Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes (Coerr)

We chose between Number the Stars and Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes for our grade 3 book club choice this month. I was pleased that they chose this book because I have never read the entire thing (although, it sure isn't that long). However, having a quick read is a great thing for early in the year. Hopefully, more kids will have read it this month. We were going for a bit of a Remembrance Day theme. I think it fit the bill quite well. I kind of thought it was interesting that it is a Canadian author writing about a war-time attach by Americans on Japanese. Quite a mix! Whatever your thoughts are on the war, no one can really argue that the affects of war on children is unjust.

It's been interesting to hear my student's reviews of the book. Children don't often read sad books. It has received a 3/5 by many students because it's sad. No doubt, it has had a big impact on them.

Goodreads says:

Hiroshima-born Sadako is lively and athletic--the star of her school's running team. And then the dizzy spells start. Soon gravely ill with leukemia, the "atom bomb disease," Sadako faces her future with spirit and bravery. Recalling a Japanese legend, Sadako sets to work folding paper cranes. For the legend holds that if a sick person folds one thousand cranes, the gods will grant her wish and make her healthy again. Based on a true story, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes celebrates the extraordinary courage that made one young woman a heroine in Japan.