Rickshaw Girl

by Mitali Perkins, Jamie Hogan (Illustrator)

In her Bangladesh village, ten-year-old Naima excels at painting designs called alpanas, but to help her impoverished family financially she would have to be a boy--or disguise herself as one.

Genres: Middle Grade, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Childrens, Asia, Historical Fiction, Bangladesh

96 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2007

About the author

Mitali Perkins has written many books for young readers as well as a couple for adults, including You Bring the Distant Near (nominated for the National Book Award) Rickshaw Girl (a NYPL best 100 Book for children in the past 100 years, film adaptation at rickshawgirlmovie.com), Bamboo People (an ALA Top 10 YA novel), and Forward Me Back to You, which won the South Asia Book Award for Younger Readers. Her newest novel, Hope in the Valley, received five starred reviews and was selected as a Best Book for Young Readers by Kirkus and Book Page. She currently writes and resides in the San Francisco Bay Area: mitaliperkins.com.

Reviews

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Girl child empowerment. Gender stereotypes. What a girl can do!

When families support a girl child with her education and overall development, it's everything! What cannot a person do when you are surrounded by people who genuinely cares for them?

This is the story of a girl who's family's only means of earning is by her father's rickshaw. She's definitely worried and wants to help her family when her father's health is not the best, her mother's only pair of bangles are at the risk of being sold off and also when her younger sister's education is at risk!

In a conservative society where people expect girls and women remain indoors to cook, clean and look after the household many families suffer because of the way women are not educated, or even motivate them to have a means of livelihood.

I find the parents quite supportive and mature which is still not the case in so many families.

I love the friendship between Saleem and the girl. It's so pure and one of the best friendships I have ever read in fiction.

This short book is so damn underrated.

Surely, minds will change when more people get to read such books!

[Samiur Rashid Abir · Rating 4 out of 5]

সুন্দর!

[Jenny G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. It is the perfect definition of a window into a new culture. The author did a great job of integrating the Bangladesh culture by integrating in words from the culture. However, she did it in an effective way; she used the word but then provided context clues so the reader could figure out the word. There was also a glossary at the back if needed. For example, "The next door neighbor was pulling a passenger in his father's rickshaw. Naima watched his skinny legs turn the pedals as he puffed up the hill" (p 8). We could figure out from the author explaining how he operated the rickshaw that it was a bike that carried passengers.

The story won Jane Addams Children’s Book Award. I read it through Hoopla. The illustrations were about every other page and provided details to support the text. It is an inspirational story of a young girl who grows up in Bangladesh where only sons can help their fathers with work. The father is struggling to make money and the family is poor. Naima is the best alpana painter in town, she paints beautiful designs from rice powder. However, she feels that will not help her father. The girl tries to come up with plans to help, but often made things worse. In the end, she discovers that "it's a good thing she turned out to be a girl," (p. 35). Times are changing, and she finds a way to use her talents to support her family.

This story has great vocabulary as well as distinctive story elements with a clear problem, solution and theme. I would recommend this book for 3-5 grade. It would be a great story to compare and contrast people's lives in Bangladesh vs. United States. It also would be a great story to discuss gender roles in different countries, or theme. I think this book would be awesome to use in the classroom!

[Salman Sakib Jishan · Rating 4 out of 5]

অমিতাভ রেজা চৌধুরীর 'Rickshaw Girl' সিনেমাটির ট্রেইলার দেখে আমার এই বইটির কথা মনে পড়ে। মিতালি পারকিন্সের একটি শিশুতোষ বই আছে একই নামে, যেটি বাংলায় অনুবাদ করেন মেহেদি হাসান। 'রিকশাকন্যা' বইটি মূলতঃ শিশুতোষ বই, আমি কিনেছিলাম গল্পটা আগেভাগেই জানার জন্য।
আমি রিকশা পেইন্টের একজন বড়সড় ফ্যান। আমার খুবই পছন্দ এই ভাইব্রেন্ট কালারের আর্টওয়ার্ক গুলো। বাংলাদেশি আর্ট কালচারের একটা বড় অংশজুড়ে রিকশাপেইন্টিং এর চল থাকা উচিত বলে আমি মনে করি। কিন্তু রিকশা চিত্রের চিত্রকরদের বেহাল দশা, তদারকির অভাব, হারাতে বসা শিল্প নিয়ে শিল্পীর আক্ষেপ এসব দেখে খুবই খারাপ লাগে। অথচ দেশীয় আর্ট ফর্মের/কালচারের একটা বড় পরিচয় এই রিকশা পেইন্টিং। ইদানীং বেশ অনেক পত্র পত্রিকা, ইভেন্টের মাধ্যমে আবার এই শিল্পটাকে জীবিত করার চেষ্টা চলছে। দেখে খুবই ভালো লাগে আসলে। এই কিছুদিন আগেই ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের টিএসসি প্রাঙ্গন রাঙিয়ে তোলা হলো রিকশাপেইন্টের আদলে, কি চমৎকার!
তো রিকশাপেইন্টিং নিয়ে এতো কথা বলার মূল কারণ হলো এই বইটি মূলতঃ গ্রাম্য এক কিশোরী ও তার পরিবারের সংগ্রামের গল্প। অভাবের সংসারে ছেলে না হতে পারা, বাবাকে সাহায্য করতে না পারার আক্ষেপ থেকে নাইমা চেষ্টা করতে থাকে কোনো একভাবে সংসারের কোনো উপকার করতে পারে কিনা। ছেলে সেজে রিকশা চালানো থেকে শুরু করে নানা রকম বুদ্ধি বের করার চেষ্টা করতে থাকে নাইমা। গ্রামের সবচাইতে ভালো আলপনা আঁকিয়ে নাইমা শেষপর্যন্ত রিকশাচিত্রের কাজের এর সন্ধান পায় এবং সেখান থেকে ভাগ্য পরিবর্তনের চেষ্টা করে।
মিতালি পারকিন্স বাংলাদেশী বংশদ্ভুত লেখিকা যার জন্ম কলকাতায় এবং বেড়ে উঠেছেন যুক্তরাষ্ট্রে। ছোটদের বই রিভিউ করার কিছু নেই, তবে আমি বেশ খুশি লেখিকার উপর বাংলাদেশি কালচার, পরিবেশের পাশাপাশি রিকশাপেইন্টিং এর ব্যাপারটা তুলে ধরবার জন্য। বলে রাখা ভালো, এই বইটি নিউ ইয়র্ক পাবলিক লাইব্রেরির বিবেচনায় বিগত ১০০ বছরের ১০০ সেরা শিশুতোষ বইয়ের মাঝে একটি।

[Brittany Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Rickshaw Girl is a fictional story about a young girl growing up in Bangladesh named Naima. In order to make ends meet, her father had to borrow money to buy a rickshaw and must make payments. Naima wants desperately to help her family, but girls are not allowed to work, and she has no brothers to take on some of the labor. When Naima accidentally breaks her family's rickshaw by attempting to learn to ride it, she feels very guilty and becomes determined to gather some money to help her family. Naima finally decides to dress as a boy in order to go to work painting alpanas in order to help her family make a living.

The Rickshaw girl is an excellent way to introduce the inequities between men and women and gender roles to elementary aged children in a gentle way. This story is very interesting to children, and offers many ideas and perspectives to consider. It features a captivating plot, with an interesting conflict and resolution. Furthermore, the illustrations are beautiful, and help to enhance the story and keep the child's attention.

The author of this book, Mitali Perkins, offers her insider experience and understanding as an Indian woman, and tells the story in a way where people from her culture represent "good" characters, and there are no negative stereotypes present. The characters are complex, and the language they speak is also representative of this culture.

[Rifat Sharna · Rating 3 out of 5]

"আয়নাবাজি"-র পরিচালক মহোদয়ের পরবর্তী চলচ্চিত্র এই বইয়ের ছায়া অবলম্বনে নির্মিত হবে জেনে পড়ার আগ্রহ জাগল। ভিনদেশি লেখিকা এ দেশের রিকশা ও আল্পনা-শিল্পের চমৎকার-বাস্তব বর্ণনাই দিয়েছেন; কিন্তু একদিকে পারিবারিক গণ্ডিতে এত বেশি উদারতা (মা-বাবা বকাও দেয় না!) , বাইরে আবার ঠিক ততটাই রক্ষণশীলতা (কোন নারী সবজিও বেচে না) - ঠিক কোন যুগে বাংলাদেশের কোন গ্রামীণ জনপদে এমন গল্পের চিত্রায়ন সম্ভব বা আদৌ সম্ভব কি না- সে ব্যাপারে বেশ কয়েক বার ভাবায়! তবে গল্পের শেষ দিকের কয়েকটি মোড় ভালোই ছিল। সব মিলিয়ে কিঞ্চিৎ শিশুতোষ বইটি বিদেশিদের কাছে বাংলাদেশের এক গ্রামীণ কন্যাকে খানিকটা অবাস্তব ও অনেকটা ইতিবাচক দৃষ্টিতে উপস্থাপন করেছে।।

[Jillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea what to expect when my kids and I started reading this, but I absolutely loved it. Just wow. It’s super short and accessible, I highly recommend this to kids and adults alike. It was awesome to learn more about Bangladesh and the female empowerment and family themes were beautiful.

“It’s a good thing I turned out to be a girl.” ❤️

G: A definite 5!!! I liked that it shows us that women can do all the things that men can.

F: 4.5 I just like it.

[Candice · Rating 3 out of 5]

This fast read gave the kids a feel for how different life is for children in Bangladesh. My daughter liked the story of a young woman being restricted in her attempts to help financially support her family because she is a girl and overcoming those restrictions.

[IvyInThePages · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 4.94 leaves out of 5
Characters: 5/5
Cover: 4.75/5
Story: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Genre: Children/Cultral
Type: Audiobook
Worth?: Yes


Hated|Disliked|It Was Okay|Liked|Loved

Honestly loved this book. Naima is such a great example of not letting people stand in your way of doing what you feel is right!

[Sahle Shiferaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book

This book is a beautiful story of a girl who has a father
a mother and a little sister. Her father does not make enough money from his job so the family was on the verge of bankruptcy. Naima is wanted to help but because women could not work and she was not born a boy. Therefore she couldn’t help her tired father. This girl is the best aplana painter in her village but aplana painting was not going to give her family money. Her father drives rickshaws and gives people rides in exchange for money sometimes. Rich people come in the rickshaw and if it’s clean and fancy the will give extra money. Naima just wishes she can overflow her family with riches so her and her best friend-boy Salim make a plan she asks him for his clothes changes into them while her father was out her mother and sister were asleep and she went out to find a job and make money. A beautiful and moving read.

[Lain · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have an elementary-aged reader who wants to learn about other cultures, "Rickshaw Girl" is a terrific book. It tells the story of Naima, a young girl known for her painting skills, yet feeling powerless to help her family's finances (girls can't do anything but cook, clean, and decorate, she says!).

To her surprise, a woman in a neighboring village has opened her own business -- painting rickshaws! Can Naima convince her family to let her become an apprentice to this forward-thinking woman?

Told in easy-to-understand language with just enough foreign vocabulary (with a glossary, too), "Rickshaw Girl" will show young readers that even in the most desperate circumstances, everyone can contribute to a solution.

[Capn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great first-reader. Empowering females everywhere, a quick pictorial dictionary of Bangladeshi words used (kurta, saree, etc.), and an invitation to share your wealth via microfinancing in the Author's Note at the end. I really think that this is one of the better books to give a young girl first learning to read novels on their own. Short, sweet, and sharing a side of the world you may not ever get to experience otherwise.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really delightful read with my 9 year old. I learned a lot about Bangladesh, and it's a great introduction to the concept of microloans. I would definitely recommend this one to any age. So fun that it has a glossary with illustrations explainging traditional clothing.

[Barbara Lovejoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't remember why I requested this book at the library. It finally became available so I checked it out. I think I discovered it when looking for another book by the author. This book is great! I learned so much about the culture, and I especially liked the glossary at the end of the book.

[Julie G · Rating 4 out of 5]

A girl-power story set in Bangladesh that will make 3rd to 5th grade girls all over the planet smile quietly in satisfaction.

[Hannah Tan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A window into another world! We loved this snippet of life in Bangladesh and talked about the contrast to our own life. A lovely read-aloud.

[Prasanta Verma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rickshaw girl is a heartwarming tale of a young girl's courage, giving us insight into the lives of children and women in an Asian country. I highly recommend this story for children.

[Emtehan Alam · Rating 4 out of 5]

মাটির লেপা দেয়াল, শণের ছাউনি, কাঁচা রাস্তা আর দোরগোড়ায় বড় পাথর বিছানো -গ্রামের ঘরগুলোর দোরগোড়ায় আলপনা আঁকিয়েদের মধ্যে নাইমা ছিল সেরা। বাবার টানাটানির রোজগারে তিন বছরের বেশি পড়াশুনা করার ভাগ্য হয়নি নাইমার। দুইবোন ও মা-বাবার ছোট্ট সংসারে শুধুমাত্র বাবা-ই ছিলেন একজন, যিনি রিকশা চালিয়ে উপার্জন করতেন। বাবার এই অক্লান্ত পরিশ্রম নাইমার উপর প্রতিদিনই ভারী হয়ে পড়ত।

নাইমা নিজেও কিছু উপার্জন করতে চাইত। চাইত মায়ের প্রতিদিনকার মলিন সুতার শাড়ি খানার বদলে, পালা-পার্বণে পড়ার জন্য একটি নতুন রেশমি শাড়ি। শীতের রাতে গায়ে দেয়ার জন্য বাবার একখানা পশমি শাল। আর ছোটবোন রাশিদার জন্য রসগোল্লা। কিন্তু মেয়ে বলে অনেক কিছু চাইলেও সে করতে পারত নাহ।

রঙ-তুলিতে আলপনা আকঁত আর কি যেন ভাবত। ভাবনায় হতাশা এলেই ঘষে ঘষে সেই রঙ তুলেও নিতো নাইমা। যেদিন বাবার চকচকে রঙিন রিকশাটা উল্টে পড়ে ভেঙ্গে যায়, সেদিন “থোড়াই পরোয়া করি আমি” বলে নাইমা গর্জে ওঠে ছোটবেলার বন্ধু সেলিমের সাথে।

মেয়ে হয়ে কাজ পাবে না বলে, ছেলের বেশ ধরে নেমে যায় বাবার রিকশা ঠিক করার টাকা যোগাড় করতে। সাহস ও আত্মবিশ্বাসকে হৃদয়ে স্থাপন করে আলপনা আঁকিয়ে-নাইমা রঙে রঙে খুঁজে পেল উপার্জনের রঙিন উপায়। সেই সাথে —
“নতুন একটা রঙের বাক্স, একটা ঘিয়া রঙের রেশমি শাড়ি, ছাঁই-রঙা পশমি শাল, আর এক হাড়ি রসগোল্লা”।

ছোট্ট বই “রিকশাকন্যা” বিশাল বার্তায় যেন বড় হয়ে উঠেছে। পরিবারের সুন্দর একটি মানে রয়েছে এই বইটিতে। ছেলে হোক বা মেয়ে- দুজনেই সমানভাবে পরিবারের পাশে দাঁড়াতে চায় যা নাইমা চরিত্রে পরিপূর্নভাবে লক্ষ্য করা যায়। বইটির কয়েক পাতায় চমৎকার কিছু ইলাস্ট্রেশন রয়েছে যা বইটিকে আরও জীবন্ত করে তুলেছে।

A thought-provoking read for all. Especially, all parents should read this book with their children.

[Ruby Khan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel is a fantastic opportunity for children to explore cultural differences and how education for women has changed within the 21st century, in different countries. Further to this, the novel can be related really well to Malala Yousafzai and her fight for education for girls in Pakistan. 'Rcikshaw Girl' not only highlights the discrimination against women, but also then provides a positive ending, meaning readers are left feeling optimistic about the future of women's education.

[Karla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great read for my family that created lots of discussion around new places, how people live in other parts of the world from where we are, and the gender roles/expectations that are still widely accepted in many places. I'll admit, this is not a book I would probably have chosen to read with my kids on my own - It was part of our homeschool curriculum. That said, I enjoyed it and my kids did too.

[Bat713 · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the NYC Library 100 Best Childrens Books. This is a delightful well told story set in Bangladesh. Beautiful black and white illustration are set along well written text. it is written for early readers but makes for a delightful short story for adults. Vocabulary lessons are included at the back.

[Leah Hinrichs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful story!

[CJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great diverse pick for younger readers about a young girl, a wonderful artist, who wants to help her family make money. Sweet, short, with lovely illustrations!

[Tessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable short early junior novel.

[Lana · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are beautifully done, and the story gives a good glimpse into the Bangladeshi culture and how Western ideas are beginning to modernize women's traditional roles.

[Dakota Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wonderful look into another new country-Bangladesh-informative and a light read, could have been longer…. But I liked it. 🇧🇩

[Betty-Lou]

A little Book with a big message. 😊

[Staci · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved reading about a different culture with my kids. We stopped reading to look up videos and pictures multiple times. We also had some great conversations about gender inequality, choices/consequences, and more.

[Laura (kroosreadsandreviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a sort story that tells about a young girls story to help her family. I really enjoyed her determination!

[Stacey Mulholland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book.