Samira's family are Rohinga, traditionally Muslim from the the country of Burma, now under persecution. She fled with them to Bangladesh, where they live just outside the refugee camps and she sells eggs on the beach as they try to make ends meet. She wants more than her role and gender provide, and starts surfing with the other vendor girls and learning to read in secret. Really well done novel in verse -- dives deeply into many types of conflict while allowing Samira's spirit to shine. ( )

RGG: Perhaps this would be less wonderful if it didn't address the little covered current events of the Rohingya's persecution in Myanmar and refugee status in Bangladesh. Reading Interest: 9-13.

RGG: Perhaps this would be less wonderful if it didn't address the little covered current events of the Rohingya's persecution in Myanmar and refugee status in Bangladesh. Reading Interest: 9-13.

Samira and her family are Rohingya refugees from Burma, eking out a living outside a refugee camp in Bangladesh. Her grandparents drowned on the sea crossing and the family is uncertain about the fate of relatives and friends back home. Samira helps her family by selling egg snacks on the beach to tourists. There she meets and befriends a small group of girls also plying their wares on the beach but who also enjoy surfing when they have access to boards. When a surfing contest and cash prize is announced, Samira sees this as a way to help support her family. But first she must learn to surf. As far as I know this is a first in children's literature about the recent history and plight of the Rohingya people. A unique addition to the genre of immigration stories and still timely as the situation is ongoing. Samira's voice is engaging and hopeful, but also well aware of her outsider status. The one lacking piece for me was her journey to learn surfing--I didn't get a true sense of her growth. ( )