What do you think?
Rate this book
Ghost Boys
Fifteen-year-old Munna lives with his Ma and sisters in a small town in India. Determined to end his family's misfortunes, he is lured into a dream job in the Middle East, only to be sold. He must work at the Sheikh's camel farm in the desert and train young boys as jockeys in camel races. The boys, smuggled from poor countries, have lost their families and homes. Munna must starve these boys so that they remain light on the camels' backs, and he must win the Gold Sword race for the Sheikh. In despair, he realizes that he is trapped and there is no escape . . .
- GenresFictionYoung Adult
192 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2017
1 person is currently reading
206 people want to read
About the author
Shenaaz Nanji
16 books28 followersShenaaz Nanji was born on the ancient island of Mombasa, one of the oldest settlements on the East African coast, and grew up amid a fusion of cultures: Bantu-Swahili, Arabic, colonial British, and East Indian. Every year she visited her grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins in Uganda until Idi Amin turned them into refugees. She moved to the United States and lived in upstate New York before moving to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where she now lives with her husband and children. She holds an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College and has written several books for children.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 10, 2017
Will you fight for freedom and return home? In Shenaaaz Nanji’s Ghostboys, this YA action adventure novel tells the story of Munna Patel and how he honored his family.
Munna Patel is an Indian teenage boy who lives in poverty with his family. His father had ran away and never returned again. After his sister Didi commits suicide, his family had no money to pay for the funeral or to give his sisters a honorable dowry to get married. It was up to Munna to look for work and bring money money. When his “Uncle” claimed he had found a job for him to work for the Sheikh, it paved the way for him to do the honorable things even after his mother’s protests. So he leaves India to go to Sudan on a boat. From there, he’s forced into the world of slavery with other “ghost boys” at the ousbah and trains them to race camels for the Gold Sword Race. While he learns the ropes of camel racing, he meets the fellow boy jockeys and tries to win them over. While he trains them for the big race, he plans his escape and a way to get home. He also wins their friendship and meets Avra, a Canadian teenage girl, his fellow ally. Later, he becomes a hero amongst everyone at the camel farm and helped save the life of a camel. After the race, he prepares to say goodbye and discovers a shocking twist in the end.
This novel takes place in the Sudanese desert and also in India. This is really well-written and well-researched for everybody who loves YA novels, especially in the drama and action-adventure genre. It has captivating scenic locations and settings with gripping descriptions and painted the picture of poverty and slavery as well. The theme of the story is freedom and honoring your family by doing the right thing and making a difference in everyone’s lives. Poverty happens everywhere, when slavery shouldn’t happen to young kids in any country. It’s also about honoring your family and the fight for freedom, even if the circumstances are ire. I think this deserves to have the change to be agented, too.
I do have some nits to make this piece better. There’s some instances of showing vs telling than can do without th passive, and weak filter words like felt, saw, heard. When you remove them, it makes them stronger and powerful. No colons needed before dialogue quotes for dialogue. Some typos for ending dialogue before dialogue. And some of the Indian words needs a translation or glossary on what it means, if it’s not included in the dialogue. For example, what does beta or kush mean? For those of us who don’t speak Indian, it would help us fellow readers out, if it was included.
Overall, this was a wonderful YA action adventure novel. I wish to give it 4.75 stars; but I will give it five stars across the board.
Munna Patel is an Indian teenage boy who lives in poverty with his family. His father had ran away and never returned again. After his sister Didi commits suicide, his family had no money to pay for the funeral or to give his sisters a honorable dowry to get married. It was up to Munna to look for work and bring money money. When his “Uncle” claimed he had found a job for him to work for the Sheikh, it paved the way for him to do the honorable things even after his mother’s protests. So he leaves India to go to Sudan on a boat. From there, he’s forced into the world of slavery with other “ghost boys” at the ousbah and trains them to race camels for the Gold Sword Race. While he learns the ropes of camel racing, he meets the fellow boy jockeys and tries to win them over. While he trains them for the big race, he plans his escape and a way to get home. He also wins their friendship and meets Avra, a Canadian teenage girl, his fellow ally. Later, he becomes a hero amongst everyone at the camel farm and helped save the life of a camel. After the race, he prepares to say goodbye and discovers a shocking twist in the end.
This novel takes place in the Sudanese desert and also in India. This is really well-written and well-researched for everybody who loves YA novels, especially in the drama and action-adventure genre. It has captivating scenic locations and settings with gripping descriptions and painted the picture of poverty and slavery as well. The theme of the story is freedom and honoring your family by doing the right thing and making a difference in everyone’s lives. Poverty happens everywhere, when slavery shouldn’t happen to young kids in any country. It’s also about honoring your family and the fight for freedom, even if the circumstances are ire. I think this deserves to have the change to be agented, too.
I do have some nits to make this piece better. There’s some instances of showing vs telling than can do without th passive, and weak filter words like felt, saw, heard. When you remove them, it makes them stronger and powerful. No colons needed before dialogue quotes for dialogue. Some typos for ending dialogue before dialogue. And some of the Indian words needs a translation or glossary on what it means, if it’s not included in the dialogue. For example, what does beta or kush mean? For those of us who don’t speak Indian, it would help us fellow readers out, if it was included.
Overall, this was a wonderful YA action adventure novel. I wish to give it 4.75 stars; but I will give it five stars across the board.
March 13, 2018
Munna believes that he is cursed. Not only was he the fourth child but all of his older siblings are girls and in rural India, this is not a blessing. His father has run off and now his eldest sister has been refused as a bride and sent back, thus bringing shame and hardship to the family. Munna is determined to find a way to make enough money to provide a dowry for his sisters and embarks on a perilous journey under the wing of his Uncle.
This novel gives the reader a greater understanding of the camel racing culture in the Middle East where very young boys are recruited to be the jockeys. It is extremely well written with beautifully poetic passages and characters that are very realistic. The plot progresses smoothly and the ending is touching.
Highly recommended for teens.
This novel gives the reader a greater understanding of the camel racing culture in the Middle East where very young boys are recruited to be the jockeys. It is extremely well written with beautifully poetic passages and characters that are very realistic. The plot progresses smoothly and the ending is touching.
Highly recommended for teens.
October 12, 2017
Ghost Boys by Shenaaz NanjiMunna
Patel has dreams just like any other teenage boy. He wants to be a cricket player when he grows up. However, in the aftermath of his father’s abandonment he has no choice but to take up the role of man of the house. When his ‘uncle’ shows up with a job offer at a Sheikh’s compound, he has no choice but to take it. He is sold to Sudan where he meets sweet Babur and the sultry Avra. After all, dreams will not provide the dowry for his sister’s marriage. Dreams will not give his sister Didi a decent send-off. Dreams will not feed his Ma either. At fifteen, Munna finds himself in a world where boys his age and even younger are exchanged for money. They are used for the financial and social benefit of the buyer. The little boys live in squalor and are often starved. This is for the ridiculous purpose of ensuring they stay light on the camel’s back. However, Munna sneaks milk and honey meant for the camels to his ‘little brothers’. While he is training the boys to win camel races, Munna gains favor and is offered money to win the Gold Sword Race. The money will go a long way in ensuring a better future for his family and himself. Munna comes up with a big idea that could mean the end of child trafficking. Will Munna manage to save the ghost boys? Why is ‘Monster-Ji’ suddenly so different? Will Munna make it home to his Ma?
This young adult action adventure by Shenaaz Nanji is a well-told tale of poverty and slavery. Munna even asks God not to make poor little boys because then they will become jockeys but will have no one to care for them since he will have gone back to his Ma. The author gives a different side of the story by Master-ji who talks of the choice between letting sons beg for food on the streets or selling them to people like the Sheikh where they have a sliver of a chance at a better life. The story is a gripping narration of the importance of honoring one’s family and making a difference in the lives of others. The scenic descriptions and easy flow make for a compelling literary experience with the reader enjoying every bit of this emotionally charged book. The Ghost Boys is a deeply detailed piece of art.
There are a few Indian words whose meaning is hard to guess. This, however, remains to be a great book. It highlights on the often-ignored realities of child trafficking. It is imperative that poor children from third world countries get protection from influential people. In the world of camel racing, they are expendable and their lives matter very little compared to that of the camels. This book is a cry for help for those children who are forced to race camels in the desert for pennies. These children need rescuing from self-serving and cruel masters.
Patel has dreams just like any other teenage boy. He wants to be a cricket player when he grows up. However, in the aftermath of his father’s abandonment he has no choice but to take up the role of man of the house. When his ‘uncle’ shows up with a job offer at a Sheikh’s compound, he has no choice but to take it. He is sold to Sudan where he meets sweet Babur and the sultry Avra. After all, dreams will not provide the dowry for his sister’s marriage. Dreams will not give his sister Didi a decent send-off. Dreams will not feed his Ma either. At fifteen, Munna finds himself in a world where boys his age and even younger are exchanged for money. They are used for the financial and social benefit of the buyer. The little boys live in squalor and are often starved. This is for the ridiculous purpose of ensuring they stay light on the camel’s back. However, Munna sneaks milk and honey meant for the camels to his ‘little brothers’. While he is training the boys to win camel races, Munna gains favor and is offered money to win the Gold Sword Race. The money will go a long way in ensuring a better future for his family and himself. Munna comes up with a big idea that could mean the end of child trafficking. Will Munna manage to save the ghost boys? Why is ‘Monster-Ji’ suddenly so different? Will Munna make it home to his Ma?
This young adult action adventure by Shenaaz Nanji is a well-told tale of poverty and slavery. Munna even asks God not to make poor little boys because then they will become jockeys but will have no one to care for them since he will have gone back to his Ma. The author gives a different side of the story by Master-ji who talks of the choice between letting sons beg for food on the streets or selling them to people like the Sheikh where they have a sliver of a chance at a better life. The story is a gripping narration of the importance of honoring one’s family and making a difference in the lives of others. The scenic descriptions and easy flow make for a compelling literary experience with the reader enjoying every bit of this emotionally charged book. The Ghost Boys is a deeply detailed piece of art.
There are a few Indian words whose meaning is hard to guess. This, however, remains to be a great book. It highlights on the often-ignored realities of child trafficking. It is imperative that poor children from third world countries get protection from influential people. In the world of camel racing, they are expendable and their lives matter very little compared to that of the camels. This book is a cry for help for those children who are forced to race camels in the desert for pennies. These children need rescuing from self-serving and cruel masters.
October 17, 2017
Without warning, life can take a devastating turn, which occurs based on your own actions or the actions of others. You’re then left to figure out what would be the best strategic move to either repair what has been damaged or continue pushing through in the hopes it will get better. In “Ghost Boys”, author Shenaaz Nanji encompasses his readers within the life of a young boy by the name of Munna Patel, who is the man of his family but deemed cursed. Everyone claims he’s been cursed from birth and nothing seems to go right in his life or for those in his family, almost as if his family suffers his fate. We follow him on his journey of making a better life for himself, his mother and two sisters in honor of his late sister Didi. When one is willing to do anything out of desperation for a better life, usually consequences are much larger than your initial thought and we can only hope he’s successful.
The life that Munna lived far away from home and his family didn’t seem like the ideal situation, but he took it upon himself to make the best of it. In this book, the bond readers develop with Munna would be considered remarkable, as we visualize what his surroundings are like simply based on the good descriptions by the author. There’s also room to feel the similar emotion of depression, sadness and hints of anger following along throughout the day as chores are completed and communication with others are fulfilled. By meeting new people, he was able to utilize all that he learned in this experience and come up with an idea fit to benefit everyone. Although Munna claimed he was cursed, he took that as a strength and used it to greatly improve the situation at hand, which in turn made better lives for everyone else involved.
In the beginning of reading this book, I didn’t know how I would feel, or even if I would enjoy it. I was convinced by Shenaaz Nanji’s writing, which provided excellent character development that enabled me to make emotional bonds with a few characters. What I enjoyed most was being a witness to the growth and improvement of the lives of others and all it took was the main character to enter their lives. It reminds me of people in real life and how everyone who enters your life has been brought to you to fulfill a purpose. I recommend this book to anyone that would be interested in learning about Arabian life and its culture, there’s enough information to take away from it.
The life that Munna lived far away from home and his family didn’t seem like the ideal situation, but he took it upon himself to make the best of it. In this book, the bond readers develop with Munna would be considered remarkable, as we visualize what his surroundings are like simply based on the good descriptions by the author. There’s also room to feel the similar emotion of depression, sadness and hints of anger following along throughout the day as chores are completed and communication with others are fulfilled. By meeting new people, he was able to utilize all that he learned in this experience and come up with an idea fit to benefit everyone. Although Munna claimed he was cursed, he took that as a strength and used it to greatly improve the situation at hand, which in turn made better lives for everyone else involved.
In the beginning of reading this book, I didn’t know how I would feel, or even if I would enjoy it. I was convinced by Shenaaz Nanji’s writing, which provided excellent character development that enabled me to make emotional bonds with a few characters. What I enjoyed most was being a witness to the growth and improvement of the lives of others and all it took was the main character to enter their lives. It reminds me of people in real life and how everyone who enters your life has been brought to you to fulfill a purpose. I recommend this book to anyone that would be interested in learning about Arabian life and its culture, there’s enough information to take away from it.
March 30, 2024
great original plot but writing was not my style
August 5, 2023
Munna is from a poor family in a small village in India. Desperate to help his family better their situation, he is lured by an attractive job offer in the Middle East, only to be sold into slavery. He is forced to work on a camel farm where he has to train jockeys to ride the camels in races. The boys live in terrible conditions and are starved, so they won't gain weight. The lighter the boys are, the faster the camels will run. Munna is horrified at how the boys are treated. If one of Sheik's camels wins the race, he will receive a huge monetary reward. Munna desperately wants the money so he can return to India and help his family. However, he is also determined to help the boys in any way he can. It seems like an impossible situation. This is a fictional account of modern-day slavery.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews