漫漫离家路 Marwan's Way

This special book is written from the perspective of a little boy, Marwan.

Just like many of us, he used to have a home, a lovely family.
Even a cat!
Mama would light the fire,
Papa would tell him stories of his hometown.
A ray of sun would shine down on his pillow every morning.

But one day, soldiers came in army tanks.
War broke out.
Marwan and thousands of fellow countrymen were forced to leave their hometown,
and embark on a long journey away from home.

There was a scene where the refugees would take a break,
and sit around while eating some snacks.
It was so interesting because
we were also sitting around and having some snacks
while we chanced upon that page,
and we could draw parallels between what they were doing and what we were doing.

Their lives may look different,
but we have the same basic human needs and longings.

As I read this story with our kids 
@sgmontessori @followingjoy @mystorytreasury
between the ages of 2-5,
we had many questions:

• From where did Marwan walk? 他从哪里走？
• Where was he going? 他要走到哪里？重点是什么地方？
  
• Why did he only have a few belongings? 为什么他的袋子只装着那么少东西？
• Why did he have to carry his Mum's photo with him? 为什么他要拿着妈妈的相片？
  
• Why can't the family be together? 为什么一家人不能在一起呢？
• Why are there army tanks? 为什么有坦克车？
• Who are those people in the army tanks? 坦克车里的人是谁？

Why we love this book

• Unique colour scheme and illustration style
• Gentle and relatable way to introduce
  the concept of war and refugees with our kids

Terms we learnt

• 乌黑 wūhēi jet black - to describe Marwan's mum's hair
• 成千上万 chéng qiān shàng wàn thousands - to describe the huge crowds of people walking away from their homeland

以第一人称的口吻叙述了一个小男孩 的逃难经历。
为了躲避战乱,
他和千千万 万的同胞被迫离开家乡,
踏上了漫长而又 迷茫的离家路。
但对和平的渴望,
对家乡 亲人的思念,
一直萦绕在他的心中。

Suitable for ages: 3-8