The Day of the Pelican [Hardcover]

Katherine Paterson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 19, 2009 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

Meli Lleshi is positive that her drawing of her teacher with his pelican nose started it all. The Lleshis are Albanians living in Kosovo, a country trying to fight off Serbian oppressors, and suddenly they are homeless refugees. Old and young alike, they find their courage tested by hunger, illness, the long, arduous journey, and danger on every side. Then, unexpectedly, they are brought to America by a church group and begin a new life in a small Vermont town. The events of 9/11 bring more challenges for this Muslim family--but this country is their home now and there can be no turning back.A compassionate, powerful novel by a master storyteller.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5–8—On the day 11-year-old Meli draws a picture of a pelican that bears a striking resemblance to her teacher—and gets caught—spring is just around the corner in Kosovo. But along with the change in season in 1998 come life-altering changes for Albanian Kosovars, the ethnic group to which Meli's family belongs. Because she is forced to stay after class, her 13-year-old brother, Mehmet, heads home alone and is taken by the Serbian police, beaten, and dumped in a field to die. When he returns home after being nursed to health by the Kosovo Liberation Army, his family must flee. Surviving extreme hardship and violence, they arrive in a refugee camp, and at long last immigrate to the United States. All is well until the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, when their family is mistreated for being Muslim, albeit nonpracticing. Kindness and forgiveness on both sides bring about healing and the realization that the Lleshis have truly found a home. The themes of family loyalty and living peaceably with others along with the exploration of ethnic prejudice are handled so as to make for meaningful discussion in a classroom or book group, and the span of the main characters' ages through their teen years makes the book an appropriate choice for a wide range of readers. The setting, complete with television and other fixtures of contemporary life, demonstrates that this sort of tragedy belongs to our own time and not just the distant past. While attempts to explain the political situation at times break the flow of the narrative, this little-known piece of history has been brought to life with sensitivity and grace.—Faith Brautigam, Gail Borden Public Library, Elgin, IL END

Review

“[A] powerful, finely crafted novel.”—Publishers Weekly

“Paterson exposes the complexities of a war halfway around the globe and how its scars reach across an ocean. Young readers who did not know where Kosovo was before will not forget it after reading the Lleshis's remarkable story.”—Shelf Awareness

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books; 1 edition (October 19, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0547181884
• ISBN-13: 978-0547181882
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #836,167 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Katherine Paterson has twice won both the Newbery Medal and the National Book Award. She received the 1998 Hans Christian Andersen Medal as well as the 2006 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for the body of her work. An active promoter of reading and literacy, she lives with her husband, John, in Barre, Vermont. They have four children and seven grandchildren. Visit Katherine Paterson on her web site at www.terabithia.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating & Hopeful Immigration Story, October 8, 2009

By 

L. K. Messner "Kate Messner" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Day of the Pelican (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

Katherine Paterson's THE DAY OF THE PELICAN lends a human face to the 1998-1999 unrest in the former Yugoslavia. Meli and her family are Albanians persecuted by the Serbs under the reign of Milosevic and forced to flee for their lives, leaving everything they've known except for one another. Their journey is a perilous one with twists, turns, and hardships that will have young readers holding their breath. Even when the family seems to be starting a new life in a safer place, new challenges arise, and Meli and her brother are forced to draw on their courage and strength to make a new home. As I read this book, I couldn't help being reminded of Karen Hesse's brilliant LETTERS FROM RIFKA - historical fiction about another young girl facing persecution in another time and place. The two books would work well paired together in a classroom, as a study of immigration and the factors that bring families from other lands to America. (ARC)

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Informative, If Not Stellar, November 2, 2009

By 

Readerly (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Day of the Pelican (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

Day of the Pelican is the story of a girl and her family and their struggle to survive the turbulent conflict between the Serbs and Kosovars. Full of historical detail and accuracy, the book provides a rare glimpse into an untold part of our history. As familiar as children are with the atrocities of the Holocaust, they are unfamiliar with those of the Serbian conflict. Therefore, it is a welcome addition to the historical fiction genre.

The story is simple to follow, but I did not find the characters to be well-developed. Perhaps this was intentional on Patterson's part as, without the depth of characters, the devestating events of the growing conflict resonate clearly.

A welcome book and one which should find its place in the classroom!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gem of a book that introduces younger readers to the recent genocides that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia, September 12, 2009

By 

C. Quinn (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Day of the Pelican (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

This masterful tale of one girl's journey from childhood across a war-torn landscape easily stands with Paterson's body of work. Meli and her family are forced to flee their home- first to the mountains, then to a refugee camp in Macedonia, and finally to a small town in Vermont- in order to survive as Kosovo goes up in flames. Though the harsh realities of war are muted in the narrative, there are veiled references to rape, torture, and genocide that will be picked up by older readers. The strength of this story lies in its focus on what these larger world events mean to one girl already struggling to chart her path into adulthood. When Meli leaves Kosovo, she leaves her childhood behind as well.

I've lived in the region, and believe that Paterson captured the flavor of terror of the time. Not many books have been written that cover the genocides that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia; this wonderful tale will serve as an excellent entry into the time period for teen readers. Highly recommended!