In the Sea There Are Crocodiles: Based on the True Story of Enaiatollah Akbari

When ten-year-old Enaiatollah Akbari's small village in Afghanistan falls prey to Taliban rule in early 2000, his mother shepherds the boy across the border into Pakistan but has to leave him there all alone to fend for himself. Thus begins Enaiat's remarkable and often punish-ing five-year ordeal, which takes him through Iran, Turkey, and Greece before he seeks political asylum in Italy at the age of fifteen. Along the way, Enaiat endures the crippling physical and emotional agony of dangerous border crossings, trekking across bitterly cold mountain pathways for days on end or being stuffed into the false bottom of a truck. But not every-one is as resourceful, resilient, or lucky as Enaiat, and there are many heart-wrenching casualties along the way. Based on Enaiat's close collaboration with Italian novelist Fabio Geda and expertly rendered in English by an award- winning translator, this novel reconstructs the young boy's memories, perfectly preserving the childlike perspective and rhythms of an intimate oral history. Told with humor and humanity, "In the Sea There Are Crocodiles" brilliantly captures Enaiat's moving and engaging voice and lends urgency to an epic story of hope and survival. "From the Hardcover edition."

Review :
"Inspiring" --"O Magazine " " This gripping, strangely sweet tale....captures the young man's open-hearted tone just right.....Reading of Akbari's efforts to find a better life -- alone and at an age when children in our country can't even drive yet -- will leave you shaken, but his resilient joy leavens the story even when he's toiling for 90 hours a week at dangerous work in a locked warehouse, crossing the snow-covered mountains from Iran to Turkey on foot, or hiding in the false bottom of a truck "like grains of rice squeezed in someone's hand." The lovely rapport between Akbari and Geda comes across now and then when the journalist interrupts to prod him for more detail, gently reminding him just how extraordinary his experience is." "--The Washington Post " "Reminds us that Afghanistan's current woes did not begin with the American invasion of 2001....And so it goes on, almost unimaginable horrors related with a lack of sentiment and bombast....[a] remarkable story"-- "The Financial Times " "Geda does a wonderful job of creating a voice for Enaiatollah that matures subtly, becoming sharper with every mishap but never losing the ability to make the best of a situation....for all the hardship, "In The Sea" is full of wit and the book is really about determination...moving" --"The Guardian" "An intriguing story.....[and] understated sense of humor, even when he recalls horrible scenes....quite dramatic" --"Boston Globe " "In Geda's hands Enaiatollah's story is a riveting and fast read, one that dips into emotional and physical violence but surfaces in a splash of redemption and humanity and hope. Adult readers will be gripped by the tale, as will young adult readers." --"Denver Post " "Remarkable....exquisitely rendered and completely free from pride or self-pity. This book will break your heart at the same time that it is lifting your spirit and opening your understanding to a very different kind of lif