A Gift for Sadia

Perry, Marie Fritz. A Gift for Sadia. Northfield, MN: Buttonweed, 2004. Print.

A Gift for Sadia by Marie Fritz Perry is a rare example of children’s literature that portrays Somali-American children and their adjustment to America.  I chose this book because there is a large Somali-American population in Minnesota and many of them could be in a similar situation as Sadia.  Also, there is surprisingly little Somali-American children’s literature, so I felt I should use as many examples as I could find from the limited choices. 

In A Gift for Sadia, Sadia and her mother, both Somali immigrants, work to adjust to a new life in Rochester, MN.  Both have extremely limited English skills.  Sadia finds a link between a goose, who is from another country as well (Canada) and he understands what she is saying when she gives him food.  As time goes by she forms a friendship with the goose and tells it about her struggles in her school's ELL class, specifically learning the ABC's.  Later in the book as she is reciting them in class she gets to the letter U and doesn't know what comes next.  A flying V of geese pass by the window and she remembers the letter and recites the rest of the alphabet.  From this moment on she has greater confidence and feels more at home in Rochester.

Looking at the readability lexile’s I found A Gift for Sadia to be at an early elementary language level because there are many high frequency words used in addition to some lesser-known but still common words.  The sentences are, on average, medium length.  Cognitively, I also found it to be at the early elementary level.  Common themes such as trying to fit in at school, interest in animals and a basic curiosity of other cultures (which they have seen and realized in the early elementary grades) are all present in the text.  Socially, I found it to be in the middle elementary level.  In order to fully appreciate Sadia’s point of view and be empathetic to her struggles students would need to be socially mature enough to think but themselves in Sadia’s place.

The characteristics of high quality literature were firmly present in A Gift for Sadia.  The main character, Sadia, faces problems that are believable and realistic to students.  Trying to fit in, discovering one's identity and struggling to learn new material in school are topics, at least on a large scale, many students face every day, regardless of culture. 

Sadia overcomes her problems through compassion and relating to others (the goose) on a basic level.  Often, showing others you care and are able to agree with them helps create positive relationships.  Instead of getting mad, Sadia stays relatively calm, although still frustrated, and through her hard work she achieves her goal of reciting the ABC's.

Sadia is a multi-sided character who reveals herself through her actions and thoughts. She is a quiet girl who thinks as much as she feels even it isn‘t outwardly visible.  Her emotions of being helpful, and dedicated are her strengths.  Her weakness is her limited English language and communication skills.  These are solved through her English language learning class at school, interactions with classmates and the goose. 

The setting is in modern times but Sadia's cultural identity gives students an understanding of how difficult and confusing it must be to be a new immigrant in a country.  She describes the war in Somalia and how it forced her to move to America.  War being at someone’s doorstep clearly shows a cultural divide between Sadia in Somalia and the students in Rochester, MN.  It should be noted to the class that Somalia is not defined by a war and that there is much more to the country.

The multi-leveled themes are: love, perseverance, helpfulness and culture.  These were shown through Sadia’s love for her mother and the goose.  When the goose was injured, Sadia fed it and let it know it was safe and loved.  This helpfulness showed me that Sadia’s actions spoke louder than her limited English words ever could.  The goose noticed this as well and responded positively to Sadia’s actions.  The cultural elements were Sadia’s clothing, her descriptions of Somalia and her mother’s Somali language being used.  Also, when Sadia’s thoughts are written they are in a broken English.

In order to appreciate the text, higher thought processes must be used.  Readers must see the similarities between the goose and Sadia to understand their connection.  Often Sadia’s words are written like an English language learner may say them.  Students have to internalize this form of English to understand Sadia.  A sentence like, “How cold these birds must be!  How cold am I, too, in this new place they call Rochester.” is a prime example of Sadia’s beginning grasp of English. 

Reading over the book I found it to be free of negative stereotypes.

After reading through A Gift for Sadia I think the literature inspires students to understand what ELL students may be going through.  The book makes students more empathetic to other's needs, especially those who are new to the United States.  It expands on their knowledge of the already existing academic field by teaching students about other cultures, specifically Somali culture.

The literary elements I saw were person against society, mainly Sadia being used to life in Somalia and having to adapt to the cold, confusing and gray world of Rochester.  Characterization was also present in Sadia’s actions and struggles.  It is believable that she would relate more to animals than humans.  Through her care of the goose there is less judgment and pressure when compared to people.  Her struggles were mainly to understand the alphabet and American culture while still retaining her own culture.  Her outward explanation of, “Not understanding a thing that was said” was an enormous struggle she eventually overcame with the help of her goose.  Finally, style was shown through Sadia’s broken English and attempts to understand the new ways of life in Rochester.

The illustrations were a big let me down for me.  They looked to be done by colored pencil and were done by the author as well.  Certain pictures didn't seem to look "right" and objects were occasionally disproportionate to other objects in the picture. 

An idea for a mini lesson would be to bring in the Somali alphabet and have students try to learn it like Sadia tried to learn the American alphabet.  This would let them understand the struggle she went through.  Also, a few of the key Somali language phrases could be taught so students could communicate (on a basic level) with some of their classmates who may be in Sadia’s situation.

I felt the target audience was early to middle elementary because it is simple story to understand but the wordings Sadia uses and the grasp of a different culture may be moderately challenging for younger learners.