GUEST WRITER JOSEPH PRICE RECOMMENDS LION OF THE SKY BY RITU HEMNANI
“He says when the British leave, India will be sliced in two. Broken, by a line to be drawn on a map by a British man… The British man who’s never been to India is coming for the very first time, and he will decide.”
Lion Of The Sky is the story of a young Hindu boy named Raj who dreams of winning the local kite flying completion with his best friend, a Muslim boy named Iqbal. Muslims and Hindus had lived in coexistence in India for many lifetimes, but this all changes for Raj and his family when they get the news that India is going to be partitioned, and Muslims and Hindus are going to be separated. For Raj and his family, as well as countless others, this means they are about to be torn away from everything they have ever known.
This starts a long journey for Raj and his family where they must start over and battle horrific conditions just to survive. Raj must grow quickly into the person he needs to be for his family, if he is to help them survive and also earn his fathers approval. He must adapt to his now ever-changing environment, and it is through this journey that he discovers himself, and unites his family like never before. Lion Of The Sky is a story of resiliency in the face of great uncertainty, and it is a story that was, unfortunately, was a very true story for millions of people who lived in India. In fact, Raj’s story is inspired by Hemnani’s own grandparents’ story.
Through this story, Hemnani shows that even in the face of the most daunting challenges, where all odds are stacked against you, there is a way forward, while also highlighting a part of history that may not be known to many students. She introduces students to this horrific part of colonial history through a story in which they can they can envision themselves by having characters of all ages struggle through the journey. Additionally, she uses many true historical events to bring the story together, and uses the description of many traditional Indian foods and recipes to add care and craft to this book.
Hemnani chose a unique style to bring Raj to life – unrhymed verse. Through this medium she is able to take advantage of the blank space on the page and it makes many words and events tug at the heart strings a little more. Along with her effective use of blank space, is her great use of titles, with each section lasting a maximum of 3 pages, there is 100+ titles throughout the book, and none felt out of place. The author is able to effectively use all the space on the page (or the lack thereof in some cases) to her advantage, in doing so really tells an amazing story.
Joseph Price is a BEd student at the University of New Brunswick who is mainly interested in history and literature. He is very passionate about Canadian history and also loves to play hockey.