Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree
By Lucinda Dyer,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Unforgettable story of girls kidnapped by Boko Haram.
Add rating
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this book.
Where to Read
Community Reviews
There aren't any parent reviews yet. Be the first to review this title.
What's the Story?
As BURIED BENEATH THE BAOBAB TREE begins, the narrator (known only by her family nickname of Ya Ta) is living in a small town in rural Nigeria, dreaming of new shoes for church on Sunday and winning a scholarship to a prestigious boarding school. She has two best friends, Sarah (also a Christian) and Aisha (a Muslim who's left school to be married). Her dream of winning the scholarship does come true, but it's followed by the nightmare of Boko Haram attacking her town. She, Sarah, and Aisha are taken deep into the forest, where the Christian women and girls are given a choice: Convert to Islam or die. Ya Ta and Sarah choose life. They are given new names and are forced to attend classes on the Quran, where Ya Ta is often lashed for being a bad student. Eventually both are given to soldiers as "virgin brides." Ya Ta (now called Salamatu) is brutalized by her husband, while Sarah (now Zainab) seems to have fallen under the spell of hers.
Is It Any Good?
This simply told but emotionally intense story about one girl shines a bright light on the plight of untold thousands of other kidnapped women and girls. While Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree may be set in a world far from that of its readers, they'll quickly find they have many things in common with Ya Ta, including anxiety about doing well in school, a first crush, and problems with a best friend.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the real-life plight of girls like the ones in Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree. So many girls are kidnapped by groups like Boko Haram and forced into slavery or marriage by their captors. Is there anything the governments of the world can do to stop this from happening?
Why do you think the Christians and Muslims in Ya Ta's hometown lived so peaceably together? What lessons can we learn from how they interacted with one another?
Do you think it's possible for someone like Ya Ta, who's survived such a brutal and terrifying experience, to rebuild her life and reach the goals she had once set for herself?
Book Details
- Author: Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani
- Genre: Contemporary Fiction
- Topics: Book Characters , Great Girl Role Models , History
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
- Publication date: September 4, 2018
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 13 - 18
- Number of pages: 330
- Available on: Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: January 25, 2019
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Read
Our Editors Recommend
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate