Cooney, Caroline B.
DIAMONDS IN THE SHADOW
New York : Delacorte, 2007
IL YA
ISBN 0385732619

(2 booktalks)

Jared’s church is sponsoring a family from Africa, refugees from the civil wars raging there. When he finds out that they must stay with Jared’s family temporarily instead of going to an apartment, Jared is furious. Now he must share his room, his home, even his friends; and Jared does not share well. When they pick the Africans up at the airport, things do not seem right. As days pass, Jared senses that this family is not who they seem to be. What are these people really doing in America?  (Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Awards Program, 2009-2010)

Booktalk #2

If you are looking for the type of book you can't put down once you start reading it, Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney is the book for you. This is the fiction story of an American family and four refugees from Africa. When Jared's family volunteered to provide housing for four African refugees until housing could be found for them, he was not thrilled about sharing his room or his life with a stranger. As the story unfolds, we learn more about the refugees, what their lives were like in Africa, and their reactions to American culture.  However, the four refugees and Jared's family are not safe…danger is lurking in the shadows. If you want to know what happens to Jared, his family, and the four refugees read Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney. (Joy Harvey, jpainte@lps.org. Librarian)