Audience: There are some war horrors (like beatings and be-headings), so I'd say sixth grade and up. The target audience is middle school, but I enjoyed it and my grandma (who lived in Cambodia for a few years) loved it, so there is no cap on the upper end of the age range.
Plot: Nick Freestone is sent to Burma (Myanmar) to live on his father's Teak Plantation after his mother's London apartment in WWII. His parents, who are divorced, both think he will be safer in Burma, but it isn't long before the Japanese invade and Nick's father is sent to a prison camp. Nick spends some time as a prisoner in his own home, and eventually breaks out with a girl named Mya,an old monk named Hilltop, and a couple elephants to find his father and get safely out of Burma.
What makes it great?
1. elephants 2. WWII historical fiction from Southeast Asia perspective 3. secret passageways 4. Sargent Sonjii.
If any of those things intrigue you, I can guarantee that you will like it. If you still need convincing, let me tell you that it is exciting and a page turner and you will come away satisfied. I like reading war books that highlight on the humanity of both sides, and I think this book really did that. The characters are a mixture of Japanese, Burmese, and British, and there are good and bad on every side. I don't really care which of these teasers convinces you to read it, but I hope that one of them does, because I think this is one that everyone should read, if only just to learn about a part of the world that we usually don't focus on when we talk about WWII.
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