Book Title: Swahili for Beginners

Author: Lisa Joyal

Publishing Company: Sumach Press

Publishing Date: Fall 2007

# of pages: 200

ISBN: 10: 1-894549-69-4 (13: 978-1-894549-69-1)

$10.95 CDN/$9.95 US

4 Stars

Reviewed By: Breanne Cursley

Swahili for Beginners is an admirable first-novel from Toronto lawyer Lisa Joyal. At first I thought it seemed a little dry, and slow, but as the story progressed and the characters developed I found it hard not to be drawn in the dreams and world of the heroine, Georgie Wilde.

Georgie is a thirteen-year-old girl living in Toronto with her single-mother. She is only young but has more dreams and goals than your average tween. The book starts out with the beginning of her relationship with her pen pal, Ellie Mwanza, who lives in Tanzania. At first Georgie thinks that writing letters to someone on the other side of the world would be a good experience, but as the letters between her and Ellie become more frequent, Georgie becomes more aware that life in places like Tanzania isn’t as easy, or at all the same, as her life in Canada. Ellie tells her about issues in her village such as poverty, hunger, and the lack of education. The thing that astonishes Georgie is the fact that most children in Tanzania only finish primary school, and very few get the chance to attend secondary school – and Ellie will be one of those children if she doesn’t get a scholarship to the closest secondary institution.

The plot really picks up when Georgie gets the idea that she could travel to Tanzania to meet Ellie, and she starts various jobs to save up enough money. The one thing she can’t seem to gather enough nerve to do is ask her mom whether it would be alright to go. The months pass by, and the trip draws nearer – but will Georgie muster up the courage to ask her mom about Tanzania?

What I really found exceptional about Swahili for Beginners was the fact that Lisa Joyal explored many issues, on a global level. This is very unlike other young adult novels out there, which depict glamorous young people living in Hollywood or New York who are difficult to relate to. Georgie Wilde is a down-to-earth heroine – one I, and others, can identify with.

This book is certainly a good find. It presents global issues that are all over television and magazines today, but through a context that puts them into a valuable perspective. I would recommend this book for anyone and everyone, and for it not to be branded by its ‘young adult’ genre. Swahili for Beginners is a gem of a book, and rather read-worthy.