Mainlinebooker's Reviews > North to Paradise

The definition of courage: "the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery." Never has this meaning been more apt when viewing the difficulties that our young narrator faced as he made his heroic journey from Ghana to Algeria to Libya and finally to Spain.This 12 year old had a dream of going to the "white man's land" where he thought Paradise could be located. The resilience of this young man is unlike any other story that I have read. He spent 5 years trying to attain his dream through a long stint in the Sahara where few survived when abandoned by smugglers, attempted rape, beatings and robberies. Indeed, reading the horrific events he went through, I could not even conjure anyone surviving this ordeal. When he finally arrived in Spain, lost and alone, he miraculously befriended a couple who assisted him in unimaginable ways. He proudly went on to get an education (he only had 2 years of schooling),learned a new language, went to university and graduate school and founded an organization, Nasco Feeding Minds, where he helped to increase the education of school age children in Ghana so that they never had to go through the vicissitudes he experienced. What a gutsy, tenacious and determined young man. What an honor it would be to meet him; he could teach us all life lessons.

Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to report an unbiased review.