Comments on The Picnic Basket: Afghan Dreams: Young Voices of Afghanistan • Nonf...

This book was interesting for my 2nd grade student...

2009-05-13T15:49:00.000-04:00

This book was interesting for my 2nd grade students because it showed them what life is like in other places. Until they see it, from children there own age, they don't really understand the differences in the lives of others. Thank you for an interesting book.

Afghan Dreams is a beautiful book and the pictures...

2009-04-07T22:35:00.000-04:00

Afghan Dreams is a beautiful book and the pictures are breathtaking. While meaningful, I think we are missing the opportunity to fully explain to adults and kids alike the circumstances and challenges faced by the children depicted in the photos. I do not see my 8th graders reading the author's note in the beginning of the book outlining the recurring theme of the desire for education by these children. And I do not see them as seeing the information given in the text as spontaneous and genuine. They would view it as an adult ploy to push the value of education.

It should be included in the picnic basket for the discussions it will bring. 3.5

A. Hunt
Middle School Language Arts
Fort Walton Beach, FL

This book left me teary-eyed - not because it is i...

2009-04-06T12:00:00.000-04:00

This book left me teary-eyed - not because it is inherently sad, but because it made me realize how much of my life, my culture I take for granted. Using this book in the classroom will be a definite eye opener for my students too.

This is a beautiful book filled with the haunting ...

2009-03-26T18:05:00.000-04:00

This is a beautiful book filled with the haunting faces of Afghani youth, most of them teenagers who have seen more than their share of tragedy in their short lives. Each page includes a photograph of the young writer and a brief reflection of what their lives are like today. In spite of the devastation they have experienced, most of them still manage a smile for the camera and bring a message of hope for what their lives may one day become. Compelling and poignant, I highly recommend this book for US children of all ages as a way of finding common ground with Afghanistan's young voices. 5 out of 5
Vicki Plefka, Teacher-Librarian
Fair Oaks, CA

"Afghan Dreams" is a great book to share with stud...

2009-03-25T08:06:00.000-04:00

"Afghan Dreams" is a great book to share with students of all ages. The real-life stories and photos are compelling. I believe this book will provide a reality check for many students that do not appreciate the luxuries they have surrounding them. They take for granted so many things and I think this book will open thier eyes and their hearts. This is a must have book for every classroom. I rate this book a 5 out of 5.

What a terrific book! All children should be give...

2009-03-16T20:11:00.000-04:00

What a terrific book! All children should be given the opportunity to read it. The stories of the children in much less fortunate situations would be an eye-opener to most students in the United States. The photography is beautiful and adds so much to the words of the Afghan children. While sad to imagine their lives I truly enjoyed their stories. I would highly recommend this book. A 5 out of 5.

"Afghan Dreams: Young Voices of Afghanistan" was a...

2009-03-15T13:47:00.000-04:00

"Afghan Dreams: Young Voices of Afghanistan" was a touching book for my students and me. My students were shocked about how different Afghani children's lives and their lives are. Several started researching Afghanistan to find more information about the country. Thank you for the opportunity to share this book with my fourth grade students. Our rating for this book is a 5 out of 5.

Kathy J. Johnson
4th grade classroom
Williamsburg Elementary
Williamsburg, MO

This a wonderful book for any multicultural collec...

2009-03-15T11:13:00.000-04:00

This a wonderful book for any multicultural collection. The photos are beautiful and the text is moving and non-political. I think any book that helps children relate to other children is a valuable teaching tool.

With all of the focus on Afghanistan these days, it is important for students to realize how fortunate and safe we really are here in the United States.

A great resource for social studies, language arts, or current events. I would rate it a 4.

Ramona Klein
St. Anne School Library
Pittsburgh, PA

This book was a very emotional read. Reading thro...

2009-03-10T21:13:00.000-04:00

This book was a very emotional read. Reading through the entire book was difficult the first time. The introduction states that the authors interviewed children living in Afghanistan to find out about their hopes and dreams for the future. Throughout the book photos of these children are presented and accompanied by their own words giving a glimpse into their lives and feelings. After just reading a few of the childrens' thoughts it is clear that theirs is a life very different from those of the students I teach. Although much sadness is reflected in the words of these children, there is also hope. These children want a better life for themselves and for their country. Both the photographs and words of the children, will provide students with a glimpse into a culture that they may otherwise have difficulty imagining.

I initially requested this for our middle school l...

2009-03-10T17:20:00.000-04:00

I initially requested this for our middle school library because the content sounded mature- the everyday lives of kids growing up in a war torn country. After reading this beautiful book, I plan on adding a copy to our elementary library as well. So far, students are not having difficulty reading the font. If they can read each other's writing then this is easy! Before I read the book I was afraid it would come across as heavy handed and political. It wasn't at all. I am very pleased to have this in our collection and I look forward to sharing this with students of all ages.
Picnic Basket rating: 5.
Denair Elementary/Middle School Libraries
Denair, CA

If a picture is worth a thousand words, Afghan Dre...

2009-03-09T11:00:00.000-04:00

If a picture is worth a thousand words, Afghan Dreams: Young Voices of Afghanistan is truly a book with at least 1,000 words per picture. This book was marvelously created to be understood from Kindergarten through high school; younger grades requiring more explanations from teachers. This is a rich book that I am grateful to add to our collection! My heart to Afghanistan and all it's children: Thank you for sharing a brief look into your lives.
Rating: 5
Julia Pitau
Denair Charter Academy
Denair, CA

I requested to review this book as my school parti...

2009-03-08T23:46:00.000-04:00

I requested to review this book as my school participates in a program to send monies to countries around the world with children who are needy. One of the difficulites in teaching about these countries is how to find appropriate materials to share with the children. This book does an excellent job of explaining life in Afganistan through the eyes of a child. My students were touched and amazed at the stories and the beautiful pictures. I would highly recommend this book! I give it 5 out of 5.

This was an amazing book for anyone, but particula...

2009-03-07T19:01:00.000-05:00

This was an amazing book for anyone, but particularly kids in America where we are so blessed. It brings the war, which seems so far away to kids, right to their fingertips. The children whose stories are told are so relatable, yet so different from any of my students that I think it would be a real eye-opener for them. The format was wonderful and the photography very enticing. I could stare at one picture for minutes on end. The photographer captured these children beautifully. I definitly give this book a 5 out of 5 and think it would be a great addition to a classroom library.

Sandra Said...
Wow What a great book. I read i...

2009-03-07T06:53:00.000-05:00

Sandra Said...
Wow What a great book. I read it yesterday morning before class started and had four students read it throughout the day. One of my Haitian students said to her seat partner, "I always thought we were poor in Haiti but I was rich and they are poor." The other girl thought that it was sad that they complain about going to school every day and and that was all these kids wanted to do. I definately give this book a 5.

This is a book that every child in the US should r...

2009-03-06T17:53:00.000-05:00

This is a book that every child in the US should read. It shows pictures of children at various ages and has them comment about their life and future. Many of them are very sad, some talk about the war and the Taliban.

What a beautiful book! The first picture that str...

2009-03-06T08:01:00.000-05:00

What a beautiful book! The first picture that struck me is the one on the front cover of two boys flying a kite. It reminded of the adult book, The Kite Runner. The book contains stunning photographs of Afghan children. Accompanying each photograph is a narrative written by the featured boy or girl. The narratives tug at your heartstrings as you read about their hardships and struggles, hopes and dreams. Their lives are very different from those of American children. I rate this book a 5 because it would be a great addition to any collection that wants to improve its selection of multicultural materials.

Afghan Dreams lets the reader see life in Afghanis...

2009-03-05T19:48:00.000-05:00

Afghan Dreams lets the reader see life in Afghanistan through the simplicity of a child. There is so much we take for granted in America and these children have so little besides hope. It's an excellent way of comparing cultural difference and the universal themes of hopes and dreams.

Picnic Basket Rating: 5

This book is a potentially powerful read for our s...

2009-03-04T13:14:00.000-05:00

This book is a potentially powerful read for our students. It opens up a world to the reader through hopes, dreams, and believing in the future. Great photographs and images. This book has earned a 5 rating.

I found the photographs compelling and the stories...

2009-03-03T22:11:00.000-05:00

I found the photographs compelling and the stories were like little windows into another world. Coincidentally reading Three Cups of Tea at the same time deepened my interest in this part of the world.

As I shared this book with my middle school students, they commented on their ages, the work hours, similarity of looks, lack of educational opportunities...but also had many questions about the ongoing war in Afghanistan, the US military role there, our ability to "rescue" all these children...and why we can't just "end" it.

I would rate this a 5 for the photographs and an overall 4.

Barbara
Reading resource teacher

This is a wonderful book! Through the pictures and...

2009-03-03T15:07:00.000-05:00

This is a wonderful book! Through the pictures and wishes of children in Afghanistan, our students will be able to relate to these children as well as experience their hardships. The wishes of the Afghani students are very different compared to what most of our children would be wishing for. This book would be a great starting point for a discussion on the importance of education and how blessed our students are to be able to attend school. The stories and pictures of these children brough tears to my eyes, so I really reccomend reading it to yourself before sharing it with students to get all of your emotions out. I LOVED this book and would give it a 5!

Afghan Dreams is a beautiful book. As a child, I ...

2009-03-02T22:05:00.000-05:00

Afghan Dreams is a beautiful book. As a child, I had no idea how children on the other side of the lived. I think it is so important that we, adults and children, are aware of other cultures and what is happening to other human beings around the world. It creates perspective. I've just finished reading Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson, which was so eye opening. This book is a way to share the story of another world with children. I love it!
Rating: 5

This was a beautiful book. This year our sixth gr...

2009-03-02T18:29:00.000-05:00

This was a beautiful book. This year our sixth graders have been focusing on books about dreams. This is a great book to add to our reading list. It tells of the dreams from the students of Afghanistan who are the same age. I will also use this book to go along with the fictional books that we read about Afghanistan. The visuals in this book are also beautiful. The looks on the children's faces bring their voices to life.
Jackie
Consultant teacher

Afghan Dreams
By Tony O’Brien and Mike Sullivan...

2009-03-02T12:30:00.000-05:00

Afghan Dreams
By Tony O’Brien and Mike Sullivan

Afghan Dreams is a beautiful book. That it was written by a photographer is obvious from the lovely, poignant pictures of Kabul and the young people who live there. Unfortunately, I think the book would have better captured the attention of children by having a writer involved in the project.

The information from the children (in their own words) seems stilted at times and disconnected. For example, Farima talks about how when they went to Pakistan during the war, they had to pay rent for a house and it was hard, but she doesn’t provide (or the writers didn’t include) details about why it was hard and what life was like. Her next paragraph talks about how she would make Mentu for children from another country and she describes this food. The final paragraph talks about how she loves her parents and that “The most important thing that can happen in my country is peace—to live peacefully and be able to continue my studies.” Her words are minimal and the reader is left feeling unsatisfied.

Although it is obvious to adults reading this book that the children are responding to questions from the interviewers, children might find this confusing as the stories do not flow. Also, what would be most interesting for most students is how the children live in Afganistan, but interesting, day-to-day examples of life are often missing. When Tajalaa, an eight-year-old, talks about his life he says that he can’t go to school because his mother says they must work. What kind of work does an eight-year-old do? How much money can he make? What is their house like? These are the kinds of questions that my students want to know the answers to.

Younger students (elementary school) will want answers to simple questions. Older students in middle school will just want more information about the children in the book.

So while I think that the intent of this book is a noble one—to learn about the children of Afghanistan and their thoughts and dreams—the book fails to really help with the international understanding that was its intent.

I would rate this a 3.5 for the content and a 5 for the photographs. Welcome at some picnics for its beauty and incredible pictures.

Pamela Kramer
Reading Teacher
Highwood, Illinois

This book is a winner. I used this with some of my...

2009-03-02T11:03:00.000-05:00

This book is a winner. I used this with some of my elemetary writing classes. I started by reading a few of the Afghani children's stories. As a class we compared and contrasted their lives with ours.
I showed the rest of the pictures to the students without reading the stories that went along with them. I had my students closely observe the pictures. Each student chose an Afghani child that they wanted to write about.
I sent them back to their seats to predict and write about 3 things they thought their child would hope/wish for. Afterwards, they turned and talked with a friend about their writing.
The next day, we came back together as a whole group and shared. The children were eager to compare what they wrote with what the Afghani children had said. Some had picked up the common threads they had heard at the beginning of the book the day before, and the ones that hadn't as of yet, truly understood by the end of our writing and discussions.
This book, with it's close-up pictures of the children of Afghanistan, and their words provide an engaging, honest picture of what some of the children of the country live with every day. It made the lessons less abstract to my young students as they attempted to connect and empathize with children less fortunate than themselves, yet still full of hope.
I would rate this book a 5 out of 5.

Laura Backman
Reading Specialist
Melville School
http://lemontheduck.com

What a great insight into Afghan children's life. ...

2009-03-01T12:23:00.000-05:00

What a great insight into Afghan children's life. This book offers a window for the US children to compare their own lives with Afghan children. 5 all the way for this book.... Great Job.... Submitted by Kdeeb, Sarasota Florida