A Girl Named Disaster

A Girl Named Disaster, written by Nancy Farmer, is a very long and sophisticated chapter book. The book centers around a young African woman named Nhamo who is on a quest to find her father and escape from a marriage to a cruel man. Nhamo is only eleven and during her journey she is dealing with near death experiences, loneliness, and starvation.

This book is a realistic fiction chapter book good for readers in 6-8th grades. There are 42 chapters in this book and could be very complicated if not guided by the teacher.

After reading this book, I would pose questions such as:

• What are the two religions in the book?
• According to Nhamo's uncle, what happens to children who don't obey their parents?
• What are the beliefs of the two religions?

A motivational activity I would include after reading this book would be creating an illustrated children's book in groups. I think this is a very creative way of using some of the stories in the book  that Nhamo uses to teach lessons. Another activity would be the re-creating of the setting in a shoe box diorama that would be displayed until the novel is complete.

Other books this author has written are:

• The Ear, The Eye, & The Arm
• The House of the Scorpion
• Do You Know Me?

This book gives readers a chance to imagine what Nhamo's life is life is life through her dramatic and humorous storytelling. Nhamo is a very young brave girl who is determined to survive her harsh circumstance.