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The Elephant in the Room

by Holly Goldberg Sloan

Family separation, new bonds, and an elephant in Oregon

Regular price $15.65 USD
Regular price $26.09 USD Sale price $15.65 USD
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AlbakiReads Editorial

Family separation, new bonds, and an elephant in Oregon

Sila’s mother is in Turkey seeking the paperwork that would let her return to the family in the United States, leaving Sila to manage a long separation. A trip with her mechanic father brings her into contact with a lottery-winning neighbor, and the relationships that follow connect the story’s immigration thread with the rescue of Veda, a circus elephant, and Sila’s friendship with Mateo. The novel brings together family, belonging, friendship, and the bond between people and animals, with its events rooted in a small Oregon town.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Children ages 9–12 interested in stories about immigration and family separation.
  • Readers who enjoy books featuring friendships across generations and connections between people and animals.

Themes

Immigration and family separationBelonging and hopeFriendshipHuman-animal connection

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

"Sloan captures the importance of compassion and bravery when facing life's challenges" (Kirkus) in this touching novel by the critically acclaimed author of Counting by 7s.

It's been almost a year since Sila's mother traveled halfway around the world to Turkey, hoping to secure the immigration paperwork that would allow her to return to her family in the United States.

The long separation is almost impossible for Sila to withstand. But things change when Sila accompanies her father (who is a mechanic) outside their Oregon town to fix a truck. There, behind an enormous stone wall, she meets a grandfatherly man who only months before won the state lottery. Their new alliance leads to the rescue of a circus elephant named Veda, and then to a friendship with an unusual boy named Mateo, proving that comfort and hope come in the most unlikely of places.

A moving story of family separation and the importance of the connection between animals and humans, this novel has the enormous heart and uplifting humor that readers have come to expect from the beloved author of Counting by 7s.
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