Post Reading Aleutian Sparrow

I really enjoyed reading Aleutian Sparrow by Karen Hesse. It was a great historical fiction novel told through poems full of vivd imagery. At first, I didn’t really like the way the book’s writing structure was set up; I found it a little distracting from the story, but once I got a little ways into the book, I changed my mind. The snapshots and memories into Vera’s life during World War II seemed to have a more dramatic effect on me. My favorite poem in this story is “While the Little Ones Play Kick the Can.”
“Alfred’s grandfather says, “Remember, we were once
unparalleled hunters, men of the sea.
We were elders of the world.
We had our own language, our fierce victories, our
tribal pride.
The Russians ended that.
We went from ten thousand to eight hundred. Our
grandparents perished. Our parents perished.
And that was before the
Americans came.
How many times can a people lose their way
Before they are lost forever (pg. 59)?”
This poem really paints a clear picture of the Aleutian people’s history and how drastically outside visitors affected their lives. Books like Aleutian Sparrow can be great classroom tools to teach our students about injustices. I think this book falls in line with Anne Frank’s Diary, Night, and Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes; each story tells of a certain cultures experiences during World War II. I think it is an excellent idea to include books like these in the classroom because they can really shed light on injustices in history. If we expect the students to grow up with empathy and compassion, how could we not bring these horrible injustices to their attention? In order to learn from out mistakes we have to remember and acknowledge them.