“And the children too. Listen to them. Sometimes they are more observant than the adults.”
Max Howard is a young American who, thanks to his diplomat father, is forced to spend a year in Brussels and unhappy about having to attend a French-speaking school.
Ahmed Nasser is fleeing the violence of his home in Syria. When his small vessel capsizes, Ahmed washes up on the shores of Greece, fearing he has lost his father. Avoiding refugee centers, he makes his way to Belgium where he hides in the basement of Max’s house.
When Max discovers Ahmed – and befriends him – the story of Nowhere Boy takes off.
“He had always taken school for granted. Now he realized that even being able to hate it was a luxury.”
Ahmed tends the orchids in the Howards’ basement – a fine metaphor for their blooming friendship. It’s also a testament to Ahmed’s hope of freedom and assimilation. Max and Ahmed bond over soccer, comics, and superheroes, and discover their similarities stack higher than their differences. However, their friendship poses challenging ethical questions: Is it okay for Max to house Ahmed and hide him from his parents and the authorities? Max is all in and, with the help of new friends, he even manages to forge papers and welcome Ahmed into his French-speaking school.
“If you come to our country, you must follow our way of life, our laws.”
Ordinary Belgians worry about refugees in their midst, thanks to terrorist attacks across Europe. Even as one roots for Max and his humanitarian instincts, author Katherine Marsh renders the points of view of characters like Madame Pauline and Inspector Fontaine, who articulate these fears, with sensitivity and realism.
Max feels bad for lying to his parents, his teachers, and Inspector Fontaine, but he can’t help it. The street he lives on – Albert Jonnart St. – is in fact named for a Belgian martyr who tried to help shield Jews from the Nazis in World War II. Max reasonably asks, “But what’s political about helping someone?” How can he not help protect Ahmed?
Nowhere Boy is a rich, exciting tale of a boy adapting to a new place, discovering someone with challenges far more trying than his own, faced with ethical conundrums from which he learns and grows. It will open the eyes, minds, and hearts of your student readers. Max learns that perhaps “there are some people worth getting into trouble for” and more importantly, “No one can be a hero alone.”
