One Sentence Review: A fantastic antidote to those insipid middle grade books that can't take historical complexity into account, this was one of the more heart wrenching books of the year (and I certainly hope she writes a sequel to it).

Burn My Hear is about the friendship of two boys during apartheid in Kenya in the 1950s. One boy is black (Mugo) and one boy is white (Matthew), making them unlikely friends. Matthew's family settled on Mugo's peoples' land in a previous generation. The Mau Mau form a rebellion and many people get drug into whether they wanted to or not, being forced to take an oath. Mathew's father and Mugo's father were friends when they were boys and although Mathew's father counts on Mugo's father to take care of his horses, something happens to cause Mathew's father to be suspicious of him. This story is about friendship in the midst of adversity. It is heart wrenching to think that these injustices occurred. This is the first book I have read about this period in history. The author, Beverly Naidoo, grew up in Southern Africa during apartheid. Even though her life was very different from both boys she is able to tell the story as an insider would. She has written other books during this time period and I would like to read them as well. She has won several awards for her books including the Carnegie Medal, the Jane Addams Book award and the American Library Association Best Book for Young adults for The Other Sid of Truth.

I struggled to get through this book, but I think it's a good topic to be informed about. It was well-written and was very eye-opening.

I'd recommend to anyone looking for a history lesson on racism in Africa, along with anyone who likes learning about other cultures.

Warnings:
Drugs: no
Sex: no
Rock & Roll: issues of racism in the 50s
Violence: yes
Language: no

Powerful and heart breaking!

I am not an expert on any of the issues this book deals with, however I found it very informative regarding Kenyan history. I liked the writing and enjoyed reading from the perspective of two children. From what I can tell, this seems like a good introductory historical fiction regarding this time period. It brought to light extreme injustices that everyone should be aware of.

Heartbreaking and eye-opening. I wish the characters were a little more well-developed, but I learned so much. I’m ashamed to admit that I knew very little about these events.

Burn My Heart chronicles the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya. The story is told through the view of a 12 year old white African boy and a young servant in his household. I admit that the servant's story resonated more readily with me, however the other voices within the story also have merit. The historical context of this book is a perfect introduction to the complexities of revolutions within Africa.

I chose to read it for my Young Adult Literature class. I found this book very interesting to read because it introduced me to a culture and world that I knew very little about. I would use this book in a middle or high school classroom to talk about racial conflict and demonstrate how that is still an issue in today's world.
Content Warnings:
Drugs: no
Sex: no
Rock & Roll: racial violence and tension
Language: offensive racial terms
Violence: not too much

Burn My Heart chronicles the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya. The story is told through the view of a 12 year old white African boy and a young servant in his household. I admit that the servant's story resonated more readily with me, however the other voices within the story also have merit. The historical context of this book is a perfect introduction to the complexities of revolutions within Africa.