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83rd out of 253 books
—
925 voters
Chained
by
Lynne Kelly (Goodreads Author)
After ten-year-old Hastin’s family borrows money to pay for his sister’s hospital bill, he leaves his village in northernIndia to take a job as an elephant keeper and work off the debt.He thinks it will be an adventure, but he isn’t prepared for the cruel circus owner.The crowds that come to the circus see a lively animal who plays soccer and balances on milk bottles, but...more
Hardcover, 248 pages
Published
May 8th 2012
by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
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Like a WATER FOR ELEPHANTS for a younger crowd, this book dragged me through an emotional wringer as I read about an elephant and her young keeper at a circus in India. I loved Hastin from the beginning - he is a brave, loyal and strong boy, well beyond his ten years, but he shares the spotlight with an equally brave, loyal and strong elephant, Nandita. To say I loved this book doesn't really do justice to how it made me feel, but throughout I laughed and cried and had my heart broken several ti...more
I cried--it's wonderful! I knew in the first pages that I was reading something special.
Hastin has a difficult journey ahead of him as he sets out to save his sick sister and his mother from being practically an indentured servant. His friendship with Nandita the elephant is touching and poignant. I love this story so much.
First line: The flood left, but the fever stayed.
Tell me you don't want to read it now!
Hastin has a difficult journey ahead of him as he sets out to save his sick sister and his mother from being practically an indentured servant. His friendship with Nandita the elephant is touching and poignant. I love this story so much.
First line: The flood left, but the fever stayed.
Tell me you don't want to read it now!
5 likes · like · see review
If you love Linda Sue Park, then you should grab CHAINED with both hands, as soon as it hits the shelves. First and foremost, I loved 10-year-old Hastin. As a mom, I can only hope to raise boys who embody all that this young man stands for. He is compassionate, never looses his ability to love and finds strength beyond his years when he needs it the most. I can't wait to own a copy of CHAINED to share with my own boys.
Hastin isn't the only character that moved me. This is a story of a beautiful...more
Hastin isn't the only character that moved me. This is a story of a beautiful...more
Hastin's sister is very ill with a fever, and his mother takes her to the doctor, even though his father has passed away and the family is barely surviving in rural India. In order to pay the bill, the mother goes to work cleaning the house of a wealthy man, but when he starts to abuse her, Hastin looks for another way. He is hired by Timir, an elephant trainer, who offers to pay the hospital bill in exchange for Hastin's work for a year. The first thing Hastin has to do is to trap a young eleph...more
Riding an elephant like Tarzan may have been a dream many youngsters have, including my niece and nephew. As a matter of fact, their parents were planning a trip to Thailand this summer and part of the itinerary was elephant riding. The good news is that they had to cancel the trip due to date conflict. My nephew and niece heard about the illegal poaching/training/trapping of elephants, but they have no idea how bad and cruel it is. This is a book that would give them the clear picture.
Lynne Ke...more
Lynne Ke...more
This was an absolutely beautiful book. I finished it a few weeks ago and am still thinking about it.
Hastin is a 10 year old boy living in poverty in rural India. His sister is deathly ill and will die without the medical care she needs. His mother takes out a loan from a local wealthy man and she begins working for him as a servant to pay it back, but when Hastin visits her and sees her black eye, he knows she can't continue. So he hires himself out to a circus owner as an elephant keeper and t...more
Hastin is a 10 year old boy living in poverty in rural India. His sister is deathly ill and will die without the medical care she needs. His mother takes out a loan from a local wealthy man and she begins working for him as a servant to pay it back, but when Hastin visits her and sees her black eye, he knows she can't continue. So he hires himself out to a circus owner as an elephant keeper and t...more
Meet Chanda. She is the catalyst for today’s review of Chained, a smart, well-written, and engrossing novel by Lynne Kelly. Chanda is a young girl bitten by fever mosquitoes and now carries a dangerously high temperature. She needs medical help now. With the help of a neighbor, Amma, her mother, takes Chanda to the hospital in the city. Left behind to care for things at home is Chanda’s older brother, Hastin.
Thus begins an engaging story of one young boy’s quest to help the three women in his l...more
Thus begins an engaging story of one young boy’s quest to help the three women in his l...more
Nov 01, 2011
Paul Hankins
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
can-t-miss-read-aloud,
friends-in-the-business,
hero-s-journey-go-to-book,
middle-grade-fiction,
middle-grade-memorable-writing,
middle-grade-touching,
mr-hankins-says-don-t-miss,
young-adult-multicultural,
young-adult-tender-touching,
middle-grade-touching-tender,
middle-grade-discussion-ready
You never want to come out too early in review of a book, and CHAINED doesn't release until May of 2012. My apologies--in advance--to not only Lynne Kelly (who--by the way--taught Mr. Hankins how to use a hashtag on Twitter ((just in case you wanted to know who to blame for this)) but to the publisher, Farrar Straus Giroux as well for this early, early review. . .but you see?
I have to be first on this one.
We're always wondering, right? What book will capture our attention in the next year? Pull...more
I have to be first on this one.
We're always wondering, right? What book will capture our attention in the next year? Pull...more
10 likes · like · see review
There are literally millions of great books out there, but every once in a while a special one comes along. A book that simply stands out. I’m never good at explaining what it is that makes a good book so great. It’s kinda like, “You have you read this. You. Just. Have. To!” That’s how I feel about Chained. There are so, so many things to love underneath that sweet cover.
The story is one of an unlikely friendship between Hastin, a ten-year-old boy, and an elephant. Hastin, man of the family sinc...more
The story is one of an unlikely friendship between Hastin, a ten-year-old boy, and an elephant. Hastin, man of the family sinc...more
I can't quite give this five stars. Generally because a five star book is one that I read and afterwards want to hug to my chest and sigh over because it was such an amazing journey. This book is heartwrenching, powerful and poignant. The writing is strong and the setting is unusual, yet the reader feels a part of the story and the setting without much effort. The plight is incredibly understandable.
In an effort to free his family of a hospital debt and free his mother from servitude, our protag...more
In an effort to free his family of a hospital debt and free his mother from servitude, our protag...more
The story is one of an unlikely friendship between Hastin, a ten-year-old boy, and an elephant. Hastin, man of the family since his father’s death, must take a job as an elephant keeper far from home to pay off a family debt. Though he’ll miss his mom and sister, Hastin is excited for the adventure that awaits. But nothing could prepare him for the cruelty both he and the elephant, Nandita, endure. Their bond is tighter than the shackles on Nandita’s feet and their love and friendship allow them...more
If this is Kelly's debut, I can't wait to read more. A STRONG novel, hard to read due to the realistic violence portrayed, that reminded me of a book I read as a young person (back when books were written on skins and rolled up, you know) that described the life of a young Indian boy who becomes a mahout. So many teaching extensions spring from Chained, I could not begin to detail them here. Kelly examines the role of family, of economic hardship on individuals and communities, and the forging o...more
This is probably a four-star book, but I didn't quite connect with it enough. I don't think it's a fault of the writing, which is particularly impressive for a debut author. I thought just now, skimming some of these other reviews, and looking at the beautiful cover, that I should write "I think--and I don't mean this as an insult--this would make a great Disney movie." It would, and I really don't mean it as an insult, but I think what kept me from loving this book is that the story felt a litt...more
I was fortunate enough to receive an ARC of CHAINED (Margaret Ferguson Books/FSG/Macmillan – 5/8/2012) by Lynne Kelly, and I immediately fell in love with Nandita’s sad elephant eyes on the cover. From the first line, I was drawn into the hopeful world of 10 year old Hastin as he tries to be the man of the family and help his widowed mother and critically ill sister by offering his services as an elephant keeper in exchange for five thousand rupees needed to pay for his sister’s medical bill. Th...more
3 likes · like · see review
In order to pay off his sister’s hospital debt, 10-year-old Hastin must leave his family and go to work for a circus owner as an elephant keeper. He is shocked by the brutal treatment that Nandita, his elephant and best friend, endures at the hand of the circus owner and trainer. Hastin’s loneliness is paralleled by Nandita’s and this book was hard to read in places because Kelly so honestly captures what it feels like to be alone, scared, and holding onto the tiniest shred of hope. It’s a beaut...more
Ten year old Hastin is taken far away from home to repay his family's debt to an unscrupulous and cruel circus owner in the north of India. Forced to help capture, then train and care for a young elephant, Hastin soon learns that, no matter how hard he works, he will likely never see his family again. As he tries to protect the little elephant from abuse, overwork and illness, the bond between them grows until Hastin realizes that he will do anything to find a way to free them both. Beautifully...more
Once again another book has defied all my expectations and proven I don’t always know what I like best. I only read Chained because Tara from Fiction Folio was trying to get some people to fill up slots on an ARC tour for it. I wasn’t really jazzed about reading it since it didn’t seem like my type of book at all, but I’m so glad it landed in my lap.
A lot of times we look at a book like Chained and think it’ll be silly because an animal book can’t have the same depth. Or we already know the char...more
A lot of times we look at a book like Chained and think it’ll be silly because an animal book can’t have the same depth. Or we already know the char...more
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Chained is a story about the human spirit and a beautiful relationship between a boy and an elephant, Nandita, who are more alike than different. They are both homeless, alone, lonely, and longing to be with family. Both are in a situation they cannot see themselves out of, and when things take a turn for the worse, they both realize that they are all that they have. Their relationship is the cornerstone to this book. It goes beyond sweet and touching. Their friendship is pure, moving, and unden...more
4 likes · like · see review
From the very first page you will root for Hastin, a 10-yr-old boy in poor, rural India who tends to his ill sister. When she has to go to the hospital and his mother cannot pay for her treatment, Hastin scurries around looking for a job, but no one seems willing to take him on, despite his enthusiasm. That is, until he meets the charismatic Timir, a circus owner. Timir promises Hastin more than enough rupees for his sister's care if Hastin will be an elephant keeper for one year. It sounds like...more
I read an ARC of CHAINED, and I feel so privileged to have read this amazing book in advance of its May 2012 publication. As soon as it's available for purchase I'll be buying a copy for my son; he's years too young for this middle grade novel, but when he's of age I want it on his shelf alongside other childhood classics. Set in India -- and meticulously researched, to the point where you can smell the mangoes and taste the buttermilk roti -- it's a mesmerizing tale of a 10-year-old boy, Hastin...more
4 likes · like · see review
Excellent book and a perfect choice to read during "Be Kind to Animals" Week which has just ended. Good insight into the personality of elephants and how important it is to respect and protect this wonderful creature. First time author, Lynne Kelly, does a masterful job of weaving a compelling and complex story of courage and compassion. Her writing style is accessible to students from 3rd grade on up, and the story keeps moving and captures the reader's interest throughout the narrative.
Hastin, 10, is sent to a circus to work off the debt his family incurred when his sister became ill and had to be sent to a hospital. He thinks he will have an adventure as an elephant trainer and will be home in a year. He soon realizes his debt just grows larger and the elephant is trained by the use of punishment. It has everything - a setting in the jungles of India, animal themes, a caring main character - and written to engage the reader.
I have the softest of soft spots for elephants and I advocate for their protection and humane treatment, so this was incredibly hard to read. On the other hand, it is an important book (along the lines of Boys Without Names by Kashmira Sheth, in that it portrays the starkly real life of families for whom choices are not between burgers or chicken but between survival of one child or another. Definitely a book that bears discussion and shared readings.
3.5 stars. I got a few books for Xander to read this summer, this being one of them. It is a beautiful little story but I think it might be a little too tough emotionally for kids Xander's age (7). It's funny because Xander took one look at the cover and said he didn't want to read it because it made him sad looking at the little elephant chained up - glad I read it first! Definitely a book for kids a little older, like 10 and up.
A touching story of Hastin who leaves his family in northern India to pay off debts for his sick sister’s care. He ends up as an elephant keeper for a cruel circus owner. Hastin loves the elephant and hates to see his best friend in chains and punished if she doesn’t perform as expected. He looks desperately for a way for them both to survive long enough to escape. Highly recommended as a first time author.
A very special read.
A boy who misses his family, an elephant who misses hers.
"Outside, the wind blows toward my home. I hold up the handful of hair and release it to a gust of wind and watch it fly away. I dream that the wind is strong enough to carry it all the way to my village, where it will help make a nest for a bird. And Amma will see the wavy black hair woven into a next and know that I am alright." (p. 139)
A coming of age story in which the boy has to make his own family in a terrible si...more
A boy who misses his family, an elephant who misses hers.
"Outside, the wind blows toward my home. I hold up the handful of hair and release it to a gust of wind and watch it fly away. I dream that the wind is strong enough to carry it all the way to my village, where it will help make a nest for a bird. And Amma will see the wavy black hair woven into a next and know that I am alright." (p. 139)
A coming of age story in which the boy has to make his own family in a terrible si...more
Admittedly, I do not know much about India so I can't speak about the authenticity of its representation, but the young boy, Hastin, was both a compelling and believable narrator to this avid reader. I loved the relationship between the boy and the elephant, and the comparison of his captivity (somewhat voluntary), and her captivity (entirely non-voluntary). I'd recommend this book!
This book is amazingly emotional, and portrays how some will sacrifice themselves for someone else. Hastin, a young and courageous boy seeks to help his little sister, who is sick with the fever. He wants to get a job, so ends up being an elephant keeper. Little does he know what plans the cruel circus owner has...and how Hastin will have to lock his life together with the elephant.
CHAINED is a lovely, lovely book about the connections between human beings and the people (and elephants) they care about. Beautifully written and grippingly plotted, CHAINED became my world while I was reading it. My children will be moved by this story, and I suspect my children's children's children will still be moved by it ages from now. A classic is born!
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| elephants in literature | 3 | 4 | Jan 26, 2012 07:28am |
Lynne Kelly writes contemporary middle grade and young adult fiction. She was born in Galesburg, Illinois, grew up in Houston, lived in some much colder places, then found her way back to the Houston area, where she works as a sign language interpreter. For a few years she also taught special education, a good career for someone with excellent organizational and planning skills. Lacking those skil...more
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Jan 15, 2011 01:56pm