Malala, a Brave Girl from Pakistan/Iqbal, a Brave Boy from Pakistan: Two Stories of Bravery

This picture book tells two stories (one side is Malala’s story; flip it over for Iqbal’s), introducing young readers to Malala Yousafzai and Iqbal Masih, two Pakistani children who fought for peace and justice and who both suffered violence...Winter tells each child’s story in clear, concise prose...Winter uses the imagery of a kite as both a metaphor for childhood and as a way to visually connect the two child activists. Mid-book, where the two narratives meet, a poignant double-page spread shows Malala, in vivid coral, flying a kite in a night sky, while Iqbal, shaded in an ethereal gray…

Muted tones and doll-like representations of the two heroes soften the tragedy of the stories, and the inclusion of kites as symbols of freedom are used to advantage as the ghostly Iqbal and vibrant Malala exchange kites on the transition spread between stories. With Malala’s recent Nobel Peace Prize award (made after this title’s publication), this work will fill demand for material at a primary-grade level.

With an economy of words, unembellished language and her signature flat, child-centric illustrations, Jeanette Winter (The Librarian of Basra) creates a quietly magnificent tribute to two extraordinary human beings...The front-to-back story features Malala, the reverse tells the story of Iqbal, and Winter smoothly joins them together in the center spread. Malala's story opens as her would-be assassin descends upon her school van, then backtracks to tell how Malala spoke out repeatedly against the Taliban's ban on educating girls...Winter describes the Taliban attack, and Malala's miraculous…

Winter (Henri’s Scissors) continues her series of illustrated biographies with a two-in-one volume...Naïf, milky-toned digital illustrations make the story’s terrors easier to bear...The thread joining these stories is the children’s thirst for education, no matter the cost. Readers who drag their feet to school may benefit...from an introduction to children who are desperate to attend.

Author and illustrator Winter...once again tackles the topic of humanitarian activism amid political violence in this two-in-one picture book...Like Winter’s earlier works, simple sentences and repetition (“Still Malala speaks out”) give the story an accessible rhythm, and illustrations consisting of bold colors and shapes, each framed by a colorful geometric pattern, indicate moods ranging from the light pink of mourning to the bold orange and purple of defiance. The two stories are linked by a shared, wordless center spread featuring a kite motif from Masih’s story...The need to rotate the…

In a two-in-one book that readers can begin from either end, Winter links the lives of two courageous child activists from Pakistan—Malala Yousafzai and Iqbal Masih. The pairing works to good effect; it is as if Malala stands on the shoulders of Iqbal...Winter’s spare prose and simple, colorful pictures illustrate both children’s circumstances and the mantles they accepted. An introductory note to each story provides a much-needed event summary. Readers will be moved by both sacrifices, and many will want to know more...This is an inspiring introduction to two important young champions of…