Rickshaw Girl

RICKSHAW GIRL
Illustrated by Jamie Hogan
Written by Mitali Perkins

Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishers
ISBN-13: 9781580893084 / 9781580893091
Ages 7-11

Available in Hardcover, Paperback, eBook
Locate a Copy Amazon | B&N | Indiebound

“When Susan Sherman (art director) and Judy O’Malley (editor) invited me to come in and check out the art, I got all choked up seeing Naima come to life through Jamie’s gift.”  –Author, Mitali Perkins

DESCRIPTION

Naima must find a way to save her mother’s golden bangle — and fix her father’s rickshaw in this Jane Addams Honor Book. Booklist says this “lively, moving book has surprises that continue to the end,” Kirkus promises that “Naima’s story will be relished by students and teachers alike,” and CCBC picks it as a book of the week!

RESOURCES
READ about the creation and sharing of Rickshaw Girl
(JamiePeeps Blog Posts)
DOWNLOAD a Discussion Guide

REVIEWS & ACCOLADES

New York Public Library’s Top 100 Children’s Books of the Last 100 Years
A Jane Addams 2008 Honor Book
An Association of Children’s Booksellers Best Book
Maine Library Association Lupine Honor Book
Skipping Stones Magazine Honor Book
ALA Amelia Bloomer Project Award Book
Bank Street Best Children’s Books List 2008 (Starred)
Boston Author’s Club Highly Recommmended Book
A 2007 Librarians’ Choices Book
A CCBC Recommended Book
Bronze Medal Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards
Planet Esme’s Best New Children’s Book


“Illustrator Jamie Hogan remains a bit of a mystery to me. A relative newcomer to the children’s literary scene, Hogan’s work makes me want to thump Charlesbridge Publishers soundly on the back in thanks. What a fruitful pairing. Hogan’s style tends to be pastels on Canson paper, though they appear black and white in the book. It’s almost an affected style. You can see the texture of the paper beneath the images she draws. Yet her characters are pitch perfect 100% of the time. In an interesting twist, Hogan chooses never to show the faces of Naima’s mother and father. You see her sister, her pal Saleem, and even a random boy on the street, but the only glimpse you get of the parents is their hands. Only one adult appears in this story, and she’s definitely not related to Naima in any way. So in a sense, Hogan has chosen to throw in her lot with the children. Her heroine is a strong girl with natural energy. When she sticks out her tongue in one scene, it is exactly the way a kid WOULD stick out their tongue. Hogan knows how to capture kids at their most natural. It shows in the story.”
–Elizabeth Bird

“Readers will share in Naima’s hopes and disappointments, and will appreciate the love and loyalty of her family, while vicariously experiencing what it is like to live in contemporary Bangladesh in a time of transitioning gender roles. Hogan’s accompanying illustrations complement the story effectively and provide accurate renderings of the alpanas Naima loves to paint.”
–Children’s Literature

“Hogan’s bold black-and-white sketches show the brave girl, the beautiful traditional alpana painting and rickshaw art, and the contemporary changes in the girl’s rural home.”
–Booklist

“Straightforward black-and-white pastel illustrations incorporate alpaca patterns and depict various elements of Naima’s daily life, and a helpful Bangla glossary and informative notes are included. A child-eye’s view of Bangladesh that makes a strong and accessible statement about heritage, tradition and the changing role of women, Naima’s story will be relished by students and teachers alike.”
–Kirkus Reviews

“Hogan’s black and black illustrations are old-fashioned, illustrating the story but also using designs at chapter headings to pull the reader into the story more fully. I was reminded of books I had read when I was a kid. While this is a great “window” to another culture, it is never didactic or textbooky and always remains a great story; there is a glossary to help out with unfamiliar words; and notes and acknowledgments to give further infomation about the story and the research by the author.”
–Liz Burns, Librarian, A Chair, A Fireplace, and A Tea Cozy

“As I read this book over winter break, the shocking thought came over me like a slow-rising sun: “I can’t wait to get back to school and read this aloud!” I actually went to the calendar and counted the days before I could introduce children 8 and up to the brave and resourceful (if sometimes impulsive) Naima.”
–The Planet Esme Plan

“This book is beautifully and universally written, playing skillfully on all children’s desires to be helpful to their families, and their natural propencities to rally against the unjust…Gracefully drawn charcoal spot illustrations that suggest the paper’s texture are a perfect accent to the story.”
–Mother Daughter Book Club

RICKSHAW GIRL International Editions