Aram's Choice

Georgetown Boys #1

by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch, Muriel Wood (Illustrator)

Aram is like all the boys exiled in Greece. He has survived the Armenian genocide in Turkey and now lives in an orphanage. He can never return home. One day Aram learns that he will be one of fifty boys who will start a new life in a country called Canada. What does he know of this distant land? There is snow, lots to eat, and no war. But most important of all, Aram has heard that the trees are covered in gold. All he will have to do is pluck the gold off the branches and he will have enough money to bring his grandmother out to join him. But first he must get there.

Aram is about to embark on a long adventure. Will he find a land of endless riches, or a place he can finally call home?

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

84 pages, Paperback

First published May 31, 2006

About the author

Marsha Skrypuch is an internationally bestselling children’s author whose books span a century of wars from a kid’s view, concentrating on those stories that have been erased by oppressive regimes. Her best-known book is Making Bombs for Hitler. Her most recent is the Kidnapped from Ukraine trilogy. She has received death threats and honors for her writing. Marsha lives in Brantford, Ontario, Canada and you can visit her online at calla.com

Reviews

[booklady · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heart-warming story about a group of young Christian Armenian boys, survivors of the genocide which claimed the lives of their parents and most of the rest of their families as well. This seldom-mentioned atrocity which foreshadowed the later horrors of the Jewish Holocaust during WWII, is dealt with gently here. The focus of the book is not on the past, but the future.

Twelve-year-old Aram, the titular character, is living in an orphanage in Greece in the 1920s and is offered an opportunity to start life over again in a new country, Canada. The text and story are bound to be appealing to young boys; Aram's Choice is age appropriate as a chapter book reader for the early grades. The illustrations are also beautifully realistic. This is a lovely book and enjoyable from many different perspectives (historical, pedagogical, religious, social, artistic) and for many reasons.

Most highly recommended!

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short novel centers around Aram, a survivor of the Armenian genocide in Turkey during World War I, and his decision to immigrate to Canada, eventually settling at an orphanage in Georgetown, Ontario. There are few novels and non-fiction books for children on this subject, and even fewer on survivors immigrating to Canada, so this is a welcome addition. The author brought the time period to life, and vividly depicted the journey through Europe to Canada. I was particularly struck by the constant references to food, which, to boys who were used to having little to eat, meant so much to them. The author's description of a boy eating a buttered biscuit made me want to go bake some! I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in human rights and in the immigrant experience.

[Wendelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about Aram, a victim and survivor of the Armenian genocide, and his passage of refuge together with other children from Corfu to Canada through the aid of Canadian missionaries. Tragically, Canada had a quota for the number of adults that could be granted sanctuary and so his grandmother and his tutor Mr. Chechian had to be left behind or sent back to a life-threatening environment. This book is impressive, not only for its choice of subject matter that is sometimes obscured in history, but also for the author's narrative choices. The story is told through the perspective of Aram, so that we get to sense his perspective of the events unfolding for his life-- his fear at separating from his tutor, his excitement at eating warm breaded butter and meat, his resolution to save his meager allowance and pluck Canada's fabled 'leaves of gold' for his grandmother's sustenance. The author decides not to lay it on thick or exploit the children's misery to make an impact with the story. Instead, casual mentions of the lamentable moments of Aram's life-- seeing his grandmother seek alms in the streets, hearing that his teacher has to be sent back to a war-torn place where Turkish military are sure to pursue and kill him-- drill into sharp relief the heinous events of their suffering.

[Shelley Stack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book to determine if is appropriate for my nine-year-old granddaughter, who is the great great grandaughter of a survivor of the Armenian Genocide. While it is a historical chapter book geared to newly independent readers, I think it is too soon to explain genocide to a child that age. The story is based on a true story and is an important read, well-written and illustrated but I am going to hold it for a few years until the time is right.

[Stacey Socholotuk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, like Skrypuch's others, helps young readers to access the array of emotions and experiences of the main character. The author has crafted a text that will help children better understand and empathize with the many people who are forced to immigrate for their own safety, leaving behind their home, their families, and all that is loved by them.

[Meaghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This really shouldn't have been called Aram's Choice, because he didn't choose to go to Canada -- it was made clear that he was ordered to go. But a good enough children's book for maybe third grade and below, which teaches kids about a little-known facet of history.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

(YA)/ another history book by Skrypuch. Enjoyed it.