Description
“Within the Koran, the very first thing God said to Muhammad was once ‘Read.'”*
–Alia Muhammad Baker
Alia Muhammad Baker is a librarian in Basra, Iraq. For fourteen years, her library has been a meeting place for many who love books. Until now. Now war has come, and Alia fears that the library–along side the thirty thousand books within it–will probably be destroyed endlessly.
In a war-stricken country where civilians–especially women–have little power, this true story about a librarian’s struggle to save her community’s priceless choice of books reminds us all how, all over the world, the love of literature and the respect for knowledge know no boundaries. Illustrated by Jeanette Winter in bright acrylic and ink.
Includes an creator’s note.
*From the New York Times, July 27, 2003