| Sacred Leaf Contributor(s): Ellis, Deborah (Author) |
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ISBN: 0888998082 ISBN-13: 9780888998088 Publisher: Groundwood Books OUR PRICE: $8.06 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: September 2007 Annotation: After finally managing to escape from being held as a virtual slave in an illegal cocaine operation, young Diego is taken in by the Ricardos, a poor, coca-farming family who provides a safe haven while he recovers from his ordeal. But even that brief respite comes to an end when the Bolivian army moves in and destroys the family's coca crop -- and their livelihood. Diego eventually joins the "cocaleros" as they protest the destruction of their crops by barricading the roads and confronting the army head on. As tension builds to a dramatic standoff, he wonders whether he'll ever find a way to return to his family. This thought-provoking book offers a different perspective of the war on drugs, revealing the terrible price it exacts from Bolivians who have grown coca for legitimate purposes for hundreds of years. And like all of Ellis' books, it offers a sensitive and compelling look at the plight of children in developing countries. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes - Homelessness & Poverty - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places - Caribbean & Latin America - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes - Violence |
| Dewey: FIC |
| Lexile Measure: 770 |
| Series: Cocalero Novels |
| Physical Information: 0.6" H x 4.96" W x 7.5" (0.46 lbs) 208 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Latin America - Catalog Heading - Language Arts - Curriculum Strand - Language Arts |
| Accelerated Reader Info |
| Quiz #: 118319 Reading Level: 4.9 Interest Level: Middle Grades Point Value: 5.0 |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: After finally managing to escape from being held as a virtual slave in an illegal cocaine operation, young Diego is taken in by the Ricardos, a poor, coca-farming family who provides a safe haven while he recovers from his ordeal. But even that brief respite comes to an end when the Bolivian army moves in and destroys the family's coca crop -- and their livelihood. Diego eventually joins the cocaleros as they protest the destruction of their crops by barricading the roads and confronting the army head on. As tension builds to a dramatic standoff, he wonders whether he'll ever find a way to return to his family. This thought-provoking book offers a different perspective of the war on drugs, revealing the terrible price it exacts from Bolivians who have grown coca for legitimate purposes for hundreds of years. And like all of Ellis' books, it offers a sensitive and compelling look at the plight of children in developing countries. |