Book of Aaron

Author Name: Jim Shepard

Aaron grows from a novice smuggler to a skilled smuggler among the neighborhood gangs, helping his family survive amidst the German occupation. But after events somehow strip him of all his family and friends, he has no choice but to join Dr. Korczak, who runs an orphanage. Only then does Aaron feel his humanity recover despite the looming death. To reclaim his stolen childhood, he begins to confront the world and repel it, taking refuge behind the doors of the orphanage. Dr. Korczak (1878–1942) and teacher Stefa (Stefania Wilczyńska) (1886–1942) are two real-life figures from the Jewish heritage who refused to leave for Palestine in order to save themselves, remaining together in their homeland, peacefully confronting the German occupation. They ran an orphanage that was an entire state for children: it published newspapers, had its own parliament, and held its own public events.










We learn with Thiong'o the value of knowledge, which colonialism withheld from the Kenyan people. He tells us about the emergence of formal education and independent, rebellious schools in Kenya. His dream, which he promised his mother he would spare no effort to achieve, was to learn. But how can a child cling to his dream amidst the shadows of World War II and his family crises? This childhood memoir serves as Thiong'o's testimony in defense of his right to dream, at least, despite all the difficulties, and of his mother's significant role in his life, which has led him to become one of Africa's greatest writers worldwide.