Broken Moon

Antieau, Kim. 2007. Broken Moon.

Set in Pakistan, Broken Moon is the emotional story of a brother and sister in crisis. Nadira is a young teen girl (14? 15?) who has been badly scarred by some of the villagers as revenge against her older brother. (Someone claimed her brother 'ruined' his sister...therefore, they will do the same to his sister.) Umar, her younger brother, was still a baby when this occurred. So her scarred face is the one he knows and loves best. The family has been through hard times, her father has since died. Her mother and brother are living with her aunt and uncle and cousins. But Nadira works for another family as a servant. It is a job she is thankful for since she is really the only one that can provide for her family now. Her older brother (or is it brothers?) has been neglecting his responsibility to his family for years. He doesn't care that his mother and siblings are living in complete poverty.

When Nadira's brother Umar is sold to traders to become a camel jockey, she is determined to fight for her brother. She cannot understand how anyone--especially someone they knew--could agree to sell another human being. So Nadira disguises herself as a boy and also becomes desert-bound to be a camel jockey. She is hoping that she will be able to find her brother and find a way for them both to be free.

It is a dangerous journey, a dangerous lifestyle. With only a little hope and a lot of desperation and determination, it is up to Nadira to save her family and make a better life for everyone. Can the will of one woman really be that strong?

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