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Small Acts of Amazing Courage
- By Gloria Whelan
- Genre: Historical Fiction
Common Sense Media says
Feisty heroine provides eye-opening look at colonial India.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this historical novel unflinchingly portrays racist and classist attitudes in British India in the early 1900s – both British disregard for the dignity of Indians, and upper-caste Indian treatment of lower-caste people. There’s also a strong message about thinking for yourself, and not accepting unjust authority. This is an intriguing entry into what India was like in the aftermath of World War
I, and a primer on Gandhi and India’s struggle to be free of British
rule. There’s little direct violence, but there are reference to the 1919
massacre at Amritsar, Indian rebels being tied to British cannons and
“blown to bits,” and children deliberately deformed and put to work as
beggars.
What's the story?
In 1919, Rosalind’s father returns from war to preside over his British family living in an Indian town. Freethinking Rosalind quickly finds herself at odds with her father's outdated views and enrages him by defying his order not to get involved with Indian affairs. After she rescues a baby from a life as an abused beggar, and sneaks off to hear Gandhi speak, her father sends her off to England to live with spinster aunts and attend a "proper" school. But the change of scenery doesn't chasten her, and she quickly sparks a domestic rebellion in her own family.
Is it any good?
Gloria Whelan provides an informative look at England and India after the First World War, capturing an important period in the history of both countries. Rosalind is a perfect character for telling that larger story, as she is dealing with her own ideas about independence at home.
Though often charming, the characters surrounding Rosalind remain two-dimensional. The plot makes a predictable march and the ending leaves the thorniest issues unresolved. There is some lovely writing, and readers will be impressed by Rosalind's perceptive reflections near the end of her story -- but this is mostly a history lesson dressed up in a coming-of-age tale. Nevertheless, this tale is likely to entice young readers to seek out more on Gandhi and the end of colonial authority in India.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about teen characters in historical novels. Why is a teen like Rosalind a good character for talking about the changes in India at the time? How might the story be told differently from the perspective of her mother, or Mrs. Nelson -- or if it was written as straight history instead of fiction?
Independent Rosalind repeatedly defies her
parents and guardians, breaking rules and lying to them -- but she is
acting with the conviction of her beliefs. Does this make her behavior OK? What would you do if you had a big difference of opinion with your family, like Rosalind does?
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| Author: | Gloria Whelan |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Historical Fiction |
| Publisher: | Simon & Schuster |
| Publication date: | April 19, 2011 |
| Number of pages: | 224 |
| Hardcover price: | $15.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 9 - 12 |
| Read aloud: | 9 |
| Read alone: | 9 |
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