Scan barcode
onceuponacarm's review against another edition
4.0
An orphan, Valli discovers that she is not actually related to the "aunt and uncle" who have raised her. Fleeing from a life of coal scavenging and her not-really-uncle's alcoholism, Valli hitches a ride on a truck and finds herself alone on the streets of Kolkata. She adopts a life of "borrowing," i.e. stealing things and then passing them on to someone else in need, sleeping in graveyards and alleys, and begging for money and food. Though mostly content on her own, moments of terror come when Valli encounters "monsters," or people who have suffered from leprosy. She later discovers that she suffers from leprosy, but must overcome her own superstitions and fears in order to get the treatment she needs and to turn her life around. Valli is bright and likable in spite of her circumstances, and this story opened my eyes to the reality of leprosy in the 21st century and the consequences of continued misunderstandings about the disease.
kristenremenar's review against another edition
4.0
Valli is an orphan living in the streets of Kolkata, India. She lives day to day, "borrowing" and sleeping in the streets, and doesn't know that the reason she feels no pain in her feet is because she has leprosy. Good realistic fiction book to show a view of life most American kids know nothing about. There is a vague-ish reference to a "house of ill repute" that Valli almost ends up in, but many kids won't get what goes on there.
janjem's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty heavy topics covered for Middle School students, esp. 6th grade. Some inferred abuse, homelessness, leprosy.
aoosterwyk's review against another edition
2.0
This book took about an hour to read. It bounced lightly over such topics as poverty, homelessness, leprosy, prostitution and sex slavery and thievery. The main character thinks she has magic feet because she can stand in the hot coals of a burning ghat and not feel a thing. Lucky for her because her feet are in fact rotting beneath her. I found the presentation of such serious and tragic issues too superficial and brief. I guess middle school would be the audience, but who would want to explain what is really happening and have that discussion at that level?
reeeeiddddddddd's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
caitcoy's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this short book on a young girl named Valli in India. Despite the fact that it is short, I think it does a good job of touching on serious issues and giving enough information to be interesting and make you want to know more. I'd say the level would be about middle school and I think it's important for these issues to be addressed at those ages as well as later. The author does a good job tackling some of the more tragic aspects of Valli's journey from street child to a leprosy clinic and manages to do so with an independent, entertaining female heroine I liked and wanted to know more about. I'd highly recommend it as a quick read!
mb101's review against another edition
5.0
This is probably my fourth time reading Valli's tale of "borrowing" as she navigates the harshness of being a street child with "magic feet" that turns out to be leprosey. I love this book so much, and am pleased to finally have my own copy! When I first read this in middle school, I knew that one day I would want to read this with my kids. Now I have a copy for that inevitable day years from now!
puglord's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
muddypuddle's review against another edition
4.0
Deborah Ellis is amazing. Valli is homeless and all alone in the world. She lives on the streets of Kolkata (Calcutta) begging, stealing (she calls it borrowing), practical joking, and finding safe places to sleep. She is afraid of "the monsters" that she occasionally sees, people who have leprosy, little knowing that she has it, too. Granted, it's in the beginning stages, but..... She meets a doctor, a female doctor, in a very believable way, a doctor who recognizes this kid as the smart young lady that she is, and teaches her to trust in a way that she's never understood before. Short, powerful book. Valli is so believable...smart and funny and full of amazing questions about everything.
taniabotes's review against another edition
3.0
"If you were not scared, you would be having just and ordinary day." That got through to me. I knew what an ordinary day was like. I did not want to go back to that.
A beautifully written story about the life a poor girl in India. Even though the book was short, I felt like I knew Valli. Highly recommended with young readers, I will definitely be saving this one for when my kids are a bit older. It has been listed for or won the following awards:
Winner of the Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth 2012
Short-listed for the Governor General's Award: Children's Text 2011
Selected for the ALA Notable Children's Books List 2012
Selected for the CCBC Choices Best of Year 2012
Short-listed for the Ruth and Syliva Schwartz Young Adult/Middle Reader Book Award 2012
Selected for the South Asia Book Award Honor Book 2012
Long-listed for the OLA Tree Awards 2013
Long-listed for the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award 2012
Short-listed for the SYRCA Diamond Willlow Award 2013
The story: Valli is living with a family when she finds out they are not her family, but just a family that took her in. She is an orphan and sees no reason to stay with a family who cares little for her and abuses her. She hops on a truck carrying coal and out of the city. She lives well and happily on the street in Kolkota until a chance encounter with a benevolent doctor reveals that she has leprosy. She just begins to get treatment when she is scared away by her own fear of the other lepers who are disfigured. Valli makes her way back to street life, uncertain if she can ever go back to the hospital.