Dear World by Bana Alabed

Dear World by Bana Alabed ISBN-13: 9781501178443 Hardcover: 224 pages Publisher: Simon & Schuster Released: Oct. 3, 2017

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from NetGalley:
"I’m very afraid I will die tonight.” —Bana Alabed, Twitter, October 2, 2016
“Stop killing us.” —Bana Alabed, Twitter, October 6, 2016
“I just want to live without fear.” —Bana Alabed, Twitter, October 12, 2016

When seven-year-old Bana Alabed took to Twitter to describe the horrors she and her family were experiencing in war-torn Syria, her heartrending messages touched the world and gave a voice to millions of innocent children.

Bana’s happy childhood was abruptly upended by civil war when she was only three years old. Over the next four years, she knew nothing but bombing, destruction, and fear. Her harrowing ordeal culminated in a brutal siege where she, her parents, and two younger brothers were trapped in Aleppo, with little access to food, water, medicine, or other necessities.

Facing death as bombs relentlessly fell around them—one of which completely destroyed their home—Bana and her family embarked on a perilous escape to Turkey.

In Bana’s own words, and featuring short, affecting chapters by her mother, Fatemah, Dear World is not just a gripping account of a family endangered by war; it offers a uniquely intimate, child’s perspective on one of the biggest humanitarian crises in history. Bana has lost her best friend, her school, her home, and her homeland. But she has not lost her hope—for herself and for other children around the world who are victims and refugees of war and deserve better lives.


My Review:
Dear World is a memoir by a seven-year-old about her experiences during war in Aleppo, Syria. Her mother also wrote short sections giving a mother's perspective on the events described by Bana. They don't talk about the grand scale of what was happening but described what it was like for a peaceful family caught up in a war in their city. We learned a bit about what Bana's life was like before war arrived in Aleppo, how life changed, what her family went through, and how they got out.

Bana wondered if people knew what was happening, so she started tweeting about it, including pictures and videos of the destruction. I haven't seen these, but she's a courageous young woman to do this when it endangered her life. The book included pictures of Bana's family during this time period and some of the destruction caused by the bombing. She didn't use graphic (as in, gory) descriptions but focused on how seeing the death, injuries, and destruction around her made her feel. This is a book that kids to adults should read, and it's a quick read, too.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.