The Milk of Birds

by Sylvia Whitman

This timely, heartrending novel tells the moving story of a friendship between two one an American teen, one a victim of the crisis in Darfur.

Know that there are many words behind the few on this paper…

Fifteen-year-old Nawra lives in Darfur, Sudan, in a camp for refugees displaced by the Janjaweed’s trail of murder and destruction. Nawra cannot read or write, but when a nonprofit organization called Save the Girls pairs her with an American donor, Nawra dictates her thank-you letters. Putting her experiences into words begins to free her from her devastating past—and to brighten the path to her future.

K.C. is an American teenager from Richmond, Virginia, who hates reading and writing—or anything that smacks of school. But as Nawra pours grief and joy into her letters, she inspires K.C. to see beyond her own struggles. And as K.C. opens her heart in her responses to Nawra, she becomes both a dedicated friend and a passionate activist for Darfur.

In this poetic tale of unlikely sisterhood, debut author Sylvia Whitman captures the friendship between two girls who teach each other compassion and share a remarkable bond that bridges two continents.

Genres: Young Adult, Africa, Fiction, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction, War, Cultural

384 pages, Paperback

First published April 16, 2013

Reviews

[Christina (A Reader of Fictions) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

In The Milk of Birds, Sylvia Whitman touches on subject matter rarely seen in YA fiction, and I want to applaud her for that. This novel deals with tough subjects (divorce, genocide, rape, learning disorders, and more), but retains an overarching sense of hope. On closing the finishing page, I was sad that this our world, but also touched by the inspiring story within. Whitman handles all of this well, keeping the focus small, on the daily lives of these two girls, Nawra in Darfur and K.C. in Richmond.

Signed up to participate in the charity Save the Girls, K.C. initially wants none of it, too busy worrying about her parents' divorce and her plummeting grades. In fact, K.C. refuses to respond to Nawra's first few letters, until Save the Girls contacts her to find out why she's not been sending letters, which has been making Nawra feel sad. K.C.'s mom offers to write the letters if need be, but K.C. finally steps up to the plate and does it herself, unable to stand the idea of her mom's terrible imitation of her going out into the world.

I give you this small summary to explain what I liked best about The Milk of Birds. The scale of it and the portrayals are so honest. K.C. is an average girl, and, like most kids, the last thing she wants to do when she gets home from school is do more "homework," which is how the pen pal thing feels to her at first. Watching K.C. slowly lose her reluctance to write the letters is so moving, especially when, by the time the year of correspondence comes to a close, K.C. keeps writing letters for her last package, unable to say goodbye.

If you're hoping to learn a lot about the big picture in Darfur, The Milk of Birds isn't the place to get it. Through Nawra, Whitman offers a view to the life of one girl. It's not a broad perspective, but a narrow one. Nawra's life has been just . . . there's not really a word sufficient to describe the horrors she's lived through. Whitman does not shy away from the harsh realities like female circumcision, rape, hunger, or murder. As expected, this is not a light read. That said, Whitman definitely doesn't add in any more than is necessary; she tells it like it is, and that is shock enough.

Nawra is so strong in the face of her life that it is simply incredible. Despite everything, her tone in the letters is so sweet and cheery and hopeful. Though K.C.'s problems are nothing compared to Nawra's, Nawra worries about K.C., and offers kind advice. The unselfishness Nawra shows is beautiful, as are the sayings she uses.

K.C. grows a lot in her correspondence with Nawra, but perhaps not as much as you would think. Her arc is rather more realistic than is traditional in fiction. At the end, K.C. is not utterly transfigured by her correspondence with Nawra, but she is a bit more confident, much more loving, and incredibly determined to do something to help Darfur. Still, K.C.'s focus all along has been on her own issues. K.C. loves Nawra and wants to help, but she doesn't ever stop worrying about her crush on the boy she likes or her issues with her parents or her issues with learning. Again, this felt very believable, because, no matter how much perspective she has, she has to live her own life. Also, I love that Whitman touched on learning disorders, because that's not something I've often seen in YA novels.

The only reason my rating isn't higher is that The Milk of Birds moved very slowly for me. Much as I am impressed by the characters of Nawra and K.C., I didn't ever connect with them on an emotional level, except, perhaps, at the very end. The more I think about The Milk of Birds, the more I like it, but it was a slow, tough read for me. At the same time, I am so very glad I read it, and I think that a lot of the difficult reads are important ones.

The Milk of Birds is a slow-moving, powerful read that's heart-breakingly honest and realistic. Whitman deftly tackles more dark subjects than can usually be handled in a single book, but The Milk of Birds never strays into melodrama. The Milk of Birds is a read to inspire the reader to want to make a difference in the world, showing how even just a monthly letter can make an appreciable difference in someone else's life.

[Alya · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a special book. I think it offers a genuine view into the life of female Sudanese refugees (or IDPs)--if I'm mistaken forgive my ignorance. What I was most moved by was Nawra's journey, her strength and sadness and fear and brilliance and honesty. And KC was much more endearing than I first expected; having her difficulties be learning oriented (as well as economic to a degree) was a smart move rather than a spoiled well to do girl who sees the light.

Possibly the most value comes from the Sudanese culture that is portrayed--not just the political struggle and war, but the intermingling of tradition and religion. A keen eye will be able to pull apart was is ethnic and what is Islamically based, and learn a lot about both.

As is the case often times, sometimes the ends of such books feel rushed to me, but the letter concept required it in this case, so it's not a flaw. I don't give many 5 stars but I see myself going back to pulling out quotes and further studying the girls' developments and more.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book lovers know the feeling: every once in a while, you find a book that you can't put down or get out of your head. It is so profoundly wonderful that you want to put it on the list of required reading for the world because every single living person needs to read it. This is one of those books.
I was fortunate enough to receive an advance copy of Sylvia Whitman's "The Milk of Birds," and I loved it. The book is told from alternating perspectives: Nawra, a 14-year-old Sudanese girl in an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp, exchanges letters with K.C., a teenager from Richmond, Virginia, who sponsors Nawra through a program called Save the Girls. The result is a bond of sisterhood that crosses oceans and changes both girls' perspectives on life. Sad but hopeful, this book provides a unique look at the difficult political situation in Sudan and the difficulties that arise from living in the world we created.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Too often, in young adult novels the characters have it too easy: they are white most of the time. They rarely have to think about how their parents are going to pay for something; money is just there. They usually live in the first world. Their parents are often not in the picture; they’ve checked out, somehow. In too many YA novels the characters have only the slightest of conflicts, antagonists or problems.

None of that is happily true of The Milk of Birds. In this double narrative/ epistemological novel about Nawra, who lives in a displaced refugee camp in Darfur, Sudan and K.C., who lives in Richmond, VA. K.C.’s mom signs her up to be part of a fictional pen pal program, Save the Girls. K.C. can’t read or write much when she begins the program. But with her friends’ help, her Mom’s help, and a computer program, she gets by. She also begins a help Darfur program in her high school and community. Nawra is illiterate.

Nawra is pregnant for much of the year and doesn’t/ can’t tell K.C. about from shame. She was raped by a gang of Janjaweed over a period of weeks, yet blames herself. K.C., Save the Girls workers and a Truth and Reconciliation team help her to understand it wasn’t her fault.

This is a wonderful, amazing book that I hope gets the wide readership it deserves. The girls in it face real issues, that they conquer to become powerful young women. I bought this book because it was on the new and noteworthy shelf at my local independent bookstore. I’m so happy to have found and read this terrific book.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember when I was younger, ,y mom would take my sister and I to the dentist and in his office he would have the Highlight Magazine. Anyway in this magazine there would be a list of children who wanted pen pals. It was a pretty big thing back then, but it was only listings of the children in the United States. In this book an aid society asked for volunteers for pen pals and a small stipend to send to them, and American children were paired up with refuges living in camps. This is how K. C. and Naura become pen pals. I admit I liked Naura's story more, it was heartbreaking, this young girl who had lived with her whole family in Umm Jamilla, had a happy existence a large family. All taken away by the Janjaweeds murder spree. The conditions in the camp, what happened to her and her family were so hard to read, as well as the cultural traditions such as young girls circumcisions. Yet her story is told in a matter of fact voice, filled with quotes of the traditions of her people. This is one of those books that transcend the YA genre, at least Naura's side. K. C. is a very likable character as well, her difficulty with learning, her divorced parents, and as she learns Naura's story in letters she comes to the realization that she can make her life better an option that Naura does not have.

[Kellee Moye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review at: http://www.unleashingreaders.com/?p=4041

This is a special book. First, because of the characters who tell the story. K.C. is a young girl with learning disabilities which have caused her to hate reading, writing, and school. Nawra is a refugee in Darfur who continues to have an optimistic view of the world even after she has been surrounded by horrors that I can’t even imagine. Both of these girls are not represented very often in books, and they are both so important to know. Through this book, the reader gets to see the intensity of the situation in Sudan and refugees’ power in overcoming however they can. They also get to see the brilliance of students with learning disabilities. There are so many students in our school just like K.C., and too many of their peers would judge them by their struggles instead of by their heart and soul.

Second, this book is special because of the way the author is able to intertwine these two stories in a flawless way, and a way that keeps the reader engaged in both stories simultaneously. Third, the lyrical writing of Whitman makes this story not only interesting and important, but also beautiful to read. Last, the power of this book lies in the book, and how the book will change those who read it.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teens from opposite sides of the worlds forge a friendship through letters in “Milk of Birds” by Sylvia Whitman. Nawra is 15, and she lives in Darfur, Sudan, in a refugee camp. K.C. lives a middle class life in Richmond Virginia. Their lives could not be more different. Nawra faces excruciating circumstances: illiteracy, multiple family deaths, home displacement, rape, pregnancy. K.C. lives with divorce, loneliness and an unsuccessful school career. The two find each other as penpals through the work of a non-profit organization. Nawra (through a translator, of course) "writes" pithy wisdom after pithy wisdom and K.C. speaks of her alienation. The secondary characters were sometimes difficult to follow, and the letters from Darfur were painful to read. Perhaps the premise of these two finding each other and then the ending were a bit unlikely (though I was happy for a measure of resolution for each girl). I’m not sure how many young adults would wade through this one, but I was glad I did.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a YA book, I couldn’t really fault it, and the audiobook production is excellent. This directly confronts the brutal realities of life in Darfur and all the worst things that young women are experiencing there. At the same time, it neither minimises nor apologises for middle class KC’s worries and grumbles in the USA (e.g. learning disability, divorce). Feels very accessible for a teen audience; educational without feeling preachy, and shows the simple power of friendship and solidarity.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is very informational and educates about what happened. It was a little slow for me, but I hope others enjoy the complexity more than me.

[Tracie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Writing letters to a 14-year-old girl living in a Sudanese refugee camp helps a teen in Richmond, Virginia become more compassionate and learn important life lessons.

Minor quibbles:

The passages narrated by Nawra, the Sudanese teen, contain many unfamiliar words. For the most part, the meanings can be gleaned from the context, but some terms appear multiple times before the meaning is explained (or before the narrative provides enough information for the reader to deduce the definition). A glossary would have been really, really helpful.

Nawra's voice is very distinct from that of her American correspondent, K.C. Although Nawra and K.C. are about the same age, Nawra sounds much older. Nawra's maturity might be intentional--she has, afterall, experienced a lot of traumatic things that K.C. has not--but this disparity leaves K.C.'s passages sounding a little whiny and shallow. As a result of her maturity, Nawra emerges as a nearly flawless character. She is endearing, but at times I found her a little too-good-to-be-true.

Nevertheless, this is a very timely and moving story.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two sections of the book where I stopped, reread and paused:

p.138, written by Nawra about an ultrasound:
"How is Mrs. Clay? Has she delivered her girl? Adeeba is very pleased to learn the word for the picture of the baby inside. Saida Julie told her it means the writing of the sound. I do not understand how what we can hear becomes what we can see, and yet that is the way of writing, too."

p.208, written by K.C.:
"Here when we draw family trees, we always put ME at the base of the trunk and all of the ancestors like birds in the branches, but really it should be the other way around, with the ancestors as the roots and then your own kids growing up and out through the generations. Then you can rest in the shade and listen to them up there chattering."

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Milk of Birds was a staggeringly beautiful book. Nawra's sayings brought wisdom throughout the "first world problems" of K. C.'s sections. It was amazing to see the naive, lazy (if I may), discouraged American girl change so much as she began to appreciate the troubles of Nawra's every day life. The alternating viewpoints between Nawra and K.C. gave a peek of just how different our world is in a developed country versus an undeveloped one as the one Nawra and Adeeba lived in. The raw, honest writing made Nawra's pain real to me; I feel as though my eyes are opened to what I was ignorant of before. This is the kind of book I recommend to every person I come across: everyone should read The Milk of Birds.

[Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

K.C. is a teenage girl living in Richmond, Virginia and she struggles with school. Nawra is a 14 year old girl who is living in a IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camp. K.C.'s mother signs her up, through Save the Girls program, to send money and write letters to a girl in the Darfur region of Sudan. K.C. blows off this task for about four months, but once she starts reading Nawra's letters and K.C.'s mother finds an easier way for K.C. to write her letters a correspondence of deep friendship occurs. A story of two very different girls with very different problems who are both struggling to make sense of their lives and to perservere. A YA novel about friendship and how teens half way across the world live and survive.

[Shirley Freeman]

This is an amazing, soon-to-be-published, YA novel. I couldn't put it down. The subject matter is tough - I wouldn't recommend it for anyone younger than 14. The story is told primarily in the form of letters written during the 2008-09 school year. Nawra is a young Sudanese girl living in a refugee camp. She has witnessed and been subject to unspeakable horrors. K.C. is a young American girl with some learning differences and some family challenges. They are connected as pen pals through a fictional "Save the Girls" organization. The year, and their relationship, is transformational for both girls. Laughter and tears were both involved in my reading.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story about the bond that develops between two pen pals, an American teen named K.C. and a fourteen-year-old Sudanese refugee Nawra. I found Nawra's harrowing daily struggles to survive far more interesting than K.C.'s experiences which seem quite frivolous by comparison. I often became annoyed with K.C. and her issues because they are so completely trivial compared to Nawra's, although she does become a passionate activist for Darfur. Perhaps reading this will help American teens put their own life experiences and problems in perspective.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmmm. I read this book because it was an Amelia Walden finalist and I hadn't heard of it before. And while I admire the fact that Sylvia Whitman did do quite a bit of research in order to write this book, I just don't quite know if it was her story to tell. I'm probably too critical, having read this right after taking a course on critical multiculturalism, but I didn't love it. My favorite part was actually the Author's Note and I will say that if this book inspires teens to take social action, then bravo, Sylvia!

[Melissa Mahle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read the ARC of the Mile of Birds and have also had the wonderful opportunity to read the work in progress. This is a remarkable book. It transported me to the Sudan. The characters are so compelling. I laughed, I cried, I worried and at the end, I had hope. There is nothing more that I can ask from a book. It is simply wonderful and will be up for awards. Mark my words.

[Caren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a fantastic story. Sure makes you rethink the importance of your life and your legacy.
This book is about two young girls who become pen pals. One girl out of necessity and the other for writing practice. So many amazing lessons. This book stays with you long after the story is over.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and I think everyone should read it, it shows a different side of the world and makes readers realize how lucky they are to have what they do. The Milk of Birds was published in 2013 by Sylvia Whitman. Sylvia has written many other books and mostly focuses on history novels, with the plot surrounding a certain family or person, just like in the Milk of Birds. The genre is realistic fiction and the book is centered around a freshman girl from Richmond, Virginia named K.C. and her pen pal, Nawra, who is staying at a camp in Darfur. Through letters and heartfelt stories, the two girls grow closer to each other and begin to care immensely about the problems occuring in their lives. Nawra has been displaced from her home village and has experienced the death of her whole family (except her mother) and rape at such a young age, barely even thirteen. K.C. lives a whole supported life, but she has her struggles too. Her parents are divorced and the tension is terrible, especially with her dad’s new wife. On top of that, she has a learning disorder and is still trying to work through what will excel her in the classroom. The characters are well developed and rounded. Readers watch K.C. grow from a self pitying girl into a leader and someone who cares about others so much, she would make a whole after school club in their honor. With Nawra, readers learn of the hardships of her life and what she has overcome to be the person she is today. The plot is very original and not far fetched at all. It’s heartbreaking to learn of what her people have to go through and all the death in her world. This book is very much like The Kite Runner, and even makes a reference to it at the end of the book. Both the books focus on dire situations and the people it affects. Rape happens quite a lot in this book and it does not go into detail, but it is known and said that it takes it place. There is also the limited rights of women and what they are allowed to do as jobs and as people in the camp. The moral of the novel is that peace is the milk of birds. To me, this means that birds are the only animals who look for and experience peace. Nawra and K.C. have never led peaceful lives, they could really look to the sky for that. I would recommend this novel to teenagers and above, so readers can understand the magnitude of the issues in the world. This book is terrible to read and know that these acts really do happen to real people, but it is eye opening to a bigger picture.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book in the attempt to get it approved for the novel list in my school district. I think it will fit nicely. It’s not too hard to read (I certainly could have read it faster), it’s super engrossing (the mix of narrative, epistemological chapters, and story telling, was an easy sell), it’s heartbreaking (in a good way), and I can see 7th and 8th graders buying into this read easily.

Both Nawra, and KC have very distinct personalities, and they both have their struggles in life, and I think knowing what these things are, why people do the things they do, and understanding culture outside of our own is prime in this read. Some of the Nawra stories can be a tad confusing sure to syntax, but I’m pretty sure that was thE intention. The sayings from Darfur are really cool and insightful, and that’s what kids will latch onto. My hope? When we read this as a class, or however it will be presented, kids will want to get involved in the injustices that take place in this world, and in their own world. This book is a great stepping stone for those types of actions.

[Jill K Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never have I read a book that has taken me on such of roller coaster of emotions. In one chapter, I’m giggling over K.C.’s crazy schemes, and in the next, I’m holding my hand over my mouth, gasping in disbelief at Nawra’s everyday life. Some scenes are so horrific that I had to Google certain phrases to double check the author’s credibility. I found her not only credible, but that she’d likely downplayed some of the atrocities. This work of historical fiction follows the lives of two 14-year-old girls: K.C. in Richmond, Va., and Nawra in Darfur, Sudan, through their Save The Girls pen pal letters to each other. Though they live on different continents, they discover similar longings and heartaches. As they write, they become more honest and open with each other. They share advice and sayings. Some of Nawra’s sayings are so profound, I jotted them down. My favorite is “When a tree leans, it will rest on its sister.” I recommend this book for older teens and their parents.

[Emmilee Throckmorton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book! The different perspectives really were interesting to read and I loved that both characters were so young; I think it will be easier for my students to relate. I also liked that the book managed to slip in historical facts in a fluid and organic way instead of making the reader look things up (which many of my students wouldn’t do). The changing speaker also helped me keep a happier perspective. After reading numerous sad and depressing chapters of Nawra’s life, it was nice to get a few chapters from K.C.’s point of view where the most depressing thing is that she had a fight with her best friend. Likewise, it was nice to have Nawra’s chapters to really put K.C.’s issues into perspective. All in all, a really interesting and enlightening read!

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nawra is a Sudanese teenage girl living in one of the IDP (internally displaced people) camps as a result of the war in Darfur. A non-profit firm, Save the Girls, seeks to pair girls in the camp with teen girls in the U.S. in order to share their stories and experiences. Nawra is paired with K.C. who struggles with school and wants nothing to do with it. Gradually though, as they correspond each of them finds strength. Where will the experience take them?
What interested me with this was the way the girls changed as the story progressed. I've read some other books on the Darfur refugee camps so the abuse of women was nothing new to me. This, however, told the story in a different format and a different focus which made it interesting.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not really a fan of books that try to teach you something. If I want to learn about Darfur, I’d rather read nonfiction. However, I can see that many people—especially teens — might prefer fiction. And it’s fairly well written but still informative. The story comes out little by little, so in parts it feels confusing but then it makes sense later. Overall, not bad.

[Steffanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my most favourite books in this year's reading journey. The horrors of the situation were stated in such a way, that the reader was given enough information to perceive the intent of the author without adding explicit details for the young adult rating of the book.

[Eves · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bittersweet ending but overall kind of big tragic. One of the girl's life is so sad she gets through it though. That in itself is comforting and it reminded me that sometimes there is light at the end of the tunnel. I'm aware that's gross and cheesy but *crying emoji *.

[✨ B e t w e e n S h a d e s o f B o o k s ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

sadly, this did lean more towards a 2.5 star book than a 3 star one. i liked the characters and whatnot, but the freaking writing. one minute i could love it, than the next minute i would be on verge of dnfing it. not something i look forward to in a promising story.

[Bailee Fralick · Rating 4 out of 5]

"There is no tree that is not moved by wind"

"You are right, my son, to push those memories away. You cannot carry eggs and iron in the same basket"

"When you think you're too small to make a difference, you should try sleeping in a tent with a mosquito"

[Diana N · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like this book quite a bit. However, this book is listed as a 'young-adult'; perhaps I'm too sheltered, but I feel it would be better to be listed under 'adult'.

[Penny Hagerty · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent tale told in two voices.