Child Soldier
By Jessica Dee Humphreys, Michel Chikwanine
Illustrated by Claudia Davila
Published by Kids Can Press, Limited
Age Range: 10+
Find a copy at Amazon | IndieBound | B&N | Worldcat
“An enlightening, accessible, and, above all, child-friendly introduction to the issue.” —School Library Journal (Starred Review)
Description
Michel Chikwanine was five years old when he was abducted from his school-yard soccer game in the Democratic Republic of Congo and forced to become a soldier for a brutal rebel militia. Against the odds, Michel managed to escape and find his way back to his family, but he was never the same again. After immigrating to Canada, Michel was encouraged by a teacher to share what happened to him in order to raise awareness about child soldiers around the world, and this book is part of that effort. Told in the first person and presented in a graphic novel format, the gripping story of Michel’s experience is moving and unsettling. But the humanity he exhibits in the telling, along with Claudia Dávila’s illustrations, which evoke rather than depict the violent elements of the story, makes the book accessible for this age group and, ultimately, reassuring and hopeful.
The back matter contains further information, as well as suggestions for ways children can help. This is a perfect resource for engaging youngsters in social studies lessons on global awareness and social justice issues, and would easily spark classroom discussions about conflict, children’s rights and even bullying. Michel’s actions took enormous courage, but he makes clear that he was and still is an ordinary person, no different from his readers. He believes everyone can do something to make the world a better place, and so he shares what his father told him: “If you ever think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping in a room with a mosquito.”
Reviews & Accolades
“Chikwanine, who was abducted by a rebel militia at age five and now works as a public speaker and activist, describes a childhood filled with horrors, heartbreak, and hope growing up in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the 1990s. Writing with Humphreys, he begins with a capsule history of the region’s instabilities before moving on to his early life in the city of Beni; his father was a human rights lawyer, while his mother sold fish and fabric at the market. After Chikwanine and some friends are abducted during an after-school soccer game, the direct first-person narration lays bare the boy’s confusion and pain: “Every day was hard and terrible, filled with fear, torture and death.” Dávila’s panel sequences temper the story’s atrocities, but only slightly: readers see the sandal-clad foot of the friend Chikwanine was forced to kill; elsewhere, bodies hang from trees while he is shown holding a rifle as large as he is. Chikwanine escaped the rebels not long after, but his family’s troubles were just beginning. Back matter provides extensive information about the use of child soldiers worldwide.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and forced to become a child soldier at age five, Chikwanine tells his painful yet ultimately uplifting story with help from coauthor Humphreys and artist Dávila. Though there was unrest in his country, Michel lived a happy, carefree existence with his parents and sisters—until one day after school he was abducted by soldiers. He lived in a state of terror and exhaustion while he underwent training, until he was able to escape and return to his family. However, more trauma lay ahead. Chikwanine, Humphreys, and Dávila handle this difficult subject sensitively; readers are informed that “these events did not occur out of the blue and won’t suddenly happen to you.” The authors gloss over some details to keep the story age appropriate, but they do acknowledge some difficult truths. Chikwanine’s narration is matter of fact but never didactic, emphasizing less the gruesome details and more young Michel’s emotional response and attempts to make sense of the world around him. Earthy hued and gentle, the images make a potentially disturbing topic accessible. Dávila foregoes blood and gore for more delicate, effective ways of depicting fear and danger, such as using darker hues, extreme close-ups, and dramatic angles. Several pages of back matter provide more information on Chikwanine’s life, child soldiers in general, and resources for those who want to get involved combating this problem. An enlightening, accessible, and, above all, child-friendly introduction to the issue.”
—School Library Journal (Starred Review)
“An ex-child soldier tells his horrifying tale, beginning with being kidnapped at the age of 5 and forced to kill his best friend. Graphic in format but not detail, co-author Chikwanine’s narrative begins with his arrival in Canada, then flashes back to the early 1990s and happy childhood days in the Democratic Republic of Congo. These quickly end in terror as a ragged band of militia snatch him up with schoolmates, blindfold him, put a gun in his hands, and cajole him into pulling the trigger. “Your family will never take you back now. We are your only family.” He escapes and discovers otherwise, but the trauma stays with him through flight to a refugee camp in Uganda and immigration to a strange, snowy country. In her large, paneled illustrations Dávila steers clear of explicit violence, using facial expressions to convey vividly the rebels’ brutality, the shock of their child captives, and the narrator’s emotional scars. His initial impression that North America’s young people seem preoccupied by trivial concerns ultimately broadens into a hopeful note as he goes on to become a speaker and activist. Further information about his work, plus a Q-and-A about child soldiers worldwide and annotated lists of organizations and other resources close this affecting but not strident call to action. The visual element gives this memoir particular immediacy for audiences who “don’t understand what is happening right now, to kids just like them.”
—Kirkus Reviews
Groups Represented
Congolese
Themes
#OwnVoices
Child Soldiers
Family Separation
Historical
Loss of Childhood
Migrant Life
Survival
Trauma
War
Setting
Congo
Canada
Engagement Projects & Resources
Share with us how you use the book! Leave a comment!
