The Turtle of Oman (Turtle of Oman #1)

by Naomi Shihab Nye (Author)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade
Series: Turtle of Oman

Here are some things Aref loves about his home.

  1. Mish-Mish, his cat
  2. The dunes in the desert
  3. His friends Diram and Sulima
  4. Fresh apricots
  5. Crispy fish served in baskets
  6. His grandfather, Sidi
  7. His excellent rock collection
  8. The turtles of Oman

Aref does not want to move to Michigan. He's sure the kids there won't like him. Also, he has everything he needs right where he is! But Sidi has another point of view. Sidi says Aref will go and come back. Just like a falcon or the turtles of Oman, he'll travel far and make his way home to Muscat.

So Aref sets out to say good-bye to everything he loves. Good-bye to Mish-Mish, Diram, Sulima, dunes, Sidi . . . But how can he stand it?

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School Library Journal

Gr 3-6--In the last week before his family leaves Oman for a three-year stint in Michigan, Aref has a hard time saying good-bye to his beloved home, particularly his grandfather, Sidi. Readers are never told Aref's exact age; he is clearly articulate, yet excerpts from his notebook show his writing has not transitioned to cursive. Friends come to say goodbye; the suitcase must be packed; and Sidi takes Aref for an overnight camping trip, fishing on the Indian Ocean and memorably, to visit a nesting ground for many kinds of turtles. The language is fresh and lyrical at times, with vivid descriptions of daily life and Aref's obvious anxiety about leaving. Not much happens in the way of plot, but the excellence of the portrayal of the setting and the emotional state of a young boy subject to the loving whims of his parents are vividly captured. "When you drove out in the country, you felt closer to the earth than you felt in the city. You had better thoughts in the country. Your thoughts made falcon moves, dipping and rippling, swooping back into your brain to land." The omniscient narration thus brings a larger context than Aref alone could share. Simply told, yet richly rewarding.--Carol A. Edwards, Denver Public Library, CO

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Publishers Weekly

Aref Al-Amri doesn't want to accompany his professor parents on their three-year stint to Ann Arbor, Mich., so he spends his last days in Oman thinking of reasons not to go. Nye (There Is No Difference Now) writes in lyrical prose from a close third-person perspective, poignantly capturing Aref's impressions of and reflections on the people, places, and experiences he will leave behind, such as the ocean view from his house's roof, his cat Mish-Mish, and conversations with his beloved grandfather, Sidi: "Words blended together like paint on paper when you brushed a streak of watercolor orange onto a page, blew on it and thin rivers of color spread out, touching other colors to make a new one." Aref's handwritten lists of newly learned facts ("Wood turtles are enormous") or questions he wonders about ("Why can't Sidi come with us?") appear throughout, emphasizing his intellect and emotions: "Were eyes little factories that made as many tears as you needed?" While conveying Aref's ambivalence about leaving home, this tender story also reveals the inner resources that will help him navigate his new environment. Ages 8-12. (Aug.)

Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"Magical . . .Will deeply touch young readers who have also moved between countries—and it will enlighten their new friends."—Booklist
Naomi Shihab Nye
Naomi Shihab Nye is an award-winning writer and editor whose work has appeared widely. She edited the ALA Notable international poetry collection, This Same Sky, and The Tree Is Older Than You Are: Poems and Paintings from Mexico, as well as The Space Between Our Footsteps: Poems and Paintings from the Middle East. Her books of poems include Fuel, Red Suitcase, and Words Under the Words. A Guggenheim fellow, she is also the author of the young adult novel Habibi, which was named an ALA Notable Book, a Best Book for Young Adults, and winner of the Jane Addams Children's Book Award as well as the Book Publishers of Texas award from the Texas Institute of Letters. Naomi lives in San Antonio, Texas, with her husband, Michael, and their son, Madison.

Nancy Carpenter is the acclaimed illustrator of Thomas Jefferson and the Mammoth Hunt, Queen Victoria's Bathing Machine, Fannie in the Kitchen, and Loud Emily, among other books. Her works have garnered many honors, including two Christopher Awards and the Jane Addams Children's Book Award. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. Visit her at NancyCarpenter.website.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780062019783
Lexile Measure
700
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Greenwillow Books
Publication date
May 03, 2016
Series
Turtle of Oman
BISAC categories
JUV013030 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Multigenerational
JUV039090 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | New Experience
JUV039250 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Emigration & Immigration
JUV030110 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | Middle East
Library of Congress categories
-
Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children
Recommended 2015 - 2015
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award
Nominee 2016 - 2016
Middle East Book Awards
Winner 2015 - 2015

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