Diamonds in the Shadow

Anonymous

I bought this because it was one of the 30 books on the battle of the books list and i read it in 24 hours. The writing was a little rocky and jumbled in the beginning, which is the only reason i took off a star, but the story rapidly gets better the further you read. This book is moving, suspensful, and overall just a clever story and a fast read.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Interesting.

This book gives an intriging way to look at problems in Africa. I recomend it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Average book

If you are looking for a good book¿ keep looking. Diamonds in the Shadow is a book that you could fall asleep trying to read. That¿s just my opinion. This book can make you feel what people go through everyday. The people in this book come to seek a better life away from the wars in Africa. For fans of books about people overcoming struggles of a life with war, this book might be for you. However, do not count on this book to be a great book.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Bob

I got this book from my school libary for battle of the books. I gobbled it whole... i loved this book.

A young bookworm

Im in 7th grade a joined the battle of the books team at cedar creek middle school. This was on my list and i read it in two days!! I love it you should read it !:) - Sarah Booth -

Teenweeklynews.com

This is a very suitable book for young adults/teenagers and also a good read aloud book.This is one of my classical favirites. I highly recomend this book to teenagers/young adult age hroup

A Must Read Book

I bet we have all met someone who is prejudice. Our county hasn't been free from racism for a little bit over fifty years. It is amazing how prejudice some people can be. In Diamonds in the Shadow Jared Finch is a teenage boy who is very racist but he doesn't realize it until his mom signs up for his family to take in a family of refugees. This book taught me to never judge a book by its cover. This book at a first glace looks like a boring book but if you read past the first chapter you can easily get "sucked in" to the book. This book is a pretty easy read. If you want to really comprehend the book I would recommend going to an "Invisible Children" meeting. Invisible children are kids in Africa who have nothing. They don't have parents, they don't have family, and they don't even have a home. This book helped me realize how good my life is even with a broken arm. A refugee in this book got his hands cut off. My arm will heal but you don't grow back cut off hands. I can't even begin to imagine life with out hands. Think of how hard it would be to run the mouse to scroll down to read this review or to type this review or to even read the book. This book taught me how lucky I am to live in America where I don't have to worry about being put into a children army. I can sleep in my own comfy bed in my own house where I know I am safe. Think have you ever had to worry about being blown-up by a terrorist or soldiers coming smashing into your home and taking you brother and sister. People in Africa have to worry about this every day. Blood diamonds are a major part in this story. So in conclusion you are just going to have to read the book to find what happens to Jared, Mopsy, the Aboos, and Victor.

Awesome Book

"Diamonds in the Shadow" is a fantastic book from Caroline Cooney that is full of many great elements.
First off it has a wonderful storyline with an American family taking in a refugee family from Africa and trying to help them adapt to life here in the United States.
Secondly, it has great characters. The American family with Jared (who does NOT want the family to live with them), Mopsy (who DOES want the family to live with them), the dad (who is having issues at work), the mom (who is loving having a new family to nurture) and then the African family - mom, dad, brother, sister (who is like a zombie). Except this new family seems a little odd to Jared, what's the deal?
Next, the mystery element... can Jared figure out what is going on with this new family before it is too late? Are they putting his family in danger? Are they who they appear to be? Who is the other African that got off the same plane they did and why is he looking for them?
I really enjoyed following Jared and Mopsy as they try to piece everything together. And the conclusion was fantastic and had me madly turning pages to see how in the end everything would be resolved.

The Finch's oldest son Jared realizes "something isn't right"

The Finch family open their home to the Amabo family, refugees from Africa. The refugees suffered horrible atrocities in their homeland. Adjusting to American culture was difficult. There is more than meets the eye when it comes to the Amabo. The Finche's do not know they agreed to carry diamonds into the country for a fifth refugee who is a soldier intent on violence. The Finch's oldest son Jared realizes "something isn't right" and must decide what to do with the information. Who should he tell? Will he help or make matters worse?
Diamonds In The Shadow is a good read. Caroline B. Cooney mixes suspense and intrigue to form a good plot. Diamonds InThe Shadow is thought provoking. It shines light on the plight of the refugees. Cooney makes the reader revaluate their life. Diamonds In The Shadow will make you grateful for all you have.

Laced with Suspense

I loved this Young Adult Fiction laced with suspense! The characters are fun to meet and provoke questions as the pages are turned. Jared, an eye-rolling high school aged teen, seems to be both embarrassed and impressed at the same time by his parents. Will he become responsible enough for driving lessons--ever? Mopsy, his sixth grade sister, with her boundless energy reminds me of a family member I know. Change her name and you could be reading about one of my granddaughters. Will she affect the changes she feels are necessary for Alake's assimilation into this new life? And what is wrong with Alake? Mattu's dignified manners and precise speech reveal a staunch young man who has lived through too much. What could be in the two boxes he carries from Africa to America? Why not revisit the past? Are the refugee parents as emotionally removed as they appear? Who is that fifth refugee, and what are his plans?

The grocery store scene impressed me. To hear someone gasp at the display of fruit and vegetables and then hear that person express a goal of working amongst all of this food, reminds me to be thankful for my undeserved heritage.

Written in first person narrative, at times the voice shifts as a different character shares his perspective. This could be a bit confusing if it is the first time a reader experiences this style of writing; however, it is top-notch writing. Overall, this is a very good adventure story for teens of either gender.

Diamonds in the shadow

When the apartment that the Amabo family was to stay in falls through - Jared is forced to share his bedroom with Mutto - their teenage son. He is not very happy about this -not happy at all. Mopsy, Jared's younger sister, is overjoyed at the fact that their teenage daughter Alake will be bunking with her.

The Amabo family are refugees from Africa. They have received passage to the states and are being sponsered by Jared's church. They will help to give them training and find jobs - but there is trouble from the start. The biggest being that the fifth refugee on the plane doesn't like not being in control. Then Andre Amabo, the father, has had his hands chopped off during the war in Africa - one at the wrist, the other at the elbow. Alake doesn't speak - and doesn't appear to hear either. She has to be prodded to even eat. And what is up with Mattu and the two cardboard boxes that contain the ashes of his grandparents?

Jarod doesn't believe in the same God that his parents do, and that the Amabo's seem to also. He feels praying is a waste of time. But while the Amabo's are staying with them, his reality begins to change. He finds that doing things for other people really isn't that much trouble. He discovers that his younger sister isn't so annoying, but has great insight and can even be trusted. And he discovers what secrets the ashes of Mattu's grandparents contain. What he does with that information will decide the fate of both families - but will he make the right choice?

This would be a great book for middle schoolers and maybe early high school. It is well written, but seems a little simplistic for older than that. I would not recommend it for younger thatn middle school because of some of the violence that it describes.

People are not who or what you expect in this book - and that helped to make it a quite a page turner. I was able to read it in just two sittings.

Gripping. Makes you think for days

Review by Jill Williamson<BR/><BR/>Jared is annoyed. He gets that people like to be do-gooders in the world, but why his family? And why dangerous African refugees? As he understands it, there are no good guys in a civil war, so how was he supposed to get excited about sharing his bedroom with a teenage soldier who may or may not have killed?<BR/><BR/>Yet his parents sign up to house a family of four African refugees. The dad has no hands, the daughter is a mute, and none of them have ever used a phone, gone to a supermarket, or driven a car. Yet Jared can¿t help but be impacted by what he learns of this family¿s life. And when a dangerous fifth refugee finds the family, what will Jared do when he realizes that the good guys are not always innocent?<BR/><BR/>This was a fascinating read. I knew little about African refugees and I thank Ms. Cooney for shedding light on the subject. This book was fabulous, first from Jared¿s realistic and hysterical teenage boy voice, to the awe America provided for the Africans, to the suspenseful plot with the fifth refugee. This book is gripping and really makes you think for days. Highly recommended.

Reviewed by Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

I've been a fan of Caroline B. Cooney ever since reading THE FACE ON THE MILK CARTON years ago. That being said, I was thrilled when I saw she has a new book, DIAMONDS IN THE SHADOW. <BR/><BR/>True to her contemporary style, Cooney brings in a current events issue - the unexplainable violence taking place in some areas of Africa today. This new book focuses on a group of African refugees coming to the United States to begin living safer and more enriching lives. <BR/><BR/>Four of the refugees - a father, mother, and two teenage children - are welcomed at the airport by the Finch family. The family's church is sponsoring the refugees and will provide them with a place to live and help in adjusting to life in America. The fifth refugee is met at the airport in New York, but is headed for a new life in Texas. <BR/><BR/>Not everyone is happy about the new living arrangements. The Amabo family was originally supposed to have their own apartment with the church volunteers helping out as needed. However, an apartment was not available, so they are moving in with the Finches. High school student, Jared Finch, is not at all pleased with this change in plans. His mother may be all excited about teaching this new family the ways of America, but sharing a room was not part of the arrangement. <BR/><BR/>Celestine Amabo is anxious to start learning about her new surroundings. She is a quick study as Mrs. Finch takes her shopping and teaches her about cooking and cleaning. Andre Amabo's adjustment is hampered by the fact that the uncontrolled violence in Africa resulted in the loss of both of his hands. Instead of learning to work, he is spending time visiting doctors who hope to create at least one artificial hand, enabling him to help in the support of his family. <BR/><BR/>Jared and Martha (Mopsy) Finch take on the task of helping the two African teenagers deal with school and their new American lives. Mattu adjusts quickly, but Alake doesn't seem to see or hear anything that goes on around her. Jared Finch is suspicious about these strangers right from the start. He doesn't believe they are really family. There doesn't seem to be an emotional or loving connection between any of them. <BR/><BR/>While the Finch family is working hard to adjust to their new guests, the fifth refugee is in Texas trying to find out where the Amabos are living. It appears that someone in the refugee "family" has something valuable that belongs to him. Is he looking for something related to two mysterious boxes supposedly containing the cremated remains of Mattu's grandparents? Can he find them and will everyone be in danger when he does? <BR/><BR/>Caroline B. Cooney succeeds once again with a YA novel filled with suspense and action. Adding the current event topic of the African refugee situation, along with the struggle of Americans to understand and help those in need, creates much to think about in DIAMONDS IN THE SHADOW.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

I¿ve been a fan of Caroline B. Cooney ever since reading THE FACE ON THE MILK CARTON years ago. That being said, I was thrilled when I saw she has a new book, DIAMONDS IN THE SHADOW. True to her contemporary style, Cooney brings in a current events issue ¿ the unexplainable violence taking place in some areas of Africa today. This new book focuses on a group of African refugees coming to the United States to begin living safer and more enriching lives. Four of the refugees ¿ a father, mother, and two teenage children ¿ are welcomed at the airport by the Finch family. The family¿s church is sponsoring the refugees and will provide them with a place to live and help in adjusting to life in America. The fifth refugee is met at the airport in New York, but is headed for a new life in Texas. Not everyone is happy about the new living arrangements. The Amabo family was originally supposed to have their own apartment with the church volunteers helping out as needed. However, an apartment was not available, so they are moving in with the Finches. High school student, Jared Finch, is not at all pleased with this change in plans. His mother may be all excited about teaching this new family the ways of America, but sharing a room was not part of the arrangement. Celestine Amabo is anxious to start learning about her new surroundings. She is a quick study as Mrs. Finch takes her shopping and teaches her about cooking and cleaning. Andre Amabo¿s adjustment is hampered by the fact that the uncontrolled violence in Africa resulted in the loss of both of his hands. Instead of learning to work, he is spending time visiting doctors who hope to create at least one artificial hand, enabling him to help in the support of his family. Jared and Martha (Mopsy) Finch take on the task of helping the two African teenagers deal with school and their new American lives. Mattu adjusts quickly, but Alake doesn¿t seem to see or hear anything that goes on around her. Jared Finch is suspicious about these strangers right from the start. He doesn¿t believe they are really family. There doesn¿t seem to be an emotional or loving connection between any of them. While the Finch family is working hard to adjust to their new guests, the fifth refugee is in Texas trying to find out where the Amabos are living. It appears that someone in the refugee 'family' has something valuable that belongs to him. Is he looking for something related to two mysterious boxes supposedly containing the cremated remains of Mattu¿s grandparents? Can he find them and will everyone be in danger when he does? Caroline B. Cooney succeeds once again with a YA novel filled with suspense and action. Adding the current event topic of the African refugee situation, along with the struggle of Americans to understand and help those in need, creates much to think about in DIAMONDS IN THE SHADOW. **Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka 'Readingjunky'

interesting Christian thriller

In an affluent suburban Connecticut the religious committee announces that the Amabo refugee family of four will be coming from civil war torn Liberia. However, the apartment they were to have has fallen through so Drew and Kara Finch has agreed to take them in. The parents will have their own room while the two teens, genders unknown, will bunk with teenage Jared and ten years old Mopsy. Only Jared objects as he says he and Mopsy are the only ones sacrificing while everyone else claims good deed credit. P However, five people from Africa debark at JFK. The Finch family brings home four with them: ailing Andre who has lost his arms to the war, his wife Celestine, and their son Mattu, and daughter Alake. Jared quickly realizes there is something wrong with the newcomers even as everyone else accepts their story as gospel. He clumsily investigates hoping to expose the quartet not realizing the danger he places his family and the refuges in from the fifth refugee. P DIAMONDS IN THE SHADOWS is an interesting Christian thriller in which good intentions and deeds may pave the road to hell. The story line is fast-paced as the two families struggle with the adjustments. Readers will appreciate Jared¿s sincere complaint about just who is sacrificing (sounds like Iraq as most American have sacrificed nothing but accept credit for doing so) although doubtful he would speak up like he did and his parents remain silent. Caroline B. Cooney¿s morality tale plays out nicely on two levels especially strong is truly helping a refugee family (read the book for a twist on this) subplot and the more exciting but less insightful potential consequences of a good intention. P Harriet Klausner

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