood Books
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.0" x 0.8" x 5.5"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 6 and higher

Customer Reviews

Well written fiction showing a conflict from one point of view

I have looked at this book several times and was always put off by the cover. Last night I started reading it and was immediately drawn in. The story follows independent Amani (starting from age 6 to mid-teens) as she and her close-knit Palestinian family deal with the conflict with Israel. I am not able to speak to the accuracy of the portrayal of politics in the book, and it is obvious this story is told from Amani's point of view. All that aside, the story is riveting, Amani and her family are wonderfully rich characters, and I predict you will find the book hard to put down. This book would spark an interesting discussion on the conflict Mddle East, and could be a stepping stone to finding other books (both fiction and nonfiction) that portrayed the situation from the Israeli point of view. Suggestion to the publisher: add a map, and change the cover.

About unfairness in life

Very incisive depiction of life in the occupied land of Palestine and how to survive the degrading conditions of life under repressive occupation.