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The Composition
Winner of the UNESCO Tolerance Awarda and the Jane Addams Children's Book Award, and an Americas Award Commended Title
Life is simple for Pedro -- he goes to school, does his homework and, most importantly, plays soccer. But when the soldiers come and take his friend Daniel's father away, things suddenly become much more complicated.
Why, for instance, do Pedro's parents secretly listen to the radio every evening after dinner? And why does the government want Pedro and his classmates to write compositions about what their parents do in the evening?
Humorous, serious and intensely human, this powerful picture book by Chilean writer Antonio Skarmeta presents a situation all too familiar to children around the world. And for children it provides food for thought about freedom, moral choices and personal responsibility.
Life is simple for Pedro -- he goes to school, does his homework and, most importantly, plays soccer. But when the soldiers come and take his friend Daniel's father away, things suddenly become much more complicated.
Why, for instance, do Pedro's parents secretly listen to the radio every evening after dinner? And why does the government want Pedro and his classmates to write compositions about what their parents do in the evening?
Humorous, serious and intensely human, this powerful picture book by Chilean writer Antonio Skarmeta presents a situation all too familiar to children around the world. And for children it provides food for thought about freedom, moral choices and personal responsibility.
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
13 people are currently reading
648 people want to read
About the author
Antonio Skármeta
94 books433 followersEsteban Antonio Skármeta Vranicic was a Chilean writer, scriptwriter and director descending from Croatian immigrants from the Adriatic island of Brač, Dalmatia. He was awarded Chile's National Literature Prize in 2014.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 108 reviews
May 14, 2011
“’Children aren’t against anything,’ she said. ‘Children are just children. They have to go to school, study hard, play and be good to their parents.’” These are the words Pedro’s mother gives him to help him understand his role in a place where the military dictatorship is taking over their lives. In this story, young Pedro, who simply wants to play soccer, is instructed by the dictatorship to write a composition entitled, “What My Family Does at Night.” In this story, Antonio Skármeta shares the innocence of children, and how they are forced to show courage in a world where they make no decisions. Like many Latino/a stories, this book shares the importance of families sticking together, even when there are attempts to break them apart. The full-page illustrations are definitive and also capture the innocence of the children in this story. The illustrator, Alfonso Ruano, cleverly articulates the children’s hearts through their facial expressions. I would love to share this book with my third graders, who have some understanding about types of governments, including dictatorships. The book shares a difficult topic in an understandable way for children.
September 20, 2012
What a brilliant little book! It explains dictatorship in such a great way. It really should be mandatory to read this book at school.
I just wish that more kids were as clever as Pedro. He uses a fantastic method to rule out the government's really mean technique of trying to find out whose parents are against the regime. The book shows that as powerless as one may seem there is always a possibility to do something against evil.
I just wish that more kids were as clever as Pedro. He uses a fantastic method to rule out the government's really mean technique of trying to find out whose parents are against the regime. The book shows that as powerless as one may seem there is always a possibility to do something against evil.
July 31, 2024
চিলির ক্ষমতায় তখন উপবিষ্ট স্বৈরশাসক জেনারেল পেরদোমো। কেউ স্বৈরতন্ত্রের বিরোধী জানতে পারলেই তাকে পোরা হয় হাজতে। ৯ বছর বয়সী পেদ্রো মার্লবান। তৃতীয় শ্রেণির ছাত্র সে। তার পরিবারও একনায়কতন্ত্রের বিপক্ষে। একদিন পেদ্রোদের ক্লাসে এক ক্যাপ্টেন এসে উপস্থিত হয়। ক্যাপ্টেন শিক্ষার্থীদের মূল্যবান পুরস্কারের লোভ দেখিয়ে একটি রচনা প্রতিযোগিতার আয়োজন করে। ‘রাতে বাসায় আমরা যা করি’ শিরোনামের এই রচনাটি বাচ্চাদের দিয়ে লেখিয়ে নেওয়ার একটিই উদ্দেশ্য—তাদের পরিবারের কেউ সরকারবিরোধী কি না তা খুঁজে বের করা। পেদ্রো এই ফাঁদে পা দেয় কি না এবং সে রচনার খাতায় কী লেখে তা জানতে হলে পড়তে হবে ‘প্রতিরোধ’ গল্পটি।
ডিক্টেটরশিপ কী, এর ফলে একটি দেশ বা দেশের জনগণের কী অনিষ্ট হয়, এটি কি চলতেই থাকে, নাকি এরও শেষ আছে, এবং তা কীভাবে? এসব ছোটদের বোঝার উপযোগী করে অত্যন্ত সহজে বর্ণিত হয়েছে গল্পের শেষে আলাদা একটি পৃষ্ঠায়।
সংযুক্তি : সম্ভব হলে পরিচিত খুদে পাঠকদের বইটি উপহার দিন। ওরা জানুক, চিনুক, আর সচেতন হোক।
ডিক্টেটরশিপ কী, এর ফলে একটি দেশ বা দেশের জনগণের কী অনিষ্ট হয়, এটি কি চলতেই থাকে, নাকি এরও শেষ আছে, এবং তা কীভাবে? এসব ছোটদের বোঝার উপযোগী করে অত্যন্ত সহজে বর্ণিত হয়েছে গল্পের শেষে আলাদা একটি পৃষ্ঠায়।
সংযুক্তি : সম্ভব হলে পরিচিত খুদে পাঠকদের বইটি উপহার দিন। ওরা জানুক, চিনুক, আর সচেতন হোক।
December 2, 2021
primer libro/novela en español!!
May 18, 2011
This book is about a boy who, while at school, was asked by the government to write a composition about what their family does at night. This is after he has seen the government take away a friends father for opposing the dictatorship and watching his parents listen anxiously to the radio about freeing the country. Even though he does not understand fully what is happening,he understands that people are being treated unfairly. When he is asked to write the compositions, he remembers what his parents and his neighbor have experienced.
This is a great book showing how people living under a dictatorship can be controlled. They use the children to tell on their parents and encourage and reward people who reveal what they are doing. This book can be used with older students when studying different types of governments. It would defiantly spark a discussion.
This is a great book showing how people living under a dictatorship can be controlled. They use the children to tell on their parents and encourage and reward people who reveal what they are doing. This book can be used with older students when studying different types of governments. It would defiantly spark a discussion.
March 27, 2019
فلنلعب الشطرنج إذًا يا بيدرو :)
February 16, 2012
This is a well written children's book which can be used with upper level students. I read it aloud to my seventh grade language arts students. Though the setting isn't specified, I found that this detail encouraged discussion and converation regarding where it might take place. This enabled my students to think critically about the details mentioned in the story (the main character mentions Pele the soccer player, prompting my students to hypothesize where the story might take place). It also brings up the question of 'Can children make a difference?', when the little boy has a big decision to make regarding his composition for class.
January 10, 2014
قصة قصيرة مكتوبة للأطفال مع كثير من الرسومات و فيها نجد الضابط يلقي التحية على الطلاب الصغار معلناً عن جائزة كبيرة لمن يكتب تعبيراً جيداً عن ما يفعله أبويه في المساء و فيما ينتظر الضابط أن يقوم الأطفال بكل براءة بالوشاية بأهاليهم يتنبه بيدرو إلى حديث والدته في الأمس عندما قالت أن الأطفال ليسوا ضد أحد، هم مجرد أطفال. ينتهي به الأمر إلى كتابة تعبير غير حقيقي و مطالباً في النهاية بكل براءة الأطفال في حال فوزه أن تكون الجائزة كرة قدم حقيقية.
January 6, 2021
agradeço às irmãs melgaço por esse sorriso nesse terrível dia
December 26, 2022
This book should be read by all children whose parents are under a dictatorship regime threat. When an army officer visits Perdo's class and asks pupils to write a composition about what their parents do everyday at home, Pardo was smart enough to evade reference to resistance.
January 28, 2009
This was a good book. The story line outlined how the goverment influences children,families, and lifestyles. Pedro is a young boy with soccer talent that is overshadowed by the looming dictatorship in his country.
His close friend has watched his father removed from the family store, and Pedro's evenings consist of watching his family listen to the radio updates about dictatorship.
The story ends with Pedro writing an "untruthful" composition in an effort to conceal his parents' antagonistic resistance to the dictatorship.
Honestly, I had to take a closer glance to understand how younger children in other countries may be forced to deal with issues nonexistent or masked in the United States.
His close friend has watched his father removed from the family store, and Pedro's evenings consist of watching his family listen to the radio updates about dictatorship.
The story ends with Pedro writing an "untruthful" composition in an effort to conceal his parents' antagonistic resistance to the dictatorship.
Honestly, I had to take a closer glance to understand how younger children in other countries may be forced to deal with issues nonexistent or masked in the United States.
March 15, 2018
This book was a really good eye opener, told from the viewpoint of a young 9 year old boy living in a country that was a dictatorship. It has really great illustrations but it's also about a child realizing what is happening around him...in his world and in his family. This is truly a reality for a lot of children in the world and yet, this is a good way to make other children realize about the situation facing children all around the world.
December 2, 2020
Me emocioné mucho con el final. Hasta una lágrima se me escapó. Este es el tipo de relato estremecedor que merece el recuerdo de la dictadura.
Creo que la simpleza del texto y su foco en los eventos lo vuelven accesible y efectivo para el público infantil.
El narrador es muy hábil en marcar la ingenuidad del protagonista respecto a ciertos temas, a la vez que consigue instrumentalizarla para dar cierre al relato.
Me parece que versa los asuntos de la dictadura desde una sensibilidad distante pero empática, desde este protagonista que aprende a involucrarse y activa su agencia.
Le bajo una estrella porque siento hay un conflicto racial en las ilustraciones. Los protagonistas lucen, en su mayoría, rasgos eurodescendientes, mientras que los antagonistas se ven mucho más morenos. Me hizo sospechar, aunque estimo es una reflexión que quien ilustró no tuvo.
Creo que la simpleza del texto y su foco en los eventos lo vuelven accesible y efectivo para el público infantil.
El narrador es muy hábil en marcar la ingenuidad del protagonista respecto a ciertos temas, a la vez que consigue instrumentalizarla para dar cierre al relato.
Me parece que versa los asuntos de la dictadura desde una sensibilidad distante pero empática, desde este protagonista que aprende a involucrarse y activa su agencia.
Le bajo una estrella porque siento hay un conflicto racial en las ilustraciones. Los protagonistas lucen, en su mayoría, rasgos eurodescendientes, mientras que los antagonistas se ven mucho más morenos. Me hizo sospechar, aunque estimo es una reflexión que quien ilustró no tuvo.
November 28, 2025
Pedro is a young boy who is growing up under the dictatorship in Chile. As a form of "spying" on families, soldiers go to Pedro's school and have students complete a writing assignment on what their families do at night. This was meant to uncover who was rebelling. Pedro himself rebels, and writes what he has to in order to keep his family safe. This book is intended for readers in about grades 3 to 5. This book is intended to teach history from the perspective of someone experiencing it. I chose this book for my classroom library because it demonstrates ways how to resist social injustices in ways that are nonviolent, yet powerful. Key themes and topics of this book include dictatorships, government, resistance, repression, Chile, and freedom.
September 3, 2024
Read this for Cinéma, musique et littérature du monde hispanique.
I quite liked this text. It seems innocent because it follows a kid that wants to make his father proud, but because of the political situation at the time and the power of the military in the education system, he could expose his father as a defiant. Definitely gets your heart beating faster.
I quite liked this text. It seems innocent because it follows a kid that wants to make his father proud, but because of the political situation at the time and the power of the military in the education system, he could expose his father as a defiant. Definitely gets your heart beating faster.
April 4, 2020
Puissant!
March 1, 2022
Hi ha molta lletra, però està super ben escrit. És durillo, però alhora la visió naïf del protagonista provoca que hi hagi certa tendresa. Un bon retrat sobre una dictadura militar.
November 21, 2022
Good Kiddo
November 12, 2025
it was a intressting book, especially for a spanish beginner like me
May 17, 2018
7/50 read for my spanishclass
October 2, 2020
عنوان ترجمهٔ فارسی: انشا
October 6, 2024
Cute lille libro vi skulle læse i spansk - behandler nogle ret ømme emner om diktaturen i Chile ret godt. Børn skal forblive børn og må ALDRIG bruges som politisk våben mod deres forældre!
May 6, 2015
The Composition by Antonio Skármeta carefully tackles the issue of growing up under a military dictatorship through the eyes of a young boy.
We meet our protagonist, Pedro, on his birthday. He’s a young boy living in Chile during the Pinochet dictatorship. Soccer defines his life, as it does for many young boys in Latin America. One of the pivotal scenes comes as he is gifted a soccer ball to play with his neighborhood friends. During a game, Pedro makes a goal but, as he runs in celebration, he notices that everyone else is distracted watching a scene playing out across the street: the father of Pedro’s friend is being taken away by soldiers.
The author recognizes how children may have trouble grasping the implications of what Pedro sees. By having Pedro ask questions, the book does a good job of anticipating questions that child readers might have.. Pedro asks his friend why his father was taken and is told that it is because his father is against the dictatorship. This isn’t entirely new to Pedro, as Pedro has heard the phrase “against the dictatorship” on the radio, but he doesn’t really understand what it all means. He asks about this, too, and his friend responds that it means people want the country to be free, and that they want for the military to stay out of the government. Pedro learns more later by asking his parents when he gets home.
Readers of the book receive implicit clues about the nature of the dictatorship. In addition to Pedro’s outright conversations, he senses that his parents are sad and silent. This leads Pedro to begin a conversation with them in which he discovers that they are also against the dictatorship. At school the next day a soldier visits their classroom and assigns them all the task of writing a composition titled “What my Family Does at Night.” Pedro grapples with the complex decision of what to write. The author leaves the reader in suspense, stating simply that Pedro turned in his assignment. Weeks later, Pedro gets his composition back from the soldier. He takes it home to read to his parents, who listen nervously. Pedro’s composition omits activities such as listening to the radio and instead says that each night his parents simply play chess. We can surmise from the omissions that Pedro has grown to understand the dangers surrounding him and his family.
In many Latin American countries, political repression has resulted in the disappearance of thousands of people. This book sensitively invokes these issues, and encourages the reader to empathize with a child in this situation. It is filled with details and moments where Pedro bonds with and receives love from his parents, leaving the reader emotionally entangled in their story.
The Composition is a useful text for teaching about human rights, government repression, and individual agency. We recommend this book for the classroom as it handles these tough issues with care. It shows how children can grasp complicated situations affecting their daily lives, and acknowledges their ability to adjust accordingly. Although Pedro may not want to lie in his paper, he grows to understand the meaning of living under a dictatorship and recognizes that even something as simple as his classroom composition can have larger repercussions.
To read our full review including links to classroom resources, visit the Vamos a Leer blog at http://tiny.cc/vamosaleer
We meet our protagonist, Pedro, on his birthday. He’s a young boy living in Chile during the Pinochet dictatorship. Soccer defines his life, as it does for many young boys in Latin America. One of the pivotal scenes comes as he is gifted a soccer ball to play with his neighborhood friends. During a game, Pedro makes a goal but, as he runs in celebration, he notices that everyone else is distracted watching a scene playing out across the street: the father of Pedro’s friend is being taken away by soldiers.
The author recognizes how children may have trouble grasping the implications of what Pedro sees. By having Pedro ask questions, the book does a good job of anticipating questions that child readers might have.. Pedro asks his friend why his father was taken and is told that it is because his father is against the dictatorship. This isn’t entirely new to Pedro, as Pedro has heard the phrase “against the dictatorship” on the radio, but he doesn’t really understand what it all means. He asks about this, too, and his friend responds that it means people want the country to be free, and that they want for the military to stay out of the government. Pedro learns more later by asking his parents when he gets home.
Readers of the book receive implicit clues about the nature of the dictatorship. In addition to Pedro’s outright conversations, he senses that his parents are sad and silent. This leads Pedro to begin a conversation with them in which he discovers that they are also against the dictatorship. At school the next day a soldier visits their classroom and assigns them all the task of writing a composition titled “What my Family Does at Night.” Pedro grapples with the complex decision of what to write. The author leaves the reader in suspense, stating simply that Pedro turned in his assignment. Weeks later, Pedro gets his composition back from the soldier. He takes it home to read to his parents, who listen nervously. Pedro’s composition omits activities such as listening to the radio and instead says that each night his parents simply play chess. We can surmise from the omissions that Pedro has grown to understand the dangers surrounding him and his family.
In many Latin American countries, political repression has resulted in the disappearance of thousands of people. This book sensitively invokes these issues, and encourages the reader to empathize with a child in this situation. It is filled with details and moments where Pedro bonds with and receives love from his parents, leaving the reader emotionally entangled in their story.
The Composition is a useful text for teaching about human rights, government repression, and individual agency. We recommend this book for the classroom as it handles these tough issues with care. It shows how children can grasp complicated situations affecting their daily lives, and acknowledges their ability to adjust accordingly. Although Pedro may not want to lie in his paper, he grows to understand the meaning of living under a dictatorship and recognizes that even something as simple as his classroom composition can have larger repercussions.
To read our full review including links to classroom resources, visit the Vamos a Leer blog at http://tiny.cc/vamosaleer
February 24, 2018
Young Pedro lives in a country run by a dictator. His parents secretly listen to radio broadcasts that speak against the dictator. When the police come to his classroom and ask the children to write an essay about what their parents do every night, Pedro must decide what to do. How can he write the essay and protect his parents? I think the book would have had a greater impact on me if it had been set in a specific country. However, the author is from Chile, which has been ruled by dictators, so he probably left the country out so as to avoid trouble. I do like Pedro’s solution, however, and appreciate his explanation at the end of the book about dictatorships. This book could produce some good discussion if read in the classroom. Recommended.
February 13, 2012
Pedro is nine years old and lives in Chile with his parents. They all are living under a dictatorship.
Pedro likes to play soccer and wishes his parents would buy him a real soccer ball. His parents work during the day and spend their nights huddled around the radio listening to news broadcasts.. Pedro does not understand this. One day an army captain comes to his school and ask the students to write a composition about "What my family does at night". Pedro is torn. He knows that his parents listen to the radio all the time. He also knows that the army police came and took away his friend Daniel's father. He doesn't understnd why. The only information he gets is from his freinds. His parents don't answer his questions. One day he asks his Mother "Am I against dictatorship?" His Mother answers, "children aren't against anything" For the first time, Pedro begins to understand the political implications of his parents' actions, even though they try to shield him from such things. He wants to win the prize (a gold medal and a sash of the flag colors), he also is wise enough to know that he cannot reveal what his parents do at night. So, he write a composition telling everything that his family does at night EXCEPT listening to the radio.
The note at the end of the book explains dictatorship and the challenges that people face when living under it. This helps broaden the child's understanding of what was read in the prior pages.
A winner of an Americas Book Award, this book presents a familiar scene for children living in war torn dictatorship countries.
Appropriate for Ages 9-16.
Pedro likes to play soccer and wishes his parents would buy him a real soccer ball. His parents work during the day and spend their nights huddled around the radio listening to news broadcasts.. Pedro does not understand this. One day an army captain comes to his school and ask the students to write a composition about "What my family does at night". Pedro is torn. He knows that his parents listen to the radio all the time. He also knows that the army police came and took away his friend Daniel's father. He doesn't understnd why. The only information he gets is from his freinds. His parents don't answer his questions. One day he asks his Mother "Am I against dictatorship?" His Mother answers, "children aren't against anything" For the first time, Pedro begins to understand the political implications of his parents' actions, even though they try to shield him from such things. He wants to win the prize (a gold medal and a sash of the flag colors), he also is wise enough to know that he cannot reveal what his parents do at night. So, he write a composition telling everything that his family does at night EXCEPT listening to the radio.
The note at the end of the book explains dictatorship and the challenges that people face when living under it. This helps broaden the child's understanding of what was read in the prior pages.
A winner of an Americas Book Award, this book presents a familiar scene for children living in war torn dictatorship countries.
Appropriate for Ages 9-16.
January 16, 2018
This story captures the intense, serious topic of dictatorship and forms the circumstance from the perspective of a typical child. The Composition provides readers with the strategy of having the children of the family ‘turn-in’ their parents by asking the students to write an essay on what their families do in the evening time. It creates a nervous tension that the reader has to endure throughout and then after completing the text. Pedro is a boy who shows normal qualities throughout, loving soccer and his friends. Pedro is a relatable character due to the fact that he is curious, loves sports, and wants to perform well when given the task of writing the essay. What is specifically unique to The Composition is the impact of the influence of the government and the military on Pedro and his world. Readers are shown the capacity of power in a way that does not undermine the authority while given with child-friendly language and display.
The illustrations of The Composition keep the reader interested and enhance the written text. The pictures show real emotion of fear, sadness, anticipation, and worry. These emotions connect the reader to the text, helping the visualizing of the characters and their happenings to be strengthened. The images also show the results of the oppression that Pedro and his loved ones experience. Readers have to not only read but watch as his friend’s father is taken by the military. This is an experience that is filled with emotion and passion, increasing with intensity as the story goes on. Overall, this is a story that is worth discussing over. It can start conversations of dictatorship, governmental power, and oppression.
The illustrations of The Composition keep the reader interested and enhance the written text. The pictures show real emotion of fear, sadness, anticipation, and worry. These emotions connect the reader to the text, helping the visualizing of the characters and their happenings to be strengthened. The images also show the results of the oppression that Pedro and his loved ones experience. Readers have to not only read but watch as his friend’s father is taken by the military. This is an experience that is filled with emotion and passion, increasing with intensity as the story goes on. Overall, this is a story that is worth discussing over. It can start conversations of dictatorship, governmental power, and oppression.
June 17, 2011
While I think this is a great and powerful story with an age appropriate depiction of an awful time in Chile's history, I think that there is perhaps too much text and too much detail in the story that gives a sense of place but would have made this much more appropriate to publish as a reader like My Havana rather than a picturebook. That said, the pictures are well done, using a plain style that captures the bleakness of the time period, abstaining form outline to get a realistic style with a hint of the stiffness of folk art.
Summary: A young boy is asked to write a composition in school about what his family does at night for a contest that the military is sponsoring. Rather than unintentionally report his parents for listening to the radio and discussing political matters, nine-year-old Pedro writes that his family plays chess. His father, relieved, playfully responds, “well, we’d better buy a chess set” (p. 32). This book presents some of the more complicated issues in the other texts in a simple way that can open up discussions when children are ready or just provide them with a fun story.
Critique: The Composition is a little wordy for a picturebook, requiring that the child have developed enough of an attention span to sit through the prose with selected illustrations, but limits the story to character development, description of the setting, and then the main event without wandering off on to tangents. It has been awarded the Américas Book Award in honor of its portrayal of Latin America.
Summary: A young boy is asked to write a composition in school about what his family does at night for a contest that the military is sponsoring. Rather than unintentionally report his parents for listening to the radio and discussing political matters, nine-year-old Pedro writes that his family plays chess. His father, relieved, playfully responds, “well, we’d better buy a chess set” (p. 32). This book presents some of the more complicated issues in the other texts in a simple way that can open up discussions when children are ready or just provide them with a fun story.
Critique: The Composition is a little wordy for a picturebook, requiring that the child have developed enough of an attention span to sit through the prose with selected illustrations, but limits the story to character development, description of the setting, and then the main event without wandering off on to tangents. It has been awarded the Américas Book Award in honor of its portrayal of Latin America.
October 18, 2011
Pedro is a nine-year-old boy living in a country that is run by a dictatorship. We never learn what country this is, but it is a Hispanic culture. In this story, Pedro is just like any child, in that he likes to play with his friends and he spends time with his family in the evening. But something is wrong: his friend’s father is arrested for voicing his opinion about the government. His parents seem worried about radio news reports. And now a general from the army is in his own classroom, demanding that the children write a composition about what their families do at home in the evening. Will Pedro understand the threat that lurks behind the general’s eyes? Or will he reveal that his parents are against the dictatorship? The story reminds us that children understand the world better than we give them credit for, and they can, in their way, help make choices for change.
The text and dialogue is straightforward, written with a crisp, accessible tone. The text beyond the dialogue conveys the story with the honest voice of a young person. The emotion and gravity of the story is underplayed so that the events can unfold with increasing tension. Yet there is an honesty to it, moments that show how actions convey meaning when we don't have the words. The art reads almost like snapshots, slices from a day here and there, where people keep their true feelings hidden. The art in this way reflects the tension in the text, and the tension that is felt day to day under a dictatorship.
Originally published in Spanish in Venezuela, 2000.
The text and dialogue is straightforward, written with a crisp, accessible tone. The text beyond the dialogue conveys the story with the honest voice of a young person. The emotion and gravity of the story is underplayed so that the events can unfold with increasing tension. Yet there is an honesty to it, moments that show how actions convey meaning when we don't have the words. The art reads almost like snapshots, slices from a day here and there, where people keep their true feelings hidden. The art in this way reflects the tension in the text, and the tension that is felt day to day under a dictatorship.
Originally published in Spanish in Venezuela, 2000.
March 14, 2017
This book was written years ago by Antonio Skármeta, a Chilean author. Pedro, nine, is very good at soccer, has an easy life, goes to school, does his homework, wishes he had a real soccer ball rather than the cheaper one he owns. One day while playing a game, soldiers come and take his friend Daniel's father. Life isn't so fun anymore. He notices that his parents huddle around the radio listening to something each evening. One day, the government sends a soldier to ask the students to write a composition. The winner will earn a big prize and will carry the country's flag in a parade. They are to write about what their parents do each evening.
Pedro does not win the prize and brings home his composition one day. The tense scene when his parents learn about this assignment and then ask him to read what he wrote gives goosebumps. Pedro writes only about dinner and homework and watching his parents play chess all evening. His father smiles and says he guesses they'll have to get a chess set.
It's an easy and brief book to read, holds some funny and then scary moments, a brief description of lives for many children around the world who live under a dictatorship. The word "resistance" is mentioned and "being against the dictatorship. I imagine interesting discussions and/or thoughts about moral choices and freedom after reading this story. There is a page at the end explaining dictatorships. Illustrations by AlfonsoRuano are colorful and realistic, enjoyable with the story.
Pedro does not win the prize and brings home his composition one day. The tense scene when his parents learn about this assignment and then ask him to read what he wrote gives goosebumps. Pedro writes only about dinner and homework and watching his parents play chess all evening. His father smiles and says he guesses they'll have to get a chess set.
It's an easy and brief book to read, holds some funny and then scary moments, a brief description of lives for many children around the world who live under a dictatorship. The word "resistance" is mentioned and "being against the dictatorship. I imagine interesting discussions and/or thoughts about moral choices and freedom after reading this story. There is a page at the end explaining dictatorships. Illustrations by AlfonsoRuano are colorful and realistic, enjoyable with the story.
November 2, 2013
This story is a 2000 Americas Award winner. It takes place in an undisclosed Spanish speaking country. It is a story about a young boy, Pedro, whose passion in life is playing soccer. While this is his main focus in life, he begins to notice some disturbing events occurring around him. He sees his parents listening intently to the radio each evening to a far away voices that are difficult for him to understand. He also witnesses his good friend's father being dragged away by the army, and learns that it is because his father is against the military dictatorship. Over time, Pedro learns about his own and his family's beliefs about the government. When an army captain comes to his classroom and tells all of the children they must write an essay entitled, "What My Family Does at Night", Pedro must think carefully about the words he writes. This story effectively introduces young children to the concept of a dictator government. Through well written dialog and illustrations, the reader comes to understand the characters' feelings and emotions. This story will help a young reader to grasp how being in a country subjected to a dictatorship can affect a family as well as a whole community. This book would be suitable for grades 3-5. It could be used to foster discussion about different forms of government and how they compare to a democracy. It also could spark a debate about making difficult choices.
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