Winter, Jeanette. (2005). The Librarian of Basra. New York, NY: Harcourt Inc. A true story from Iraq describes the unbelievable courage of the librarian of Basra. Worried that the “fires of war” will destroy the precious library books, Alia Muhammad Baker is determined to move them to a safe place, despite the authority’s objection to having them moved. Little by little, each and every day, Alia relocates the books. As the war moves closer, and with the help of friends, Alia saves all of the books before the library is burnt down. As she waits for peace to come in Basra, she will continue to protect her books. Nonfiction Picture Book, JMM.
Thoughts: Winter’s use of color in this picture book accurately symbolizes the state in which Basra is in at that moment. In the beginning, a bright yellow is used, but as the war begins to move closer, the colors transform into an orange and eventually red, indicating the fires of war have arrived! Towards the end, to signify that the war has calmed down in Basra the colors become a bit lighter. Especially when Alia is shown dreaming of peace, the colors used are a light blue, portraying a serene setting. I liked that this picture book focuses on the effects the Iraqi war has on institutions such as a library, because it makes the idea of war more accessible to a younger audience, like an elementary class. Instead of introducing young children to the horrors of war and destruction of people, it approaches war from a different perspective, describing the threats it poses on a town and in this case, the library of Basra and its books.
Classroom Applications: This book could be read aloud to older elementary students, or even older, so that the teacher can appropriately facilitate any conversations that may come up at the end. Either before or after reading this book aloud with students, the teacher and students can locate Iraq on the map and see where it is in relation to where they are currently located in the world. Following the read aloud, children can conduct further research into Iraq, finding information that would give them greater insight into what it would be like to live there. Students can also look for text to real world, or self, connections. Students can think about how this story relates to their life, thoughts, and feelings and what they would do if something bad happened to their library. Would they help? As an extension, and for those who are curious, this could either be done individually or as a class, students can write to Jeanette Winter to find out if Alia’s library has been rebuilt. Having an answer to this may provide closure for some students. Students can also work together to draw and design a new library for Alia and the city of Basra.
