You Can't See The Elephants
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
One brave girl takes an extreme step to protect two abused children
When thirteen-year-old Mascha is sent to her grandparents' for the summer, she spends her days bored and lonely at a nearby playground. There she meets Julia and Max, two young siblings who are incredibly shy and withdrawn. Mascha soon begins to suspect that they are being physically abused by their father, a prominent member of their small community. She tells her grandparents and the authorities, but they all refuse to believe her.
Mascha can’t let the abuse go on, so she takes matters into her own hands. Already an international award winner, this beautifully written novel is a haunting and timely tale.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In a debut novel so real it hurts, German author Kreller depicts the frustrations of a 13-year-old girl who has trouble getting adults to see the truth happening under their noses. Mascha's father always takes a few weeks off in the summer to grieve his wife, leaving Mascha with her grandparents in a close-knit small town. There she meets Max and Julia, two children covered with bruises. One day, when Mascha is outside the children's house, she witnesses a scene so terrible that she has to tell someone. Mascha's grandparents don't want to listen, so she takes matters into her own hands. What starts as an act of salvation takes a nightmarish turn, and it is Mascha not the true villain who is shunned. Kreller's terse prose, eloquently translated by Gaffney, captures the desperation and helplessness of a girl who just wants to do the right thing. Kreller deals with the topic of abuse honestly, conveying the emotional responses to horrific circumstances. Despite her reputation in the community, Mascha will emerge as a hero to readers, and her actions will prompt discussion and debate. Ages 10 up.
