Looking for X

by Deborah Ellis

Overview

Winner of the Governor General's Literary Award

In this urban adventure story, Khyber, a smart, bold, eleven-year-old girl from a poor neighborhood, sets out to find her friend X, a mysterious homeless woman who has gone missing.

The desperate search takes Khyber on a long, all-night odyssey that proves to be wilder than any adventure she has ever imagined.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780888993823
Publisher:	Groundwood Books
Publication date:	09/01/1999
Edition description:	First Trade Paper Edition
Pages:	136
Product dimensions:	5.06(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.32(d)
Lexile:	720L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

DEBORAH ELLIS is the author of The Breadwinner, which has been published in thirty languages. She has won the Governor General’s Award, the Middle East Book Award, the Peter Pan Prize, the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award and the Vicky Metcalf Award. A recipient of the Order of Canada, Deborah has donated more than $2 million in royalties to organizations such as Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, Mental Health Without Borders and the UNHCR. She lives in Simcoe, Ontario.

Editorial Reviews

Marvelous characterizations and fiercely close family ties...Unlike many coming-of-age stories, in this novel the odyssey is less important than the warm, redemptive homecoming.

Horn Book

Khyber's strong spirit and believable personality will draw readers in.

Booklist

Gr 6-8-Eleven-year-old Khyber lives with her mother and autistic twin brothers in a low-income area in Toronto. In addition to her problems at school (she skipped two grades and doesn't fit in), she deals with her mother's decision to send her brothers to a group home, some menacing skinheads, a false accusation of vandalism that gets her expelled, and a search for her homeless friend, "X." Khyber loves her family and gladly goes beyond what one would expect of a child in order to help her mother and "X." Her friends are an odd assortment of characters, all adults. There are just too many quirks and issues to make this book believable. Some aspects of the plot are far-fetched and everything falls into place just a little too neatly at the end. On the other hand, all of the characters seem real and natural. Khyber is a likable protagonist and readers will appreciate how she copes with her issues. If they can accept some of the improbable circumstances, they will enjoy the story.-Leslie Ann Lacika, Dingman-Delaware Middle School, Dingman's Ferry, PA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

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