The Breadwinner

Picture this:

You are and 11-year old girl living in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. You can't leave the house unless you have a male relative with. You are considered to be worthless. No one cares about you, except for your own family and a very few close friends.

That is life for Parvana. She lives with her brother, two sisters, mother, and father. Her father is crippled. It happened one day while he was teaching in a school. The building was bombed, and he lost part of one of his legs. Parvana has to go with him every day to the market and sit while he writes letter and sells things to make money for his family to live off of.

But then one day several men from the Taliban arrive at Parvana's house. They ransack it and drag her father off to the prison. Her mother and one of their friends, Mrs. Weera, decide to dress Parvana as a boy and send her off to earn money. Will Parvana's disguise work or will the Talib men see right though her?

This book was written by Deborah Ellis.

It was published in Canada in 2000 by Groundwood Books. It was published in the US in 2001.

Visit www.groundwoodbooks.com for more information.