CampaignTo Ban Novel Describing Life Of A Palestinian Boy

An Anonymous Patron writes “PRESS RELEASE FROM ADALA

Intense Campaign Under Way To Ban Novel Describing The
Life Of A Palestinian Boy Under Israeli Occupation

Phyllis Simon, co-owner of Kidsbooks in Vancouver, has
initiated a nation-wide campaign to ban highly
respected children’s author Elizabeth Laird’s, A
Little Piece of Ground.

Described as “a fine book, a daring book” by renowned
children’s book reviewer Michael Morpurgo, A Little
Piece of Ground provides a perspective of Israel’s
illegal military occupation of the West Bank through
the eyes of Karim Aboudi, a 12-year-old boy living in
Ramallah.

An Anonymous Patron writes “PRESS RELEASE FROM ADALA

Intense Campaign Under Way To Ban Novel Describing The
Life Of A Palestinian Boy Under Israeli Occupation

Phyllis Simon, co-owner of Kidsbooks in Vancouver, has
initiated a nation-wide campaign to ban highly
respected children’s author Elizabeth Laird’s, A
Little Piece of Ground.

Described as “a fine book, a daring book” by renowned
children’s book reviewer Michael Morpurgo, A Little
Piece of Ground provides a perspective of Israel’s
illegal military occupation of the West Bank through
the eyes of Karim Aboudi, a 12-year-old boy living in
Ramallah.

Early in the 200-page novel written for 11 to
13-year-olds, Karim watches his father being
humiliated at an Israeli checkpoint. “Almost naked,
stripped of everything, he was trying to stand
upright, to hold up his head and show, in his face at
least, the dignity which had been taken from him.” “I
hate them. I hate them. I hate them,” the chapter
ends.

Aside from describing Karim’s life under military
occupation, A Little Piece of Ground tells of his
yearning for a “little piece of ground” to serve as a
soccer pitch that is safe from Israeli soldiers.
Karim also dreams of liberating his people from
occupation and, after witnessing Jewish settlers
confiscate his family’s olive grove, he imagines
himself inventing an acid that dissolves the steel of
Israeli tanks. As the story goes on, Karim and his
friends find a place to play soccer, become swept up
with the excitement of the Intifadah and make a fake
bomb.

As well as urging other bookstores not to stock A
Little Piece of Ground, in a posting on a Website
called Hasafran, a forum of the Association of Jewish
Libraries, Ms. Simon urges publisher MacMillan U.K. to
reconsider the “damaging book’s” release. “I am left
with a profound sense of shock and disgust at the
irresponsible decision to publish what I feel is a
racist, inflammatory and totally one-sided piece of
propaganda at a time when efforts are being made to
resolve this conflict.” (Toronto Star, August 28,
2003.)

Born in New Zealand, Ms. Laird has lived in the Middle
East and wrote A Little Piece of Ground in
collaboration with Palestinian writer Sonia Nimr. One
of her previous books, Kiss the Dust, a story of
conflict between Kurds and Arabs in Iraq, won the
Children’s Book Award and is readily available in
bookstores, including Kidsbooks.

Ms. Laird knew her story about the life of a child
under Israeli occupation (drawn from actual events
documented by an Israeli human rights group) would
cause considerable controversy. “I know that this is
a very, very sensitive topic on which people feel very
deeply … Anybody who writes on this subject is not
going to please everybody. And I knew that. That was a
risk that I took.” In response to Ms. Simon’s
accusation that A Little Piece of Ground is “totally
one-sided,” she told the Toronto Star that the work
was not meant to tackle the entire spectrum of
Israeli-Palestinian relations. The fact that there are
no sympathetic Israeli characters is a reflection of
the reality in a place like Ramallah where the book is
set.

Regarding her lack of reference to the traumatic
effects of suicide bombers on Israeli children, she
observed: “If anybody would like to write a book about
the effects of suicide bombing on Israeli children, or
what it’s like for an Israeli child, I would very much
welcome that. I think that would be an excellent thing
to do. Because I think that all aspects of this truth
should be understood.”

The concerted effort by Phyliss Simon and others to
prevent A Little Piece of Ground from being read by
Canadian adolescents cannot be tolerated. Ms. Simon
has every right to refuse to sell the book in
Kidsbooks, but to cajole other bookstores to do
likewise and to pressure MacMillan U.K. to “pulp” it
is censorship and a blatant attack on free speech.

As far as pro-Israel advocates are concerned, by
writing A Little Piece of Ground, Elizabeth Laird has
committed the sin of providing a glimpse of the misery
and suffering Palestinian children and their families
have endured for 36 years under an undeniably brutal
Israeli military occupation. In the interests of
understanding the nature and causes of the conflict,
young Canadians must not be denied the opportunity to
read Ms. Laird’s novel.

ADALA ñ Canadian Arab Justice Committee urges all
Canadians to purchase a copy of A Little Piece of
Ground and to encourage bookstores everywhere to stock
it.
__________________________________________________ ____

ADALA – Canadian Arab Justice Committee
PO Box 47095 – Unit 15
555 W.12th Ave, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4L6
email: [email protected]
www.adala.ca”