Extra Credit

In these first chapters Clements introduces his characters and their personal backgrounds and wider contexts. These details are essential to set up the forthcoming relationship between the two protagonists, especially as the novel will explore how this relationship defies differences and changes his characters. The information in these chapters provides a springboard for their later development and will provide a comparison, especially in relation to the theme of Friendship and Personal Growth.

Clements characterizes Abby as an athletic outdoorswoman who has no patience for being “cooped up” with academic work (17). Abby, who is the youngest in her family, is intelligent, but she puts little effort into her schoolwork and is avoidant about the potential consequences of her poor grades. The author writes:

She wanted to be getting her boots muddy in the woods and fields behind her house. She wanted to be sharpening her skill with the bow and arrows she had made. She wanted to be fixing up the shelter she had started to build in the huge oak tree that had blown over during a storm last summer (17).

The repetition of “she wanted” emphasizes the intensity of Abby’s feelings and her sense of how many things she could be experiencing outside the classroom. The description of her outdoor activities also shows that she is not merely playing but developing real skills. By describing Abby’s passion for outdoor skills, Clements helps the reader envision her as a person suited for a non-academic life, for whom “schoolwork—and especially homework—felt like an interruption” (17). Her family’s farm contextualizes her outdoor activities as a preparation for a valuable career outdoors. This characterization is sharply contrasted with the other protagonist, Sadeed Bayat. The eldest child in his family, Sadeed is serious and responsible, and helps to support his family by working with his father at his shop in the bazaar. Sadeed clearly takes great pride in his ability to do well in school, and his academic achievements are a core part of his identity. Sadeed is proud to be, as his village elder put it, the “finest student” in his town, and longs for respect and recognition for his achievements (7). While Abby dreams of more freedom and outdoor pursuits, Sadeed fantasizes about attending a better school and being able to enjoy more material comforts and resources as he pursues his secondary education. This is part of Clements’s creation of stark contrasts that explore how children are obliged to navigate their circumstances. Just as Abby is forced to comply with the comprehensive school system in America, Sadeed longs for increased academic challenge. Sadeed dreams of winning a scholarship, leading to him taking his “place as one of the future leaders of Afghanistan” (1). His ambitions for himself are framed as hopeful ambitions for the future of his country.

The author uses colorful similes and metaphors to enliven his work. For example, he writes that Abby’s school days were “like a winter without snow. Or a summer without sunshine” (14). The metaphors directly link Abby’s feelings to her love of nature. Clements also uses humorous hyperboles in his characters’ dialogue and inner thoughts to give his characters life. This does not always show them in a good light. When Sadeed is frustrated with his sister Amira’s slow work in English, he thinks that “it would be easier teaching a dog to drive a motorbike” (49). His inner monologue reveals his intellectual arrogance and unconscious bias against his sister as a girl, character points which will become key areas from growth in later chapters.

In these chapters the author also establishes his theme on Reciprocally Sharing One’s Inner Life by revealing how Abby began a positive correspondence with Amira and Sadeed by sharing information about herself, and a personal photo of her doing her favorite hobby. In spite of not knowing Amira or Sadeed, Abby shows candor by confesses that she is not a very good student and needs a good grade on her project. Abby’s openness is part of what intrigues Sadeed and motivates him to share details about his own life. Even though Sadeed resents having to help his sister with the project, he realizes that it would be courteous to reciprocate Abby’s openness and share more personal details about their lives and answer her questions. The author reveals Sadeed’s realization about the value of sharing and his latent sense of curiosity when he “kept thinking about Amira’s letter” (61). Although Sadeed has initially told himself that he is not interested in the pen pal project, he finds himself intrigued. Clements shows that it is Sadeed’s ability to recognize and admit his true feelings that makes the exchange between him and Abby possible, making this an essential turning point in the book.