Chanda's Wars

March 1, 2008
Gr 8 Up-Chanda has reached some level of stability in her life since readers first met her in "Chanda's Secrets" (Annick, 2004). She takes care of her younger brother and sister and works as a teaching assistant to support her family. However, Chanda is pursued by nightmares. Friends and neighbors soon persuade her to take her siblings to the countryside to end the feud with their mother's family. The ravages of AIDS and poverty on a fictional, but realistic sub-Saharan African country are once again depicted with unflinching honesty, but it is the issue of child soldiers, a tragedy that affects more than 300,000 children around the world, that takes center stage. Stratton deftly handles the devastating effects war can have on young people. Horrific things happen to the characters, though Chanda's first-person narrative never gets unnecessarily graphic in the detail. The author strives for authenticity in the psyche of child soldiers and, through substantial research, captures a voice that is seldom heard. This story is both suspenseful and engaging. Chanda is steadfast in the face of adversity, and the book is as hopeful and spirited as its protagonist."Ernie Bond, Salisbury University, MD"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2007
Likehis Printz Honor Book, Chanda's Secret (2004), Stratton's sequel, set in a fictional African country, revolves aroundChanda Kabele, orphaned by AIDS.In this book, Chanda, who tells the story in an immediate, first-person, present-tense narrative, is caring for her younger brother, Soly, and sister, Iris.Horrors of thecivil war areall around them, andIris and Soly are kidnapped by rebels and turned into brutal soldiers. Therealisticdescription ofChanda's tracking the children through the bush to rescuethem is intriguing, andreaders will appreciatethe girl'sfeelings as she wonders ifher siblingscanever recover from what they have seen, what they have done. Familiarity with the previous book isn't necessary;this one starts off with detailed references to the past?toomany, in fact. But the characters are drawn without sentimentality, and the story is a moving portrayal ofbetrayal and love. Thearmy's brutality and the traumas of the child soldiersare graphic and disturbing; there's nothing easy and comfortable here.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)

March 1, 2008
This sequel follows right on the heels of Chanda's Secret, which was set in a fictitious southern African country. Chanda and her younger siblings, Iris and Soly, are living as a makeshift family with Chanda's friend Esther and her younger siblings. Chanda is unable to forgive her grandmother for abandoning their mother when she contracted AIDS, but when Granny invites them to visit, Chanda agrees to make the journey to her village. Chanda finds forgiveness even more difficult when, in order to secure her own future, Granny arranges a marriage between Chanda and a neighbor. The book's slow pace finally picks up when rebel soldiers invade the village, capture Soly and Iris and other children, and force them into military slavery. Readers will need the first book to untangle the various characters and relationships, and the plot becomes a convenience to show the brutal treatment of children during wartime. Still, the inhumanity of which humankind is capable -- within families, toward strangers, and for political gain -- emerges clearly along with Chanda's unwavering strength and determination.

(Copyright 2008 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2008
In this story set in a fictitious African country, Chanda (Chanda's Secrets) and her siblings, Iris and Soly, agree to visit their grandmother, who abandoned their mother when she contracted AIDS. Rebel soldiers invade Granny's village, and Iris and Soly are forced into military slavery. The inhumanity of which humankind is capable emerges clearly along with Chanda's unwavering strength and determination.

(Copyright 2008 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)