August 21

‘On Two Feet and Wings’ by Abbas Kazerooni

Abbas leaves his family when he is 9 years old to escape being drafted into the army. He’s alone on the streets of Istanbul, trying to survive. His journey is aided by the kindness of strangers and his innate uncanny sense of who is trustworthy and who is not.

On Two Feet and Wings is the author’s autobiography. It’s highly accessible, harrowing enough but not too graphic, making it highly suitable for upper primary – lower secondary students. In the most graphic scenes, Abbas is beaten up, has a knife held to his throat and fears for his life. But what shines through is not the danger or the destitution, but Abbas’ strength of character and his will to survive. The author’s tone is never condescending, never preaching, but the story holds many lessons for today’s young readers.

This story forms a wonderful adjunct to recent titles dealing with displacement, such as “In the Sea There are Crocodiles” by Fabio Geda, “No Safe Place” by Deborah Ellis and “Mountain Wolf” by Rosanne Hawke (in my view, the latter two books are suitable only for teens and above).

Mrs Osborne

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Posted August 21, 2012 by marjk in category Adventure stories, Biographies, Realistic fiction, Teacher Reviews

About the Author

Teacher-librarian at Aquinas College, Southport, Gold Coast, Australia

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