Ten-year-old Bilal liked his life back home in Pakistan. He was a star on his cricket team. But when his father suddenly sends the family to live with their aunt and uncle in America, nothing is familiar. While Bilal tries to keep up with his cousin Jalaal by joining a baseball league and practicing his English, he wonders when his father will join the family in Virginia. Maybe if Bilal can prove himself on the pitcher's mound, his father will make it to see him play. But playing baseball means navigating relation-ships with the guys, and with Jordan, the only girl on the team--the player no one but Bilal wants to be friends with. A sensitive and endearing contemporary novel about family, friends, and assimilation.
The author avoids stereotypes and inspires empathy for Bilal; it is clear Lorenzi has infused this tale with what she's learned as an ESL specialist and also done her research to ensure an accurate portrayal of the life of a young Pakistani immigrant. Add this title to your shelves, and pitch it to kids who like sports stories and moving realistic novels. - School Library Journal
Kirkus
A warm, sensitive, realistic portrait of a Muslim boy adjusting to contemporary America. - Kirkus Reviews
ALA/Booklist
This sensitive middle-grade novel is an excellent introduction to cricket, culture shock, and what life may be like for some recent immigrants. Bilal's diverse friends are somewhat refreshingly more concerned with the fact that there's a girl on their team than his heritage. Although the ending is predictable, for fans of Firoozeh Dumas' It Ain't So Awful, Falafel (2016) and readers looking for a sports book with heart, this will be a home run. - Booklist
Publisher's Weekly
Filled with details about Pakistani and Muslim life (Bilal is shocked by the swimming attire at the local pool: Aren't the adults embarrassed to be half-naked in front of everyone?), Lorenzi's novel offers a sensitive look at the cultural merging that accompanies immigration. - Publishers Weekly
Natalie Dias Lorenzi is a teacher, specializing in English as a Second Language. She has taught in Japan and Italy and now teaches is a Washington, DC-area school where 85% of the students are immigrants. She also writes curriculum guides to new books for writers and publishers. FLYING THE DRAGON is her first novel.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781580898263
Lexile Measure
740
Guided Reading Level
V
Publisher
Charlesbridge Publishing
Publication date
February 20, 2018
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV039250 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Emigration & Immigration JUV032010 - Juvenile Fiction | Sports & Recreation | Baseball JUV013090 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Alternative Family
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