The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq

By Jeanette Winter

*ALA Notable Children’s book 2006 *

Celebrated author-illustrator Jeanette Winter weaves a hopeful tale of one woman’s courageous book rescue.

In the Spring of 2003, Alia Muhammad Baker was the city of Basra’s real-life librarian. She was the keeper of cherished books and her library was a haven for community gatherings.

But with war imminent in Basra, Iraq, what could this lone woman do to save her precious books?

With lyrical, spare text and beautiful acrylic illustrations, Jeanette Winter shows how well she understands her young audience.

This true story of one librarian’s remarkable bravery reminds us all how, throughout the world, the love of literature and the respect for knowledge knows no boundaries.
 
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Apr 29, 2014
• ISBN: 9780547541426

Jeanette Winter

JEANETTE WINTER has written and illustrated many books for children, including MAMA, The Librarian of Basra, Calavera Abecedario: A Day of the Dead Alphabet Book, My Name Is Georgia, and Josefina. She lives in New York City.

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Reviews for The Librarian of Basra

[bxr032 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This true story is based on a librarian who saved books during the Iraq War. This story is great for a history class because it truly shows what life is like during wars in foreign countries. The book is intended for a kindergarten-2nd-grade classroom.

[joanaxthelm · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A tale of holding on to what is important in the face of impossible circumstances. Set during the beginning of the most recent war in Iraq.

Lexile: 640

[engpunk77 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Inspired our RE group to have an art sale to donate to the ALA to help this situation.

[bethwal94 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In this historical fiction book, we are told the story of a librarian who wants to protect her books from the war that was beginning in Iraq. She and her friends have heard about the war that was going on, but nothing had happened yet. Then, they heard the rumors of the bombs being dropped. All she wanted to do was protect her books, so she moves her books from the library into her car, and brings them to a friend's restaurant. They hear the bombs being dropped all around them, and they don't really know what to do. Eventually, someone comes to the restaurant and they hide the books. Then, they move the books to a safer place, and she is still worried about the war. I think this book provides kids with an excellent perspective of the war from a country other than America.

[kristypratt · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is a true story about a librarian in Basra, Iraq named, Alia Muhammad Baker. This library was a meeting place for the community to discuss matters of the world until war broke out. Alia was worried that the books would be destroyed, so she and some members of the community secretly moved all of the books to the restaurant next door, and eventually to her house. The library was burned to the ground, but the books are still safe in house of Basra’s librarian.I loved this book because it is not only a true story, but a story of a community coming together to save something more precious than gold to them, their books. I also love the simplicity of the illustrations and the text, but the powerful message that comes through. For example, the all of the illustrations are simple pictures relating to the text in deep purples, blues and oranges. One page shows the townspeople through the library windows, carrying books and the text reads, “I can use these curtains to wrap them.” “Here are crates from my shop.” “Can you use these sacks?” “The books must be saved.” The last page is my favorite, it shows a picture of Alia standing in her house surrounded by books and it reads, “But until then, the books are safe-safe with the librarian of Basra,” I love that the books meant so much to her and the community that they risked a lot to save them. In fact, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book is donated to help rebuild the book collection of Basra’s Central Library.

[mchapp1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed Jeanette Winter’s story “The Librarian of Basra” for a number of reasons, which include descriptive language, and writing style. In the story Winter uses vivid descriptions to help the reader visualize the destruction that surrounded the library and the immense fear that struck the Iraqi people as they asked one another “ will planes with bombs fill the sky, will soldiers with guns fill the street? Who will die among us? What can we do? Winter is also very descriptive in explaining how important the library books were to Alia by stating “out of fear that the war fires will ruin her books, which are more important to her than mountains of gold, she asked the governor for permission to move them to a safe place, and he refused”. This led to Alia enlisting the help of her friends to secretly move the books to a safe location. The authors writing style creates a sense of suspense throughout the story as the reader is left wondering if the soldiers will discover the books that are hidden in Anis’ restaurant. This story pushes the reader to think of the issues of war and how they affect those living in warzones. The anxiety and fear that the Iraqis felt took away from their quality of life, which is a burden no one wants to endure. The book also pushes readers to think about what could happen if literature is destroyed. Literature holds the key of how humanity has evolved over time and without it we lose a piece of our history and ourselves. The overall theme of this story is that literature is the key to freedom. It is through literature that the Iraqi people found peace, and the threat of having that stripped away from them only added to the stress.

[heidijones · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This story was part of our Engage New York ELA curriculum for 3rd grade. It is a powerful tale of a librarian who risks her life to save books from where she lives in an Iraqui war zone. The fact that it is a true story made me love it even more. It has so many lessons woven throughout the plot. Even though I read it in October, my students still talk about it. Winters captures the strength and perseverance of the Librarian throughout the text.

[sabdelaz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A librarian who is very fond of her thirty thousand books. Alia is keen on keeping her books, some of which are hundreds years old sage because they are worth more than gold to her.When her village is going to be bombed, she starts talking the books home, at a restaurant, and friend's house to keep them all sage. It gets to the pint where soldiers are implanted in the rooftop of their library then they get it to fire. Alia preserves and is outrages for her act. She took action and instead of doing nothing, she made an effort by saving thirty thousand books. She hopes of a new tomorrow for a new library. grade level is K-3 about the war in Iraq and the importance of books.

[brittasorensen · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book tells the true story of a librarian, Alia Muhammad Baker, working with neighbors to move the books in their town's library to save them from being bombed and destroyed. I think any teacher would love this book, as it is all about a woman and community fighting bravely to save books from destruction, risking their own lives to preserve the knowledge and value inside those books. I love how the illustrations convey the setting really well, through the symbols, the buildings, the dress, and the style. I also think the book, both illustrations and text, do a great job of writing from the perspective of a community being bombed and attacked during war. There is little mention of the reason for the war or what is happening globally, but we, as readers, come to understand a little bit of what it is like to be under attack. I think it is a great story about bravery and courage, and a great story to help children think about war in a new way, and to empathize with those living through it.

[dukefan86 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wow, what an interesting story! I'm very impressed by this librarian's dedication and resourcefulness in saving the collection of the library in Basra during this time of fighting and unrest! The illustrations are colorful and illustrate the story well.

[abigailadams26 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The inspiring true story of Alia Muhammed Baker, the chief librarian of Basra's Central Library, whose heroic actions during the invasion of Iraq resulted in the saving of 70% of that institution's treasured holdings, is here retold in picture-book form by Jeanette Winter, whose other biographies for younger readers include Wangari's Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa and My Name Is Georgia. With simple text and bright acrylic illustrations, Winter sets out the amazing tale of Alia's struggle to save the books (one of them a 700-year-old biography of the Prophet Muhammad) entrusted to her care: how, when rumors began to circulate that the war would soon reach Basra, she asked the governor for permission to move the collection; and how, when she was refused, she began moving it in secret herself, enlisting the aid of friends to save some 30,000 volumes.It's difficult to know, sometimes, how best to introduce thorny topics like our military involvement in Iraq to children, but I think The Librarian of Basra is an excellent beginning place. Rather than offering a falsely rosy picture of the invasion on the one hand, one meant to assuage American unease or bolster American propaganda; or a relentlessly brutal portrait of the conflict on the other, one meant to demonize either the Ba'athist regime or the invading forces, this book simply sets out a story of one woman: a civilian, caught up in the madness of war. It demonstrates the painful reality that, in a war-zone, the civilian has no friend, and the interests of "the people" - the preservation of life, and the continuation of culture - must often be safeguarded at great personal risk, and in the face of official opposition.In short: if you're looking for something to make your child feel "good" about our involvement in Iraq (and I can't imagine why you would be), this isn't the book for you. But if you're looking for a book that offers a fairly gentle introduction to a decidedly un-gentle topic, one that also tells an amazing true story, then consider this.

[lalfonso_618548 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the reasons that I loved The Librarian of Basra is because it’s the first time I’d heard of Alia Muhammad Baker. She was a librarian in Basra during the Iraq War. She worried that the town would be bombed and that her library collection would be destroyed. She tried to get help with moving the collection to a safe location, but the authorities seemed unconcerned so she took it upon herself to move the books. She single handedly saved 70% of her library. That equated to over 30,000 books. What a remarkable story! One of the books was 700 years old, remarkable. Some teaching ideas include grades 1-5. I would use this in a social studies classroom for sure. It could even be used to teach and ethics lesson. The illustrations were very colorful and would appeal to children. There is a note from the author at the end that gives readers an update on the progress of Alia and her struggle to get her library rebuilt. There was no indication as to the author’s credibility.

[amoore1_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Alia Muhammad Baker is a proud librarian in Barsa, Iraq. Her people and her books are in danger because of the war. Soon Barsa becomes a storm of fire and everyone in her library runs for shelter, except for Alia who stays to protect the books. She finds other near by business friends who help her safely hide the books in a restaurant. Her library burns down 9 days later. Alia dreams of the end of the war, the beginning of peace, and a new library, but until those things happen she will be sure to continue to protect the books of Barsa. This book is great for young readers because it shows how deeply passionate people can be about books. This might foster their relationship with reading. Also, this story shows the war from Iraq’s perspective. It might be interesting to read and discuss this after learning about 9/11’s affects on America.

[amcantrell · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a great book. I love books that are about other cultures, especially ones that may provoke questions. This is a true story about woman (Alia Muhammad Baker) from Iraq that saves her library from being burned down and hides the books so they are safe. This book, along with others by Jeanette Winter, has great illustrations. This book does not have too advanced vocabulary, but the content would probably be best for older children for a read aloud or such. This would make for a great introduction to learning about other cultures.

[ydraughon_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a true story of Alia Muhammad Baker, a librarian at Basra, Iraq's Central Library. When Iraq is invaded. Alia is concorned that her book will be destroyed. She takes matters into her own hands after the government refused to help, and moves the books to save places.

[andrewjenkins_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the story of a female librarian named Alia in the port city of Basra, who treasures the books of her library. When war breaks out, she requests permission from the governor to move the books to a safe place, but is refused. Alia begins to move the books secretly on her own, but before she can finish, the war reaches Basra, and all but Alia abandon the library. With her friend, owner of a restaurant just across a wall from the library, books are saved. A small group works through the night to wrap, move, and hide them. Nine days later, the library burns to the ground, but the books are safe in the restaurant. When the streets are quiet, Alia moves the books to safer places, waits for peace, and dreams of a new library. While the story of this library of Basra is obviously set in one place and time, I did not feel a strong sense of place in it. The only mention of Basra is on the first page, which reads in full ‘Alia Muhammad Baker is the librarian of Basra, a port city in the sand-swept country of Iraq.’ There is no effort in the writing or illustration to awaken the curiosity or wonder of the reader, or give the setting any kind of character of its own. This book has all the characteristics that I do not like about most of non-fiction picture books. As is typical, it is written in fairly dry language, and little effort has been made to tell a good story, or introduce the setting and characters before plodding through the facts. There has been little effort to draw the imagination of the reader into the story, as though the story being true were good enough. There is no characterization to speak of. Alia is labelled as a librarian, and then we follow her actions to save the books, as though the love of the books and determination to save them is her only personality trait. I did not find the book engaging at all, though I am very sympathetic to the actual events. Perhaps this is partly due to the book being written by an outsider who read a newspaper story about the events, but did not have enough background in the area and culture to bring the story to life. The illustrations also are not bad, but not particularly good, and do not offer anything that is not in the text. They are not in a realistic style, and I cannot comment on their authenticity. The women all wear a headscarf with no hair showing, and loose dresses (showing some ankle); men might be dressed in robes or suits, with or without caps. The governor is shown using a dip pen and an inkwell at his office desk. Notes in the book indicate that the story does not stick closely to the facts (instead of saving all the books in the library, the real librarian could save only about 70 percent, and rather than calmly dreaming of peace after the bombing, she had a stroke). A note on the dust jacket only indicates that some of the proceeds from the sale of the book will go to rebuilding the collection at the Basra central library.The publisher labels this book as being for all ages, but I do not consider it appropriate for my five year old. While the images of war are not graphic, people ask questions like ‘Who among us will die?’ ‘Will our families survive?’, and in three two-page spreads, bombs rain down on a silhouetted city, and flames reach far up into the sky. These are not messages and images I want to expose my son to at his age. He knows that war exists, but I do not want it to be illustrated with bright images in his mind. Despite its overly direct and streamlined style, this book does deal with good subject matter, and can be the basis for many kinds of discussions which are likely to prove more interesting than the book itself. Children can be encouraged to reflect on what they love about libraries, on whether libraries are just the books, or more (and if more, what else is important). It provides them a chance to name what physical things are most important in their lives, and how they would save them if threatened.

[laurenryates · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This little book tells a story about a librarian living in Basra, Iran during the time of the war. Alia, the librarian, was the head librarian and heard rumors of the war starting. She asked the government for permission to move the books, but she was denied. So every night, Alia would take books home to save them. She enlisted the help of a neighbor, who owned a restaurant next door. He put many books inside his restaurant. Because of their bravery, they saved seventy percent of the books in the library. There is an author's note at the end that tells how the author stumbled upon this story eating at the restaurant where the books had been held. This book was excellent for children to read and be introduced to the war.

[kathdavis54 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a wonderful tale of bravery, books, and friendship. When the library of Basra is threatened, the librarian and her friends safely transport the books and keep them safe. This book is a great way to show students the perspective of someone on the other side of the world.

[rosesaurora · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When the library of Basra is threatened by an impending war, a very dedicated librarian defies authority to save the precious literature from destruction. The book ends with no real conclusion since the war rages on--the books are kept hidden indefinitely--which was just an amazing way to 'not' finish the story and emphasize the the point of the story.

[michelle_bales_6 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the story of Alia, a librarian in Basra, Iraq, who is passionate about saving the books in her library from the ravages of war. This is a story of civil disobedience and people coming together in a community in Iraq.

[scnelson_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a story about saving a library from the destruction of war, something that has plagued civilization since ancient times. This is a book that shows a cross-cultural love of books and knowledge, and an act of personal strength and sacrifice that allows for the continuation of those things. It is not only lives that are lost in war, but pieces of culture and history that are destroyed as well. This librarian takes matters in her own hands and makes sure this little piece of her people and culture will not fall victim to bombs.

[kimberly5danielle · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Winter's book, The Librarian of Basra: A True story from Iraq, centers around Aaliyah, the librarian of the Iraqi town of Basra. This nonfiction, picture book flows with Aaliyah's passion for the town's library and its books. Rumors of war float around Basra. Various members of the community meet at the library to discuss these rumors. Soon, the rumors become truth. Aaliyah asks for permission to save the library, but the governor denies her request. She secretly removes the books to her home. She eventually enlists the help of the community in protecting the books before a fire destroys the library. This book introduces audiences to a positive, passionate view of life in Iraq, civil disobedience, community action, and an untold version of life in a war zone.

[mrcmyoung · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A librarian in Iraq moves all of the books out of her library when the U.S. comes to bomb her country. A story of a woman who ignores what is allowed to do what is right, Librarian of Basra can be used to teach the value of books, the human face of war, and the power of passion. I can imagine asking students to write about what they would save from their homes if they new they were about to be destroyed.

[jmmott · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A tale of a librarian named Alia who secretly removed books from the library in Basra in order to save them from the war. A book that could be used to introduce the concepts of war to younger students, or as a way to provide a different perspective to a history class for older students. Provides a perspective of the impact of war on the civilian populace rather than the experiences of the soldiers. A particularly nice feature of the book was the strong female lead character as often there are books of feats accomplished by men that are readily available for classroom use, while the experiences of women are not always portrayed as important. Alia tried to follow the rules to get approval to save the library books, but when the decisions made by the establishment would not protect the library she took matters into her own hands.

[cdrake_36 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very good story about a woman struggling against social norms in Iraq whose passion drives her to secretly remove 30,000 books from the library to stash and protect them in her home.

[abbrown1_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book tells the story of a Iranian librarian who, much like everyone one else in her society, fears the war and the toll it will have on the world she has come to know and love, specifically the books. She courageously acts on her passion for books by rescuing them and preserving the history and culture that books hold. This book brings humanity and hope to the idea of war. It makes for a compelling story that could be read as simply as it is written or investigated further for the many complexities at work in the story.

[kmcinern · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Because this book deals with a variety of topics, it allows itself to be used in the introduction to multiple subjects. For example, the text would be an interesting introduction to a lesson on current events, cultural diversity, or appreciation of the arts. The text of the book focuses on an Iraqi librarian who takes action to protect her library books as the violence of war breaks out around her. It also illustrates teamwork as the librarian solicits help from her restaurant owner neighbor and perseverance as she is determined to save the books at all costs.

[chloepalmer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The LIbrarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq is about Alia, the librarian of Basra who saves 30,000 books from ruin during the ongoing Iraq War by taking each one to her house, her friends' houses, and even a restaurant. The book presents a rare perception of war, perfectly hopeful and sad simultaneously. I would use this book to introduce themes on war, books, libraries, etc. It would be very useful to show students a relatable, positive figure from the Middle East.

[mattraygun_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a charming book about a librarian who takes her care of her library into her own hands when war threatens her town. Her care of her books is heartfelt and immediate. This book is good for showing a bitter reality of war and perhaps some hope.

[dayehsensei · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A deep, compelling story based on the true story of Alia, the Iraqi librarian, and her amazing crusade to save her collection of books from harm. Young students will sympathize with Alia and feel the sorrows of war-- all the while celebrating the joy and importance of books. This is a great book to combine with a nonfiction text; this also teaches students about the perils of war without being overly preachy.